You're listening to the Christ Our Cornerstone
podcast, a ministry of Christ Our Cornerstone
Church in O 'Neill, Nebraska. I'm Pastor Logan
Merrick, and it's our prayer that this message
strengthens your faith and draws you closer to
Christ. Let's dive in. Good morning. Good to
see you all. Got some stuff to unpack in the
Book of Marks. If you want to go ahead and turn
there, that would be great. Title my sermon this
morning is feasting in the wilderness Christ
our provider and if you would Put write this
down no Eli if you would bring this up my big
idea is Jesus meets our every need Whether physical
emotional or spiritual and causes to rely on
his abundant provision Now let's do a little
Sunday school fun You guys know I like to ask
questions and have you respond. So let's just
start this way. If I asked you to name a miracle
that Jesus performed, isn't a hard test. Water
and wine. There's a good one. What else? Feeding
the 5 ,000. What was the other one? Walking on
water. Healed the lepers. Raising Lazarus. Good.
Jonah? Jesus performed Jonah? Okay, how about
just the resurrection represents Jonah? How about
that? That was a miracle. Anything else? Kind
of hit them, right? How about there's one that
we unpacked that wasn't said. That's a miracle.
So we had Lazarus. saving the Roman soldier's
daughter that's a good one what's that fig tree
there's another one which is more yeah we're
good that's still a miracle I was thinking when
he healed the man with the legion of demons all
right so the reason why I want us to list out
and just think about We said the feeding of the
5 ,000, which is what we're unpacking this morning,
but the feeding of the 5 ,000 and the resurrection
are the only two miracles that Jesus performed
that are in all four gospels. Those are the only
two. And so, it's important, obviously, that
we understand why the feeding of the 5 ,000 would
be in there, why all of them Matthew, Mark, Luke,
and John, why they would all include the same
story. So why do you think that is? Why do you
think that the resurrection we know why, right?
So the resurrection makes sense on why all four
is their eyewitness account of the greatest miracle,
okay? But why do you think all four would put
the feeding of the 5 ,000 in there? What's that?
Yeah, it is amazing. especially because we're
going to dive in more. And like I was telling
my wife, I go, I didn't realize just how small
this lunch was until I dove in with this. And
there's a couple of other things I learned that
was really cool. But yeah, so it is really amazing.
It's probably more amazing than you guys even
think. But here's the other part of it. And this
is what I want you to write down. I don't have
it up here, but I want you to write this down.
because the feeding of the 5 ,000 reveals who
Jesus really is. What do you mean? It reveals
that he's God. How's that? We're gonna unpack
that in just a second. Let's read it together.
Mark chapter six, starting in verse 30. The apostles
returned to Jesus and told him all they had done
and taught. Where had they gone? I didn't preach
this text, my friend Jason did. Hopefully he
talked like he read the actual passage. What
did they do? They were sent out two by two, right?
Okay, doing everything. Jesus says, go and do
everything that I have shown you that you've
been seeing me do, right? So they come back,
they've done everything they have been taught.
And he said to them, come away by yourselves
to a desolate place. And what does that say?
Rest awhile. For many were coming and going,
and they had no leisure even to eat, and they
went away in the boat to a desolate place by
themselves. Now many saw them going and recognized
them, and they ran on foot from all the towns
and got there ahead of them. When he went ashore,
he saw a great crowd, and he had compassion on
them, because they were like sheep without a
shepherd. and he began to teach them many things.
And when it grew late, his disciples came to
him and said, This is a desolate place, and the
hour is now late. Send them away to go into the
surrounding countryside and villages and buy
themselves something to eat. But he answered
them, You give them something to eat. And they
said, Shall we go and buy 200 denarii worth of
bread and give it to them to eat? By the way,
denarii is just one denarii is a whole month's
worth of wages, just one. So they're like, we're
going to have 200 denarii just to provide for
these people. And he said to them, how many loaves
do you have? Go and see. And when they had, they
found five, five loaves and two fish. Then he
commanded them all to sit down in groups on the
green grass. I want you to highlight green grass.
So they sat down in groups by hundreds and by
fifties. And taking the five loaves and the two
fish, he looked up to heaven and he set a blessing
and he broke the loaves and gave them to the
disciples to give to the people. And he divided
the two fish among them all and they all ate
and were satisfied. And they took up 12 baskets
full of broken pieces of fish. And those who
had ate the loaves were 5 ,000 men. Notice that
it says men, 5 ,000 men. It didn't include women
and children. Were women and children fed, Pastor
Logan? Yes. So how many did he actually feed?
More than likely, they say that the, if you do
the math and you go, Even just at a minimum,
there was 20 ,000 people there. 20 ,000 people,
and we have a Happy Meal from Runza. By the way,
if you've never gotten a kids' meal at Runza,
this is... I got two chicken finger, or I got
a chicken finger kids' meal from Runza, and you
get a cup that's about that big, you get some
fries, that's about that much. And you get two
tiny little chicken fingers. And that's all I
could think about was that meal. And I'm like,
Jesus, please do something with this. All right.
So where does this take place? Where do we read?
How did it describe the place they were in? Desolate,
right? So it says that they withdrew to a desolate
place and what are they going to do? Jesus is
saying, hey, we've got to draw, I'm gonna draw
you all away so you can rest, right? But what
you need to know is this isn't like, this isn't
a desert. Where they're at is not a desert. How
do we know that? It says it's green grass. It's
springtime and there's green grass. But so what
does that tell you if it says desolate, but it's
not a desert, what does it tell you? Yeah, there's
nothing around, right? They're in a very small
secluded place somewhere in Galilee. So why though
does Mark emphasize desolate place? Because what
he's doing is he's wanting us to travel backwards
in our mind. He's wanting us to travel backwards
to a specific time because he hits on multiple
things that we probably have never picked up
on I hadn't until I got ready to preach this,
and it just was like, oh my Lord, it's right
there in front of me this entire time. So there
was another time when God's people were gathered
in a desolate place. When was that? In the Exodus.
So now do you see it kind of looks kind of familiar,
paralleled, right? You've got a bunch of people
in a desolate place. And Jesus is doing what?
He's gonna feed them miraculously, right? How
did God feed the children of Israel? With miracle
bread, right? Manna. Manna means what is it?
They didn't know. So it's this miracle bread
that God gives them every day and provides for
them. And so back to Israel in the wilderness
is where we're supposed to go. And so back to
a people who had no food, no resources, and no
way to provide for themselves. And what did God
do? Every morning, as I said, He gave manna from
heaven. He provided bread in the wilderness.
He provided meat through birds. And day after
day, meal after meal, God demonstrated that He
alone was their provider. So now Mark is showing
us another crowd in another wilderness like setting
Once again, their need is big and once again
They have inadequate resources and once again,
there's no human solution But once again God
provides So except this time the bread didn't
fall from heaven This time, the provider is literally
standing there with them. I mean, just pause
for a moment. I want you to just be in my brain
for a second, which is a scary place to be, I
know. But if you are a disciple, if you are one
of the children of Israel, it tells us, by the
way, that the disciples still didn't get it.
They still didn't, they still didn't catch what
they're supposed to catch. What is it? I'm going
to tell you in just a minute. But could you imagine
hearing the stories, these ancient stories about
manna appearing and their shoes not wearing out,
their clothes not wearing out. You hear these
things all the time. That is, that is your people's
history. And then the one who did it is now standing
in front of you and he shows you this mirror,
like. Crazy, right? Like what an incredible,
incredible thing. And so if that connection of
Exodus wasn't enough, Mark tells us that they
sat down on green grass. Does that bring anything
to your minds? Psalm 23. The Lord is my shepherd.
I shall not. He makes me lie down and Jesus had
them do what? Sit down and I'm gonna provide
for you. So the crowd doesn't fully understand
what they're seeing and the disciples certainly
don't fully understand what they're seeing but
Mark wants us to understand that the shepherd
had come and the provider has come and so. The
God who fed His people in the wilderness is standing
before them in the person of Jesus Christ. And
that's why this miracle matters so much, because
it reminds us that no matter where we find ourselves,
whether weary, whether confused, whether broken,
whether fearful or uncertain, Christ is never
too busy, too tired, or too overwhelmed to look
upon His people with compassion and provide exactly
what they need. The question is not whether Christ
is able to provide, the question is whether we
will look to him and trust him. And so let's
look at the three ways in which Christ provides
for his people. If you're taking notes, here's
my first point. Christ provides rest for the
weary. Christ provides rest for the weary. So
notice where the story begins, right? The disciples
have just returned from their missionary journey.
How many of you guys have been on a mission strip?
I don't know if I've ever asked this before,
so we know you guys just got back from one, right?
So how many of you guys have ever been on one
that's like taking you really far away? How many
of you guys have ever been on one where you saw
some pretty incredible stuff, like God do some
pretty incredible things? How many of you guys
were like, you will not believe what I saw whenever
you got back? My man in the back. So like. There's
something about going and doing a missions thing
for Jesus and you want to share about it, right?
Now think about this. Here's the disciples have
been gone a minimum of two weeks, but more likely
they were gone for a month. What was the rules?
What did Jesus tell them that they could not
bring with them? No food? No clothing? But they
couldn't, they weren't naked, but right, no extra,
right? No money. So what could they have? You
remember? They could have staff. And they could
have only one tunic, two tunics. So most of the
time you wear two tunics because one of them
you can either give in case somebody needs it,
right? But also a second tunic. And I only learned
this because I wrote a paper on it. A second
tunic was used as like a weapon. So you have
a staff and then you could use the other way,
the other tunic as a way to kind of be Mr. Jujitsu
and disarm someone. So that's, so essentially
Jesus is like, you're able to protect yourself,
but you're going to depend on me for everything.
So they take no money, no food, right? No extra
clothing, no bag. It's just them and a brother.
and they go out right what does it say that they
did they perform miracles they cast out demons
right and they brought the kingdom to earth right
if you were doing those things and it was just
you and your spouse or you and a friend and you
went out and did these things, and then you all
came back together, what do you think dinner
that night's gonna be like? Like, if all of us
all just came back here, right, we all split
up and went different places, we share the gospel,
we see all types of crazy things, we would all
be fighting, like this place would be so loud
right now, right, we would all be fighting to
try to tell our stories, right? So they're jacked
up, and you know that John is like, Peter, you
will not believe what we saw. And then Peter's
like, shut up, John. Let me tell you about this,
right? You have no idea what I saw, right? They're
going back and forth, and they're really jacked
up with excitement, right? So why does that matter?
Because it doesn't say that the disciples were
the ones that said they needed to rest. Who said
it? Jesus. Jesus looks and he's like, guys, I
love that you're excited. And he's probably like
a proud dad, right? I can't wait to hear all
your stories. Can't wait for you guys all share
it. But here's the thing, you're tired and you
don't even know it. Come on, let's go away. Let's
go to a desolate place. So write this down. Jesus
identifies their need before they do. The shepherd
sees their weariness before they recognize it
in themselves. Parents, grandparents, we understand
this, right? Christy, how do you know when Ransom
needs a nap? He won't stop crying, right? And
does he want to take a nap? No. But in the goodness
of who you are as his mom knowing what's good
for him you say lay down Right and we have to
force them right sometimes You guys know I'm
talking about right our kids our grandkids. They
melt down. They don't even realize they're tired
and And we have to say no you need to eat something
and you need to you need to rest Right Jesus
does the same thing with us and he's doing that
right here No matter how much a child protests,
no matter how much a child argues, the child
may insist that they're fine, but because we
are loving parents, we force them to rest. So
long before the disciples hit the wall, Jesus
is already leading them towards rest. Now, could
I be reading into this a little bit? Yes, sure.
Absolutely. Perhaps. But here's what I need you
to know from the text and from my own experience.
I want you to write this down. Jesus is the only
one who provides a rest that actually satisfies.
When I shared that I was burnt out on ministry,
my wife was the only one at the time seeing it
in me and telling me I needed to slow down. I
could feel the Lord telling me, but at the same
time I was telling myself that can't be the Lord
because I'm doing the Lord's work. And so the
Lord was speaking through my wife going, you
need to slow down and you need to rest. And I'm
like, nah. But when he finally let me hit the
wall, because he's willing to let us get there,
when he let me hit the wall, and then I looked
around and like, oh man, like my soul was dry.
My emotions were drained. Yeah. And then I had
to go back to the well that is him. So Jesus
is the only one who provides a rest that actually
satisfies. There isn't a vacation in this world
that can remove every burden from your heart.
There isn't a massage, a hobby, a getaway, or
a day off that can quiet every fear about your
future. Those things have their place and they
are good, but they cannot touch the deepest weariness
of the soul. Only Christ can do that. And notice
how he provides it. He intends to have physical
rest. But did they get that rest, by the way?
Nope. When the crowds arrive, Jesus doesn't simply
dismiss them. Mark says that he looked upon them
with compassion because they were like sheep
without a shepherd and he began to teach them
many things. Jesus understands that our deepest
exhaustion is not just merely physical though.
That's why he begins to teach them, even the
disciples. Sometimes what our hearts need most
is to hear the voice of the shepherd. Sometimes
what our hearts need is just to sit. And as my
wife would say, do you need to hear the voice
of the Lord? Then read this out loud. You hear
the voice of the Lord? Read it out loud. Jesus
doesn't merely meet physical needs, He addresses
the deeper longings of our heart and He provides
direction for the confused, purpose for the wandering,
and peace for the anxious. Church, some of us
spend our lives trying to remove every limitation
from our path, but what if those limitations
are actually gifts from God? What if that closed
door, that weakness, that setback, that season
of waiting isn't merely an obstacle? What if
it's... a shepherd slowing you down because he
knows you better than you do. Here's what I'm
trying to say in that, because I don't think
that that connected well. There have been times
in my life where I've been frustrated that Tracy
and I haven't had the money to do something or
that there were times when we had little kids
that we were not able to do certain things that
I really felt like we should do. And I would
get so angry. And one of the things that my wife
would say that I thought was always so good was
that limitations are placed there by God for
him to go stop, chill, rest. So limitations can
be anything from maybe there's a talent that
you don't have that you wish that you had. God's
like, no, you need to have that limitation. Maybe
it's your current situation and season that you're
in. This is God saying, you need to rest. Limitations
are not bad things. You can write this down,
because this is exactly my wife's quote. Our
limitations can be very good things placed there
by God to force us to stay, stop, or rest. And
you know what, she's right. We are often frustrated
by the very things God is using to shepherd us.
So before you ask God to remove a limitation
in your life, consider the possibility. Maybe
the good shepherd has allowed it because he loves
you. Maybe he sees a weariness that you haven't
yet recognized. Maybe he is leading you beside
still waters. Maybe he is making you lie down
in green pastures. And maybe what feels like
an interruption is actually an act of compassion
from the shepherd who knows exactly what the
sheep need. It brings us to point number two.
Christ provides truth for the wondering. So imagine
the scene, all right, so Jesus is like, hey,
you guys are tired, let's go off to a desolate
place, we're gonna rest. And as they push out,
they're like the Beatles, man. before the Beatles.
They go out on this boat. You know that all the
people are like, there they are. And then they're
like, I see where they're going. We can get there
this way, right? So then everybody's like, yep,
yep, we're still tracking. We're still tracking.
And then they get to the other side and they're
all just like, hi, right? So. It had to have
been a hilarious kind of scene where the disciples
were like, well, and Jesus was like, well. So
they've been ministering for weeks and Jesus
has this compassion on him. He says they're like
sheep without a shepherd. That imagery, sheep
without a shepherd should be striking because
it's actually said it's used. with Old Testament
imagery for a reason. Because throughout Israel's
history, God's people had suffered under bad
shepherds. The prophets repeatedly condemned
leaders who cared more about themselves than
the flock. They fed themselves while they neglected
God's people. They used their positions for power
instead of service. And the people knew what
it was like to be spiritually malnourished, and
they knew what it was like to be misled. So here
is Jesus as he steps onto shore as the good shepherd.
He notices what they need first. He doesn't feed
them. He teaches them. Mark says he began to
teach them many things. Luke tells us what he
was actually speaking to them about and what
was God's kingdom, the kingdom of God. So why
does he start there? Because Jesus understood
that their greatest need wasn't food. It was
that they needed truth Write this down for me
and I'll let you guys I know it's three lines.
So I'll let you guys Have some time before their
stomachs were empty their souls were empty Before
they needed bread they needed a shepherd And
before they needed a miracle they needed a message
of the kingdom This is still true today, yes?
We live in a world overflowing with information,
but we're starving for truth. Everyone has an
opinion, everyone has advice, everyone has a
platform and a YouTube channel, yet people are
more anxious than ever, they're more confused
than ever, and they're more directionless than
ever. Why? How can we be swimming in information
and yet still be the most anxious generation?
Yeah, we're absent from the truth. We don't know
the shepherd. We don't know the shepherd's voice.
We don't need more information. We don't need
better information. We need the voice of the
shepherd. We need someone who can tell us who
God is, who we are, why we're here, and where
hope is found. That is exactly what Jesus provides.
Notice something beautiful about Christ's compassion.
He doesn't separate spiritual needs from physical
needs. Sometimes we act as though people are
only bodies. Other times we act as if though
people are only souls when Jesus cares for both.
He teaches them that because their souls need
truth, He heals them because they are suffering.
And in a moment, He will feed them because their
bodies need food. So the Good Shepherd cares
for the whole person. And that's good news because
whatever burden you brought into the room today,
Jesus is not indifferent to it. The confusion,
the grief, the anxiety, the uncertainty, questions
you've carried for years. He sees them all. He
feels compassion and he speaks truth to it. But
then as he speaks the truth and he shares this
teaching, the day continues to wear on and the
physical part of who they are begins to come
through. So what happens? You guys know the story,
right? What did he do? He feeds them. So third
point is just that. Christ provides food for
the wanting. So stay with me on this one. So
by now the disciples have noticed a problem.
The day is getting late, the crowd is getting
hungry, and unlike us, there isn't a case he's
down the road. So. They're in this remote place,
and as the disciples look around, they see a
legitimate need, and to their credit, they want
to care for the people. This is them showing
compassion to the people and to themselves. So
what do they say? We need to send them away to
find food. How does Jesus respond? You feed them.
And you know that they looked at each other and
was like, Jesus. Come on, bro. You think we're
hiding food somewhere, right? That's like whenever
I tell my kids when they're like, dad, we're
hungry. Well, find something to eat. I don't
have any money. Figure it out. You know that
they're like, how are we supposed to do this?
And John tells us actually, in the Gospel of
John, he tells us that Jesus said this because
he was testing them. His disciples see the need,
his disciples have compassion, but they still
haven't fully grasped who is standing in front
of them. Write this down. They are looking at
the size of the crowd, and Jesus is looking at
the size of their faith. They are calculating
resources, and Jesus is revealing his identity.
Brothers and sisters, how often have you been
like the disciples? You're looking at what's
practically in front of you and going, there's
no way this is gonna happen. And Jesus is like,
I'm sorry, are you not my kid? So we tend to
look at the size of the problem and Jesus reminds
us of the size of who he is. We count what we
don't have and Jesus points us to what He can
do. We focus on scarcity, and Jesus specializes
in abundance. Eventually they discover a little
boy carrying a simple lunch. Five loaves and
two fish. So, here's what Bible software does
for you. Those five loaves, and maybe I'm just
a goofball, When I was telling my wife and kids
this they were like well dad Yeah, it just seemed
logical because it's for a little boy, but I
hear five loaves of bread Does anybody else think
five loaves of bread? So yeah, just just you
okay, just me and Theo then all right Theo at
least we're on the same page I just think five
loaves of bread. I'm like that's a lot of bread
for a little kid All right, so his mom packed
him But those those loaves were actually biscuits
So he had five biscuits, and he has two, what
would essentially be like sardines for us. I'm
sitting here thinking like dude's got two large
mouth bass he's carrying along, and he's got
two sardines because it's just pickled fish.
That's what he would eat, pickled fish. So they're
like. Anybody got food? And the little boy's
like, I mean, so just to let you guys in on how
this looks in my head, Eli, can you bring up
that there should be a picture in there? I asked
AI to recreate this for me. This is what I think
in my mind happened. Little boy's like, I didn't
bring enough for everyone, and Jesus is like,
no problem, let me show you something really
cool. He's Jewish, he's got curly, we'll talk
about that later. So, hardly this is enough for
20 ,000 people and you know that they're all
like, that's all we got Jesus and Jesus is like
perfect, right? So, before the miracle begins,
Mark gives us a very interesting detail. Jesus
has all the people sit in groups of green grass.
Again, going back to Psalm 23, so here he is,
the Lord is my shepherd, I shall want for nothing.
and he makes me lie down in green pastures."
Once again, Mark is reminding us who Jesus is.
The shepherd caring for his flock. Then Jesus
takes the bread, he gives thanks, and he breaks
it. What does that sound like? In the future,
he's going to do that again, right? So they've
got this disciples are now acting as waiters,
right? They're taking food. Jesus is like, cooking
in the kitchen, sending it out, grabbing the
food, taking it to all these people, trip after
trip after trip after trip after trip after trip
after trip. Here's something that's really stinking
cool though. John McArthur points this out in
his commentary on this, because I'm like, man,
it's just like taking little bits of a sardine
and somehow making it. He wasn't doing what I
used to do when I was a youth pastor. We've done
it on Wednesday nights. Vicki knows what I'm
talking about. When we cut the pieces of pizza
into smaller pieces. Sometimes my wife will do
that with me and she'll put it on a smaller plate
to make me think that there's more there. Jesus
wasn't doing that. I'm like, what is going on?
John MacArthur goes, The creator is creating.
He was literally creating food again. Making
something from... He isn't stretching the food.
He's literally making it. So you can write that
down. The creator is creating. There should be
a point right there, Eli. The one through whom
all things were made. The same God who spoke
the stars into existence is speaking lunch into
existence. John chapter 1 tells us that, right?
Through Him were all things made, including a
lunch. The same God who provided manna in the
wilderness is once again providing bread for
His people. The crowd may not fully understand
what they're witnessing, but Mark wants us to
understand. This is not merely a miracle worker,
this is the Creator standing in the wilderness
providing for his people. And then we are told
that everyone ate and was satisfied. Everyone
ate their fill. Everyone was satisfied. But what
else is it? What is another detail that we learn
in there? Everyone eats and was satisfied, which,
by the way, that that word satisfied literally
means satisfied. They could not eat anymore.
So what's the other detail? There were leftovers
and do they just let the leftovers go to waste?
No, they gather them up. How many leftovers of
baskets were there? Man, is that not a crazy
number? 12 baskets What are we learning? What
is Jesus saying in that moment? He provided he
looked at the disciples and goes hey fellas,
I haven't forgot about you either Because you
know there was somebody like Judas or Logan Mare
could have been like, okay, we're feeding everybody
else. We ain't feeding me. So Jesus in effect
is saying, I didn't forget about you either.
The shepherd feeds the crowd and the shepherd
feeds his under shepherds. But brothers and sisters,
here's the tragedy of it all. Many of these same
people would later walk away from Jesus. We find
that out. in the other gospels. In John chapter
6, after receiving miracle bread, many of these
followers abandoned him because they wanted the
gifts more than the giver. They wanted a king
who would provide free lunches. They did not
want a savior who demanded repentance and faith.
Because remember, he preached the kingdom before
he fed them. Yet when the crowds left, Jesus
turns to his disciples And he asked, what? We
had that as our verse of the week, right? What
does he ask him? Are you going to go too? And
Peter responds with one of the greatest confessions
in all of scripture, Lord, where shall we go?
You have the words of eternal life. Peter didn't
understand everything yet. We know this because
if you keep going to when Jesus walks on water,
It says, they did not fully understand, but he
understood though, you can write this down, the
bread was never the point. The miracle was never
the destination. The food was meant to point
them to the one who truly satisfies, the bread
of life. Church, Jesus refused to be a permanent
source of free meals, but he gladly became the
eternal source of life. The bread fed them for
a day, but Christ satisfies us forever. And as
we close, I want us to follow the example of
our shepherd. Here's what I mean by that. I love
what we do on Wednesday nights. I love coming
here and seeing all the kids that are here. I
love the fact that Vicki and Anita are in the
back. cooking food and I love to see the little
chubby Hispanic boy that makes like six, what's
his name? Steven. You know, he makes his way
up there multiple times, right? He's probably,
if he could, he would probably line his pockets
with tin foil and shove extra pizza and everything
in there. I love that we do that. I love that
Doug and Scott and the Janssings and Christie
and all of you guys, I love that you feed them
spiritually. That's fantastic. I love to see
the guys here providing security and seeing Trudy
helping with all the things like I love all of
that. That is serving our community. Here's the
thing. I don't want it just to stop and it just
in there. I don't want it to just be a Wednesday
night thing. How do we meet the needs of our
community outside of just a Wednesday night?
So here's what I want to offer you. What would
happen if we carried the same mindset of a Wednesday
night of feeding, meeting a physical need, and
also sharing the gospel to provide for a spiritual
need? Could your dinner table become a place
where lost people are welcome? Could your lunch
break become an opportunity to bless a co -worker?
Could your home become a place where people experience
both hospitality and the hope of the gospel?
Because Christ is still performing miracles,
amen? And the biggest one being salvation. So
my question to you is this, and my challenge
to you is this, as we close this up. All of you
guys here, and sometimes it's about different
seasons of life. I'm aware of that too. Some
of you are here and you need Jesus to be the
one ministering to you right now. Your cup is
low and you need the church and for Jesus to
minister to you to fill your cup. others of you
guys have your cups overflowing and are not doing
anything with it. So my challenge for you is
this, if you are the one that's in the season
of I need my cup filled, then I want to pray
with you. And I would request that you would
let us know as the church how we can help in
love on you. Because you cannot do what I'm about
to say next for the challenge if you don't have
a filled cup, right? So then the others of you
who have a filled cup, here's what I'm gonna
ask. I want you to one time a month, one time
a month, invite someone into your home, preferably
someone that's not a believer, for a meal. And
I want you to have an intentional conversation
with them. Now it doesn't mean that you got to
be like get saved or you pay for the meal you
just ate right like we're not saying that right,
but I Mean my wife will tell you we've got stories
like we've had people into our home who we didn't
really know at all that I invited over And it
was awkward There were awkward meals and just
doing everything you can to kind of fill the
silence but ultimately We got to have some conversations
And it was stretching for us, and it was good
for them to be fed physically and to also be
met with a need spiritually. And so I want to
challenge you guys just one time a month. Do
that and see what kind of miracles God performs.
Let's pray.