Being Fed, Being Empowered to Empower : Community Devotion I

This was my message of Empowerment for those who gathered for Community Devotion on January 8, 2017.

The teacher had quite a following.  The Powers that Be noticed that and it made them nervous.
People followed Him because great things were happening in their lives and they wanted to see what was coming next.  The people had been occupied by the military police for years and they were oppressed, harassed and controlled and had injustices done to them.  They felt beaten down.
Any isolated protests and demonstrations were quelled.  This hope… any hope would be a welcome thing. 
It came to the end of the day and the crowd was hungry from following the teacher and learning from Him.  The teacher felt compassion for them because they were like “sheep without a shepherd”.  Their leaders were in collusion with the powers that be… they had nowhere to turn. 
The teacher told his students to feed the people in the crowd, though they objected that they had no money or food enough for them all.  In fact, they did not have enough food for the Teacher and His students!
He told them to have everyone sit in groups of 100’s and 50’s.  Then the teacher took the little bit of food they had collected, and looked into heaven and blessed and broke it and gave it to the students to hand out.  Everyone ate their fill and they had 12 baskets of leftovers, which was much more than what they had when they started! 
The crowd was 5,000 men alone, not even counting women and children. 

This took place outside the city, in little towns and villages.  Not in the city, where the larger population was.

They were all fed.
     In a scene like the Pesach, the Passover… when people gathered together awaiting deliverance from their Bondage in Egypt… they shared their hasty meal in hospitality… deliverance from oppression…
      The taking of the food, blessing it, breaking it, giving it is straight from the yearly celebration of Pesach…
      Here, again, they were fed together as community – an intimate act of sharing not done with just anyone…
            It was reserved for loved ones…
            And in the sharing of the small amount of food was the miracle… ENOUGH… even MORE THAN ENOUGH  

And they were empowered.  You see, there were maybe 3500 soldiers occupying the whole land at that time.

      A full Legion would be 5500 professional soldiers, but these were local Conscripts led by Military Leaders of the occupying army.  The Teacher raised 5000 – almost twice that many in a single day.
     A Roman Army Cohort of 500 was broken into groups of 100 and 50 for strategy in occupation and battle –
                 The teacher knew their tactics and strategies and more than matched them!
      What the Teacher did, in the face of Rome, was to raise an Army in a day, in front of them, and let Rome know what they were up against by an organized, unified people.
      They did not arm themselves, and they did not do violence.  They just put their numbers in their face.
      And the King noticed.  The Military Leaders certainly noticed.   And the people heard about it.
      It brought hope.  Finally.  Hope.  They stood with one another and stood up to the occupiers.

Mark 6:30-44

This was written in 67 A.D., when the tension between the people of Israel and their King and the Romans was growing… the City of Jerusalem and the Temple were destroyed in 70 A.D. during an Uprising of Armed Citizens… and a Legion of Rome was then stationed in Israel for 150 years… the armed uprising failed…

But the Hope of the people continued… as many of them lived what Jesus taught and modeled… a new way… and that remains and changes lives, gives hope still today…

This Teacher unified them, organized them and taught them a better way… COMMUNITY EMPOWERMENT
      Like in Ferguson (and Philadelphia before it), like in Baltimore (and Birmingham), Standing Rock (and Selma), like in Atlanta and other cities… people noticed!
Now, imagine what happened when everyone got on their Smart Phones and posted this on Facebook and Twitter… word spread… this guy is DIFFERENT… this guy raised an army in a day… this guy fed the crowd… and taught and healed… how empowering would THAT BE? 
They were empowered to empower others… to have hope… to know that in the face of what seemed like overwhelming odds, they had more power together than they ever imagined… knowing what they COULD DO was empowering and hopeful… and enough…

What could such a gathering of people coming together accomplish?

What could such a gathering of people coming together keep the occupiers from doing to them?

·        Film Clip… You Tube… Gandhi (1982 movie)  “It is time for you to leave”

No mention of weapons or violence.  In fact, in 1940’s India and 1960’s America, the most profound progress was made by specifically NOT becoming like the Occupiers, the Oppressors, but being THE OPPOSITE and finding power in NOT stooping to their tactics… and much was gained by it…

·        Film Clip… You Tube… Dr. King on non-violent resistance…

What can WE accomplish by coming together in the West End?  At APS Board Meetings, at City Council, at the State House?

When we get in the face of Washington and Wall Street?
What can WE accomplish when we are gathered as community – organized in unity?
What can WE do when we are fed, empowered and go out to empower others?