#1280 Matthew 15 Part 4 Four Thousand Reasons

 

29 Jesus went on from there and walked beside the Sea of Galilee. And he went up on the mountain and sat down there. 30 And great crowds came to him, bringing with them the lame, the blind, the crippled, the mute, and many others, and they put them at his feet, and he healed them, 31 so that the crowd wondered, when they saw the mute speaking, the crippled healthy, the lame walking, and the blind seeing. And they glorified the God of Israel.

Jesus Feeds the Four Thousand

32 Then Jesus called his disciples to him and said, “I have compassion on the crowd because they have been with me now three days and have nothing to eat. And I am unwilling to send them away hungry, lest they faint on the way.” 33 And the disciples said to him, “Where are we to get enough bread in such a desolate place to feed so great a crowd?” 34 And Jesus said to them, “How many loaves do you have?” They said, “Seven, and a few small fish.” 35 And directing the crowd to sit down on the ground, 36 he took the seven loaves and the fish, and having given thanks he broke them and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. 37 And they all ate and were satisfied. And they took up seven baskets full of the broken pieces left over. 38 Those who ate were four thousand men, besides women and children. 39 And after sending away the crowds, he got into the boat and went to the region of Magadan. Matthew 15: 29-39 ESV

Matthew 15: 29-39

"After departing from there, the region of Tyre and Sidon where that woman lived (Mt 15:21), Jesus went along by the Sea of Galilee, and having gone up to the mountain, He was sitting there. We learn from Mark that Jesus went around the Sea of Galilee, apparently on the east side, stopping in “the region of Decapolis” (Mark 7:31+), another Gentile area. Although His primary ministry was still to the Jews, the Lord continually reached out beyond the covenant people, giving a preview of the extension of the kingdom into the whole world (cf. Matt. 28:19+; Acts 1:8+)." (MacArthur)

Decapolis referred to ten predominantly Gentile cities that were authorized by the Romans to mint their own coins, run their own courts, and have their own armies. - Precept Austin

29-31 Jesus went on from there - This is a self governing Gentile state, a place very Hellenized in it's beliefs, very engrossed in the Greek cults and traditions. Jesus just healed the daughter of a pagan woman not far from here, and so His fame follows Him from place to place, even preceding His arrival. Unlike the "faith healers" of our day, His miracles weren't subjective, He doesn't get the crowd into a frenzy with drums, music, lights and fx; His theatre is built out of a hill, a shore, in the middle of nowhere. The healings aren't mere headaches or anything that could be affected by the power of persuasion, excitement, euphoria, no, mute are speaking, blind seeing, crippled stretching hands out whole or receiving a missing limb, lame are walking. His healings are complete, dependent only on His word and the desire of God, even when someone admitted to struggling with their belief, "I believe, help me with my unbelief", yet the Lord was not restrained. There is a thing the cults do not understand about the miracles, like Simon the magician, they want the power to make someone physically whole, yet these were only lesser sign of a greater, eternal proposition. The One Who has the power to heal is God, and He is showing His power to make whole, to reconcile that which was eternally lost. I know the body I am in now will pass away, will rot, yet God has put eternity into men's hearts, yet will you trade that for something fleeting?

…10I have seen the burden that God has laid upon the sons of men to occupy them. 11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men, yet they cannot fathom the work that God has done from beginning to end. 12I know that there is nothing better for them than to rejoice and do good while they live,… Ecclesiastes 3: 10-12

MacArthur - The wonder of these Gentiles was greater than the wonder of the Jews, whose awe was often tempered by spiritual pride and skepticism. When the crowd at Decapolis saw the perfection of the healings, they knew the power behind them was divine—in great contrast to the Pharisees who charged Jesus with casting out demons by Satan’s power (Matt. 12:24). Knowing that their pagan gods could not perform such marvels, and would not have been inclined to perform them if they could, the people from Decapolis glorified the God of Israel. They were not fully aware of who Jesus was, but they knew He was a Jew and that He served the God of Israel, and they glorified His God in praise and reverent fear. Their excitement and gratitude over being healed or seeing their loved ones and friends healed made them spontaneously praise the Lord. (MNTC- Mt) - Precept Austin

I have compassion on the crowd - The disciples have been here before in Jewish lands, yet here we are in the land of the gentiles, and Christ has recently marveled about the faith of one outside the Jewish covenant community. Now He is wanting to feed them because they have been with Him so many days. I find this refreshing, especially in our day, when everyone wants to boycott anyone who disagrees with them. I get not going to see a particular movie because it exalts things that God hates, that's conscience, a different thing, we shouldn't celebrate the things God does not. We should abstain from that which God calls sin, and so I want to be clear on that, but I don't want to starve people either. This is why Christ teaches, "if thine enemy hunger feed him, if he thirst give him drink", and so we should boycott and speak out against behaviors, yet not keep people from having jobs, providing for their families. I shop in a lot of stores and restaurants owned by people who do not share my ideals, but it is my hope that they do well in business, sell a good product, provide meaningful jobs, training, and overall good employment for those who work there. Jesus is also bringing in the ministry that His disciples will continue, in that they will take this gospel of the Kingdom in every direction, and it will eventually spread to the ends of the earth. Here He's unwilling to send them away weak, empty, and what a contrast to faith healers like Benny Hinn, who think they are anointed, yet people will die waiting on the outskirts, traveling great distances to be healed, only to find it a sham, some even dying during these stupid crusades. They are not shepherds that do this, they have nothing to do with Christ, and they prey on the poorest people, who rejoice at the sound of their prosperity gospel, and on those who are sick, missing limbs, dying, yet they travel great distances and give their last dollar to those no better than carved images. 

…26It shall not be this way among you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, 27and whoever wants to be first among you must be your slave— 28just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.”… Matthew 20: 26-28

…19“Give me this power as well,” he said, “so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.” 20But Peter replied, “May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could buy the gift of God with money! 21You have no part or share in our ministry, because your heart is not right before God.… Acts 8: 19-21

How many loaves do you have - The task is great, and the disciples have to be excited about this, because they have been in such a desolate place as this before. It is never limited by what you or I have, not when God ask for something. If He ask then it is not contingent upon the resources available in this place, from that land, for this is He Who spoke even that into being. For the love of God, and the joy and majesty of it, give Him all you have. 

And they all ate and were satisfied - He causes His rain it says to fall on the just and the unjust, but what Israel squandered, took for granite, was that there was none just, none righteous except for the One Who is here feeding these heathens. He feeds them from so little, and they are filled. Just like they took up baskets before, they do here again, and so once again God's employees have back more than they gave. I read that the 12 baskets from the prior time is a word used to describe a basket that Jews carried, one that contained their meal for the day when they traveled, because of their Kosher diet. The word used in this passage is different, describing a larger basket that gentiles used for market. The 7 baskets here were probably equivalent to the 12 in the prior instance. Probably not important but interesting to me nonetheless. But this is important, if God has given us gifts, resources, then obviously this is out of no necessity of His, for what need would He have for these. It is from His good pleasure, for our enjoyment and sustenance, and that we may be like Him in giving. So if I have then certainly some of the reason is to give, and if Christ's asked His disciples, then is He asking me, how can I know that and when and where should I give? He tells us to use discernment as well, be wise as serpents and harmless as doves. When I was a drug addict the worse thing you could give me was cash, but a few minutes of your time, a plate of hot food, your sincere concern for my well being, that went further than some knew. I later came to appreciate the many prayers of those who did not give up hope for me. People say to give at church, and that is Scriptural, but discernment demands once again that you are first at a good church, one that puts God's word above men's opinions, one that doesn't eat the whole budget in programs, pastors, assistant pastors, secretaries, entertainment. A real church should have a heart for missions, a pastor with a fair salary, who is dedicated to the study and preaching of God's word. The doctrine of the place needs be sound, and the finances transparent. There shouldn't be relatives on the payroll like a Joel Osteen dynasty or good ole boy network. We should take great care that the name of Christ is not ill used or ill thought of for our actions or those we associate with. 

…18I have all I need and more, now that I have received your gifts from Epaphroditus. They are a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice, well-pleasing to God. 19And my God will supply all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus. 20To our God and Father be glory forever and ever. Amen.… Philippians 4: 18-20