Pastor Raelene Frankland  | Good, Good News
Overflow Church
Overflow Church

Overflow Church

Pastor Raelene Frankland 

The Bread Of Life | Mark 8:1-10

By: Pastor Raelene Frankland 

“In those days, when again a great crowd had gathered, and they had nothing to eat, he called his disciples to him and said to them, “I have compassion on the crowd, because they have been with me now three days and have nothing to eat. And if I send them away hungry to their homes, they will faint on the way. And some of them have come from far away.” And his disciples answered him, “How can one feed these people with bread here in this desolate place?” And he asked them, “How many loaves do you have?” They said, “Seven.” And he directed the crowd to sit down on the ground. And he took the seven loaves, and having given thanks, he broke them and gave them to his disciples to set before the people; and they set them before the crowd. And they had a few small fish. And having blessed them, he said that these also should be set before them. And they ate and were satisfied. And they took up the broken pieces left over, seven baskets full. And there were about four thousand people. And he sent them away. And immediately he got into the boat with his disciples and went to the district of Dalmanutha.” Mark 8:1-10

There is so much of who God is in this passage.
Jesus’ compassion moved him, it put him into action- to feed us- to do, to serve. He was concerned for our well-being. He IS the Bread of Life and He longs to feed us. He knows what we need before we could even ask for it.

I imagine He gladly received what was given to Him, He didn’t turn it away or say that it wasn’t enough. Then He directed the crowd to sit down. I see this as a picture of just being still –waiting, which is such a crucial thing to do in our relationship with Jesus.

We then see Jesus giving thanks and giving the loaves to the disciples which they distributed to the people. He then blessed the fish, and gave it to the disciples who gave it to the people. He gave thanks and blessed what was to be given and it was multiplied.

He gave thanks and blessed what was to be given and it was multiplied. 


Jesus used what didn’t look like much and absolutely abundantly blessed them all, He filled them all. The multitude didn’t have to do anything but listen to Jesus, to sit and to be still. While Jesus broke the bread, I can’t help but be reminded of His body that was broken for us.

Jesus gave His bread to the disciples, His close followers who were with Him daily, then they gave it to the multitude. Is this not a picture of serving others, fellowship, discipleship, and the great commission? The multitude was satisfied, filled so much that there was more than enough, it far exceeded what it started as.

God is so generous and such a Good Father. Jesus then sent them away, and what did they do afterward? I think if I saw food multiply and feeding 4,000 people from almost nothing, it would be something I shared everywhere I went. These people were witnesses, I’d imagine they would testify everywhere they went for all of their lives.

Who is this Jesus?
What do we have to offer Jesus?
How many loaves do we have?
Are we willing to offer them to Jesus?
He can and will use our loaves we give him, no matter how small it may seem.