“How many loaves do you have?” (Mark 8: 5). Jesus does not ask you to resolve all the problems of the world. But as your King he determines the nature of his kingdom. He asks you to have deep and sincere feelings for the needs of the world, to see this faceless mob of humanity as objects of the compassion of Christ. Then you will be ready to respond to his question, “How many loaves do you have?” Jesus the King of his messianic kingdom can take your seven loaves and your few tiny fish and satisfy the needs of a multitude.

Jesus is gradually making known the distinctive nature of his kingdom. Essential to this growing knowledge is an increased understanding of who he is.

“I have compassion” (Mark 8: 2). What kind of monarch is this? He has deep emotional feelings in his viscera for the crowd. A mass of humanity numbering up to 4000 has been dogging his tracks for three days. Jesus has the most tender affections in his heart for this mob of people. Is this not a different kind of monarch? How Do You Kill 11 Million People?* is the title of a book describing the repeated response of modern rulers to the faceless “crowd” they govern. They slaughter them.

But Jesus is totally different. He is moved with deep-seated compassion for these people. He explains to his disciples that some of them live a long way off. “If I send them home, they will perish as they travel.” Jesus manifests compassion not only for their current critical need. He thinks ahead to what they will face in the future, given their present circumstances.

In this global village today, millions of people are in distressful circumstances. Wives and children of Ukraine have fled as refugees, leaving their husbands in the trenches where they face the additional onslaught of freezing temperatures after almost three years of merciless warfare. Tens of thousands of Russian households grieve this winter at the loss of their beloved sons. 2.3 million Palestinians face the daily prospect of more bombings, without sufficient food and water for their survival.

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