THE WEEK OF TRINITY VII - SATURDAY

LESSON: COLOSSIANS 1:15-20

He [Christ] is before all things, and in him all things hold together. Colossians 1:17

This Gospel (Mark 8:1-9) sets Christ before us as a rich, powerful lord and steward. To be sure, He is a rich miller and baker in one, better than any other that the world has ever seen, and He has learnt His trade very well. He really draws on a number of trades at once and without any human help at all. He ploughs and harvests, threshes, grinds and bakes, almost all in the twinkling of an eye.

It is a miracle and incomprehensible to human reason how He could feed so many thousand men, without counting women and children, so that they were satisfied, and much more was taken up in broken pieces than they had at the outset. And He did it all on the instant with a word. He merely touches the bread and hands it out for distribution, and enough has been ground baked and prepared for four thousand or more people.

The five thousand whom He fed on another occasion wanted to take Him by force and make Him their King (John 6:15). They thought that a man who simply had to put his hand into one basket or one pocket to provide all their needs could prove himself an excellent leader for them. He could actually do this and become such a king. Remember also the coin which Peter found in the mouth of the fish (Matthew 17:27).

He can certainly perform His wonders when, where, and how He wills. He could bring enough bread and water out of a stone to feed the world. He actually does perform such miracles daily for the whole world. All that the world has is provided by His miracles, which are no less, as St. Augustine also has shown, than His feeding of the four thousand.

SL 11:1379 (15-16)
AE 78:257-258

PRAYER: Lord Jesus Christ, our God and Lord, in whom all things in this world hold together, provide us with all that we need for our faith and lives now and always, in Your name and for Your mercy’s sake. Amen.