To Encourage You

Exodus 16:17-21 “They gathered, some more, some less . . . whoever gathered much had nothing left over, and whoever gathered little had no lack. Each of them gathered as much as he could eat.  And Moses said to them, ‘Let no one leave any of it over till the morning.’ But they did not listen to Moses. Some left part of it till the morning, and it bred worms and stank. And Moses was angry with them. Morning by morning they gathered it, each as much as he could eat; but when the sun grew hot, it melted.”

In the account above we have the story of God’s provision of manna for the people of Israel in the wilderness. God’s command to them was to gather as much as was necessary each and every day.  Different amounts were gathered, and it was always enough, but they were not to gather so much on any one day that they relied on it for the next.  God’s plan – His means – was daily provision, and they were to trust that it would always be enough. 

In the New Testament this bread from heaven is shown to be a type of Christ. In John 6:33-35 Jesus said this: “Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world . . .I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.” 

So, how does one “eat” this life-giving bread?  It is by “coming to Him” and “believing in Him,” i.e., by placing our faith in Him, both in terms of what He has done for us in giving His life on the cross, and by believing the words that He has given us.  In the words of the well-known hymn: “Trust and obey, for there’s no other way.” 

But note that the manna was to be collected each and every day.  What was collected yesterday wasn’t to be relied on today. As a type, spending time in God’s Word is to be a daily activity.  No matter how much we’ve “eaten” of the Word in the past, we still need it today.  We aren’t to ever “rest on our laurels” so to speak.  God’s infinite Word, is always enough, but it is to be taken in day by day.  Sure, the knowledge we have received has sustained us to this point, and it’s resulted in perhaps much spiritual growth, but God has new manna for us today.  Just as the physical food that I ate yesterday or a week ago can’t sustain me indefinitely, no matter how satisfying at the time I ate it, neither can spiritual food sustain if not a regular, daily, practice of taking it in. 

It’s all about a living, daily, active relationship with the living Christ.  He wants us to walk with Him day by day.  He waits to hear from us in prayer and talk to us through His Word.  The Christian lives in this way.  Just as a vital relationship with a friend or a spouse can’t be kept healthy and vital on what happened “once upon a time,” so a vital relationship with the bridegroom from heaven won’t flourish as it should without daily communion and fellowship with Him.

May God give us the wisdom to feed from the manna from heaven day by day. It’s the means by which He has chosen to sustain us, and some other way is never enough.