How Much Do You Have? Jesus' Spontaneous Meal for 4,000

Introduction

This message is the fourth in the series "Meals with Jesus" at Église SOS Lyon. The week before, it was about a scandalous meal. This time, Matt Marvane talks about a spontaneous meal. To introduce it, he tells about the house where he grew up: a house where there were very often people around. Friends passing through, people welcomed for a few days, a few weeks, a few months, sometimes a few years. If he adds it all up, he shared his room for years, cumulatively. The last person he shared it with, for two years, was a young man who had arrived from Benin; they went off to study together at Bible school in England and today are like two brothers.

On some evenings of December 24th, just before the meal, his father would go into the streets to find a few people who lived there and bring them home to eat with the family. The kids always waited for that moment: who's going to show up at the house this time? He remembers two punks whose haircuts he spent the whole evening staring at. They were offered the meal, a good shower, new clothes. That place was called "the house of happiness." What he still admires today about his parents is the spontaneity and simplicity of their hospitality: when there was enough for 5, there was enough for 6; when there was enough for 6, there was enough for 7. The table had multiple leaves, and sometimes another table was added in the kitchen. It's still the case today: if you show up at his parents' house, there will always be a chair waiting for you and a meal, probably simple, but you'll be welcomed and loved.

The meal this message is about doesn't add one or two guests to the table, but more than 4,000: at least 4,000 men, not counting women and children. The text is found in the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 15, starting at verse 32.

Outline of the Message

1. Jesus clearly says what he feels: "I am moved with compassion"

• In this text, Jesus wants his disciples to know what he feels for the crowd. It's not a coded message: it's clear, precise, direct. "I am moved with compassion." Jesus felt no embarrassment expressing and sharing his emotions. Feeling something is one thing; sharing what you feel is another.
• To be moved with compassion is to be gripped in your gut, in your inner being, stirred up, unable to stay indifferent to what you see. Jesus wants to meet a perfectly normal need: this crowd is hungry. For several days they've been hanging on his words, and apparently hadn't planned enough to eat.
• Of all the feelings that moved Jesus, compassion is the one most often mentioned in the Gospels: at least nine times, it's said that Jesus felt compassion.
• Our God is a God of compassion, a God of love, a God who feels. He is not a statue of stone or wood. He is alive and he has feelings. Even if you don't know Jesus today, he feels compassion for you. Whether or not you choose to receive his love, he will keep loving you, because that's his nature.
• Physical hunger is not acceptable to Jesus. It's not normal for this crowd to go hungry while listening to him, and he won't accept it. He also knows there's a risk: these people aren't from around here, they've come a long way, from a mountainous region, and he absolutely does not want to send them back with empty stomachs.
• Matt Marvane remembers his grandmother, in Besançon (the family lived in Dijon): before every departure, she'd make him a little sandwich for the road. It became a running joke. He wasn't going to starve, but grandma always made the little sandwich. Love, compassion.

2. Two meals, two stories: the 5,000 and the 4,000

• We know a very similar story that happened just before: Jesus addresses a crowd of Jews, 5,000 people, with five loaves and two fish. These really are two different stories. Here, there are 4,000 people, seven loaves, and a few small fish.
• Above all, the context is different. The first time, Jesus is speaking to a Jewish people. Here, it's a non-Jewish, pagan people, without that religious background. The Gospel of Mark tells us: Jesus was in the region of the Decapolis, east of the Sea of Galilee, an area mostly inhabited by pagans (Mark 7:31).
• What should catch our attention: Jesus wants something. He wants this entire crowd to be fed before they leave. He knows he's going to send them away in a few hours, since it's the end of the three days, but he insists that everyone be fed before going home. And in this plan, he intends to involve his disciples, just like last time.
• When Jesus wants something, he always gets it. He will do everything to give you, make known to you, let you live out what he has planned for you. He wants to feed you, make his greatness known to you, invite you once more to his table. That's his desire.

3. The disciples' question: "How are we going to do this?"

• The disciples ask the question we all ask ourselves when facing the challenges of our lives: how are we going to do this? How do you find food in such a deserted place, and in enough quantity for thousands of people? Their reaction is entirely normal, entirely human.
• How would you have reacted if you'd been one of the twelve? "No worries, we've got this, we've seen it once, we can do it twice." Or rather: "You know what, with your ideas of feeding thousands of people when we have nothing to eat ourselves, this time you're on your own. These are your plans, not ours. We're tired too, we're hungry too, we've been here three days." You could find yourself on either side.
• This question comes up regularly in our daily lives: how do I do this? I'm so limited, my resources are limited, I don't have much available to me. How do I welcome one more person into my home? How do I open my house one more time, take in two unexpected people? There's no room, the budget is tight, all that's left is one packet of pasta.
• In the Marvane household, they lived very modestly, but there was always room for whoever came. When there's enough for 5, there's enough for 6. And if the 5th or 4th has to share a bit of their plate, they'll learn to share too. There's always enough, when you're willing.
• Good news: faced with the question "how do I do this?", Jesus always has an answer. He doesn't always answer the way we'd like, not always in the way we'd think is right, not always with the solution we'd have chosen, but he always answers. You just have to be listening for his answer.

4. Jesus' answer: "How much do you have?"

• As he likes to do, Jesus answers with another question. It's a bit of his signature move in the Gospels: when someone asks him a question, he asks another one back. Here, he does the same thing with his disciples.
• You and I are often fixated on the how. And when we ask ourselves that question so much, we can no longer even hear the answer. All we can hear is "how? how?" That "how" leads us into a state of anxiety, almost an altered state: it's panic.
• Many people came that day with their own "hows": how am I going to make it through, find meaning in my life, get through the month, build my life, build new relationships. Listen to what Jesus is telling you: you're saying "how?"; he's asking you "how much do you have? What do you have?" That's the question he asks his disciples: how many loaves do you have? What is in your possession?
• You might think he's asking the wrong question, or even mocking them: "You know very well we have nothing, that we could never feed this crowd." But Jesus isn't and never will be limited, he can do whatever he wants. He simply wants to teach us what matters. And what matters isn't the size of the need, it isn't the height of the mountain you see: it's what you have in your hands.
• Everything is possible for Jesus Christ, absolutely everything. He wants to bring us into this way of thinking: not being led by what we see, but recognizing and honoring God for what we've already received from him.
• God caused manna to fall from heaven; he sent quail. He could have done it a second time. He created the world alone, without needing us. He could have done this alone too, but he chose to do it differently. That's where we need to recognize the grace and the privilege we've been given.
• If God asks you the question "how much do you have?", it's because you are right on the edge of touching, tasting, experiencing a miracle. Recognize what you have today, and give what you have. Everything you have, you give to him, and he does the rest, even beyond what you can think or imagine (Ephesians 3:20).
• It's not the quantity that matters to him. Seven loaves, by any logic, will never feed thousands of people; we know it, and he knows it too. Jesus isn't saying you absolutely have to find 4,000 loaves of bread or 5,000 kilos of fish. He's asking: what do you have right now? What's available to you? Are you going to put your faith into action right now?

5. "And you, where is your compassion?"

• Beyond that, Jesus asks his disciples a question: "I can feed them by myself. But you, where is your compassion?" Where is our compassion, our love, this divine compassion?
• True compassion always drives us to make ourselves available. It will always drive you to action. The word compassion literally means "to suffer with": you suffer along with them too.
• Two thousand years later, Jesus hasn't changed. He remains the God of compassion, the God who wants to feed, the God of miracles, of the supernatural, the almighty God. But he asks this question: how much do you have? What are you willing to give me so that I can perform the miracle? He wants to teach you to trust him, to rely on him.
• Every day, every week, Christ gives us opportunities, situations, circumstances, so that our compassion can grow. The real question is: am I regularly moved in my compassion?
• Why did Jesus feel compassion? Because he looked at the crowd. We can choose to look only at ourselves and our own success. That's not the choice Jesus made: he lifts his eyes and he sees. Just as when he looked at Jerusalem and began to weep. It's easy when you close your eyes. But when you open your eyes, there's a risk: you see. And when you see, your gut and your compassion are stirred. And when your compassion is stirred, you have to go. And when you have to go, you say to yourself "how am I going to do this?" And Jesus says to you: "how much do you have?"

6. Now, not tomorrow: a spontaneous people

• How much do you have, right now, this instant? Because now is when you have to act. Don't put it off until tomorrow. The crowd is here now, they're hungry now.
• There are moments when Jesus wants us to be the extension of his love and compassion for the present, for the spontaneous, for seizing opportunities right away. Jesus is the God of circumstances: he creates them, he places us in them. He himself was led by the unexpected, by things that weren't planned: the sick person is right there, the crowd is hungry, "I am moved in my gut, let's do something now."
• We sometimes have the reflex to say: once I have a bit more, I'll be able to. No: it's now, with what you have. If we can't do it with what we have now, there's real doubt we'll do it once we have more. Because it's a matter of compassion, and true compassion drives us to action.
• It's not a matter of quantity: it took only one Savior to take on the sin of all humanity. It didn't take a thousand Jesuses or a million Jesuses, but just one, who said: now is the time to go to the cross, to give my life, to suffer, because these people need me now. Not "once I'm more comfortable with my possessions, my finances, my heart."
• We must be a spontaneous people: always an open door, always a place set at the table, always a leaf to add to our table, always ready to express the compassion that Jesus still has today. That's why he taught it to his disciples: what I'm doing now will be up to you to do later. Jesus' apprentices are called to do as the master does.

7. Spectator or participant in the miracle?

• Do you want to experience miracles, see crowds fed with five or seven loaves? Then ask yourself: what do you have, how much do you have right now? If you just want to be a spectator of miracles, you can set that question aside, place yourself in the crowd, and watch what God does. That's already good. But the preacher doesn't want to be in the crowd: he wants to taste, touch, see the miracle at the very moment he gives, when the basket seemed empty and the fish keep multiplying as he goes. The more I express this compassion, the bigger the baskets grow. The more our compassion increases, the more the miracle takes place.
• One last question: if the disciples had told Jesus "figure it out yourself," what would he have done? Do you think for a second he would have let the crowd leave hungry? No. So if you say no, you're simply accepting that someone else will do the work in your place. It's not a matter of "I don't believe it," it's a matter of "I don't want to do it": it's not for me, I have a job, a family, kids, I'm busy.
• Thankfully, Jesus found good disciples who said yes. Will he find some among us? Don't answer right away, think about it. Disciples who say: "Here is what I have, that's all." And Jesus will bless it, give thanks, and multiply what you give him. That, you can't do on your own. He's the one who multiplies, and what seemed impossible becomes possible.

8. The God of abundance: abundance is first for others

• The Bible is true: when you give, you receive. When everything had been distributed, there were still seven baskets left over. When we entrust to God what we have, the Bible says we will never lack anything, and that opens the floodgates of abundance.
• What God wants to teach us is that abundance isn't first for me: it's first for others. If I give for others, he will do his work to give me everything I need, and beyond that, so I can keep giving to others. God provides for others first, and for me afterward. That's not how we naturally think.
• What I have, if I put it into God's hands, it's no longer me who decides what he wants to do with it. But in this equation, God guarantees that you will never lack anything, and that you'll have far more than what you gave: what you give, he returns to you a hundredfold. Find me a bank that multiplies by 100: if there were one, we'd all be lining up at the counter. We serve a limitless God. But he asks us this question: how much do you have?

9. "Is anyone alone tonight?"

• Matt Marvane's father had two fixed appointments each year, at the church in Dijon: the evening of December 24th, at the Christmas celebration before the meal, and Easter Sunday. Without any hesitation, he would take the microphone and ask the question: "Is anyone alone tonight?" He would insist, because those who are alone don't necessarily feel like raising their hand.
• After a few seconds of somewhat awkward silence, one hand would go up, then another. And immediately his father would ask: "Who's taking this person home to the table tonight? Who's going to open their home?" A family would respond, and no one was left alone on Christmas evening. On Easter Sunday, the same thing: who's taking our sister, our brother, this couple, this family home for lunch today?
• It was his compassion speaking, because he knew what a Christmas without family felt like. He would look around, and he wanted to make sure no one was alone that day.
• Let's open our eyes, so that no one around us is ever alone. Don't wait for it to come from the pastors or a select few: it's everyone's responsibility. We are all our brothers' and sisters' keepers. May the table of Jesus become our table, that spontaneous table where everyone eats their fill, because God is a God of abundance.
• God satisfies every heart, every soul, every body in need, and he wants to express that today through his body, the Church. We want to be among those who express this compassion, because Christ is in me: to be a Christian is to be Christ on earth. This meal is a meal of compassion, a spontaneous meal, driven by compassion. May the Church always be led by compassion and nothing else: a church that opens its eyes. Praising the Lord is wonderful, but at some point, open your eyes, look at what's happening around you, be concrete. There is a time for everything.

Key Takeaways

• Jesus clearly says what he feels: "I am moved with compassion." Compassion is the feeling most often mentioned about Jesus in the Gospels, and our God is a living God who feels, not a statue.
• Faced with your "how do I do this?", Jesus answers with another question: "how much do you have?" What matters isn't the size of the need, it's what you have in your hands.
• Jesus isn't limited and could do everything alone, but he chooses to involve his disciples. If God asks you "how much do you have?", you are right on the edge of a miracle: give what you have, he blesses it and multiplies it.
• True compassion ("to suffer with") always drives us to action, now and not tomorrow. If you can't do it with what you have today, you probably won't do it once you have more.
• God is a God of abundance, but abundance is first for others. When you give, you receive, and there are still seven baskets left over.

Personal Application

1. What "hows" are occupying your mind right now (getting through the month, finding meaning in your life, new relationships)? Can you replace them with Jesus' question: "what do I have in my hands, right now?"
2. Is your compassion regularly stirred? Or have you chosen, without realizing it, to close your eyes so you don't have to see?
3. What are you willing to give Jesus right now, with what you have, without waiting until you have "a bit more"?
4. Is there room at your table? Someone alone around you whom you could invite this week, on the spur of the moment, even for a simple meal?
5. Spectator or participant: do you want to watch miracles from the crowd, or step into the place where you serve and see the baskets fill up at the very moment you give?

Scriptures Cited

• Matthew 15:32-39: Jesus, moved with compassion, feeds 4,000 men with seven loaves and a few small fish
• Mark 7:31: Jesus in the Decapolis, east of the Sea of Galilee, a pagan region
• Matthew 14:13-21: the first multiplication, 5,000 men with five loaves and two fish
• Ephesians 3:20: God can do far beyond all that we ask or think
• Exodus 16: the manna and quail sent by God in the wilderness
• Luke 19:41: Jesus looks at Jerusalem and weeps over it
• Luke 6:38: give, and it will be given to you (allusion: "when you give, you receive")
• Mark 10:29-30: receiving a hundredfold (allusion)

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between the feeding of the 5,000 and the feeding of the 4,000?

These are two different stories. The first time, Jesus feeds 5,000 people with five loaves and two fish, before a Jewish crowd. The second time (Matthew 15:32-39), he feeds 4,000 men, not counting women and children, with seven loaves and a few small fish. Mark 7:31 tells us that Jesus was in the Decapolis, east of the Sea of Galilee, a region mostly inhabited by pagans.

Why does Jesus ask the disciples "how many loaves do you have?" when he could do it all himself?

Jesus isn't limited: he caused manna to fall from heaven and created the world alone. But he wants to teach his disciples. What matters to him isn't the size of the need, it's what you have in your hands. He asks what you have, you give it to him, he blesses it, and he's the one who multiplies it. If God asks you the question "how much do you have?", it's because you are right on the edge of a miracle.

What does the word compassion mean in the Gospel?

Compassion literally means "to suffer with." It's the feeling most often mentioned about Jesus in the Gospels. In Matthew 15, Jesus clearly says: "I am moved with compassion for this crowd." True compassion always drives us to action: it makes us available to God, now and not tomorrow.