Gathering The Fragments (Title is link to sermon)
John 6:1-13 (1) After these things Jesus went over the sea of Galilee, which is the sea of Tiberias. (2) And a great multitude followed him, because they saw his miracles which he did on them that were diseased. (3) And Jesus went up into a mountain, and there he sat with his disciples. (4) And the passover, a feast of the Jews, was nigh. (5) When Jesus then lifted up his eyes, and saw a great company come unto him, he saith unto Philip, Whence shall we buy bread, that these may eat? (6) And this he said to prove him: for he himself knew what he would do. (7) Philip answered him, Two hundred pennyworth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one of them may take a little. (8) One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, saith unto him, (9) There is a lad here, which hath five barley loaves, and two small fishes: but what are they among so many? (10) And Jesus said, Make the men sit down. Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, in number about five thousand. (11) And Jesus took the loaves; and when he had given thanks, he distributed to the disciples, and the disciples to them that were set down; and likewise of the fishes as much as they would. (12) When they were filled, he said unto his disciples, Gather up the fragments that remain, that nothing be lost. (13) Therefore they gathered them together, and filled twelve baskets with the fragments of the five barley loaves, which remained over and above unto them that had eaten.
This is a wonderful story from the life of Christ that is given to us in the beginning of John 6. It is a story that many of us have heard numerous times. A great multitude was following Christ and Jesus knew they were hungry. The disciples being tested by Christ declared that it was impossible to feed this crowd with the resources they had.
Then one little boy who had a lunch of five loaves of bread and two small fishes offered it to Christ. Christ took that little boy’s lunch and multiplied it until the whole crowd was fed. A great miracle occurred.
Now, most of us are familiar with that much of the story. Amen? But after the crowd is filled, Christ does something interesting in verse 12. He commands the disciples to gather the fragments that remain that nothing be lost.
Jesus was concerned about the leftovers!! Now some have used this verse to teach us to be good stewards of what God gives us and not waste it. That is certainly true. But the Holy Spirit wants to shows us something else today.
I thought about Christ gathering all those fragments, those leftovers, those things that no one in the crowd wanted any more, and He gathered them for a purpose. What was His purpose in gathering these leftovers? He was going to use them.
I want you to know this morning we serve a God who is concerned about the fragments. Whatever has happened in your life God wants to gather up the fragments that remain so that nothing should be lost. Let me show you some examples of this truth from Scripture.
In Matthew 26:69-75 we find Jesus’ disciple Peter. The one who had promised he would follow the Lord even until death. But he denies Christ three times! Then realizing his sin, he goes out and weeps bitterly.
And some would say that he was washed up, his best days of serving Christ were behind him. Surely God would not use him now. But Peter found forgiveness and went on to become the great preacher of Pentecost.
Why?
God was gathering the fragments that remained so that nothing be lost!
There are many others too. Rahab the Harlot - In the blood line of Christ, The woman at the well - led many to Christ. The woman caught in the act of adultery.
Christ never excused their sin.
On the contrary they were confronted with it.
But once they repented, Christ gathered the fragments of their lives that remained that nothing would be lost.
The Bible tells us we ought to stay close to God and not allow sin in our lives. The consequences of sin are real and devastating. But when we have failed God, He will not only forgive, but He will also gather the fragments that remain!
Christ thought that some leftover fish and bread was important. How much more importance does He place on the fragments of your life. And He will gather them and use them to do great miracles. Will you let Him?
Have a blessed day!
Comments
Thank you Jesus for gathering the fragments of my life and using them for your glory.