Mark 8:1- 10 “During those days another large crowd gathered. Since they had nothing to eat, Jesus called his disciples to him and said, 2 "I have compassion for these people; they have already been with me three days and have nothing to eat. 3 If I send them home hungry, they will collapse on the way, because some of them have come a long distance." 4 His disciples answered, "But where in this remote place can anyone get enough bread to feed them?" 5 "How many loaves do you have?" Jesus asked. "Seven," they replied. 6 He told the crowd to sit down on the ground. When he had taken the seven loaves and given thanks, he broke them and gave them to his disciples to set before the people, and they did so. 7 They had a few small fish as well; he gave thanks for them also and told the disciples to distribute them. 8 The people ate and were satisfied. Afterward the disciples picked up seven basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. 9 About four thousand men were present. And having sent them away, 10 he got into the boat with his disciples and went to the region of Dalmanutha.”
Throughout the life of Jesus He was noted for performing many mighty miracles. He performed miracles of healing and deliverance, and miracles that transcended nature. In the case of physical healings and deliverance He repeatedly raised the dead, caused the blind to see, the deaf to hear and the lame to walk but. He also consistently displayed His authority over the demonic realms by setting people from oppressive spirits that were binding them. However, in the case of miracles over nature it was not His pattern to repeat any of His miraculous feats. Only once did He walk on water. He did not repeat turning water into wine. Nor did He display His transformed, glorified body to His disciples more than one time. There was only one coin in the mouth of a fish.
There were only two instances where Jesus performed miracles over nature more than one time. In Lu. 5 and Jn. 21 Jesus duplicated the miracle of providing a great catch of fish. And in Mk. 6 and Mk. 8 Jesus replicates the miracle of multiplying the bread. This pattern provokes me to ask the question, why these two subjects for a miracle? What can be learned from the Lord’s choice to repeat these miracles and not the others? As we ponder these miracles for a moment consider a key phrase in verse 2 “I have compassion on these people.” The first lesson of these two miracles is that they were miracles driven by the compassion of Jesus. In this passage He sees the hunger and weariness of the crowds that have been gathered for three days already to learn from Him. As a result His compassion moves Him to become their provider. In the case of the great catch of fish, though it is not outwardly stated, Jesus feels the pain of His disciples who have experienced the tragedy of the cross and the loss of their friend and leader. As He looks upon their pain His desire to comfort His servants is manifest in revealing Himself to them by repeating one of the earliest miracles He had performed in their presence as a sign to them that it was indeed Him risen from the dead. One simple message of this pattern is clear miracles flow out of moving the heart of Jesus!
A second lesson that can be learned from this passage is that the miracles that were the most commonly repeated in regard to the material realms were the practical miracles. Miracles such as walking on water, being transformed in front of Peter, James and John and turning water into wine were miracles that demonstrated His power and glory but served no real practical purpose. They were miracles that showed forth His glory. The miracles of provision were practical miracles; miracles that fed people and met needs.
An additional lesson that seems to be conveyed through this miracle is directly related to the nature of the miracle. Though this principle should not be clung to in such a way that limits God, it is worth noting that this miracle had greater resource to start with and a lesser degree of intensity. This time there were only 4000 men and yet they possessed seven loaves and two small fishes. In the previous miracle with the bread there were 5000 men, five loaves and two fish. In the previous case they had a small resource base and a larger need, yet Jesus provided for all. It is also worth noted that in the first miracle using the bread they picked up twelve baskets of leftovers. In the second miracle there were only seven baskets full of leftovers. Perhaps we should learn from this the truth that the greater the need, the greater the demand that is placed upon God’s Spirit and provision, the greater the outpouring of God’s abundant supply. God responds to need. God responds to the heart of faith that taps into His divine supply. I am sure that there is much more to learn from these passages but these simple truths are a great starting place for building up a heart of faith!
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