5k Every Day in the Month of May 2017 (Day 5)
This morning I had planned to make it out to Vulture’s Knob to get a bit of trail running in first thing before the sun came up.
I didn’t make it.
I think I underestimated my level of fatigue from traveling all day yesterday. We got home and hung out with the kids for a bit before going to sleep around midnight. When my alarm went off at 4:05am I got up, came to my senses, and laid right back down.
Not today.
I was able to get my 5k in at 6pm at the OARDC with Jodi and a couple of friends. I like the idea of having at least one “group run” per week for those nearby who are participating in the 5k Every Day in the Month of May challenge. Next week may end up being a Saturday morning run. We’ll see how the week plays out.
We had a great run, finishing our 5k in 30 minutes and 36 seconds. That was an average pace of 9:51 per mile. I was really proud of Jodi. That was a great run for her!
Today’s reading was Matthew 13-15. The main thing that stood out to me today was the miracle feeding of the 5,000 in Matthew 14 and the feeding of the 4,000 in Matthew 15.
I have studied this portion quite extensively and have preached sermons from several different facets of the story -everything from God using what little we have, to the fact that the miracle happened in the hands of the disciples… but today I am most struck by Jesus’ mission to Israel and his heart for the world.
In Matthew 14, we see that it is the disciples who seem to notice the needs of the people.
Now when it was evening, the disciples came to him and said, “This is a desolate place, and the day is now over; send the crowds away to go into the villages and buy food for themselves.” – Matthew 14:15
Notice that they are in the land of the Jews when this happens, and the Jewish disciples have compassion for the crowds, asking that they be sent away so that they can have their needs met. In this situation, Jesus essentially acknowledges their request, but says, “You meet their needs.”
So they pull their supplies together and see that they have 5 loaves and 2 fish -more than enough for Jesus to work with. A miracle happens and 5,000 men (plus women and children) are fed. In the end, the disciples picked up twelve baskets full of pieces left over.
It’s a simple math problem:
5 loaves + 2 fish ÷ 5,000 hungry men (plus women and children) = 12 baskets of leftovers.
The number twelve is significant. It is the number of disciples and the number of tribes of Israel. Essentially, Jesus is sending a message that he is the savior of Israel.
He is more than enough for ALL of Israel… for all 12 tribes plus their descendants. I believe that is the point of the 12 baskets of leftovers. That is what Matthew wants us to get from the story.
And all of this happens while Jesus is still freshly dealing with sad news of the death of his cousin, John the Baptist. Jesus is running on empty, emotionally speaking, and yet he is more than able to meet the needs of all of Israel.
One chapter later and we have a similar story, yet very different.
In Matthew 15, we see 4,000 hungry men (plus women and children) in a similar situation. What supplies do they have this time? Well, they actually have MORE than they had last time. Now they have seven loaves and a few small fish. Let’s say the number of fish is three (even though we only know it was “a few”, that seems to indicate more than one or two, so let’s call it three). Our new math problem is this:
7 loaves + 3 fish ÷ 4,000 hungry men (plus women and children) = ?
Admittedly, this is still going to require a miracle, but the circumstances are sizably BETTER than they were one chapter ago.
Naturally speaking, 7 total food items divided by 5,000 people is worse than 10 food items divided by 4,000 people. Both require a miracle, but one is worse than the other.
But that is not the main difference between the feeding miracle in Matthew 14 and Matthew 15. The big difference is in geography and initiative.
The miracle in Matthew 14 was initiated by the disciples because they were concerned about their fellow countrymen.
The miracle in Matthew 15 was initiated by Jesus because the disciples were indifferent concerning the hungry gentiles.
Then Jesus called his disciples to him and said, “I have compassion on the crowd because they have been with me now three days and have nothing to eat. And I am unwilling to send them away hungry, lest they faint on the way.” – Matthew 15:32
Notice that following the feeding in Matthew 15, the disciples pick up seven baskets full of leftovers.
Seven is the perfect number, the number of completion. Not only is Matthew wanting us to see that Jesus is more than enough for ALL of Israel (Matthew 14), he also wants us to see that Jesus is more than enough for everyone in the whole world. He is perfect.
Less general, and more specific, I believe that Matthew wants his readers to connect the seven baskets left over with a new way of understanding God’s work among the nations. At one point God’s plan was to destroy the nations who would contaminate his plan of bringing Jesus into the world:
“When the LORD your God brings you into the land that you are entering to take possession of it, and clears away many nations before you, the Hittites, the Girgashites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, seven nations more numerous and mightier than you” – Deuteronomy 7:1
This is now the same area where Jesus is making provision for the seven nations, proving by the seven baskets left over that he is more than enough.
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Got my run and reading in also. Well, run/walk. Sometimes I like to just enjoy the outdoors at a slower pace.
Matthew 14 also stood out to me for the same reasons you mentioned. Another thing that came to mind, sometimes I feel like I have so little to offer. But, this was a reminder that Jesus can take the little I have and do much with it.
Good work!
Just finished my run. Tired. I listened part of the verses this morning will finish the rest tonight.
Haha. Tired sounds about right. Good work!
Run was completed tonight. Which it was s nice night for it. I was thinking at work that I might have to get soaked on this run but God held the rains off.
What stuck out to me from the chapters day was about John the Baptist’s death. When Jesus found out it said he withdrew from the crowd. It don’t come out and say it but I would say since John was a cousin to Jesus and was preaching the word and Baptised Jesus he thought a lot of John and word of his death was sad to Jesus. It’s interesting to me how Jesus withdrew but the crowds followed. Then it said when he went to ashore he saw the great crowd and he had compassion on them and healed their sick. (Matthew 14:14)
He just had a major death of a person he admired I would say but he was not selfish in thinking of him but of others.
Good word! And thanks for making it to the group run. Good times!
I made it to Vulture’s Knob and ran 8.1 sloppy and wet miles in the trail. It was awesome.
You are a better man than I. I chose an epic sleep-in. Next time!!
We went for our run this morning. Our time was 26:53 (average 8:40 per mile). We also read Mathew 13-15. Something that stuck out to me is in chapter 14 after Jesus fed the 5000 and just heard his cousin was killed, He took time to be by Himself. It reminded me that even in craziness, we should take time to be by ourselves and reenergize.
Good word. Jesus was the master of taking time to be by himself (or more accuratel, alone with the Father) to reenergize. We probably all have a lot to learn there!
We did our “3s” this morning. It was rainy, and we chose to stay inside and used the treadmill and elliptical. We both enjoy walking outside better, but we just didn’t like the thought of getting all wet! (Can I plead my age as an excuse?!) This morning, as I listened to Matthew’s writings, I was struck by the way Jesus acted in different situations. He would talk without being afraid of offending. But then he would look at the people and be overcome with compassion for them because of their spiritual needs and also their physical needs. I asked myself why I’m afraid of offending people instead of seeing them with compassion and caring enough to not worry about being offensive.
Cindy, I had to chuckle because so far I’ve done ALL of mine indoors. Can I use age as an excuse too 😉 I like your thoughts here also.
Ahh… to be more like Jesus in all circumstances. Notice that Jesus wasn’t afraid of getting wet… in fact, he seemed to do some of his walking on the water.
Haha that’s funny, Jeff.
I ran my fastest 5k in the month of May so far…good enough to get crushed by 4 guys. Then I celebrated Cinco de Mayo with authentic Mexican cuisine…Taco Bell!
I like the guy in the parable who saw the kingdom of heaven, and when he realized what a treasure it was, it only made sense to sell everything he had to acquire that treasure.
Haha. Good job!!
I am always struck by the pearl of great price!! Jesus is worth more than anything else we could possibly have or desire!
Beautiful night for a run/walk in the Iowa countryside. Chapter 15 verses 8-9 caught my eye. Jesus quotes from Isaiah, “these people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.” I so don’t want this to be me. I want my heart to be near him even as I follow the rules of reading 3 chapters a day.
Amen!
Got ours in tonight too. Randy loved running with the group and I did mine on the treadmill in 28:44 with a 9:14 pace. I’m a fair weather runner 🙂 I appreciated your insights into these chapters and the deciphering of the meaning of the numbers. I had never put it together like that. I love how the stories point to Jesus and His character.
Amy, you are a treadmill warrior! Good work. It is all I can do to put in 3.1 on a treadmill.
It was fun to join Randy on a run at the OARDC. What a great place to run.
It has certainly been my pleasure to share my thoughts on the 3 chapters per day. It is fun to organize my thoughts and try to make them coherent. The most difficult part for me is trying to decide WHAT to focus on because there is so much in 3 short chapters!! But what to focus on usually becomes clear as a certain passage or story plays over and over in my head as I think about what I’ve read throughout the day.
I have really enjoyed sharing this experience and hearing everyone else’s insight. This has been fun for me!
I, too, have enjoyed this. I enjoy reading everybody’s thoughts and “take-always”. I am always amazed at the way The Holy Spirit uses the same passage of scripture to speak to each of us in different and individual ways. Then He leaves it up to us to decide what we’ll do with it. Our walk (haven’t reached the running stage!) is complete for today (Saturday). And all inside again! (Jesus walked on water, but somehow I always seem to walk IN the water! 😕)