Twelve Baskets Full

It was in watching the Bible Video about Jesus feeding the 5000 that I realized the significance of this description in that story: “He blessed, and brake, and gave the loaves to his disciples, and the disciples to the multitude. And they did all eat, and were filled: and they took up of the fragments that remained twelve baskets full” (Matthew 14:19-20). Jesus gave the bread and fishes first to the twelve apostles, and then they distributed it to the multitude. And why were there twelve baskets left over? Because, I believe, each apostle had a basket that he was using to distribute the food to the people, and at the end, each basket was still full. So as these apostles gave of the food in their basket to the people, the baskets simply never got empty. This I believe is symbolic for us—the apostles and prophets that He has chosen will never run out of the means and ability and grace of God to perform their mission in nourishing the Church and directing its affairs. They will be able to fulfill their duties because He has blessed their efforts and will multiply their abilities. They will be able to give and keep giving as long as the Lord desires. President Nelson, for example, who is the oldest apostle in this dispensation, seems to have a basket that the Lord just keeps filling as he continues his ministry to serve the Saints. And how grateful we are for that!

                It is interesting that the miracle was one that was shared between the Savior and His apostles. They were all a part of accomplishing it, with the Savior blessing the food but the apostles distributing it. They must have had the faith that the bread and fish would not run out as they kept offering their basket to the people. And, when they were done, their baskets were indeed all still full. What strikes me about this is that Judas himself was one of these servants offering the bread to the people. He participated in the miracle and saw for himself the power of Jesus Christ to miraculously feed thousands. He was in that moment an instrument in the hands of God to feed and bless the people. That makes it all the more difficult to understand how he could have then betrayed the Savior to be captured. But perhaps it is an indication of the short shelf life that great spiritual experiences have—Judas clearly did not hold in his memory long the incredible miracles like this one that he saw and heard and even played a role in.

                Viewing this miracle from the perspective of these twelve apostles who walked from person to person to offer them bread from their basket reminds us of course of how the sacrament is passed today in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. As holders of the Aaronic Priesthood take trays of bread they too walk from person to person, offering each of them some to eat. While of course their trays will physically run out eventually, the story of the feeding of the 5000 can remind us that the Savior’s grace indeed will never be exhausted. No matter how many people are there at that sacrament meeting, there will be enough grace of the Savior to forgive the sins of each person who partakes with a contrite spirit. There will be enough power of the Savior to strengthen each person who renews their covenants with Him in that ordinance. There will be enough love from the Savior to fill us each with His Spirit as we humbly partake. And as young deacons offer us the bread, we should remember that it is the Savior who ultimately blessed that offering and sent these young men to us to offer us His salvation.