“They Saw the Signs” (Part 1 of 2)

Focus Keywords: Jesus Christ, Bread of Life, Feeding the 5000, Supernaturalism, John 6, Alistair Begg, Signs of Christ, Overcoming Naturalism

This summary and rewrite explores the profound significance of the miracle of Jesus feeding the 5,000 (John 6:1–15), emphasizing that this event was an undeniable sign intended to disclose the divine authority and identity of Jesus as the Creator and the ultimate Source of life. The narrative serves as a critical turning point, challenging both the initial crowds and modern believers to move beyond the desire for physical provision and embrace the spiritual truth of Christ.

The Context: Crisis, Anticipation, and Scarcity

The miracle occurred shortly after Jesus crossed to the other side of the Sea of Galilee. A large crowd was following Him primarily because they “saw the signs” He was doing on the sick. This gathering took place near the Passover, the Jewish feast commemorating the Exodus. This context would have focused the people’s minds on the historical provision of the Exodus, particularly Moses and the manna provided in the wilderness.

Jesus, seeing the immense crowd approaching, used the situation to test His disciples.

• The Test: Jesus asked Philip, “Where are we to buy bread so that these people may eat?”. John notes that Jesus knew exactly what He would do.
• The Disciples’ Limitations: Philip responded that even “200 denarii worth of bread would not be enough” for each person to get a small amount. Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, then intervened, pointing out the only available resource: a boy who had “five barley loaves and two fish”. Andrew immediately recognized this provision as a “drop in a bucket for a crowd like this”.
• The Scale of the Need: The scripture records that approximately 5,000 men sat down. Since the counting method focused on male heads of families, the total crowd size was potentially between 15,000 and 20,000 people, presenting a massive challenge.

The Phenomenally Supernatural Miracle

Jesus commanded the people to sit down on the grass. He then took the loaves and fish, “given thanks,” and began distributing them.

• The Multiplication: The multiplication process was a “phenomenally supernatural” act. Unlike the miracle at Cana, which involved transforming water into wine, this miracle required the multiplication of material. It is suggested that the multiplication occurred miraculously “as people pass the material from one to another,” rather than solely in Jesus’s hands, which would have taken all night given the size of the crowd.
• Abundance Confirmed: After everyone had “eaten their fill” and enjoyed “as much as they wanted,” Jesus commanded the disciples to “Gather up the leftover fragments that nothing may be lost”. They filled “12 baskets with fragments”.
• Divine Authority: The resulting abundance testifies that Jesus is able to “do exceeding abundantly beyond all that we could ask or even imagine,” demonstrating His “generosity and with the authority”.

The Purpose of the Sign: Disclosure of Identity

The sources stress that the miracle must always be understood in light of John’s purpose for writing his Gospel. John states that Jesus performed signs in order that readers might “believe that Jesus is the Christ and that by believing they might have life in his name”.

• Pointing to Jesus: The sign of the bread multiplication was intended to point to “the one who performed the miracle”—Jesus himself.
• Challenging Naturalism: Accepting this miracle requires a radical shift in presupposition. The philosophy of naturalism dictates that such an event “cannot be”. However, the starting point for Christian faith is recognizing that Jesus is the Creator of the universe. Since all things were made through Him, it is logical to believe that the Creator can “interact with them and do what He likes with them”. To deny the miraculous in the Bible is to become a “liberal Christian” who chooses to believe only the parts they like.

The Crowd’s Failure and the Turning Point

Despite witnessing this monumental sign, the crowd failed to grasp its spiritual meaning, choosing instead to focus on the political and temporal implications.

• Mistaken Identity: When the people saw the sign, they concluded, “This is indeed the prophet who is to come into the world”.
• Fleshly Ambition: They then attempted to “come and take him by force to make him king”. Jesus, perceiving this carnal ambition, immediately withdrew to the mountain alone.
• The Crossroads of John 6: John Chapter 6 is the longest chapter in the New Testament and a “very significant chapter” that proves to be a crucial “crossroads”. Jesus would later challenge their carnal focus, directing them away from the “food that perishes” and toward the “food that endures to eternal life”.
• The Hard Saying: The core statement that demanded their attention is found later in the chapter: “Truly truly I say to you unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood you have no life in you”. This statement was “one of the most misunderstood and misapplied statements” in the Gospels.
• The Departure: The crowd and many of His followers took “offense” at this hard saying, leading to the pivotal moment where “many of his disciples turned back and no longer walked with him”.

The purpose of the sign of the bread was to reveal Jesus as the “bread of life”. To miss the spiritual meaning of the sign—to focus only on the physical provision—was to miss Jesus entirely and ultimately lead to turning away from Him.