Summary: Jesus' third miracle is far more public than a wedding's wine or a Sabbath's healing: having compassion for a huge crowd, he multiplies a meal into a feast that even produces leftovers. But it comes at a cost: after chasing Him across the sea, the crowd hears Jesus give a message that following Him will require sacrifice, and most turn away. Still, Jesus' twelve disciples remain, having 'tasted' firsthand the Bread of Life.
Response: Peter, jump-the-gun and spokesperson for the disciples, happens to land on the right foot and testifies to Jesus as the only One worth following, set apart by God Himself. And Jesus' talk of bread really seemed to throw the crowd for a loop. "He's bread? But we just saw Him make bread. Are we supposed to eat Him? That's gross! I have to work for God's favor? But I got that bread in Tiberias for free, no questions asked! This is too hard for me to swallow, Jesus, I'm out!"
Finding this understanding is hard. I feel like Jesus went in several logic loops trying to get an increasingly hostile crowd to understand, and they just weren't getting it. This must have been exasperating. Jesus, the Distressed? Do I bug Jesus from time to time? Oh, I'm sure of it. Hopefully, I can move closer to Peter's point of view, having the experience of seeing God's hand in my life, to where I know Jesus as Lord and as Life.
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