“Well, if you recall last week’s Gospel, Jesus takes the loaves and the fish and He feeds over 5,000 people. Well, this is the same crowd Jesus and His disciples left back over the Sea of Galilee; And this crowd follows Him. Why? Because they want another meal.
First, Jesus calls them out. Right off the bat, He says, ‘You’re not here to see signs. You ate the loaves and were filled. That’s why you’re here.’ And the response of the crowd is interesting. They want Jesus to perform a sign. My gosh, isn’t being fed…5,000 people being fed from a few loaves…a sign? It’s a pretty big sign, isn’t it?
They’ve already had a great sign, but they want Jesus to give them another sign. And what sign do they want?
In the desert, He gave them bread from Heaven to eat. In today’s first reading, you heard about God giving them manna in the morning. And quail come down at night. And God fed the Israelite people for 40 years. 40 years.
Well, that’s what this crowd wants, quite literally. They want to be fed for the next 40 years and not only that, Jesus heals the sick. So free medical care and free food for the rest of your life. What a deal, Wow. They want as much as they can get. And Jesus, of course, gives a lot. He’s going to give Himself. But these poor people are missing the whole point.
Being a follower of Jesus, it’s not just about receiving. It’s about giving. Jesus comes into our life so that we can emulate Him, just like He gave himself for us. We have to give of ourselves to others in kindness, compassion, generosity and in good works. We have to give that to others as Christ poured it into us.
You receive God’s grace and you have to turn around and give that love to others. And the crowd, of course, will have none of that. They were more than happy to take the free food, but if it meant that they had to change their lives and care more about one another, well, they’ll live. And that’s the last of the crowd. They’re going to go, and He’s only left with a tiny remnant of about 40 people.
But that is the message of the Gospel today. God gives us a lot, but He doesn’t give it to us just to keep. He gives it to us so that we can give it to others in what we say and how we act.”
~Fr. Joe Gembala: Sunday, August 4th, 2024