On the Tenth Sunday after Pentecost, the people of Immanuel Lutheran Church in Joplin, Missouri gathered around Word and Sacrament to hear about a Savior who wanted to get away — and who fed a hillside instead. Pastor Christopher Ramstad preached the Holy Gospel from Matthew 14, the feeding of the five thousand, and from the children’s message all the way to the Lord’s Table the whole morning circled four simple verbs: He took, He blessed, He broke, He gave.
Pastor Ramstad’s Sermon on the Tenth Sunday after Pentecost: More Than Enough
Pastor Ramstad opened somewhere unexpected: a run of Southwest Airlines commercials from the 1990s. Each one staged a small social disaster — a water delivery man who grabs a basketball in a driveway, takes the shot, and puts it straight through the garage door window; a man at a car wash whose hose whips out of control and sprays his wife, the neighbors, and every car in sight; a gentleman at a ballroom dance who crosses the room with two glasses of champagne toward beautiful blonde hair, only to discover it is the back of a dog’s head. Every commercial ended the same way: Want to get away?
We all know that feeling — and so, it turns out, did Jesus. Our text begins, “Now when Jesus heard about the death of John, he withdrew from there in a boat to a desolate place by himself.” To understand why, Pastor Ramstad walked us back through the first thirteen verses of Matthew 14 and one of the most grim and despicable deaths in all of Scripture. John the Baptizer — the one who pointed and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world,” the one who said he was not worthy to untie the sandals on Jesus’ feet, the one who baptized Jesus in the Jordan and then gladly got out of the way so that Christ might increase — was put to death. And not for pointing at Jesus, and not for calling the Pharisees a brood of vipers. John died because he told King Herod the truth about his marriage: Repent. A banquet, an oath made too quickly, a dance, and a platter. Scripture tells us the disciples of John came and buried him, and then came and told Jesus. That is what sets up our text.
So Jesus gets in a boat and goes to a desolate place — in the Greek, eremos: isolated, deserted, uninhabited, a no-man’s-land. Pastor Ramstad pointed out that God’s people have known this place before. Israel wandered forty years in it. Elijah ran into it and collapsed under a broom tree. John the Baptizer’s whole ministry happened out in it. And Luke tells us again and again that Jesus habitually withdrew to a desolate place to pray to His Father. So we should not be surprised that Jesus needs to get away for a while. Here is the surprise of the text: it does not work. The crowds spot the boat and follow Him on foot from the towns. When He goes ashore, there they all are.
Anyone else might have said, “Shoo — can’t you see I came out here to be alone?” But Matthew notices something else entirely: “He had compassion on them.” Jesus puts the needs of humanity ahead of His own. He heals their sick. He teaches them. He spends the whole day with them. And when evening comes and the disciples — tired, hungry, ready to throw in the towel after an eight-hour day — suggest sending everyone off to the villages to buy food, Jesus says, “They need not go away. You give them something to eat.” Five loaves. Two fish. Five thousand men besides women and children. Because God does not leave His people empty in the eremos; He fills them. Manna and quail and water from a rock for Israel. Cake and water under the broom tree for Elijah, with the word, get up, eat, you have a journey ahead.
Then came the heart of it — four verbs. “He took the loaves and the fish. He looked to heaven and blessed them. He broke them. And He gave them.” Pastor Ramstad set those four words right beside the words of institution: took, blessed, broke, gave. This is exactly what our Lord does in the upper room, and exactly what He does for us at this altar. He takes simple bread and wine and does something extraordinary with them: this is My body, given for you; this is My blood, shed for you for the forgiveness of sins. And why have we come here on a Sunday morning? Because we want to get away — from a sinful world, from the sins of our own flesh, from Satan’s temptations. And what do we find? A God who has compassion on His people, who places our needs above His own, who teaches and heals and forgives, and who invites us to His table in the Lord’s Supper. Matthew’s line about that hillside is the same line that can be written over this congregation: “they ate and were satisfied.”
“Then he ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass, and taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven and said a blessing. Then he broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. And they all ate and were satisfied. And they took up twelve baskets full of the broken pieces left over.”
Matthew 14:19–20 (ESV)
Pastor Ramstad closed by putting a photograph on the screen — our brother Dr. Ray Malzahn, who turned ninety-seven just a few weeks ago and has now been called home to heaven. Speaking at Dr. Malzahn’s funeral service, Pastor shared what Ray loved most: receiving the body and blood of his Lord. Again and again, as Ray came to the Supper, tears would simply stream down his face for joy at what Jesus was doing in the forgiveness of all his sins. Ray’s daughter Karen sent that picture along afterward with a prayer — that we would all come to the altar with that same joy. Every time we come to this table, it ought to blow our minds. God does not leave His people in the eremos. He comes near, to die upon a cross and rise on the third day, and He meets us here with more than enough.
The Children’s Message: Five Crackers and Two Goldfish
For the children’s message, Mr. Jason Glaskey came up with a Ziploc bag and a snack: five crackers and two goldfish — five loaves and two fish. He asked the children to look around at everyone in the room. Was this snack going to work? It would be plenty for one child. But there was nowhere near enough for the people gathered in that room. “I don’t have enough to take care of the people in this room,” he told them. “But I know Someone who does.”
Then came the arithmetic that reframes the whole miracle. Five thousand men, plus wives and children — at least ten thousand people on that hillside. More people were fed by Jesus that single afternoon than are gathered in all the churches across Joplin on a Sunday morning. And how did Jesus feed them? He preached, He taught, He healed, He helped — and then He took a boy’s lunch of five little rolls and two small fish, gave thanks, and fed everyone until they were satisfied, with twelve baskets left over. Mr. Glaskey pointed the children to the Old Testament reading they were about to hear: “Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat!” God’s gift is free to us because Jesus already paid for it. That same good news is planted week after week in our ministry with children and families and at Martin Luther School.
The Readings and Hymns for the Day
This was a Communion Sunday, and the appointed readings, the hymns, the children’s message, and the sermon all met at the same table — a God who invites the penniless to come and eat, and satisfies them.
- Old Testament: Isaiah 55:1–5
- Epistle: Romans 9:1–13
- Holy Gospel: Matthew 14:13–21 (the sermon text — the feeding of the five thousand)
The hymn of the day was O Living Bread from Heaven (LSB 642), a Communion hymn that could hardly fit the morning better, and we closed with Praise and Thanksgiving (LSB 789) and the doxology. We also gave thanks for the musical gifts shared with us: Genevieve Billings sang in worship, and Mollie Ramstad covered both organ and piano while Betty Lingenfelter was traveling.
“O living Bread from heaven, / How well You feed Your guest! / The gifts that You have given / Have filled my heart with rest. / O wondrous food of blessing, / O cup that heals our woes, / My heart, this gift possessing, / With praises overflows.”
Lutheran Service Book 642, st. 1 — O Living Bread from Heaven
Looking Ahead at Immanuel
A few things worth putting on the calendar. On Saturday, August 22, our evangelism board welcomes John Pearling, Director of Mission Services for the Missouri District, to lead the Everyone His Witness seminar here at Immanuel — practical tools for talking about Jesus comfortably and building real relationships with the people around us. On Monday, August 25, the men gather for Table Talk at Golden Corral. Our youth wrap up the summer with one more ice cream outing this Wednesday through our Youth Ministry. And a new-member class is forming: a six-week walk through what it means to be a Lutheran — and more than that, a Christian who trusts that Jesus Christ was crucified and risen for you. If you are interested, let us know and we will get you plugged in.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who preached at Immanuel on the Tenth Sunday after Pentecost?
Pastor Christopher Ramstad preached the Holy Gospel from Matthew 14:13–21, the feeding of the five thousand. Mr. Jason Glaskey gave the children’s message. You can find more messages anytime in our Services and Sermons archive, including the previous week’s Ninth Sunday after Pentecost and the Eighth Sunday after Pentecost.
What does the feeding of the five thousand teach us about the Lord’s Supper?
Matthew uses four verbs on that hillside — Jesus took, blessed, broke, and gave — and those are the very same four verbs Scripture uses in the upper room on the night Jesus was betrayed. In both places our Lord takes ordinary things, gives thanks, and feeds His people to satisfaction. At the altar He gives us His true body and blood for the forgiveness of sins, which is why Lutherans call Holy Communion a means of grace and not merely a memorial. Learn more in What Is the Lord’s Supper? and read about what we believe as confessional Lutherans.
What does the Greek word eremos mean in Matthew 14?
Eremos is usually translated “desolate place” or “wilderness” — an isolated, deserted, uninhabited no-man’s-land. It is where Israel wandered forty years, where Elijah collapsed under the broom tree, where John the Baptizer preached, and where Jesus regularly withdrew to pray. The pattern of Scripture is that God does not abandon His people in the eremos; He meets them there and provides for them.
What time are summer worship services at Immanuel Lutheran Church?
Through the summer we gather for one service at 9:00 a.m., with the Christian Education hour following at 10:15 a.m. Our fall schedule — services at 8:00 and 10:30 a.m. with Bible classes at 9:15 — resumes after Labor Day. Full details are on our Sunday services page. New to Immanuel? Here is what to expect when you visit.
How can I listen to the sermon as a podcast?
Each week’s sermon is published as Word & Sacrament, the sermon podcast of Immanuel Lutheran Church, on Spotify and Apple Podcasts — a simple way to keep the Gospel close in the car, on a walk, or at the kitchen table. Growing in the Word continues through the week in our LifeLight Bible study.
About Immanuel Lutheran Church
Immanuel Lutheran Church is a confessional LCMS congregation in Joplin, Missouri, and the home of Martin Luther School (PK–8). We are part of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. Jesus brings life — meet Him here. Join us Sunday mornings at 2616 S Connecticut Ave, Joplin, MO 64804. Questions? Reach out through our contact card, or learn how you can give to support this ministry.
Summer Worship at Immanuel: One service each Sunday at 9:00 a.m., with the Christian Education hour at 10:15 a.m. We would love to have you join us this week.