God formed Adam from the dust of the ground. He breathed His own breath of life into him. The Lord gave Adam the most beautiful place to live. Lush trees and foliage. Abundant and flowing rivers of life. Glimmering stones and gold decorated the hills and landscape. This place truly was Eden.

Adam was given fruit of the trees to give him life. He did not have to struggle and work the ground for his food, rather it was already present. Adam had no need of refrigerator, or food preservatives because this fruit would not rot or spoil; it was truly good.

He was given nourishment from the Tree of Life, but the tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil he was not to eat from. By eating from the Tree of Life, Adam was given life. By eating from the tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, Adam chose death for himself. As surely as Adam ate of this tree, so as surely did Adam die. The Lord God sent him away, he drove Adam from the Garden of Eden.

From then on Adam would suffer and toil for daily bread. No longer would the trees be ever ripe for his picking, but he had to cultivate the soil that would bear mostly weeds and thistles. Adam had to contend with insects, disease, mice, and thieves for his bread. From then on Adam would be hungry.

And hungry was the crowd who followed Jesus, numbering around 4000. Some of this crowd came from far off places to meet the Lord. They set out on the long difficult journey in the hot sun to the mountainous dessert region where Christ and his disciples were staying. These people braved the tough terrain and the heat of the day to follow Christ into the wilderness to hear His Word. Many must have considered them to be foolish.

Some of those who went to see Jesus were not far in distance, yet they were far in mindset. Many may not have been Jews who had a well-versed knowledge of the Old Testament Scriptures: a fine foundation to build upon. Many may have been Gentiles, who know only bits and pieces of the coming Messiah, barely knowing His name. Yet all were welcomed in faith by the One who would forgive all their sins, of both Jew and Gentile.

The first day passed quickly and the crowd heard the Word of forgiveness that Christ preached to them. Evening came and no one made preparations for home. They slept on the hard ground under the open sky. The second day came and they still did not want to leave Christ. The third day rolled around and their great need of food was obvious.

Many of these 4000 probably remember the miracle which occurred on a not-too long ago Passover festival day when Jesus provided food for 5000. After providing bread to this larger group Our Lord rebuked their unbelief when he said: “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall not thirst. But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe.”

Having this memory in the foreground, the crowd of 4000 must have murmured and debated on what words to use in expressing their hunger in the wilderness. They had followed him three whole days. “Should we ask Him for bread as before? Or will He rebuke us again? Can God spread a table in the wilderness? He had [in Old Testament times] struck the rock so that water gushed out and streams overflowed. Can He also give bread [once again] and provide meat for His people?” The 4000 were hungry and yet they faithfully clung to their Lord.

The Savior had compassion on them. Christ provided food for their poor stomachs. Christ provided food for their distressed souls. New hope is awakened in the crowd and they are comforted through the words of Christ.

The Lord knew that the people had waited three days to eat with him. He knew their hunger and distress, just as he knows your sorrows and weaknesses. The Lord gave the people what they needed: both bread and the Word of God. And He does the same for us, His chosen children today.

Even today our Lord gives spiritual and physical gifts and requires nothing from us. No merit or work of our own will He require from us as he said in 50th Psalm: “Hear, O my people, and I will speak; O Israel, and I will testify against thee: I am God, even thy God. I will not reprove thee for thy sacrifices or thy burnt offerings, to have been continually before me. I will take no bullock out of thy house, nor he goats out of thy folds. For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills. I know all the fowls of the mountains: and the wild beasts of the field are mine. If I were hungry, I would not tell thee: for the world is mine, and the fullness thereof. Will I eat the flesh of bulls, or drink the blood of goats?” No sacrifice we make is necessary.

The feeding of the 4000 is our blueprint for true divine worship: God serves man. In both instances, God gives to his humble and hungry people through the hands of his ministers: his apostles and his pastors. Our Lord took the seven loaves, not to hoard for himself as a tyrannical king might do, but to give them freely to one and to all through his apostles. Not only did He give to the 4000 there in this isolated Holy Land location, but He continues to sustain His church by the bread of everlasting life given through His ministry of modern-day apostles, the preachers of His Word.

Seven loaves of bread given to our Lord and multiplied was enough to feed the crowd of 4000 when He spoke the word and gave them to His disciples to distribute. Today, the church receives more than merely 7 loaves, as the Lord continues to speak His Word and His ministers give the Blessed Sacrament.

And like the 4000, she receives enough, even as she receives the true Bread of Heaven, Christ Himself. The words of the Psalmist are fulfilled for both the 4000 and for us: “The poor shall eat and be filled; and they shall praise the Lord that seek him: their hearts shall live forever and ever.”

And after the 4000 were well-filled the Lord sent them away. They were not sent away, or rather driven out, like Adam was sent away. Adam was sent away empty, dejected, and hungry. Yet, the 4000 were sent away in the opposite condition: fulfilled, satisfied, and completely forgiven by the Lord.

And now you also, you need not go away empty from this place, but know that this same Jesus, who fed the 4000 and gave them life gives you life in the banquet of his Word and in the feast of His Sacraments. Amen.

The Peace of God which passes all understanding keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.