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New Testament Bible Study Assignment Studying the Gospels I. Introduction and Thesis Statement Jesus preformed miracle after miracle all throughout the gospels. In the gospels alone there are 37 miracles recorded, and scholars conclude that there were likely dozens more not recorded in the bible (Collins, 2012). In this passage of scripture, Jesus feeds 4,000 men plus women and children with 7 loaves of bread and several fish. This passage is similar in context to Jesus feeding 5,000 with 5 loaves and two fish, but there is a key element that has been added. Although the layout, set up, and context of this miracle is the same as feeding the 5,000 (which Jesus had done previously), the disciples still question His ability to feed the masses (DJL, 2014). While Jesus never changed, the disciples still doubted His ability to do miracles and create more, even know they had seen him do it before. I believe this passage of scripture is to convict us as believers, that even though we’ve seen God’s faithfulness and provision, we still question his goodness in the very next breath. II. Observation A. I have read the passage in both a formal translation (KJV, NKJV, NASB, ESV, or CSB) and a functional translation (NIV, NLT, or NCV). Highlight the correct answer. You will find a copy of the NASB, ESV, CSB, and NLT in your myWSB Library. o Yes o No B. Identify the basic elements of the story you are studying 1. Main characters: The disciples, Jesus, and the crowd of people following Jesus. 2. Plot: (50-100 words) The plot of this story is that a crowd of 4,000 men plus women and children had been following Jesus for three days. Jesus wants to feed the crowd but again there is not much to eat. The disciples question where Jesus would find the food to feed 4,000+ in the desert and Jesus asks how many loaves of bread and fish they had. He takes the seven loaves and the few small fish and feeds the entire crowd with seven basketfuls of bread left over after the meal. 3. Story structure (inciting incident, rising action, climax, falling action): (50-100 words) The inciting incident is that the crowd of people following Jesus is hungry. The rising action of the story is when the disciples ask Jesus where He is going to find the food to feed 4,000+ people and He asks for the bread and fish. The climax is when Jesus takes the seven loaves of bread and several fish and feeds all the people in the crowd. The falling action is when the disciples collect the extra at the end and there were seven basketfuls of bread left over.

4. Question(s) asked in narrative: “Where could we get enough bread in this remote place to feed such a crowd?” “How many loaves do you have?” C. List basic observations about this passage using the “Key Questions” for observation. Remember to consult the list of items from the observation section in studying the Gospels in Chapter 36. This will help you be more detailed in your answers to “who,” “what,” “where,” “when,” “why,” and “how.” This is also an excellent place to consult scholarly sources to provide detailed answers regarding context . 1. Who: Jesus, the disciples, and the crowd of people. Using the regional context, most scholars have gathered that most of the people Jesus was feeding were gentiles (Bates, 2014). 2. What: Jesus and the disciples fed 4000 men plus women and children with seven loaves of bread and a few small fish. 3. Where: According to the context given in Mark 7:31 of the same event, Jesus and His disciples were on their way to Magadan, passing through the region of Decapolis (Franz, 2021). 4. When: Scripture isn’t the most clear on the specific time when the miracle happened but most theologians agree it was sometime in the 29 year of Christ’s life, around 29 AD (Bates, 2014). 5. Why: The crowd had been following Jesus for 3 days and he wanted to show them kindness by taking care of them. 6. How: Jesus distributed the disciples 7 loaves and few fish to all of the people through the Lord’s provision and they ate until they were full. III. Interpretation A. Determine the author’s main point. In 1-2 paragraphs (100-400 words) explain what you think the author is trying to communicate in this passage. Remember to take into consideration that this passage includes a conversation that Jesus is having. Thus, this passage is both showing and telling us something. Matthew is the author of this passage and I think he is trying to show us faults we have as believers. Just one chapters over in Matthew 14:13-21 Jesus feeds 5,000+ people with the disciples, one of the most well-known miracles in the ministry of Jesus (Collins, 2012). Yet, we see in this passage when the same situation is brought before then again, the disciples first response is doubt. This passage is showing us that it is so natural for us to see the goodness of God and the provision he shows and then doubt him in the very next breath. I believe this passage is simply telling us that Jesus will perform the same miracles again and again, as well as how we should treat people. Pastor Gordon Franz states that the difference between the two passages is that the feeding of the 5000 was in a Jewish area, while the feeding

of the 4000 was mostly gentile (Franz, 2021). Jesus is showing us that all are loved and worthy to him, regardless of status. Jesus shared food and the gospel with both groups of people. Jesus treats the believer and the unbeliever with the same compassion. B. Look again at the questions asked within the narrative. In 1 paragraph (200 words) explain the purpose of these questions to the story, as well as how the particular question(s) that Jesus asked related to his relationship with the other character(s). The question asked by the disciples is a verbalization of their doubt. It’s the disciples looking at what they have and seeing that they do not have enough food to feed 4000+ people and expressing their doubt. The question asked by Jesus is to redirect their attention to what they already have. The disciples are completely overlooking what they already are in possession of because they don’t think that it is able to be used by Jesus. Though the disciples have exactly what Jesus needs to feed the people, they ask where they can find enough food because they’ve already discounted what they have. I think often we ask Jesus how were supposed to do something because we don’t think He can work with what we have. We forget that Jesus can do anything, and He absolutely can use what we already have to perform a miracle in our lives and the lives of those around us. C. Based on your answers above, narrow down one principle from this passage. You should be able to express this principle in 1-3 sentences. Jesus needs us to have faith that He is more than capable performing a miracle with what we have, we don’t need to go do/find/be more. IV. Correlation A. How does this passage fit within the metanarrative of the Bible? State what type of story you believe this to be (creation, fall, redemption, or new creation) and explain why you believe this to be so. Your explanation should be 1 paragraph (100-200 words) in length. This passage fits into the metanarrative of the bible because it exemplifies the salvation offered through Jesus being for everyone. The story really highlights that Jesus was offering compassion to the gentiles as well as the Jews, when it is compared to Jesus feeding the 5000, one chapter prior in scripture. Jesus offering salvation to all through the death on the cross and resurrection, is the redemption story gifted as believers (Stetzer, 2012). Therefore, I believe that this story falls within the redemptive narrative because it giving an example of Jesus serving all, which parallels the offer of salvation to all who believe. B. How does this passage reflect other truths found in the Scriptures? State and explain at least one way that the principle of this passage can be identified elsewhere in the Bible. Your explanation should be 1 paragraph (100-200 words) in length. Similar to the last question, a primary truth in scripture is that the redeeming work of Jesus Christ is available to anyone. One of the most famous and important verses in all of scripture is John 3:16 that states if “anyone should believe in Him, they shall not perish but have everlasting life.” The verse clearly states that anyone can believe and be saved, and I think the parallel Jesus is drawing in Matthew chapters 14 and 15 is that everyone deserves compassion, Jew and gentile alike, just like anyone can receive the compassion and grace of the Lord. This theme is seen not just in this verse but is a integral part of the Bible story.

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C. How does this passage reflect the person and work of Jesus Christ? State and explain at least one way that the principle of this passage identifies something of the person and work of Jesus Christ. Your explanation should be 1 paragraph (100-200 words) in length. I think this verse touches on one of Christ’s most important works, dying on the cross and saving humanity. Jesus loved us so much that he was willing to take up a cross and die the death we all deserved to die, and that goes for everyone. Jesus died for every single person that lived, is living, or will live, regardless of if they ever chose to believe in Him. This passage touches on the encompassment of the love of Jesus, that both Jew and gentile fell within his compassion. He didn’t choose one over the other or love one more, but equally blessed them and fed them abundantly. V. Application What points of application can be made using the Four Questions for Application? State and explain 1 point of application for your life for each of these four questions. Your explanation for each of these points should be 1 paragraph (100-200 words) in length. A. The question of duty I think one major point of application is that it is our duty as followers of Christ to imitate His behavior. If Jesus was compassionate to everyone, regardless of if they believed in Him and His word or not, we should be compassionate to everyone. It is our duty as Christians to be compassionate to people who agree with us and who despise us and our God because Christ clearly demonstrates in this passage that He had compassion for all, not just those who were easy. In my life personally, I am going to make it my duty to work on being compassionate to the people who walk with me and who walk against me. B. The question of character Being compassionate is absolutely a character trait, just like being doubtful. In this story, Jesus had compassion and the disciples had doubt, and we obviously want to try to be more like Christ. In my own life I often really struggle with doubt in the Lord and His provision just like the disciples. Even seeing the Lord work, just like how the disciples saw Jesus feed the 5000, I still question if He will really provide in the way He says He will. I want to work on my first response being compassionate and restraining the doubtful thoughts that often work their way into my mind. C. The question of goals Sometimes I think our goals can get shifted by the world without us even realizing it. We can take something that was originally a goal that the Lord had anointed us for and turn it into something with a different motive. The Lord’s goals in feeding the people was to have compassion on them, not the bring Himself glory or praise. Personally, I am on a pre-medical track in hopes of one day becoming a doctor. I have always had a deep desire to help people and to have compassion for them in their time of need. I must be careful with myself though because sometimes I let myself drift away from compassion and into greed, specifically with the specialties in medicine. I want to keep myself focused on serving God and serving people, and away from making as much money as I can.

D. The question of discernment It is often difficult to discern whether the Lord is leading us somewhere or whether we’re leading ourselves there. God obviously had a very clear mission in Jesus feeding the 5000 and then the 4000, and he ordained the steps before Jesus even took them. I need to make sure that I use my discernment to let the Lord lead me in my next steps in life. Socially, spiritually, academically, professionally; I need the Lord to guide me and I have to intentionally use my discernment to go where He wants me to. VI. Conclusion Overall, I think there are many points to be taken from this one passage of scripture. The bible is living and active and honestly every time I’ve read this passage or a different commentary, I’ve gotten something new out of it. The most important point to me is that idea that Christ overs compassion and salvation to all. Jesus didn’t just have compassion on those he liked, but He has compassion for every single person, treating them equally and providing for them well. Additionally, Jesus used what the disciples had already been given. He didn’t need them to find more, He only needed them to have faith that He could provide. Similarly, if I would only trust in the Lord and stop doubting Him, I would be able to see that the Lord can work in what I already have; He doesn’t need me to be anything different.

References Bates, D. (2014, August 5,). What’s the difference between the feeding of the 4,000 and the 5,000? – restless pilgrim. https://restlesspilgrim.net/blog/2014/08/05/whats-the-difference- between-the-feeding-of-the-4000-and-the-5000/ Cartwright, J., & Hulshof, C. (2016). Everyday bible study: Growing in the christian faith (2nd ed.). B & H Academic. Collins, M. G. (2012). What the bible says about miracles of christ: Feeding of 4000 Crossway Bibles. (2001). ESV bible . Good News Publishing. DJL. (2014, ). Matthew 15:32-39 | ...in the meantime. https://www.davidlose.net/2014/09/matthew-15-32-39/ Founder, C. (2017). Remember the past: Matthew 15:32-39 . Reflective Bible Study Journal, (Written Journal Entries) https://reflectivebiblestudy.com/gospeladventure/remember-the-past-matthew-15- 32-39/ Franz, G. (2021, ). The feedings of the multitudes – when, where and why? | life and land. https://www.lifeandland.org/2009/02/the-feedings-of-the-multitudes-when-where-and- why/ Murphy, C. L. T. (2020). The inquisitive christ . Faith Words. Stetzer, E. (2012, March 28,). The big story of scripture (creation, fall, redemption, restoration) in pictures: Your input

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requested. https://www.christianitytoday.com/edstetzer/2012/november/big-story-of- scripture-creation-fall-redemption.html

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