John 6:1–15. Feeling Hungry.
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What Do We Tell Hungry People?
We live in a hungry world. Teenage Marty ate 39 Weetbix on Youth Camp in year 10. But we’re not talking about that kind of hunger.
We’re talking about hunger for meaning. For purpose. For security. For something that actually satisfies. People chase experiences, relationships, school and sporting success, overseas holidays, concerts, comfort, and approval, hoping each new thing might finally fill the gap.
And yet, the hunger keeps coming back.
So when people are hungry for more in life, what should we tell them?
In John 6:1–15, we meet a massive crowd of hungry people. Physically hungry? Yes. But also spiritually hungry. And in this famous miracle, Jesus shows us three crucial things: he sees our hunger, he satisfies our hunger, but he shuns our timeline.
1. Jesus Sees the Crowd’s Hunger (6:1–6)
In the first six verses, Jesus sees the crowd’s hunger. A huge crowd follows Jesus around the Sea of Galilee. John tells us why:
“They followed him because they saw the signs he had performed by healing the sick.” (6:2)
They are drawn by what Jesus can do for them. And now they are far from home, in a remote place, with no food. But notice something important: Jesus sees the problem before anyone else does.
“When Jesus looked up and saw a great crowd coming toward him, he said to Philip, ‘Where shall we buy bread for these people to eat?’” (6:5)
The disciples haven’t raised the issue yet. The crowd hasn’t complained yet. But Jesus already sees.
John adds:
“He asked this only to test him, for he already had in mind what he was going to do.” (6:6)
Jesus isn’t scrambling. He’s not stressed. He isn’t caught off guard. He sees both the crowd’s hunger and the disciples’ lack of food-production skill.
And in that, he exposes something about us too. We often don’t fully recognise our own hunger. We feel restless. Unsatisfied. We’re always reaching for the next thing. But Jesus sees us more clearly than we see ourselves.
Before we can be helped, we need to admit our need.
We need to learn to see the hunger of the crowd around us. And to honestly recognise our own hunger before Jesus. What do you hunger for?
2. Jesus Satisfies the Crowd’s Hunger (6:7–13)
In addition to seeing the crowd’s hunger, Jesus satisfies the crowd’s hunger.
Philip does the maths:
“It would take more than half a year’s wages to buy enough bread for each one to have a bite!” (6:7)
Andrew finds a boy with a small lunch:
“Here is a boy with five small barley loaves and two small fish, but how far will they go among so many?” (6:9)
In human terms, it’s ridiculously insufficient. But Jesus takes the little they have, gives thanks, and spreads it around.
“They all ate and were satisfied.” (6:11)
Not just a nibble. Not just a taste. Legit satisfied. And then:
“The disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over.” (6:13)
Jesus doesn’t just meet the need. He provides with overflowing abundance. And the detail of twelve basketfuls tells us that this is no accident. In the Bible, twelve is the number of God’s people (e.g., the twelve tribes of Israel). So the leftovers show that Jesus’ provision is sufficient for all of God’s people, not just a lucky few at the front. Nothing is scraped together and nothing is missing. Everyone is satisfied, and there is still more than enough to go around. The sign points beyond full stomachs to who Jesus is, the one who gives life in such a way that no one who comes to him will ever lack what they truly need (see 6:13, 35).
The world constantly overpromises and underdelivers. It offers fullness and gives emptiness. It offers satisfaction and leaves us wanting more.
Jesus does the opposite. He takes what is small, weak, and inadequate, and provides more than we could ever imagine or ask for.
Later in the chapter, Jesus will say:
“I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry.” (6:35)
What does this mean for us? We need to recognise that only Jesus can truly and abundantly provide what the crowd needs. The world cannot satisfy. So we’ve got to stop looking to the world for our satisfaction, and start/keep looking to Jesus, who gives more than we need.
3. Jesus Shuns the Crowd’s Timeline (6:14–15)
The crowd is amazed. And they draw a conclusion:
“Surely this is the Prophet who is to come into the world.” (6:14)
Here, the “Prophet” is the one Moses prophesied about in Deuteronomy 18. Then they decide to act:
“Jesus, knowing that they intended to come and make him king by force, withdrew again to a mountain by himself.” (6:15)
They want a king who gives them bread. A king who fixes their problems. A king who works on their schedule. Basically, they’re shunning God’s timeline.
But Jesus shuns their timeline. Not because he isn’t a king. Not because he doesn’t care.
But because his kingship must come through the cross.
They want glory now. He is heading toward suffering first. They want immediate solutions. He is working on an eternal rescue. They want their timeline. He follows his Father’s.
We need to be careful we don’t make the same mistake. Since Jesus works on a different timeline, we shouldn’t expect him to deliver according to ours. His timing is wiser, better, and shaped by the cross. We need to think in “God-time”, not in “me-time”.
So what do we tell hungry people?
We tell them that the hunger they feel is not accidental. It is a hunger that only he can fill.
We tell them that Jesus sees their hunger.
We tell them that Jesus can satisfy their hunger.
And we tell them that Jesus is king, but doesn’t run on our timeline.
And what do we need to remember ourselves next time we’re hungry, whether physically hungry, or hungry in a more general sense?
Those same three things.
John 6:1–15. Youth Questions.
Pray and Get Going
1. What are the people you know hungry for, both in terms of food and big-picture life stuff?
Look at John 6:1-15
2. Why are people coming to Jesus?
3. What does Jesus see in verses 1-6?
4. How does Jesus satisfy the crowd’s hunger in verses 7-13?
5. What’s the significance of the left over pieces in verses 12-13?
6. How does Jesus satisfy our hunger?
7. What does the crowd make of Jesus in verses 14-15? Why do you think Jesus responds the way he does?
8. How do verses 14-15 help us think through our expectations of God’s timing?
Pray and Give Thanks
Please, God, help us to see our own hunger and to notice the hunger of the people around us. Help us to stop looking to the world to satisfy us, and to come to Jesus instead. Help us to trust him when his timing is different from ours, and to believe that his plans are wiser and better. Please help us to point hungry friends to Jesus, the one who truly satisfies. Amen.
Thank you, God, that Jesus sees our hunger and is not blind to our needs. Thank you that he takes what is small and weak and uses it to provide far more than we could ever imagine. Thank you that in Jesus we are not left empty, but truly satisfied. Thank you that he is a good and wise king, even when his timing is different from ours. Amen.
John 6:1–15. Kids’ Club Questions.
Pray and Get Going
1. When you’re hungry, what do you feel like eating?
Read John 6:3–6
3 Then Jesus went up on a mountainside and sat down with his disciples. … 5 When Jesus looked up and saw a great crowd coming toward him, he said to Philip, “Where shall we buy bread for these people to eat?” 6 He asked this only to test him, for he already had in mind what he was going to do.
2. Why are people coming to Jesus?
3. What does Jesus see?
Read John 6:8–11
8 Another of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, spoke up, 9 “Here is a boy with five small barley loaves and two small fish, but how far will they go among so many?”
10 Jesus said, “Have the people sit down.” There was plenty of grass in that place, and they sat down (about five thousand men were there). 11 Jesus then took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed to those who were seated as much as they wanted. He did the same with the fish.
4. How does Jesus look after the crowd’s hunger?
5. What does this story show us about Jesus?
6. What are some things you really, really want?
7. Do we need Jesus for more than just food? What else do we need him for?
Pray and Give Thanks
Please, God, help us to see our own hunger and to notice the hunger of the people around us. Help us to stop looking to the world to satisfy us, and to come to Jesus instead. Please help us to point hungry friends to Jesus, the one who truly satisfies. Amen.
Thank you God that Jesus sees our hunger and is not blind to our needs. Thank you that he takes what is small and weak and uses it to provide far more than we could ever imagine. Thank you that in Jesus we are not left empty, but truly satisfied. Thank you that he is a good and wise king, even when his timing is different from ours. Amen.
