Scripture

Mark 6:35-37 NLT

Late in the afternoon his disciples came to him and said, “This is a remote place, and it’s already getting late. Send the crowds away so they can go to the nearby farms and villages and buy something to eat.” But Jesus said, “You feed them.” “With what?” they asked. “We’d have to work for months to earn enough money to buy food for all these people!”

Consider

One of the more famous stories about Jesus is the feeding of the five thousand. By that time, Jesus was well into his ministry. Crowds flocked to him to hear his message and to seek healing for their bodies and release from demonic spirits. The disciples, too, had been given authority to heal the sick and cast out demons.

As dinnertime approached, the disciples suggested that Jesus send the crowds away so everyone could buy food. But Jesus replied, “You feed them.”

You feed them. We can imagine the disciples surveying the crowd—five thousand men plus women and children—and eyeing one another in dismay. Common sense would tell them what Jesus asked was impossible. They checked their worldly resources and found them wholly inadequate, laughable even, in the face of such enormous need. More than that, the disciples were hungry themselves and worn out from the ceaseless demands of the crowds, for teaching and healing and now for food. Tired and grouchy, the disciples pleaded with Jesus: “Send them away.”

The disciples’ inability to meet Jesus’ demand from their own resources makes Jesus’ miracle all the more magnificent. It’s as if he says to them, “Of course you can’t feed them, not without me. But here, take these baskets on faith and serve the people. Then watch what I’ll do.”

Today Jesus tests us with a similar invitation: You forgive them. And like the disciples, we may metaphorically turn our pockets inside out and say, “With what, Lord? I have nothing to give this person who hurt me. I’m tired and bitter and discouraged. What you ask is more than I can do.”

Such an honest response is just what our Lord is looking for. To admit our poverty is the first step toward being filled with the Spirit’s enriching power. Having been human, Jesus knows our weakness and the emotional pressures that make forgiving so difficult. All he asks is that we accept the basket from his hand and begin serving. What we lack, God will supply—love and patience, kindness and generosity—everything we need to pursue the healing work of forgiveness.

Pray

Heavenly Father, as you called the disciples to an impossible task, you also call me to forgive what may seem impossible. Grant me humility to acknowledge my human limitations and faith enough to accept the basket you entrust to me. Help me take that first step toward forgiving the person who seems my enemy, trusting that you will change my heart as I follow you in obedience.

Reflect

Matthew 19:26; John 15:5; 2 Corinthians 12:9

Ponder

What grace do you lack that keeps you from forgiving?