In this sermon, we looked at John 6:1-15, in which Jesus miraculously fed a group of 15,000 to 20,000 people on the shore of the Sea of Galilee. This large crowd was following Jesus from town to town in order to witness His miracles of healing. From a small amount of bread and fish, Jesus created a meal for the entire crowd and everyone ate until they were satisfied. The people were so enthralled with Jesus’ miracle-working power that they wanted force Him to be their king. Knowing that He would soon be crowned King through His gracious sacrifice rather than by the force of men, Jesus withdrew from the crowd to be alone on the mountain. Through this miracle, we see a distinct difference between being part of the crowd who follows Jesus for what He has to offer and being part of the few who follow Jesus solely for who He is. At a time when we are not able to gather as a large crowd, this challenges us to consider why gathering on Sundays is important. While there are many good reasons we desire to be together, the primary purpose of us gathering as the church is to worship Jesus as our gracious Savior and King.
