More Necessary Than Food

“In the mean while his disciples prayed him, saying, Master, eat. But he said unto them, I have meat to eat that ye know not of. Therefore said the disciples one to another, Hath any man brought him ought to eat? Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work. Say not ye, There are yet four months, and then cometh harvest? behold, I say unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest.” (Joh 4:31-35 AV)

 

Often, we separate the meat of Jesus from the harvest being white.  However, they are one and the same.  This passage concerns the woman and the well.  A Samaritan woman comes to Christ and Jesus reveals to her the need to trust Him as the Messiah.  He tells her exactly what she is most guilty of.  This causes her to realize the only way He could know these things is if He was indeed the Christ of God.  She is so excited she goes back into town to bring as many as would to come to Christ.  While she is away, the disciples wonder why He would talk to a Samaritan and if Jesus had taken meat.  They were sent into town for food and when they returned, pled with Jesus to eat a bit.  However, there were Samaritan coming that needed to be taught the glorious news of the gospel.  There would be time to eat later.  In other words, it is far more important to see the gospel is preached when given the opportunity than to eat a meal no matter how famished we are.

Hunger is powerful.  Hunger will cause you to do things you normally wouldn’t do.  Hunger may push you to eat something you have never eaten before.  Hunger may cause you to remove mold from a loaf of bread and eat a sandwich.  Hunger may cause you to go into the woods and shoot your own food, processes it, and cook it yourself.  Hunger may cause you to eat a bug taco and a state fair.  Hunger may push you to try ethnic food you normally wouldn’t touch.  Hunger may push you to eat things in the wild that would normally be mowed over or eaten by wild animals.  Hunger may push you to combine the limited ingredients you have at home that would never go together.  Hunger may compel you to eat something another left behind.  Hunger will do strange things to an otherwise reserved individual.  Hunger is a pain that compels the sufferer to action.  He or she cannot take the uncomfortable sensation of an empty stomach.  It must be satisfied.  There must be something to fill the empty void.  One cannot live with hunger for very long.  Something must quench that deep need.

Evangelism is far more important than our immediate needs.  Jesus looked at the victuals and the people coming and decided his hunger was minor when compared with the spiritual hunger of the people marching toward Him.  He saw a field white already unto harvest and chose to suffer the pain of temporary hunger than allow an opportunity to share the gospel escape.  That which was required of the body because of less importance than that which was a blessing to the soul.  One wonders how different our churches would look if every saint felt the same way.  One wonders if our pews would be fuller, if our choir lofts would have more voices, or if we needed larger classrooms if only soul-winning was more important than the basic needs of life.  Jesus surely thought so.  To Him, the gospel going to the lost was more important than His basic needs.