You Are Standing at Niagara Falls!

The disciples came to him and said, “This is a remote place, and it’s already getting late. Send the crowds away, so they can go to the villages and buy themselves some food.”

 Jesus replied, “They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat.”

 “We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish,” they answered.

 “Bring them here to me,” he said.  And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. They all ate and were satisfied.

Matt 14.15-20

Platt:

The disciples learned to rely on Jesus' resources. They were out in the middle of nowhere and they felt completely inadequate for the task; however, these men had no idea just how much they had for meeting the people's needs. It was like standing in front of Niagara Falls and still not being able to find anything to drink.

He was calling them to do something that they could not do in their own power and with their own resources. He wanted them to recognize their insufficiency and at the same time to realize His sufficiency.

Jesus meets needs through us. If the point of this story was only to show us Jesus' sufficiency, He could have called down bread from heaven right into people's laps.....Jesus not only prays for the Father's blessing, but He also calls His disciples to do the serving.

Jesus alone is sufficient to meet needs in us, but He is also gracious to use us to meet needs in others. Disciples of Jesus are an extension of Christ's mercy and His miraculous power

. How might this miracle impact you where you live? Are you surrounded by needs among the people you live with and work around—in your own city and across the world? Are you aware of urgent spiritual and physical needs? If so, do not think, "Well, what can I do about it? I have so little." Follower of Christ, you are standing at Niagara Falls! Don't you see that there is plenty of water? Jesus stands ready to meet the deepest needs of our souls and to use our lives, with all of His resources at our disposal, to meet others' needs. Oh, let us be the most generous, giving, serving, sacrificing, proclaiming people on the planet as an extension of the mercy and miraculous power of Christ. May He use us for the good of others and the glory of His name.