THIS IS TRULY THE PROPHET

At 5,34-42; Ps 26; Jn 6,1-15
13 APRIL
Every miracle of Jesus attests and reveals a truth either of his Person or of his mission. In the Holy Scripture, who made the manna fall from heaven was not Moses, but the Lord. This sign together with that of the quails was not made through Moses. The first person who performs a miracle on bread is the prophet Elijah. He assures the widow of Sarepta that the last handful of flour in the jar and the last drop of oil in the goat would have not been exhausted until the Lord would not have rained again on the earth. The first true multiplication of the loaves and also of the oil takes place with Elisha. These are signs that attest that God is truly with him. Elisha is a prophet of the God of Israel.

“Do not be afraid,” Elijah said to her. “Go and do as you propose. But first make me a little cake and bring it to me. Then you can prepare something for yourself and your son. For the Lord, the God of Israel, says, ‘The jar of flour shall not go empty, nor the jug of oil run dry, until the day when the Lord sends rain upon the earth.'” She left and did as Elijah had said. She was able to eat for a year, and he and her son as well; The jar of flour did not go empty, nor the jug of oil run dry, as the Lord had foretold through Elijah (1Kings 17,13-16). “Go out,” he said, “borrow vessels from all your neighbours – as many empty vessels as you can. Then come back and close the door on yourself and your children; pour the oil into all the vessels, and as each is filled, set it aside.” She went and did so, closing the door on herself and her children. As they handed her the vessels, she would pour in oil. When all the vessels were filled, she said to her son, “Bring me another vessel.” “There is none left,” he answered her. And then the oil stopped. She went and told the man of God, who said, “Go and sell the oil to pay off your creditor; with what remains, you and your children can live” (2Kings 4,3-7). A man came from Baal-shalishah bringing the man of God twenty barely loaves made from the first fruits, and fresh grain in the ear. “Give it to the people to eat,” Elisha said. But his servant objected, “How can I set this before a hundred men?” “Give it to the people to eat,” Elisha insisted. “For thus says the Lord, ‘They shall eat and there shall be some left over.'” And when they had eaten, there was some left over, as the Lord had said (2Kings 4,42-44).

The primary purpose of the miracle is not the miracle itself. The miracle is a way, a sign, an instrument to lead to true faith. By the miracle Elijah and Elisha are recognized as men of God, people through whom the Lord acts and speaks. The Word of God is on their lips. If theirs is the Word of God, it must be heard, because true salvation is in it. The same is true for Jesus. His miracles are used to testify that He is from God more than all the others. In fact, today the people from the miracle pass to the true faith in Christ: “This is indeed the prophet, he who comes into the world!”.

After this, Jesus went across the Sea of Galilee (of Tiberias). A large crowd followed him, because they saw the signs he was performing on the sick. Jesus went up on the mountain, and there he sat down with his disciples. The Jewish feast of Passover was near. When Jesus raised his eyes and saw that a large crowd was coming to him, he said to Philip, “Where can we buy enough food for them to eat?” He said this to test him, because he himself knew what he was going to do. Philip answered him, “Two hundred days’ wages worth of food would not be enough for each of them to have a little (bit).” One of his disciples, Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, said to him, “There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish; but what good are these for so many?” Jesus said, “Have the people recline.” Now there was a great deal of grass in that place. So the men reclined, about five thousand in number. Then Jesus took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed them to those who were reclining, and also as much of the fish as they wanted. When they had had their fill, he said to his disciples, “Gather the fragments left over, so that nothing will be wasted.” So they collected them, and filled twelve wicker baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves that had been more than they could eat. When the people saw the sign he had done, they said, “This is truly the Prophet, the one who is to come into the world.” Since Jesus knew that they were going to come and carry him off to make him king, he withdrew again to the mountain alone.

However, it happens – and this will always happen – that the people draw a wrong conclusion from true faith. The people decide to take Jesus and make him a king, but a king according to the world and not according to his Father. It is now up to Christ not to fall into their trap.

Virgin Mary, Mother of the Redemption, Angels and Saints make us of most pure faith in Jesus.