There Is No Lack in the Kingdom Part 2
Toward the end of January, I posted an article titled, There Is No Lack in the Kingdom. I’d like to unpack more of what the Lord has shown me since. In order to set the stage, I’ll start with a couple of opening paragraphs from January’s article:
“Prior to the five thousand being fed, Jesus sent out His inner-circle of twelve to announce repentance: That people needed to change their minds for the better and think differently, regarding the Kingdom of God, and its arrival on earth. To confirm the Kingdom’s inauguration, Jesus gave the disciples the authority (the legal right), and power to cast out demons and to heal. And in commanding them to take nothing more than what they were wearing, He was revealing that as they went, this newly arrived Kingdom would also meet their needs in the natural.
“Their entire experience was a success. They had tapped into all that Jesus had authoritatively prescribed them. Every one of their needs had indeed been met. And they were excited to tell Him all about it. However, as news kept spreading regarding…the disciples’ preaching and demonstrations, people were flocking to them by the thousands. Consequently, so much was going on that they didn’t even have time to grab a bite to eat. [Jesus] said to them, ‘Come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while…’(Mark 6:31). So they hopped on a boat, fully intending to do just that.”
This is where I want to pick up the story, as the order in which things happened is important. To preface, all four Gospels give an account of the feeding of the five thousand. Each one paints a marvelous panorama of the Kingdom, and how God works His will on earth through human beings. But my focus will be on Matthew, Mark, and Luke’s report.
Now keep in mind, the sole reason for the disciples getting away was for some needed R&R (Mark 6:31). But it wasn’t just them who needed rest. The entire time they were away declaring the Kingdom and preaching repentance and healing, so was Jesus. And it was during that time that He got word that His cousin and forerunner, John the Baptist, had been beheaded. (Matthew 14:1-12) So Jesus wasn’t just physically spent—He was also grieving. Yet despite His weariness, here’s what the three accounts report:
And when Jesus went out He saw a great multitude, and He was moved with compassion for them, and healed their sick (Matthew 14:14).
And Jesus, when He came out saw a great multitude and was moved with compassion for them, because they were like sheep not having a shepherd. So He began to teach them many things (Mark 6:34).
But when the multitudes knew it, they followed Him; and He received them and spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and healed those who had need of healing(Luke 9:11).
How Jesus was able to tap into the Kingdom’s ceaseless flow is packed in the words and phrases emphasized above. Matthew and Mark first note that when He came out of the boat, Jesus “saw” the people. In this context, the word “saw” wasn’t just seeing the size of the crowd. It was a knowing—an internal understanding. Holy Spirit had revealed to Jesus each person’s value and meaning. His attention was captured. He perceived them. And in doing so, Jesus regarded and cherished the shepherd-less mob.
There is no lack in the Kingdom.
This wasn’t haphazard. Holy Spirit purposely revealed, and Jesus willfully chose to open Himself up to the “seeing.” It was the first step in the order of importance. Had Jesus decided to close Himself off, it would have damned up what Father wanted to do in the numerous events that followed. But He didn’t. Jesus chose to lay aside His valid, real-life physical and emotional needs, in order to see what Holy Spirit was showing Him.
The cascade began.
The Father’s love for the people then poured into Jesus bringing a deep, agitating, yearning sympathy. He was “moved with compassion for them.” Simply put, His guts were torn up for the multitude. Then, because Jesus chose to allow all of this internal intensity, the power of Holy Spirit freely moved in Him—superseding the weariness of His body and emotions—and He was able to receive them. He had the capacity to be friendly and hospitable toward them (Luke 9:11). He spent time teaching them and speaking to them about the Kingdom (Mark 6:34; Luke 9:11), and He physically healed them (Matthew 14:14). I wonder if providing for the masses natural hunger was simply a byproduct of Jesus first meeting the more important, deep-seated needs of the people?
There is no lack in the Kingdom.
Sin and its consequences never changed God’s mind regarding His plan that mankind carry out His will on earth. That’s why Jesus came: to redeem us, and to show us how God works His will through human beings, so that we can fulfill His plan and our purpose. When we were born again, we were freed from our captivity to sin in every aspect of our humanity. We were re-created and re-united with the Father. We became sons and daughters of the Most High—part of His “inner-circle”—sent like Jesus, and the disciples, to announce that people need to change their minds for the better and think differently regarding the Kingdom of God, and confirm its inauguration.
Remember, the order in which things happen is important. Because of who we are in Christ, we now have the capacity, as He did, to have an internal knowing—an understanding of each person’s value and meaning—to have our attention captured; to perceive, regard, and cherish those around us. We can willfully choose to lay aside our valid, real-life physical and emotional needs, in order to see what Holy Spirit is showing us. The Father’s love can then pour into us that same deep, agitating, yearning sympathy—moving us with compassion, enabling us to be friendly and hospitable, and empowering us to teach and speak about the Kingdom. The power of Holy Spirit can freely move in us and through us, meeting our needs and the needs of others, naturally and supernaturally. Let the cascade begin.
© 2026 Tawna Wilkinson
Resources:
Scriptures from the New King James Version
Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance
Thayer’s Lexicon