The disciples frantically shuffle through all their belongings hoping to find some bread. “I thought Andrew was bringing the bread”, remarks a beleaguered Thomas. “No, it was Thaddaeus”, Andrew responds. Back and forth they go only to find one measly loaf of bread.
Then their greatest fear is realized. Jesus says, “Watch out; beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.”
“GREAT! The Master knows. Our foolish act of forgetting bread has been exposed. And now Jesus, speaking in parables like he always does, is rebuking us for being so dense. We are going to starve out here in the middle of the ocean all because none of us remembered to bring the bread.”
Then Jesus interrupts. “Fellas, I’m not talking about bread here. Is this really what you are worried about? Are you really so dense to get this worked up over bread after I’ve just fed 5,000 and then again 4,000 with only a few loaves of bread?”
Silly disciples.
Better yet, silly me. Just like the disciples I can have my eyes blind to what is really significant to Jesus. And just like the disciples I can get worked up over my failure to do something, like bring bread, but neglect the much bigger picture.
Jesus is less concerned about having perfect bread bringing disciples than he is about having disciples that—in the midst of their brokenness and failures—stand in awe of his power to take our lack of bread and transform it into an abundance of bread.
What matters in life and ministry is not that you brought the bread. What matters in life and ministry is that Jesus has power, He is building His church, and nothing will stand against Him.
