Sovereign Grace Church

…Gather up the fragments that remain, that nothing be lost.

(John 6:12)

The miracle of the Lord turning five loaves and two fishes into an abundant, seemingly never ending, provision of food, shows us the never-ending provision He supplies for the wants of the body and soul of His people. After the people had their fill, the disciples gathered up what was left and filled twelve baskets. There was abundance for all, and perhaps what the lad had given, was returned to him two, or three fold, to take home to his family; of a truth “The liberal soul shall be made fat: and he that watereth shall be watered also himself” (Proverbs 11:25).

Our Lord in manifesting His power and mercy in feeding the five thousand, so astonished the multitude by the miracle, they said that surely He is the Christ. These men, like all of Israel, were waiting and looking for their promised King so they thought of an earthly kingdom. They did not understand that the true kingdom of the Messiah was not to be of this world, as our Lord declared “My kingdom is not of this world.” So, why did they not know the meaning of the Old Testament sacrifices and the redemptive work of Christ that those sacrifices pointed to? Very simply this, they did not hearken unto Him. Moses tells us that His people “unto Him…ye shall hearken” (Deuteronomy 18:15) and our Lord says the very same thing, “My sheep hear my voice” (John 10:27).

Beloved, among those who hate the cross of Christ, even among those who profess to believe and love Him, you will find they don’t hear His voice, they don’t hearken “unto Him,” in fact they hate what He has taught you beloved by His grace. John writes “Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son” (2 John 1:9).

What a blessed view of the gospel is found in the expression “that nothing be lost.” Our Lord declares “Gather up the fragments that remain, that nothing be lost.” And so the disciples “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.”

Beloved, just as our Lord commanded the disciples to gather the fragments that nothing be lost; we can see here, without doing any damage to the text, the beautiful reality of the glory of our Sovereign Successful Saviour. Indeed, the beautiful picture of the full and complete salvation of all His people. God’s remnant people, ALL OF THEM, shall be gathered through the gospel labours of His people, as He uses them in the instrumentality of accomplishing His will and purpose in CHRIST, “THAT NOTHING BE LOST.” AMEN!