The biggest lie social scientists, economists, and politicians have been telling us for centuries is that we live in a world of scarcity where there is never enough for everyone — not enough jobs, enough food, enough land, enough money — and that others want to take what little we have. Feeding our insecurities creates fear, hoarding, in-fighting, and racial and cultural violence. It keeps us busy fighting each other instead of those who are stoking and benefiting from our fear.
I was raised Southern Baptist and am a seminary grad. One of my favorite classes was Biblical exegesis — studying what the text really says as opposed to what others may have told us what it supposedly says (and means). When we studied the loaves and fishes parable, my interpretation was that it wasn’t about Jesus miraculously creating more food because the disciples said there wasn’t enough. In fact, the Bible says nothing about Jesus creating more loaves and fishes.
“Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, [Jesus] gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people.” It was just assumed this meant he had created more food. But in the Christian Bible, Jesus often challenged the disciples’ views and perceptions in interesting ways and turned problems into teachable moments. Most of his teachings addressed the disciples’ lack of faith in God to help them do what needed to be done in difficult circumstances. So it’s logical to interpret Jesus’ words and actions to mean that the real problem was not a lack of food. It was a lack of faith. There was always enough food. The disciples just couldn’t see it.
Maybe they miscalculated the number of people to be fed. Maybe they were selfishly worried there wouldn’t be enough left for themselves if they fed everyone else. Maybe their faith wasn’t strong enough and their first instinct was to pull back and say they were powerless to do anything. Maybe they were just tired and wanted to go home early. The real miracle was that Jesus took away their doubts and fears and misperceptions. He opened their eyes and changed their perspective about what they could accomplish thru faith in God and each other. Would he really have taken the easy way out, created some food and just handed it over, solving the problem for them? Does that even sound like him?
When interpreting any Bible story involving Jesus, it’s important to remember that above all else, he was a teacher. He didn’t just step in and automatically fix a problem when the disciples showed doubt or resistance. Everything was a teaching moment with one core message:
“You have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.” (Matthew 17:20 NIV)
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~ Jassa Skott, January 2024