Thy Strong Word — John 6:1-21: Bread and Waves: Provision and Power

Jesus unveils His divine authority and tender care with breathtaking clarity, meeting both the physical and spiritual needs of His people. With just five loaves and two fish, He feeds a massive crowd, leaving them amazed and satisfied, and then, as chaos brews on the stormy sea, He strides across the waves to bring peace to His terrified disciples. These miraculous acts radiate the power of the One who commands creation itself and offers Himself as the Bread of Life.

The Rev. David Bass, pastor of St. Michael Lutheran Church and School in Ft. Meyers, FL, joins the Rev. Dr. Phil Booe to study John 6:1-12.

The Gospel of John takes us on a journey through the Good News of Jesus in a unique way. It reveals Jesus as the incarnate son of God from eternity. From His miraculous signs to His profound “I Am” statements, we witness Jesus offering living water to the thirsty, light to those in darkness, and life to the dead. But this is also a story of conflict: Jesus is relentlessly pursued by those who reject Him, yet He willingly goes to the cross, showing the depths of God’s love. As we travel from His first miracle to His ultimate victory over death, John invites us to see and believe—that in Jesus, we find eternal life and the very presence of God among us. Connect to God’s revealing Word in this series that uncovers the rich, layered truths of John’s Gospel and the unshakable hope it offers.

Thy Strong Word, hosted by Rev. Dr. Phil Booe, pastor of St. John Lutheran Church of Luverne, MN, reveals the light of our salvation in Christ through study of God’s Word, breaking our darkness with His redeeming light. Each weekday, two pastors fix our eyes on Jesus by considering Holy Scripture, verse by verse, in order to be strengthened in the Word and be equipped to faithfully serve in our daily vocations. Submit comments or questions to: thystrongword@kfuo.org.

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John 6:1-12

Jesus Feeds the Five Thousand

6 After this Jesus went away to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, which is the Sea of Tiberias. ²And a large crowd was following him, because they saw the signs that he was doing on the sick. ³Jesus went up on the mountain, and there he sat down with his disciples. ⁴Now the Passover, the feast of the Jews, was at hand. ⁵Lifting up his eyes, then, and seeing that a large crowd was coming toward him, Jesus said to Philip, “Where are we to buy bread, so that these people may eat?” ⁶He said this to test him, for he himself knew what he would do. ⁷Philip answered him, “Two hundred denarii^[a] worth of bread would not be enough for each of them to get a little.” ⁸One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to him, ⁹“There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are they for so many?” ¹⁰Jesus said, “Have the people sit down.” Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, about five thousand in number. ¹¹Jesus then took the loaves, and when he had given thanks, he distributed them to those who were seated. So also the fish, as much as they wanted. ¹²And when they had eaten their fill, he told his disciples, “Gather up the leftover fragments, that nothing may be lost.” ¹³So they gathered them up and filled twelve baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves left by those who had eaten. ¹⁴When the people saw the sign that he had done, they said, “This is indeed the Prophet who is to come into the world!”

¹⁵Perceiving then that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, Jesus withdrew again to the mountain by himself.

Jesus Walks on Water

¹⁶When evening came, his disciples went down to the sea, ¹⁷got into a boat, and started across the sea to Capernaum. It was now dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. ¹⁸The sea became rough because a strong wind was blowing. ¹⁹When they had rowed about three or four miles,^[b] they saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat, and they were frightened. ²⁰But he said to them, “It is I; do not be afraid.” ²¹Then they were glad to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land to which they were going.

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Footnotes

John 6:7 A denarius was a day’s wage for a laborer
John 6:19 Greek twenty-five or thirty stadia; a stadion was about 607 feet or 185 meters

Rev. Dr. Phil Booe

Native North Carolinian Rev. Dr. Phil Booe serves pastor of St. John Lutheran Church of Luverne, MN, and host of Thy Strong Word on KFUO Radio. His parishioners probably think he can’t teach Bible study without a mug of coffee in his hand, and he’ll always be happy to eat a plate of sushi. When he’s not shepherding his flock or teaching on the radio, you might find him watching bad movies from the 50s, 60s, and 70s, and especially binging RiffTrax and MST3K episodes. Some day he’d love to travel to the Lutheran homeland in Germany, but for now he spends time in Minnesota with his wife, son, daughter, and cat, and looks forward to Holy Week every year.