Order up!

Mark 6:41
And when He had taken the five loaves and the two fish, He looked up to heaven, blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to His disciples to set before them; and the two fish He divided among them all.

I like going out to eat. Anyone who knows me would verify that statement. It’s just an enjoyable experience. There’s no work involved on my part; the food is cooked by someone else and brought to me by the waiter. When I’m done, the dirty dishes are removed, by the waiter; I don’t have to wash them. It’s fantastic!

I’ve never really considered this: we, Christians, are God’s waiters. Before you begin to worry that this is going down the service road, let me assure you, it is, but in a different way. I’m not going to expound on all of the things that we have to do in order to be “working” for God. This isn’t about fulfilling the law or being justified by our works. This is about the Gospel, the Good News; this is about delivering dinner to the hungry!

The way I see it, God is the owner of this restaurant. He’s responsible for ordering the supplies, prepping the ingredients, and lighting the oven. He pays the light bill, the gas bill, and the water bill. He stands in the kitchen endlessly (anyone who has ever worked in the industry knows this) preparing food. We deliver.

Just like Jesus told His disciples to set the food before the people, we have to do the same with the Gospel. It is not our responsibility to cram it down their throats or to make sure they eat every last crumb, only to set it before them. It’s up to the individual to reach out and take what has been prepared for them. If they desire to eat it all, let them try. The fact is, no one is capable of finishing the entire meal; there are always Jesus leftovers (Mark 6:43).

We have gone to Jesus and told Him the people are hungry. He, in turn, has given us His word, the Bible, to present to them. We are to rightly divide it (2 Timothy 2:15) in order to reveal Christ, the Bread of Life to them. Our “work” is placing the food on the table. Their “work” is reaching out and consuming it!

The strange and marvelous twist, however, is this: God’s restaurant isn’t really a restaurant; it’s more like a soup kitchen. There is no cost to eat; there is no shame in coming. He has already spent the time prepping the meal and it’s ready to go. He has already paid the price through the once and for all sacrifice of Jesus Christ. The poor, lonely, destitute, stinky, and nasty are all just as welcome as the rich, beautiful, and good-smelling. That’s the beauty of His Grace.

Jesus has given us more than we need to fill the masses. There is a supernatural abundance of grace ready to explode from the words in the Bible. We just have to deliver it to the hungry people and let them consume all they desire!