Gospel: Mark 6:30-44 (Pentecost 9: Series B)
Gospel: Mark 6:30-44 (Pentecost 9: Series B)
This reading also shows us the heart and character of Jesus. He has compassion for the people. He sees their needs and provides for them.
“No rest for the weary.” This is one way to read Mark 6:30-44. The disciples may be weary, but there is no time for rest. The mission is too urgent. Their role is too important. Sleep when you are dead, there is work to do now. “No rest for the weary.”
I bet many of your hearers (and many of us preachers) would resonate with such a reading. That is the air we breathe. Always on. Always checking, swiping, scrolling, serving. Always hustling, always hurried, always harried. That is the world we live in. Despite the commandment to observe sabbath rest, the Christian life is often as harassed and rushed as the rest of the world around us.
So, we might hear today’s text as a justification for our stressed-out lives. And we can justify it to ourselves and others as well. After all, we are on a mission from God! The stakes could not be higher. And if we do not do the Lord’s work, who will? I am just giving of myself in sacrificial love, by putting the needs of others above my own.
Or today’s text might feel like a crushing word from the Lord. Get over your fatigue, grab a cup of coffee or four, and get back to work. Remember when the disciples were tired, they wanted a break, they had needs, but they put the needs of others first. There were people to feed, and Jesus kept them hustling to make sure everybody else was fed. If they can do it, you can do it. Get back out there and serve!
We could read this text as justification for our driven lifestyles, especially if we tie that drive to Jesus’ mission. We could read this text as a convicting word from the Lord about how we should press on, even when we are tired, because that is what real disciples do when they see a need. But I think we should read it as an invitation to find rest in Jesus. Yes, Jesus sent the apostles earlier in the chapter. And yes, they are employed by Jesus in the distribution of the bread and fish. But the apostles are first recipients of Jesus’ gift of rest.
The twelve were sent two by two with the authority of Jesus (Mark 6:7). They come back to Jesus excited. They were telling Him all about their activity: What they had done, what they had taught, and all the work with which they had been busy. Then, Jesus invites them to rest because they need to rest. They need to rest in Jesus.
“They,” at this point refers to the twelve. As the reading progresses, it is possible to read every “they” and “them” and very intentionally differentiate the referents. Sometimes “they” refers to the twelve. Other times, “they” refers to the many people who followed Jesus as part of the crowd. But I want to invite us to allow “they” and “them” to blend and overlap.
Therefore, while the disciples are differentiated from the crowd, they are not actually that different. “They” need rest. Jesus has compassion on “them.” This is equally true of the disciples as much as it is of the masses.
Jesus invites them to rest. Jesus offers them refreshment. They receive rest in Jesus.
Jesus invites them to rest. Jesus offers them refreshment. They receive rest in Jesus.
So, the disciples go away with Jesus to find rest. But the crowds follow, and seemingly spoil the refreshment the twelve were about to receive. But rather than scolding the crowd for ruining it, and rebuking the disciples for needing rest, Jesus simply expands the offer. Jesus does not exclude the crowd from the rest offered to the disciples, nor does Jesus exclude the disciples from the rest He is offering to the crowd. Jesus enlarges the offer to provide rest for all.
Look at 6:39: “Then He commanded them all to sit down in groups on the green grass.” The Good Shepherd has led them to the green pastures... ALL of “them,” disciples and crowd. Verse 40 continues: “So they sat down in groups.” They. Them. All of them.
Yes, the disciples will have a key role in distributing Christ’s gifts. But disseminating Christ’s gifts does not exclude or disqualify them as recipients. “He divided the two fish among them all. And they all ate and were satisfied.” The disciples received along with the crowd. They all ate and were satisfied. They were all refreshed by our Lord’s gifts.
This reading recounts a miracle of Jesus. It is most essentially about our Lord’s work one day, as He took literal bread and fish and miraculously multiplied it so those particular people would be physically fed. It tells us about the person and work of Jesus. One greater than John the Baptist is here indeed! Jesus does not just teach with authority; He embodies the creative authority of God Himself.
This reading also shows us the heart and character of Jesus. He has compassion for the people. He sees their needs and provides for them.
Jesus recognizes people have limits and need rest. He knows the disciples need rest. Maybe they need rest because they are too focused on all they have been doing, and they want to keep doing more. Maybe they need rest because they are tired, and they have been too busy to even enjoy a quiet meal. Jesus knows their needs and has compassion on them. Jesus provides, and there was enough for all.
One way you might organize your sermon, as I have loosely modeled above, is a Story Interrupted structure.[1] Using this construction, you can walk through the narrative sequence, and pause and process with your hearers along the way.
You could also preach a Law/Gospel structure.[2] This might diagnose the problem of our busyness (especially as servants in the Church) as being prone to idolatry. Then we find good news in the Good Shepherd, who is God Himself and provides all we need.
I would also suggest considering structuring your message around multiple images.[3] You could utilize the following three parts:
Part 1—The disciples are so excited about all the work they have been doing, they just keep talking, until Jesus puts up a hand to gesture, “Stop.”
Part 2—The disciples get wide-eyed seeing all the work to do as the crowd of people keeps growing. You look into one of their wide eyes and can feel their anxiety as they think, “But I need rest.”
Part 3—It is that moment when dinner is served, all the conversation has ceased, and everyone is enjoying the food. The disciples are sitting among the crowd, eating as well. And you see Jesus smiling, delighting in the fact that His people are being refreshed by His gift.
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Additional Resources:
Craft of Preaching-Check out out 1517’s resources on Mark 6:30-44.
Concordia Theology-Various helps from Concordia Seminary in St. Louis, MO to assist you in preaching Mark 6:30-44.
Text Week-A treasury of resources from various traditions to help you preach Mark 6:30-44.
Lectionary Kick-Start-Check out this fantastic podcast from Craft of Preaching authors Peter Nafzger and David Schmitt as they dig into the texts for this Sunday!
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[1] https://concordiatheology.org/sermon-structs/textual/genre/narrative/biblical-story-interrupted/
[2] https://concordiatheology.org/sermon-structs/dynamic/lawgospel-structure/
[3] https://concordiatheology.org/sermon-structs/dynamic/imagistic-structures/multiple-image/
