bible_study/Thoughts/When we give God the little we have.md

#Faith

The passages that tell this story can be found in 
- Matthew 14:13-21
- Mark 6:30-44
- Luke 9:10-17
- John 6:1-14

But lets focus on the version that John gives.

> [!Bible]  John 6:9 LSB
> (9) "There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are these for so many people?"

John gives us a small detail that is not present in the other versions of the account of Jesus feeding the 5,000. A child presenting what little he has to Jesus. 

Take a moment an put your self into the child's shoes. This should be easy to do because we all have had this situation happen to us. Now imagine when you were a child and the adults around you are in the middle of big problem. You intently listen as they discuss how big the problem is and how there is no good solution. 

> [!quote] Mark 6:35-37 LSB 
> (35) And when it was already quite late, His disciples came to Him and began saying, "This place is desolate and it is already quite late; 
> 
> (36) send them away so that they may go into the surrounding countryside and villages and buy themselves something to eat." 
> 
> (37) But He answered and said to them, "You give them something to eat!" And they said to Him, "Shall we go and spend two hundred denarii on bread and give them something to eat?"

But then you realize you have a small something that could help solve the problem. You have five loves of bread and two fish, surely that has to help.  

Without a second thought you raise you voice and tell the adults you have something that can help. Your attempt to help is met with disappointment as the adults look at you dismiss your attempt to contribute. They may even laugh a little.  It stings thinking about that time when it was us doing the same. 

"but what are these for so many people?"

We unfairly learn that when we have something to offer it needs to be big enough or good enough to be of help. It can not just be what we have. 

> [!quote] Mat 18:1-4 LSB
> (1) At that time the disciples came to Jesus and said, "Who then is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?"
> 
> (2) And He called a child to Himself and set him before them, 
> 
> (3) and said, "Truly I say to you, unless you are converted and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 
> 
> (4) "Whoever therefore will humble himself as this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

Let look at another example of when someone gave all they had. 

> [!quote] Luke 21:1-4 LSB
> (1) And He looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the treasury. 
> 
> (2) And He saw a poor widow putting in two lepta.
> 
> (3) And He said, "Truly I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all of them. 
> 
> (4) "For they all put in their gifts out of their abundance; but she, out of what she lacked, put in all that she had for living."

Interestingly we don't see anyone criticizing the poor woman for what litter she gave. Could this be because in this scenario the people understood that we they all gave a little or what they had to give it would help towards the greater good. Or possibly they were giving based on that the norm. Either way we see that Jesus take note of when someone gives all they have.

> [!quote] Matthew 17:20 LSB
> (20) And He said to them, "Because of your little faith; for truly I say to you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible to you.

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How many times do we look around and feel discouraged at what we see and think to ourselves, I don't have enough to give. I'm not good enough to make a difference. 

Look what God can do with our little when we offer it up to Him! 

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Other Notes:
[THE POTENTIALS OF FAITH - Chuck Smith](https://www.blueletterbible.org/Comm/smith_chuck/SermonNotes_Mat/Mat_183.cfm?a=946020)