Welcome to this last day of Help for Today. On the feeding of the 5,000, a pattern for ministry. So far we’ve looked at the purpose of the ministry, which is people. We looked at the problem of the ministry, which is that every single person has needs. We talked about the provision of the ministry. How are these needs going to be met? Where is it going to come from? We then talked about the providence of the ministry. It’s God’s work, and God is going to be the one to meet the need. And I’d like us to see the picture of the ministry. Can you imagine that multitude gathered together on that hillside? Jesus standing up teaching. The hour was late. They were in a desolate place. People were hungry. And as the disciples came to Jesus, they said, “Lord, there’s this great multitude. We don’t have enough to feed them. Send them away.” And Jesus says, “No, don’t send them away. I want you to feed them.”

They searched high and low, and they found a lad that had five loaves and two small fishes. Hardly enough for the disciples to get a bite, let alone the thousands of people that had gathered that day. But when the disciples took that little that they had, and they brought it to Jesus Christ, and Jesus Christ took it. The Bible says that he looked to heaven and he gave God the glory and he prayed over it and he broke it. He then handed it to the disciples and those disciples began to take it and to go and they began to walk amongst this multitude and hand it out. And as they ran out, because there were more people, they came back to Jesus and Jesus gave them more and they went to the multitude and continued handing now and cycle after cycle and they kept coming back to Jesus and going to the multitude and coming to Jesus and going to multitude.

Do you see the picture of ministry here? That as we seek to minister to people, there is an innumerable multitude of people lost on their way to hell. There’s an innumerable amount of people who have great needs. You and I can’t meet those needs. But when we take the resources that God has already given us, and when we bring them to Jesus Christ and say, “Lord, I know it’s not enough. God, I know I can’t take care of the multitude, but Lord, I’m asking that you bless it. I’m asking that you break it. Lord, I’m asking that you use it for your glory. And God, I’m going to take and I’m going to give to the people. But there’s more need. Well, let me go back to Jesus Christ and let me connect with him again and let me abide in him and let him use me again to go and meet some more needs of the multitude. And there’s still more people and there’s still more needs. So let me go back to Jesus. And this is what we do over and over and over and on a daily basis. In John 15:5, Jesus reminds his disciples, he says, “I am the vine and ye are the branches.” In the end, he says, “Without me, ye can do nothing.”

Can I remind you, servant of God, minister of God, that as we seek to serve God, as we seek to help people minister to their needs, can I remind us that we can’t do it. It’s not going to be in our own power. It’s not going to be in our own ability. It’s only going to be through the power of Jesus Christ, which is why it’s so important that each and every day we have that time with Him, that we’re abiding in Him, that we’re walking with Him and talking with Him and fellowshipping with Him. Because we can’t do it by ourselves. Without me, ye can do nothing. I hope that this will be an encouragement to you as you seek to help and to minister to people for the glory of God.

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Chris Fanara

Chris Fanara, Christian School Principal

Bro. Fanara serves as the Principal of North Valley Baptist Schools. He and his wife, Tabitha, are graduates of NVBS and have been faithfully working in the school for thirteen years.