at the beginning made the world out of nothings caused food to exist, which before had not existed. The circum- stances of the whole event made deception impossible. Five thousand hungry men would not have agreed that they were " all filled," if they had not received real food. " Twelve baskets full of fragments " would never have been taken up, if real material loaves and fishes had not been miraculously multiplied. Nothing, in short, can explain the whole transaction, but the finger of God. The same hand which sent manna from heaven in the wilderness to feed Israel, was the hand which made five loaves and two fishes supply the wants of five thousand men.
The miracle before us is one among many proofs that with Christ nothing is impossible. The Saviour of sinners is Almighty. He " calleth those things which be not as though they were." (Rom. iv. 17.) When He wills a thing, it shall be done. When He commands a thing, it shall come to pass. He can create light out of darkness, order out of disorder, strength out of weakness, joy out of sorrow, and food out of nothing at all. For ever let us bless God that it is so ! We might well despair, when we see the corruption of human nature, and the desperate hardness and unbelief of man's heart, if we did not know the power of Christ. — " Can these dry bones live P Can any man or woman be saved P Can any child, or friend of ours, ever become a true Christian P Can we ourselves ever win our way through to heaven P" — Questions like these could never be answered, if Jesus was not Almighty. But thanks be to God, Jesus has all power in heaven and earth. He lives in heaven for us, able to save to the uttermost, and therefore we may hope.
302 sxposnoRT thouohtb.
We see, tor another fliiiig, in iliese y^ses, a gtrUdng emblem of CArisfs abiUty to supply the spiritual wants of mankind. The whole miiade is a picture. We see in it^ as in a g^ass, some of the most important truths of Christianitjr. It is, in £act, a great acted parable of the glorioiis QospeL
What is that mnltitode which sorronnded onr Lord in the wilderness, poor and helpless, and destitute of food ? It is a figure of mankind. We are a company of poor sinners, in the midst of a wicked world, without strength, or power to save ourselyes, and sorely in danger of perishing from spiritual famine.
Who is that gracious Teacher who had compassion on this starving multitude in the wilderness, and said to Bis disciples, '' Give ye them to eat ? '' It is Jesus Himself, ever pitiful, ever kind, ever ready to shew mercy, even to the unthankful and the evil. And He is not altered. He is just the same to day as He was eighteen hundred years ago. High in heaven at the right hand of God, He looks down on the vast multitude of starving sinners, who cover the face of the earth. He still pities them, still cares for them, still feels for their helplessness and need. And He still says to His believing followers, ''Behold this multitude, give ye them to eat."
What is that wonderful provision which Christ mirac- tdously made for the famishing multitude before Him ? It is a figure of the Gospel. Weak and contemptible as that Gospel appears to many, it contains '' enough and to spare " for the souls of all mankind. Poor and des- picable as the story of a crucified Saviour seems to the wise and prudent, it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth. (Bom. i. 16.)