Read Exodus 16 and meditate on these words.
“Then the LORD said to Moses, ‘I will rain down bread from heaven for you. The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day. In this way I will them and see whether they will follow my instructions.’” (Exodus 16:4)
Some background: the Lord freed the Israelites from slavery in Egypt and they were currently wandering in the desert. Quickly, they forgot about God’s provision of freedom and began to grumble because they missed the meals of the past that indulged their bodies. (Had they forgotten how awful slavery was?!)
When the Israelites complained, God had compassion. He sent manna (bread) to give life to the Israelites, but instructed them to “go out each day and gather enough for that day.” Why did it matter if they gather a little more than enough? It doesn’t seem like that big of deal if you grab a couple more handfuls. This seems like a non-issue.
However, as I began to meditate on this passage and tried to relate it to my own life, I came to the conclusion that His instruction always has a purpose whether that is to guide us, protect us, or test what is truly in our hearts. There is always a purpose behind every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.
Try to imagine you are an Israelite: you lived as a slave the majority of your life and finally are freed by a God who struck terror in many throughout Egypt and other lands. You’ve seen it all- plagues on your enemies, the Red sea parting for you and your family, and it closing in on the armies chasing you.
A few years have passed by, and somehow the amazing, wonderful, mind-blowing works God did to free you seem to float away from your mind like a piece of driftwood in the sea. Away it goes. Now, you think, “Oh slavery wasn’t that bad, at least we got some good grub out of the deal.” You’ve forgotten the hand that saved you, and now you begin to complain.
The Lord that freed you hears your complaints and has compassion on you and your family and all your friends. He sends down the best kind of bread for breakfast, and good meat for dinner. His only instruction for you is to gather enough and not to save any bread except on the sixth day, so there will be rest on the seventh.
You haven’t had food this satisfying in a while. You think, “I need to gather a little more because…what if the Lord doesn’t send the manna to us tomorrow morning or the morning after that and after that. I need to stock up because what if a storm comes and destroys our homes and what if…”
Our natural inclination as human beings is to rely on ourselves, and not on a God who is much more powerful and much more intelligent than we could ever be.
Why did this test work? “For God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything” (1 John 4:4). He knew that it would be hard for the Israelites to remember His character, and wanted to test their trust in Him. He was refining their faith through this test.
Wow! How the Lord refines us! I know it’s easy to look at the Israelites and think they were absolutely crazy and stupid to forget all the wonderful things God did for them. Stop and think how many times you have forgotten the mind-blowing wonder of Christ giving His life up for you.
If we believe in Jesus, everyday we have the bread of life. Just like God sent the Israelites manna to give them life, He sent His Son to be life in us. How quickly do we forget that He is the one who freed us from the bondage of slavery, of sin?
He is the bread that rains down from heaven. Think of how many times we try to gather other things (friendships, clothes, other’s approval, guys) to be our manna. How often and quickly we forget of who truly satisfies us! Ponder these words that Christ speaks to you and me, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty” (John 6:35).
“My grace is sufficient for you…” (2 Corinthians 12:9a)
