"You..." (Part 1)

1st Samuel 3.13 “The Message”

“I’m letting him know that the time’s up. I'm bringing judgment on his family for good. He knew what was going on, that his sons were desecrating God’s name and God’s place, and he did nothing to stop them.”

I’m intrigued with the account of Jesus’ miraculous feeding of five thousand people.

The disciples prodded Jesus to send the crowds away after a long day of healing and preaching so that “they could buy themselves something to eat” (Mark 6.36 RSV). The Master’s matter-of-fact response recorded in all three Synoptic Gospels surprised his followers then just as it does me now…

“You give them something to eat.”
Matthew 14.16; Mark 6.37; Luke 9.13

Jesus made His disciples responsible for feeding the hungry crowd and He makes me fully responsible for the role I must play in the drama of living out my Christian faith. This divine expectation is exactly what distinguishes my existence before and after Christ. Before I knew Him, God expected little of me. Now that I am a disciple of Christ, I must “give them something to eat.”

I have no idea how to fulfill God’s expectation of me. That I am willing to perform His will may be more important than how I do it. He will show me how when I step into the arena of faith and face my lions of fear and doubt. Jesus will do for me just as He did for his first disciples on the day 5,000 were fed.

Eli knew his sons were misbehaving. He was fully aware of their crimes of theft and rape, yet “he did nothing to stop them.” Eli may have truthfully complained, ‘I don’t how to stop them.’ But Eli could have saved his sons lives by taking bold restraining action. He should have insisted they desist from their sins. He might have risked their wrath by standing in their way when these boys wanted their own self-centered way. That was his role as their father. Had he mustered the guts to force the issue, Eli could have fulfilled God’s will and witnessed His miraculous power. Instead, he nagged his boys without enforcing consequences, a practice to which his sons responded in a predictable manner: “They would not listen to the voice of their father” (1st Samuel 2.25 NASU).

Eli’s opportunity was no different than the disciples of Jesus or mine...

Eli: ‘My sons are out the control.’

God: ‘You control them.’

Disciples: ‘The people are hungry.’

Jesus: “You give them something to eat.”

Me: (What needs to happen. Fill in the blank.)

God: ‘You do what needs to happen.’

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"Bread and Fish" created by Mark A. Hicks, illustrator. Clip art licensed from the Clip Art Gallery on http://www.discoveryschool.com/.