(John 6: 1 – 14)
In II Kings 7, God performed a miracle of overflow within 24 hours. There are many other instances in the Bible where God extended His blessings beyond the limits of human expectation.
The Miracle of Loaves and Fish: In Jn. 6: 1–14, the Bible records another miracle of overflow performed by our Lord Jesus Christ. It was supposed to be a time of personal retreat between Jesus and His disciples and as they went over the Sea of Galilee, the multiple followed Him. When He saw the crowd, He was moved with compassion (Mk. 6:34). Jesus abandoned His original plan and ministered to the people. After preaching and teaching them, Jesus asked for the people to be fed (Jn.6:5). Philip’s response was that it was impossible to get enough food to feed the multitude, forgetting that Jesus is the God of the overflow. There are a few lessons we can learn from this story.
1. Our God is a selfless God: The original plan of Jesus was to spend time alone with His disciples but as the people came to Him, He abandoned His plans to meet their needs. We need to know that God cares for us more than we care for ourselves. If He can feed the ravens and the ants, He can surely provide for us.
2. We must come to God with expectation: When the multitude saw Jesus going over the Sea of Galilee with His disciples, they followed Him because they had a great expectation that He would meet their needs. As we come to God, our hearts must be filled with expectation to receive our miracle of overflow. We must believe that He can give us more than enough.
3. We must be ready to surrender what we have: There was a little boy in the crowd who had five loaves of bread and two fish to eat. At the disciples’ request, he surrendered his food and through his generosity, God was able to feed the multitude. When we surrender what we have to God, he will multiply it back to us and bless others too. Our miracle of overflow is tied to our giving.
4. Appreciate God for what you have: When Jesus received the bread and fish, He gave thanks and the miracle happened. Giving of thanks for what we have will open doors for the miracle of overflow.
5. Only God can give the miracle of overflow: After Jesus gave thanks, He gave the food to the disciples and as they shared it, it multiplied in their hands. Our God alone can provide for us more than we can ever ask or think. We are His covenant children and He has promised us that He will never leave us nor forsake us. He has the ability to do for us what He has promised to do.