7. Philip answered him, Two hundred pennyworth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one of them may take a little. 8. One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, saith unto him, 9. There is a lad here, which hath five barley loaves, and two small fishes : but what are they among so many? 10. And Jesus said, Make the men sit down. Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, in number about five thousand. ten thousand guests, only a few hundreds were expected, and still fewer were actually invited. Nevertheless the honor and prestige of the house and the customs of the country required that all should be fed. "The shaykhs and chiefs of the districts east of the Sea of Galilee and the Jordan retain their influence and keep up their credit by feeding, feeding, feeding the multitude; otherwise they come short of their duty, and they fall in the estimation of the people." = 16 or 18 cents 66 = about Thus two hundred pennyworth (Am. R., shillings; a penny three-fourths of an English shilling), totaled 32 to 36 dollars. This sum (big as Philip seemed to think) would have provided just about one loaf, of the size of one of the five the lad had, for each individual in the multitude, and the affair would have been a failure; for the Oriental proverb is, When thou dost feed, thou oughtest to satisfy." The Boy with the Loaves and Fishes. This is a charming lesson for boys. This young boy was a small Christian Endeavor Society, or, rather, a " Lend-a-Hand Committee." He was taken into partnership with Christ in one of the greatest miracles he ever performed. "Keep thou, dear child, thine early word; May take some gift of thee? "Even as He made that stripling's store Type of the feast by Him decreed, And souls forever feed.' Lyra Innocentium. Dr. Robert E. Speer tells the story of two boys who were playing one day in the new barn that they are building just over there, and we sat down and we talked together about the Bible. Presently one of the carpenters heard us, and he came over and sat down beside us, and he talked to us, and then he said: 'Boys, I've got some cards I want to give you,' and he went over where his coat was hanging beside his dinner pail and he got the cards like this out of his pocket, and he gave one to each of One of them took his home and said to his father, 'Father, I am going to read you this card, and then I will tell you how I got it.' And so he began to read this simple little boyish card : us. "God wants the boys, God wants the boys, His heroes brave He would have them be, "And he said: 'I will read you the other side. "Are you willing to be God's boy? If so, sign your name to this covenant and daily ask God to help you keep it. I receive Jesus as my Saviour and I will try hard to do what I think He would have me do."" Name. Illustration. "When Count Zinzendorf was a boy at school, he founded amongst his schoolfellows a little guild which he called the Order of the Grain of Mustard Seed,' and thereafter that seedling grew into the great tree of the Moravian Brotherhood, whose boughs were a blessing to the world." Farrar. IO, II. IV. (Late in the Afternoon.) THE FIVE THOUSAND FED BY JESUS, vs. Jesus said, Make the men (Am. R., "people") sit down. For three reasons: (1) That there might be no unseemly crowding, with the disasters and crushing of the weak, which would naturally follow a rush; (2) " that they might understand they were to have a full meal and not a mere bite they could take in their hand in passing" (Exp. Greek Test.); (3) for the convenience of distribution, so that none should be overlooked. Now there was much grass in the place. The grass was luxuriant at this time of the year. So the men sat down. Mark tells us that they II. And Jesus took the loaves; and when he had given thanks, he distributed to the disciples, and the disciples to them that were set down; and likewise of the fishes as much as they would. 12. When they were filled, he said unto his disciples, Gather up the fragments that remain, that nothing be lost. 13. Therefore they gathered them together, and filled twelve baskets with the fragments of the five barley loaves, which remained over and above unto them that had eaten. were arranged in ranks, by hundreds and fifties, and thus their number was easily known. Either there were fifty rows of one hundred men, or they were arranged in fifty triclinia, i.e. three sides of a parallelogram, according to Roman custom, each consisting of a hundred men. "Each hundred constituted a distinct party, or triclinium, and would be separated by a convenient interval from all the other hundreds." Morison. The Greek word for "ranks " is literally" garden plats." With their bright-colored Oriental dresses (gay red, blue, and yellow, which the poorest wear), these men presented an appearance which recalled a brilliant garden in the early summer, with numerous flower beds, bordered with the green grass. 11. And Jesus took the loaves, which were in the form of large thin cakes or crackers. And when he had given thanks to the Giver of all good. "It was held by the Jews that he who partakes of anything without giving thanks acts as if he were stealing from God." Asking a blessing upon food before meals was a universal custom among the Jews, and Jesus followed the custom all through his ministry, because it was and is a most appropriate and helpful custom, and should be universal. Its spirit sanctifies the act of eating, transfigures it, even more than bright conversation renders it "the feast of reason, and the flow of soul." Why specially over food? Because food is the basis of life, the source of supply for all other things, so that all are included under it. He distributed to the disciples, and the disciples to them that were set down. "The women though not specified would take their places with the men. Some of the children might steal up to Jesus to receive from his own hand." Exp. Gk. Test. ""Twas seedtime when he blessed the bread, 'Twas harvest when he brake. hungry from that feast. When they were filled, And they did all eat and were filled (Mark). No one went V. GATHERING UP THE FRAGMENTS, vs. 12-14. when every one had eaten all he wanted, Jesus said unto his disciples, who had distributed the bread, Gather up the fragments that remain (Am. R., "broken pieces which remain over" so in v. 13) that nothing be lost. The broken pieces that would be fit for food another time, or those which were left in the baskets from which the loaves were distributed. 13. Therefore they gathered them together, and filled twelve baskets with the fragments of the five barley loaves which remained over and above unto them that had eaten. The kinds of baskets used on this occasion were called kophinoi, and were made of all sizes and from various kinds of material, rushes, reeds, leaves of the palm tree, or ropes. Where they came from we do not know. They may have been those carried there by the disciples themselves for their use in travelling around the country, or they may have been found among the many who had come to see and hear Jesus. What was done with the fragments we do not know. They may have been used by the disciples who had waited on the others, and were themselves far from home; or they may have been given to those who were specially needy. Baskets of Palestine. 14. The people were convinced that Jesus was of a truth that prophet that should come into the world, that is the expected Messiah. See the next lesson. 14. Then those men, when they had seen the miracle that Jesus did, said, This is of a truth that prophet that should come into the world. Note. Verses 15 to 21: "Walking on the Sea are discussed in the next lesson. (From these VI. TWELVE BASKETS FULL OF WISDOM FOR DAILY LIFE. select for Discussion by the Class those which are most interesting and helpful for the class you are teaching.) First. The hope of the world's salvation is in the wonderful power of God in multiplying the littles; the numbers, the wealth, the power, of Christians are enough for the salvation of the world, if they will distribute what God gives them, and if his blessing goes with it. When they laughed at Saint Theresa, because she wanted to build a great orphanage and had but three shillings to begin with, she answered, "With three shillings Theresa can do nothing; but with God and her three shillings there is nothing which Theresa cannot do." Do not let us imagine, then, that we are too poor, or too stupid, or too ignorant, or too obscure to do any real good in the world wherein God has placed us. Second. "If you bring no gift, how can God use it? The lad must bring his barley loaves to Christ before the five thousand can be fed. Have you ever attempted to do as he did? Have you, even in the smallest measure, or with the least earnest desire, tried to follow John Wesley's golden advice: Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, to all the persons you can, in all the places you can, as long as ever you can'?". Farrar. 6 Compare the little maid who told Naaman how he could be healed. Third. Gathering up the fragments is the essential way of success whether in the Lord's business, or in any work God has given us to do. There was once an apprentice to an artist in stained-glass windows, who used the odd hours of his time and the waste pieces of glass to make a window, and the result was more beautiful than any his master had made, and it was placed in a church. Using well or wasting the fragments of time, of opportunity, the nooks and corners of life, makes all the difference between success and failure. Fourth. That nothing be lost. It is quite wonderful how scientific invention has reënforced this duty, by showing how many things of the greatest value come from the by-products, which formerly were thrown away as useless. The refuse of petroleum is now worth more than the oil product. The waste of spruce lumber is made into paper, and many other things. Out of the refuse heaps come some of our choicest perfumes. Illustrations of this are found in many a business. One of the most generous of Sunday School men made a fortune out of the feathers of hens, that formerly were thrown away as waste. Here lies one of our great opportunities of helping others, of doing good, of growing in our religious life. Fifth. The Hungering Multitudes. A large part of the world is like this desert, full of people perishing of hunger. They need eternal life; they need to have their souls nourished and strengthened; they need to be satisfied with love and forgiveness and hope and faith and courage; they are dying for want of the bread of life. Sixth. Give ye them to eat. "There was a sublime lesson of faith, taught in this command, Give ye them to eat. How could they do it? But the Lord gave them to understand that whatever he commissioned them to do He would empower them to do. Out of their very penury they were made rich, out of their weakness strong.' Dr. Greenough. The disciples found the truth of this after the resurrection of Jesus. Before that, the work Jesus was committing to their hands, to spread Christianity over the world, was an impossibility. After Pentecost they received the needed power. Brethren, the day is wearing away; this is a desert place; there are hungry, perishing multitudes around us, and Christ is saying to us all, ‘Give ye them to eat. Say not, 'We cannot; we have nothing to give.' Go to your duty, every man, and trust yourselves to him; for he will give you all supply just as fast as you need it." Horace Bushnell. Seventh. Co-workers with God. "Our Lord taught the disciples here to regard themselves as indispensable co-workers with Him He linked and wedded them with Himself in this miraculous work. The supernatural power was all His own, but the glory of it was shared with them. It was through their ministry that the blessing was conferred.” Dr. Greenough. Eighth. No good work for others is unworthy of the highest and greatest. These disciples left their mountain rest with Jesus to give bread to the poorest that were hungry. So Jesus washed the feet of his disciples. So Paul gathered sticks for the fire to warm the wrecked sailors. One of Murillo's masterpieces is entitled "The angels in the kitchen," where in the convent kitchen angels, white-winged and beautiful, were preparing a dinner, for the starving monks. "One serenely puts the kettle on the fire to boil, and one is lifting up a pail of water with heavenly grace, and one is at the kitchen dresser reaching up for plates; and I believe there is a little cherub running about and getting in the way, trying to help. All are so busy, and working with such a will, and so refining the work as they do it, that we think only of the angels, and how very natural and beautiful kitchen work is, — just what the angels would do, of course.' "I love to think the sweet will of his God Ninth. The Blessedness of Giving. When we give freely what God gives us, when we as individuals and churches distribute to others the blessings God bestows, we shall find that more is left than we received at first. A missionary church doing most and giving most for the heathen is most prosperous at home in all spiritual usefulness. Individuals will find the same rule holding true. They gain spiritual life by imparting it. They gain clearer views of truth by teaching others. This is one of the teacher's greatest rewards. People grow richer in all that is best in life by giving freely of the money God gives them. Tenth. Eleventh. "Is thy cruse of comfort failing? Rise and share it with another. Make a royal feast for two. "For the heart grows rich in giving; Scattered, fill with gold the plain. The Arithmetic of God. Is thy burden hard and heavy? None but God its void can fill; And by serving, love will grow." "This is the arithmetic of the kingdom. Earthly arithmetic says, 'Give and want.' Heavenly arithmetic says, 'Give and grow rich.'" — -Schauffler. (1) "He multiplied by division, distributed.' (2) He added by subtraction, 'filled twelve baskets with the fragments of the five barley loaves.' Doren, D.D. W. H. Van LESSON X. March II. JESUS THE BREAD OF LIFE. John 6:22-40. PRINT vs. 24-37. MEMORIZE vs. 32, 33. GOLDEN TEXT. - Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of Life. — JOHN 6:35. THE TEACHER AND HIS CLASS. The Religious Education Association in 1914 appointed a committee to consider the names and age limits of the various grades in the Sunday School. Their report closes with this wise suggestion : "Our great problem .. is to frame a scheme that will take children of tender years, fit instruction to growing needs and capacities, promote them from grade to grade at normal transition points, and graduate them into the church and into active Christian lives." This should be the work of every earnest teacher, and this lesson gives an excellent opportunity to draw the children and youth in that direction and bring them to Jesus the Bread of Life. THE ROUND TABLE. FOR RESEARCH AND DISCUSSION. Jesus' prayer alone on the mountain. The experience of the disciples in the storm, and its The meat which endureth to everlasting life. Eating the flesh of the Son of God. THE TEACHER'S LIBRARY. Maclaren's Bible Class Expositions on John. Dr. Miller's Devotional Hours with the Bible. Alexander Whyte's Walk, Conversation, and Character of Jesus. Wm. M. Taylor's Miracles of our Saviour. Dr. Deems' Gospel of Spiritual Insight, "The Food of Immortality." And nearly all the Commentaries and the Works on the Miracles. I. SCENES IN THE NIGHT FOLLOWING THE FEEDING OF THE FIVE THOUSAND, John 6:15-21 (Matt. 14: 22-33; Mk. 6: 45-52). First. When the disciples had completed their weary labors of feeding such a multitude, Jesus constrained them, apparently against their will, to enter the boat in which they had come, and set sail for Bethsaida (Mark) while he remained behind to send the multitudes home. Probably they expected to meet Jesus there and then proceed together to Capernaum (John). Jesus will not have them to be clinging only to the sense of his bodily presence as ivy, needing always an outward support- but as hardy forest trees which can brave a blast; and this time he puts them forth into the danger alone, even as some loving mother bird thrusts her fledglings from the nest, that they may find their own wings, and learn to use them. And by the issue he will awaken in them a confidence in his ever-ready help." Trench. 66 Second. Jesus having sent away his disciples finds some of the multitude conspiring to make him their king, to act as they expected the promised Messiah would |