The sixth chapter of the gospel according to John relates the stories
of Jesus feeding the multitude and walking on water. Continuing in
the Moses theme, the author parallels the accounts of manna and the
parting of the Red Sea. Our discussion last Sunday pointed out the
relationship between these stories, and the parts each one had to play.

Note that 12 baskets of leftovers were collected after the first story
in the chapter. Again, the author gives the Moses mantle to Jesus as
he provides enough food so his disciples won't have to collect it the
next day. In the book of Exodus, the manna was collect every day but
the sabbath. In the view of the faithful, Jesus was the manifestation
of the sabbath, the divinely appointed rest that God provides to those
devoted to him. Therefore, his actions negate the curse on the earth
stated in Genesis, that only by the sweat of man's brow would he eat
of the fruit of the ground. His provision is divine.

Peter's role in the walking on water story is particularly interesting
to me. He can either be seen as one who has a wavering faith, such as
those who made it through the parting of the sea only to revert back
to being unfaithful once Moses was no longer in view. When Moses left
the children of Israel in order to commune with God on the mountain,
they forgot about crossing the sea bank dry shod and concentrated on
getting back to Egypt.

This is a great symbolic demonstration of how we can lose sight of our
goals when circumstances overwhelm us. By keeping our mind focused on
where we are headed, we can overcome the obstacles on the way.

Hope to see you next week!

Jack