Manna: A Heavenly Meal
For A Hungry Multitude
Text: Ex.16: 1-4; Ps.78: 25
Intro: As we enter Exodus 16, we find the children of Israel doing what they did so often in their wilderness wanderings—complaining. This is quite a contrast from the “Song of Redemption” that they sang only two months earlier, for they had experienced the mighty power of God, in delivering them from slavery in Egypt, as well as defeating their enemies at the Red Sea.
The children of Israel certainly had cause to sing, as they stood as a free nation, on the banks of the Red Sea. They had spent four hundred years in bondage to a heathen king and his people. But God did for the little nation of Israel what He had never done for any other. He chose them to be His very own people, revealing Himself to them in a most magnificent way.
Israel’s deliverance from Egyptian bondage is a beautiful picture of man’s salvation, and the resulting deliverance from the bondage of sin, through the direct intervention of our Lord Jesus Christ. Pharaoh was to the Israelites what Satan is to lost sinners: the ruler of a harsh, cruel world, which was typified by Egypt. Israel’s bondage in Egypt is a type of the sinner’s bondage to sin and Satan’s rule. When the blood of the Passover lamb was applied to the lintel and doorpost of each Israelite dwelling, the nation of Israel was protected from the wrath of God’s judgment upon Egypt. The next morning, the order came forth from Pharaoh that the people of God were free to leave Egypt.
But Israel escaped Egyptian bondage only to find themselves pursued by their nemesis, and blocked by the Red Sea. The Red Sea is a type of death to the old life of sinful bondage. Just as the Red Sea was the border of Pharaoh’s kingdom, even so death to the old life, through saving faith in Jesus Christ, is the end of Satan’s rule over the believer. Again, I say, Israel had good cause to sing the praises of God, after reaching the eastern shore of the Read Sea.
It was not long after Israel’s victory over Egypt, that God’s people began to experience the realities and realizations of redemption life. They found the waters of Mara to be bitter; much like Christians of our day, who find that salvation and forgiveness of sin doesn’t mean that life’s journey will be without it’s problems and difficulties. But as Israel discovered, God had the remedy for the bitter waters. That remedy was found in a tree. In like manner, the cross of Christ is still the answer for the bitter waters of life.
Two months into their wilderness journey, this newly redeemed people, found themselves facing a different problem. They were without food. But once again, God met the need, with what Psalm 78: 25 refers to as “angels’ food.” Exodus 16 simply refers to this heavenly food as “manna.” In this incident, we are permitted some wondrous insights into the grace and greatness of God, in Christ Jesus.
Jesus is the manna of our souls. It is by feeding daily upon Him through worship and the Word, that we are spiritually nourished and sustained on this spiritual journey we call life. It is how the qualities of the manna of old relate to the Master that I wish to reveal in this message. There is much about manna that is typical of the grace of God in Christ Jesus.
Theme: The grace of God in Christ Jesus is clearly seen in the way:
I. MANNA WAS DELIVERED
A. Notice Where It Came From.
1. Israel’s sustenance came from above.
Ex.16: 4a “Then said the Lord unto Moses, Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you…”
Ps.105: 40 “The people asked, and he brought quails, and satisfied them with the bread of heaven.”
2. Our Savior came from above to give life to all.
John 6: 48 “I am that bread of life.
49 Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead.
50 This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die.
51 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 will give for the life of the world.”
B. Notice When It Fell.
1. The manna of God’s grace fell at a time when earthly means failed.
Ex.12: 34 “And the people took their dough before it was leavened, their kneadingtroughs being bound up in their clothes upon their shoulders.”
Ex.16: 1 “And they took their journey from E’lim, and all the congregation of the children of Israel came unto the wilderness of Sin, which is between E’lim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after their departing out of the land of Egypt.”
NOTE: This is often how God deals with His people today. In Israel’s case, He waited until all the bread brought out of Egypt had been expended before His grace was extended. Dependence upon earthly resources often thwarts God’s grace in our behalf. God will many times allow our human resources to become exhausted that He might teach us that our only reliable resources come from heaven; for they are inexhaustible in Christ. That’s precisely the place we had to come before we got saved. Paul put it like this: “For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly” (Rom.5: 6). That’s also the way it works in sanctification as well. God told Paul: “My grace is sufficient for thee” (II Cor.12: 9). Later Paul would write: “But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus” (Phil.4: 19).
2. The manna of God’s grace fell even though evil men murmured and fretted.
Ex.16: 2 “And the whole congregation of the children of Israel murmured against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness:
3 And the children of Israel said unto them, Would to God we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the flesh pots, and when we did eat bread to the full; for ye have brought us forth into this wilderness, to kill this whole assembly with hunger.”
NOTE: [1] The grace of God is so evident here. This bunch of forgetful and ungrateful Israelites had only a short time before, witnessed God’s great power to deliver them from bondage in Egypt. Yet the moment things got a little tough, they accused God, Moses and Aaron of deceiving them, and leading them out into the wilderness to die of hunger. The grace and power of God was available to them the whole time they were griping and complaining.
It was 1916, and Hattie Green was dead. Hattie’s life is a sad demonstration of what it is like to be among the living dead. When Hattie died, her estate was valued at over $100 million; yet Hattie lived in poverty. She ate cold oatmeal because it cost money to heat it. When her son’s leg became infected, Hattie wouldn’t get it treated until she could find a clinic that wouldn’t charge her. By then, her son’s leg had to be amputated. Hattie died arguing over the value of drinking skim milk. She had money to meet her every need, but she chose to live as if it didn’t exist.
Turning Point, March, 1993.
[2] If ever there was a group of people who did not deserve to receive God’s goodness, it was this crowd. But folks, grace is never about what one deserves, for grace is receiving from God what one doesn’t deserve. God so loved His people that even their murmurings against Him could not quench His love and quash His grace.
When Billy Graham was driving through a small southern town, he was stopped by a policeman and charged with speeding. Graham admitted his quilt, but was told by the officer that he would have to appear in court.
The judge asked, “Guilty, or not guilty?” When Graham pleaded guilty, the judge replied, “That’ll be ten dollars—a dollar for every mile you went over the limit.”
Suddenly the judge recognized the famous minister. “You have violated the law,” he said. “The fine must be paid—but I am going to pay it for you.” He took a ten-dollar bill from his own wallet, attached it to the ticket, and then took Graham out and bought him a steak dinner!
“That,” said Billy Graham, “is how God treats repentant sinners!”
Progress Magazine, December 14, 1992.
3. The manna of God’s grace fell at a time when darkness had fallen.
Ex.16: 8a “And Moses said, This shall be, when the Lord shall give you in the evening flesh to eat, and in the morning bread to the full…”
Num.11: 9 “And when the dew fell upon the camp in the night, the manna fell upon it.”
NOTE: [1] The word translated “morning,” in Exodus 16: 8, makes reference to dawn, that period of the day just before sunrise. This is significant in that just as the manna fell during the dark hours, it was also at man’s darkest hour that Jesus came to die for the sins of the world. Simeon, speaking of baby Jesus, said, “Through the tender mercy of God; whereby the dayspring from on high hath visited us, to give light to them that sit in darkness…” (Luke 1: 78 & 79a).
[2] It is often in the Christian’s dark moments that the manna of God’s grace in Christ falls. That’s what happened to the disciples when they were being tossed about by a storm on the Sea of Galilee (Matt.14: 25).
Are You At Wit’s End Corner?
Are you standing at “Wits End Corner”
Christian, with troubled brow?
Are you thinking of what is before you,
And all you are bearing now?
Does all the world seem against you,
And you in the battle alone?
Remember at “Wits End Corner”
Is where God’s power is shown.
Are you standing at “Wits End Corner,”
Blinded with wearying pain,
Feeling you cannot endure it,
You cannot bear the strain?
Bruised through the constant suffering,
Dizzy and dazed, and numb.
Remember at “Wits End Corner”
Is where Jesus loves to come.
Are you standing at “Wits End Corner,”
Your work before you spread.
Longing for strength to do it,
Stretching out trembling hands?
Remember at “Wits End Corner”
The burden bearer stands.
Are you standing at “Wits End Corner,”
Yearning for those you love—
Longing and praying and watching,
Pleading their cause above—
Trying to lead them to Jesus,
Wondering if you’ve been true?
He whispers at “Wits End Corner,”
“I’ll win them as I won you.”
Are you standing at “Wits End Corner?”
Then you’re just in the very spot,
To learn the wondrous resources
Of Him who faileth not!
No doubt to a brighter pathway,
Your footsteps will soon be moved.
But only at “Wits End Corner”
Is the God who is able, “proved.”
Antoinette Wilson.
C. Notice What It Was For.
1. The manna was to be appropriated for the people’s needs.
Ex.16: 4b “…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.
5 And it shall come to pass, that on the sixth day they shall prepare that which they bring in; and it shall be twice as much as they gather daily.”
2. The Master can be appropriated for today’s needs.
a. The sinner can appropriate God’s grace in Christ Jesus.
John 6: 51a “I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live forever…”
b. The saint can appropriate God’s grace in Christ Jesus.
Eph.1: 3 “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:”
Theme: The grace of God in Christ Jesus is clearly seen in the way:
II. MANNA WAS DESCRIBED
A. Notice Its Properties.
1. It was perplexing.
Ex.16: 14 “And when the dew that lay was gone up, behold, upon the face of the wilderness there lay a small round thing, as small as the hoar frost on the ground.
15a And when the children of Israel saw it, they said one to another, It is manna: for they wist not what it was…”
NOTE: [1] The correlation to Christ once again becomes evident here. When the Israelites saw the manna, they asked, “What is it?” Jesus was also a puzzle to the Jews, almost from the beginning. When Jesus was twelve years old, the doctors and religious leaders were astonished by His wisdom and understanding (Luke 2: 46-47).
[2] Jesus’ disciples were amazed and bewildered by His power over the elements (Matt.8: 27). They did not yet perceive that He was the very Son of God.
[3] The Bible says of Jesus, “…the world knew him not…” (John 1: 10b). The sad thing is that untold millions of people still find Jesus Christ a puzzling enigma. They still don’t know who He really is. Sadder still are the many Christians who know Him as Savior, and yet don’t know Him intimately.
2. It was pure.
Ex.16: 30a “And the house of Israel called the name thereof Manna: and it was like coriander seed, white…”
NOTE: [1] White is often associated with purity. This is of course one of the predominant qualities of the Lord Jesus. Scripture says of Him, that He was, “…holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners…” (Heb.7: 26).
[2] When one thinks about Jesus as the living Word (John 1: 1), we are faced with His purity. The Bible says, “Thy word is very pure: therefore thy servant loveth it” (Ps.119: 140). We can trust Jesus’ character; and we can trust His Word, because both are true and pure.
In 1915, A Russian Armenian was reading his Bible when he was beheaded. I saw the Bible—large, thick, and well used. Inside was a reddish stain that permeated most of the book. The stain was the blood of this man, one of more than a million casualties of a religious and ethnic holocaust.
Robert A Seiple, President, World Vision, June-July, 1990.
3. It was pleasant.
Ex.16: 31b “…and the taste of it was like wafers made with honey.”
NOTE: [1] Here we find another picture of Christ Jesus. The sweetness of the Lord Jesus is exhibited throughout the Gospels by His kindly compassion and responsiveness to people in need. The Apostle Peter offers this analysis of Christ.
I Pet.2: 22 “Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth:
23 Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously:”
[2] Sweetness also speaks of Christ as the Word. The written Word reveals He who is the Living Word. Our sentiments concerning the Word of God should be like those of the psalmist who said, “How sweet are thy words unto my taste! yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth!” (Ps.119: 103).
B. Notice Its Plentifulness.
Ex.16: 18 “And when they did mete it with an omer, he that gathered much had nothing over, and he that gathered little had no lack; they gathered every man according to his eating.
19 And Moses said, Let no man leave of it (the manna) till the morning.
20 “Notwithstanding they hearkened not unto Moses; but some of them left of it until the morning, and it bred worms, and stank: and Moses was wroth with them.”
NOTE: [1] Dear child of God, there is fullness in Christ. Whatever your need, be it big or small, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ is sufficient to meet that need.
Phil.4: 19 “But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”
Col.2: 9 “For in him (Christ) dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.
10a And ye are complete in him…”
[2] Notice also that the manna was to be appropriated for the needs of but one day. The grace of Christ must be appropriated afresh and anew each day. Not only is this true of God’s grace, but also of the Word of God’s grace as well, “…which is able to build you up” (Acts 20: 32). Just as the manna could not be stored up, but had to be used, so it is with the Christian and the truth of God’s Word. Truth that is not used, but only filed away in some book of facts, tends to stink after a while. It’s not how much truth you acquire that changes your life, but how much truth you apply that makes the difference.
C. Notice Its Preservation.
Ex.16: 32 “And Moses said, This is the thing which the Lord commandeth, Fill an omer of it to be kept for your generations; that they may see the bread wherewith I have fed you in the wilderness, when I brought you forth from the land of Egypt.
…………………………………………………………..
34 As the Lord commanded Moses, so Aaron laid it up before the Testimony, to be kept.”
NOTE: I find two significant thoughts that can be derived from this command given to Moses: (1) The first is that the manna was to be remembered. It was to be cherished and remembered as that which nourished and sustained them in the difficulties of their wilderness journey. We too need to remember that it is the grace of Christ and His Word that sustains us in the wilderness of life. Psalm 103: 2 says, “Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits:” (2) I also find here a picture of the ascension of Christ. Moses was commanded to take an omer of manna and place it in a golden pot (Heb.9: 4) and set it in the very presence of God in the Tabernacle. This is indicative of Christ, the epitome of God’s grace (Rom.3: 24; Gal.2: 21; I Tim.1: 14; II Tim.1: 9), Who after He had provided the bread of salvation for mankind, ascended up from the wilderness of this sin-cursed world, to take His rightful seat on the throne of His Father (Mark 16: 19).
Theme: The grace of God in Christ Jesus is clearly seen in the way:
III. MANNA WAS DESPISED
A. Israel’s Heart Was Focused In The Wrong Direction.
1. The children of Israel began to lust after Egypt’s substance.
Num.11: 4 “And the mixed multitude that was among them fell a lusting: and the children of Israel also wept again, and said, Who shall give us flesh to eat?
5 We remember the fish, which we did eat in Egypt freely; the cucumbers, and the melons, and the leeks, and the onions, and the garlic:”
NOTE: It’s hard to imagine that this nation, which had been redeemed from the hard bondage of Egypt, would actually think upon it with fondness. In a physical sense, they had been delivered out of Egypt; but in a practical sense, Egypt was still in them. There is one word that describes their condition: Worldliness.
The course of rebellion against God may be very gradual, but it increases in rapidity as you progress in it; and if you begin to run down the hill, the ever-increasing impetus will send you down faster and faster to destruction. You Christians ought to watch against the beginning of worldly conformity. I do believe that the growth of worldliness is like strife, which is as the letting out of water. Once you begin, there is no knowing where you will stop.
I sometimes get this question put to me, concerning certain worldly amusements, “May I do so-and-so?” I am very sorry whenever anyone asks me that question, because it shows that there is something wrong, or it would not be raised at all. If a person’s conscience lets him say, “Well, I can go to A,” he will very soon go on to B, C, D, E, and through all the letters of the alphabet. . .When Satan cannot catch us with a big sin, he will try a little one. It does not matter to him as long as he catches his fish, what bait he uses. Beware of the beginning of evil, for many, who bade fair to go right, have turned aside and perished amongst the dark mountains in the wide field of sin.
C.H. Spurgeon.
2. The manna of God’s grace no longer satisfied.
Num.11: 6 “But now our soul is dried away: there is nothing at all, beside this manna, before our eyes.”
NOTE: The Israelites complained that what God was providing wasn’t enough. They wanted more; they wanted variety. Clearly, they had lost their first love (Rev.2: 4). They were backslidden.
3. For Israel, the manna of God’s grace had lost its sweetness.
Ex.16: 31b “…and the taste of it was like wafers made with honey.”
Num.11: 7 “And the manna was as coriander seed, and the color thereof as the color of bdellium.
8 And the people went about, and gathered it, and ground it in mills, or beat it in a mortar, and baked it in pans, and made cakes of it: and the taste of it was as the taste of fresh oil.”
Num.21: 5 “And the people spake against God, and against Moses, Wherefore have ye brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no bread, neither is there any water; and our soul loatheth this light bread,”
NOTE: Folks, just like Israel, when we get the eyes of our hearts off the Lord, and focused on the things of the world, even the grace of God and the word of His grace will no longer satisfy us. You see, there was nothing wrong with the taste of the manna; it tasted like “…wafers made with honey” (Ex.16: 31b), and “…as the taste of fresh oil” (Num.11: 8b). The problem here was not to be found in the food God provided, but in the fleshliness of Israel’s passions.
B. Israel Became Discouraged And Disgruntled.
Num.11: 10 “Then Moses heard the people weep throughout their families, every man in the door of his tent: and the anger of the Lord was kindled greatly; Moses also was displeased.”
Num.20: 3 “And the people chode with Moses, and spake, saying, Would God that we had died when our brethren died before the Lord!
4 And why have ye brought up the congregation of the Lord into this wilderness, that we and our cattle should die there?
5 And wherefore have ye made us to come up out of Egypt, to bring us in unto this evil place? It is no place of seed, or of figs, or of vines, or of pomegranates; neither is there any water to drink.”
Num.21: 4 “And they journeyed from mount Hor by the way of the Red sea, to compass the land of Edom: and the soul of the people was much discouraged because of the way.”
NOTE: [1] The journey had been hard, and the tests of the wilderness seemed unrelenting. Pretty soon the children of Israel were discouraged, and tired of all the difficulties. But rather than drawing near to the Lord in their discouragement, they became disgruntled. In other words, they developed a bad attitude. What they once found to be satisfying, they now considered sickening (“…our soul loatheth this light bread” - Num.21: 5b).
[2] A person who becomes physically ill often becomes sick at their stomach. Foods that were once palatable and flavorful, now nauseates them. The same is true in the spiritual realm. One who becomes spiritually sick (backslidden on God) will not partake of the grace of God, or the word of His grace, which would actually solve their problem.
C. God Became Exceedingly Displeased.
Num.21: 6 “And the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and much people of Israel died.
7 Therefore the people came to Moses, and said, We have sinned, for we have spoken against the Lord, and against thee; pray unto the Lord, that he take away the serpents from us. And Moses prayed for the people.
8 And the Lord said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live.”
NOTE: [1] According to God’s Word, we are saved by grace, through faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ on Calvary (Eph.2: 8 & 9). But folks, we are sanctified (set apart for God alone in our daily life) in the same manner. You and I must draw upon the manna of God’s grace, and trust Him completely for each day. Paul put it this way: “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me” (Gal.2: 20).
[2] The manna of God’s grace is available to us in whatever quantity we need it. But worldliness will sicken the Christian to the very thing that will sustain them. Rather than permitting ourselves to become discouraged and disgruntled about life, we must learn to daily appropriate the grace needed for every trial. The writer of Hebrews puts it succinctly when he says:
Heb.4: 15 “For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.
16 Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.”
Theme: The grace of God in Christ Jesus is clearly seen in the way:
I. MANNA WAS DELIVERED
II. MANNA WAS DESCRIBED
III. MANNA WAS DESPISED
