Rhetorical Rabbai (John 6:5-6)

"Jesus soon saw a huge crowd of people coming to look for him. Turning to Philip, he asked, “Where can we buy bread to feed all these people?” He was testing Philip, for he already knew what he was going to do." (John 6:5, 6 NLT)

 One day during a big crusade, a rather large crowd showed up to see Jesus. The disciples were suddenly outnumbered 10:1. Feeling a bit overwhelmed, Jesus decides to throw a wrench in the dinner plans by asking Phillip an unexpected question.

Jesus puts Phillip on the spot by asking for an immediate solution to an unexpected "problem". Like a deer caught in headlights, Phillip and the other disciples freeze in a quick panic over Jesus' request. He had asked a question with an impossible answer.

What's interesting though is that verse 6 points out that Jesus wasn't looking for a solution for His sake. It points out that He already had a plan and knew what to do.

So what's the deal Jesus? Why you gotta mess with Phillip? He was just minding His own business. Was it really necessary put Him in a no-win situation with a problem you already had figured out in the first place?

So why put him in that awkward position to begin with?

Verse 6 says it was all just a test. Really?

That doesn't sound very nice Jesus. Why add that "unnecessary" stress to Phillip's life and ministry after all. After all, He has been faithfully following you for a long time. But the fact is, Jesus put Phillip in an awkward position on purpose to force him to look beyond himself.

It seems like Jesus is always in the business of introducing us into circumstances that highlight our insufficiency and require complete dependence upon His all-sufficiency.

The reason James tells us to rejoice in these kinds of circumstances is because God is at work (James 1:2-3). Although God already knows the solution, He invites us into "impossible" situations so we can trust Him for the answer. The good news is that in every circumstance we may face God already has a plan and an already knows what to do.

Because We know that God is for us and with us, we can rely fully on His strength and trust Him to do more than we can even ask or imagine (Ephesians 3:20). It's good to know that the main reason God introduces us to problems is not because He needs help figuring things out, rather it's simply our invitation to deepen our trust in Him.

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