Jesus does not envy

 JESUS DOES NOT ENVY

 

When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd… Then Jesus directed them to have all the people sit down in groups on the green grass… They all ate and were satisfied.

MARK 6.34, 39, 42

 

Jesus, knowing that they intended to come and make him king by force, withdrew again to a mountain by himself.

JOHN 6.15

 

Based on MARK 6:7–44

 

As Jesus traveled the countryside proclaiming God’s coming kingdom, healing the sick, and loving the unlovable, He attracted crowds who were desperate for change. But Jesus was a King without a throne, a Messiah without an army, and a disappointment to those hoping for a Jewish saviour to overthrow Roman opposition.

Because when they tried to force Jesus to become king, He disappeared.

Here was a man finally worthy of ruling over the Jewish people, and He refused their political agenda. What a letdown!

For a bit of context, think of their current rulers: Herod called himself the king of the Jews but abused his power, levying heavy taxes to construct three palaces, throwing lavish banquets when his people hungered, and silencing righteous men who spoke against him. Far from shepherding the Israelites, Herod preyed on them.

And the priests, Pharisees, and teachers of the law were no better. Jesus rebukes them for laying heavy burdens on the people that they themselves could not keep. They kept the letter of the law but neglected the weak and oppressed. They taught God’s law but hindered those who were seeking Him (Lk 11:37–54).

All these men were supposed to be shepherding the sheep of Israel, but Jesus looks toward the crowds and sees sheep without a shepherd.

That’s not normal.

Sheep without a shepherd quickly get into trouble. They wander into dangerous territory rife with predators. They starve for lack of green pastures. They get scratched and bruised and die alone. And that was the desperate state of the Jewish people at this time.

The shepherds God had given the Israelites were failing their assignment, but God promised to send a shepherd king like David, who would tend the people, bind up the injured, strengthen the weak, and feed them in green pastures (Ezek 34).

It’s within this larger narrative that Jesus has compassion on the crowds. They’re desperate — He leads them. They’re sick — He heals them. They’re hungry — He sits them in the green grass on the hill to feed them. His fulfilment of the shepherd king prophecy is so obvious that the crowds want to make Him king by force.

But Jesus was focused on the mission His Father had given Him. He rested in the timing His Father ordained, and He refused to grasp for a good thing in the wrong way. Jesus would indeed become their king, but only in God’s timing and in the most unenviable way.

Jesus didn’t love the people because of what they could offer Him. He didn’t show off His divine power to garner support for a military coup. He saw a need, and being moved with compassion, He did what every good shepherd does. He took care of His sheep — a free gift, with no strings attached

 

Prayer 

 

.Good Shepherd, I would be lost without You. Thank You for loving and serving me even though You deserve all my love and all my service. Forgive me for being envious of others who seem to have the things I want. Help me instead cling to You and find my joy and satisfaction in You alone. Make me a servant of those around me, and pour out Your blessings through me richly. 

In Jesus’s name, Amen

 

If you want to read more 

 

1Kgs 22.17, 2Kgs 4.42–44, Psa 23, 37.1–11, 73, Ezek 34.5, 23–25, Jn 10.1–21, Rev 7.17