65_Bread from heaven
Ex 16:4-16 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Behold, I am about to rain bread from heaven for you, and the people shall go out and gather a day’s portion every day, that I may test them, whether they will walk in my law or not. 5 On the sixth day, when they prepare what they bring in, it will be twice as much as they gather daily.”
13 In the evening quail came up and covered the camp, and in the morning dew lay around the camp. 14 And when the dew had gone up, there was on the face of the wilderness a fine, flake-like thing, fine as frost on the ground. 15 When the people of Israel saw it, they said to one another, “What is it?” For they did not know what it was. And Moses said to them, “It is the bread that the Lord has given you to eat. 16 This is what the Lord has commanded: ‘Gather of it, each one of you, as much as he can eat. You shall each take an omer, according to the number of the persons that each of you has in his tent.’”
George Müller, a man of extraordinary faith, built and ran multiple orphanages in England without asking anyone for financial support. He recounted the story of one morning when there was no food for breakfast. As the children sat at the breakfast table, Müller prayed as usual, thanking God for what He was about to provide. Moments later, a baker knocked on the door, saying he had felt led to bake bread for the orphanage. Shortly after, a milkman’s cart broke down outside, and he offered the milk to the orphanage to avoid wastage. The children happily had a good breakfast. Once again, God’s provision was evident. This incident shows that the God who provided manna for the Israelites in the wilderness lives and provides for his people even today.
After halting at Elim, where they enjoyed an abundance of water and shade from its twelve springs and seventy palm trees, the Israelites followed the pillar of cloud and fire into the wilderness of Sin. Comfort quickly gave way to hardship. Immediately, they began to murmur and to complain. The hidden unbelief in their hearts came to the surface. How soon they forgot the Lord’s instructions and provision at Marah! And how often we act just like them, praising God when all is well but grumbling and faltering when faced with adversity! When our lives feel like a wilderness, it is easy for us to succumb to our old and natural temptations to forget that our help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.
Moses, on the other hand, when confronted by the people’s grumbling, turned to God. Instead of devising human strategies, he sought divine intervention. God’s response was clear and miraculous: “Behold, I am about to rain bread from heaven for you…” (Exodus 16:4). This heavenly bread, manna, was a daily visible reminder of God’s presence, faithfulness and power to meet their needs no matter what.
God’s ways of provision are as varied as His creation. For the Israelites, He sent manna. For Elijah, it was through the widow of Zarephath. For a hungry crowd in the New Testament, the Lord used five loaves and two fish. We are called to trust Him without knowing how our needs will be met. As Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 2:9, “No eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him.”
Centuries later, Jesus spoke of the manna in the wilderness, declaring, “I am the bread of life. Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. This is the bread which comes down out of heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die.” (John 6:48-50). The manna was only an earthly provision for earthly life. In contrast, the Lord came down as the true, or real, bread from heaven, since he gave eternal life to all who come to him. While physical bread nourishes physical life, trusting Christ who is the fulness of God in bodily form brings us forgiveness and nourishes our souls with the assurance of eternal life. This daily provision was sufficient for nourishment, immunity, and growth. Similarly, coming to know Christ in the obedience of faith equips us with all we need for spiritual life and growth. As Peter writes, “His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness…” (2 Peter 1:3).
Moses assured the Israelites that they would see the glory of the Lord each morning when the manna appeared. As James 1:17 reminds us, “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.” Every blessing should instantly lift our inward eyes to the great Giver, and lift us closer to his throne.
Each morning, the Israelites were to gather manna before it melted in the sun. God provides everything we need to live in godliness before him. Yet we must receive it daily by quietly submitting ourselves to his instruction and commandments. It is thus that we are nourished by him. The manna didn’t collect itself; they had to gather it daily, in faith and obedience. Let us daily abide in the fear of Christ, drawing strength and nourishment from His gracious leading. Lamentations 3:22-23 beautifully declares, “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.”
Manna was an extremely versatile food. It could be baked or boiled to suit varying tastes. In Christ, we find all we need by way of comfort, strength, and guidance for all of life’s challenges. His word and presence meet the diverse needs of His people, offering solace to the weary and courage to the fainthearted. Whether we need wisdom, patience, or peace, Christ is enough to satisfy every longing.
God provided manna for 40 years, a testament to His unwavering faithfulness despite the Israelites’ repeated grumblings and unbelief. They ate manna until they reached the border of Canaan, their promised land. The Israelites ate manna every single day, yet many of them failed to trust God fully. Let us remember that experiencing God’s blessing and constant grace does not mean we can become complacent about our walk with God. We are only assured before God if we keep our conscience pure before him by walking according to the light given in his word.
God also instructed the Israelites to keep the Sabbath holy and rest on it. Therefore they were to gather double the daily portion of manna on the sixth day. This was a test of their trust and obedience, encouraging them to rely completely on him and underlining the importance of the sabbath rest, a gift from God to his people.
The manna teaches us to grow in daily dependence on God. As we pray each day, “Give us this day our daily bread,” let us trust Him to provide for both our physical and spiritual needs. Second, let us approach life’s wilderness moments with faith, remembering that God’s resources are limitless even when our circumstances seem barren. Finally, let us actively “gather” from God’s word and presence, obeying his lightest commands with grace and courage so that we may grow in strength and faith.
The manna was only a shadow of Christ, the true bread of life who came to give life to the world. He taught us that his life-giving “food” was to do the will of the Father. In him, we are called to walk in his steps. Our complete helplessness drives us to daily dependence on him. This gives us daily power to obey him, finding strength and satisfaction in His presence.
Let us never forget the faithfulness of the One who rained bread from heaven, the One who gave His Son for our salvation. As we feed on the living bread, we are nourished, strengthened, and equipped to do God’s will. God bless.