Christ in all the scriptures
Exodus chapter 16
Bread from heaven
"Then said the Lord unto Moses, behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you, and the people shall go out and gather a certain rate every day, that I may prove them, whether they will walk in my law or no"-Exodus 16v4.
How do you sustain such a large group of people in a desert for 40 years?! The logistics are enormous, the reality is astonishing. Even allowing for the debate that the Hebrew word for thousands (eleph) can also mean "clans", the numbers are huge. Most translations say that over 600,000 men above 20 years old were in the camp. Taken with wives and children this inflates the number to 2.4 million or more. Those who insist there were 600 clans of men say the number is considerably less at 30,000. Later narrative indicates that the number slain during the wilderness journey far exceeds this figure. It is therefore more credible to accept the higher figure. In any case, God is not limited to numbers and whether it be the greater or lesser number, the fact remains that God sustained a multitude in desert conditions for 40 years, together with large flocks and herds. Experts have calculated that this involved over 1000 tons of food per day; 4000 tons of wood for cooking and rubbish disposal and 8-10 million gallons of water, per day, for drinking and washing and cleaning in 40 degrees heat. By any standard, this is massive, even if only a fraction of it is real. God furnished a table in the wilderness to sustain Israel, as it says in the Psalms. He supplied quails in the evening (a kind of miniature pheasant, considered to be a delicacy, even today); He supplied Manna (which is called angels food) early every morning. This every week for six days and a double portion for the Sabbath. He set rules for gathering to test their obedience.
The story is recorded in the context of their murmuring, and discontent. What had commenced as celebration, had turned to cynical complaining. How quickly God's people forget His benefits! They even accused Moses of wanting to kill them for lack of food. God's answer was to shower them with more blessing. He rained Manna from heaven, which covered the ground around every dwelling. But what of the Manna?
Manna, literally means "What is it"? They had never seen the like. There was nothing to compare it to. It was small, it was round, the colour of coriander seed, and tasted sweet like honey. It could be baked into bread or cakes, and had a brief shelf life. Jesus interprets the Manna for the present day in John chapter 6. Following the feeding of 5000 men beside women and children, He expounded the true meaning of the Manna, and its implications for today. He said He is the true bread from heaven-John 6v32; He is the bread of God, that is the bread on which God Himself feeds-6v33; He is the bread that gives life to the world-6v33. He said, in one of the great "I AM" claims, "I am the bread of life, he that cometh to me shall never hunger..."-6v35; "I am that bread of life"-6v48; "I am the living bread, which came down from heaven; if any man eat of this bread, he shall live forever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world"-6v51; "This is that bread which came down from heaven: not as your fathers did eat manna and are dead: he that eateth of this bread shall live forever"-6v58. Jesus is the fulfilment of the type which was manna. What food is to the body, Christ is to the soul. It is well said, that we are what we eat, our food becomes one with our body. So in the realm of the spiritual. Israel had to change their diet, after leaving Egypt. In the same way the Christian has to change the diet, spiritually speaking; what we fed on before is unsuitable for the new life. Each one must decide what that means for themselves. In the circle of professing Christianity, there is tendency to take the attitude of the old life into what is a close knit society. This can result in "feeding on the faults of others", instead of feeding on the delights of Christ.
Christ is the food of the believer! How much is this my experience, really? He, alone, feeds the spirit and the soul, and He is superior to anything the world has to offer. This is the lesson of the Manna, and the meaning behind the word "What is it?" He is without compare in all the world; take your most exhilarating moment in life, and compare it to one moment of a Christ-filled life. The Apostles who were nearest to Him in life expressed it, "We beheld His glory (the glory as of the only begotten of the Father), full of grace and truth"-John 1v14. John, writing to the churches in his old age, said, "That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled of the Word of life...That which we have seen and heard, declare we unto you..."-1st John 1v1-3; why did he put it in the neuter gender, saying that and not he...simply that there was no one to compare with Him, and so he sets Him apart. He is apart, He is so much better than anyone or anything we have known, and we feed on Him for our spiritual nourishment. If He satisfies God (He is the bread of God), He can more than satisfy us and build us up, and help us grow in new life.
Some practical things to come out of the story of the Manna:
Christ is found in the scriptures, a fact we are enjoying now. Feeding on the scriptures is feeding on Him. Gather a portion each day, enough for the day. Do not let one day go by without learning more of Him. Gather early in the day before the issues of life take over. Share what you learn with those closest to you.
Some lovely aspects of the Manna that speak of Christ:
It was small-His humility; it was round-His eternity; it was sweet-His delectability (Peter quoted the Psalm "Oh taste and see that the Lord is good"); it was like coriander seed (Numbers 11v7)-His beauty; the colour of bdellium (a crystalline precious stone)-His transparency.
There is enough in Christ to fill our lives in all the wilderness journey until we reach our eternal home.
Feed on Him, not on the chaos of the world, or the failings of others. Make Him your occupation of thought, the subject of your conversations, the delight of your heart, and experience the life of Christ in you, life more abundant than ever before. As often is the case, the hymnwriter catches the truth. Written around 1160 a.d. the French Abbott Bernard of Clairvaux penned these lovely words: source Hymnary.org
1 Jesus, Thou joy of loving hearts,
Thou fount of life, Thou light of men,
from the best bliss that earth imparts,
we turn unfilled to Thee again.
2 Thy truth unchanged hath ever stood;
Thou savest those that on Thee call;
to them that seek Thee, Thou art good,
to them that find Thee all in all.
3 We taste Thee, O Thou living Bread,
and long to feast upon Thee still;
we drink of Thee, the Fountain-head,
and thirst our souls from Thee to fill.
4 Our restless spirits yearn for Thee,
where'er our changeful lot is cast;
glad when Thy gracious smile we see,
blest when our faith can hold Thee fast.
5 O Jesus, ever with us stay,
make all our moments calm and bright;
chase the dark night of sin away;
shed o'er the world Thy holy light.
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