Philip was in for a surprise that day.
It happened at the early stage of Jesus' ministry. Jesus was performing great signs and miracles. His actions attracted a big crowd. The crowd was around five thousand and that was counting the men only (John 6:10).
Philip’s surprised came in a form of a question – “when Jesus raised his eyes and saw that a large crowd was coming to him, he said to Philip, ‘Where can we buy enough food for them to eat?’” (John 6:5)
That question must have shocked Philip. Maybe he was not ready to give a reply. If I was Philip I would have ask Jesus – “when did I get my assignment as official caterer in our ministry?” or “They followed us. They should bring their own food, right?”
Philip’s reaction was more logical than my would be reply. He made a mental calculation and replied “Two hundred days’ wages worth of food would not be enough for each of them to have a little” (John 6:7).
Philip’s reply could be summed up in two words – “It’s impossible!”
I agree with Philip. Feeding five thousand right at that very moment would take a miracle. But there is one point that we need to remember. The task was impossible if he was talking to a mere man. But he was not. He was with Jesus. He was with God. And we know “with God all things are possible.” (Mark 10:27)
The right reaction is to rely on God. Because verse 6 says that – “He (Jesus) said this to test him, because he himself knew what he was going to do.” (John 6:6)
Jesus knew all along what He had to do. He was miles ahead of Philip.Way way way ahead.
There are times in our life when we also encounter something that catches us by surprise. We questioned God. We try to give our own solution or answer. We worry. We panic. We forget that He is God.
When we faced difficult and shocking situations we are called to trust Jesus. We should have faith that Jesus is way ahead of us all the time. He loves us too much to leave us alone.
Aim to trust Jesus more starting today.
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