John 6:11 And Jesus took the loaves; and when he had given thanks, he distributed to the disciples, and the disciples to them that were set down; and likewise of the fishes as much as they would. 12 When they were filled, he said unto his disciples, Gather up the fragments that remain, that nothing be lost. 13 Therefore they gathered them together, and filled twelve baskets with the fragments of the five barley loaves, which remained over and above unto them that had eaten.
We live in a time and place where the natural resources and products of the earth are rapidly being depleted because of waste. We waste water, food, electricity, time, and money. Countless hours every day are wasted in idleness and watching television. More than a quarter of all food produced in the United States of America is thrown away. Billions and billions of dollars are wasted on non-essentials, fraud, and phony projects. But even more alarming is the amount of money wasted on interest payments on the national debt, which ballooned to over four hundred and fifteen billion dollars in 2013 alone.
Our passage of scripture brings prominently to view a completely different system of doing things. After the multitudes were fed, Jesus instructed His disciples to gather up the fragments that remained so that "nothing" be lost. Let's just say here that Christ has the power to create food out of nothing, any time He likes, yet in the performing of the miracle He used whatever resources were readily available. There is a valid reason why the Bible points us to the ways of God exemplified in Christ Jesus, for very valuable lessons can be learned from a careful observation of Him. The question is, what is God teaching us by the example of Christ in gathering up the leftovers of a meal? What is to be gained by so doing?
Many lessons can be learned from this one experience, but we'll just elaborate on two.
Lesson #1: We should always clean up residual material after eating, producing, or manufacturing. This single principle, carried out consistently by individuals and nations would have prevented the contamination of our oceans with plastics, and manufacturing by-products, and would have greatly slowed global warming. When residual material is not properly disposed of, we expose ourselves and our planet to unnecessary dangers which could have otherwise been averted. In China for instance, there are millions of acres of land that have been made barren through the wanton dispensation of agricultural and manufacturing by-products and chemicals, in so much that there are places there that once flourished with vegetation, but have now become barren wastelands. All of this could have been avoided if they had "Gathered up the fragments".
Lesson #2: Waste nothing. A wise and prudent use of our time, money and other resources, would not only benefit ourselves, but would also result in great blessings to the less fortunate amongst us. Those closets that are full of clothes and shoes that we do not wear anymore, the extra food that is carelessly thrown away, the fragments of time spent gossiping, the money that is often wasted on frivolities, and the countless hours spent in idleness watching the "one-eyed monster"; all of these fragments, if gathered up could be used for the betterment of individuals, families, communities and nations. There are people right in our own neighborhoods who can use the extras we don't need and who would greatly appreciate the "fragments" so often thrown away.
We'll end our commentary with a passage of scripture that addresses one of the greatest curses of our time, idleness. Having nothing to do gives the devil opportunity to find something for us to do, and consequently opens the door to countless evils and crimes. Thus, persons who could have been a great asset to their families and communities are relegated to poverty or incarceration. Let's read:
Proverbs 6:6 Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise: 7 Which having no guide, overseer, or ruler, 8 Provideth her meat in the summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest. 9 How long wilt thou sleep, O sluggard? when wilt thou arise out of thy sleep?10 Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep: 11 So shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth, and thy want as an armed man.
We pray that by the grace and power of God, the necessary changes and reforms would take place individually, collectively, and nationally so that, as we follow in the footsteps of Jesus, our lives will be a blessing and this world would be made a better place. "Good night" and God bless!