Exodus 16:11-20
~14 min read
TRANSCRIPT
Our text for this evening's message is taken from the book of Exodus 16:11-20. The children of Israel had complained about the lack of water, and God graciously provided for them by turning the bitter water at Marah into pure, sweet water that they could drink to their satisfaction. Subsequently, they complained about the lack of food, and God promised to provide manna in the morning and quails in the evening.
Then God gave His people specific instructions. Each day they were to go out and gather manna; they were to collect as much as they would need for that particular day, which was an omer. Some people believe that an omer is about 2 litres, while others believe it is about 3.7 litres or a gallon. We do not want to be dogmatic, but it is safe to say that an omer was more than sufficient for one person, except on the sixth day when they were commanded to gather twice the amount, which was two omers, which was in preparation for the next day, the Sabbath, because the people were not supposed to work on the Sabbath.
The reason why God had given specific instructions was found at the end of verse four, "that I may prove them, whether they will walk in my law, or no." This means the people were put to a test, whether they would obey God's law or not. In other words, His promise to provide came with a test; it was a test of their faith that the children of Israel would trust and believe God in His provision. Faith was required in God's promise. Therefore, verse 11 says, "And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, I have heard the murmurings of the children of Israel: speak unto them, saying, At even ye shall eat flesh, and in the morning ye shall be filled with bread; and ye shall know that I am the LORD your God.”
So, God was going to prove to the children of Israel that He would keep His promise by providing manna in the morning and quails in the evening. They had to prove their faith by trusting in His promise. Let us see if the children of Israel would pass the test of faith with flying colours or would they fail terribly? As usual, we want to draw spiritual lessons that we may apply to our lives. The title of our message is "The Test of Faith."
I. God's Faithfulness to Provide
Our first point is ‘God's Faithfulness to Provide’. Let us begin with verse 13, "And it came to pass, that at even the quails came up, and covered the camp: and in the morning the dew lay round about the host. 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." Hoar frost was the tiny little drops of ice. Indeed, God said He would provide, and He was true to His promise.
Verse 15 continues, "And when the children of Israel saw it, they said one to another, It is manna: for they wist not what it was." “Wist not” means they did not know what it was. In fact, the word “manna” means "What is it?" And Moses said unto them, "This is the bread which the LORD hath given you to eat." This was a genuine miracle, unlike the Bible critics who tried to explain that this manna was produced by some kind of excretion by some particular insects. Others explain it as produced by some kind of a plant. By giving these natural explanations, they were trying to downplay the miraculous aspects of this provision.
Indeed, this was not only a genuine miracle; it was an extraordinary miracle because it was something that was uncommon. So much so that the Israelites did not know what it was; they had never seen this before. Another aspect of why this manna was so extraordinary was the fact that God faithfully provided this manna for 40 years in the desert. Humanly speaking, it was impossible to produce that amount of food or vegetation in the desert for almost 2 million Israelites. It was a genuine miracle.
Verse 16, "This is the thing which the LORD hath commanded, Gather of it every man according to his eating, an omer for every man, according to the number of your persons; take ye every man for them which are in his tents. And the children of Israel did so, and gathered, some more, some less. 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.” The Israelites did as they were told; some gathered much because they had a bigger family, some gathered little because they had a smaller family. And they measured it by an omer for each person. In the end, he who gathered much did not have too much; he who gathered little did not have too little. It means they all had sufficient food to last them for the day.
This is an amazing principle that you and I ought to learn. God's promise is to provide for us what we need, and His provision is never too much or too little; always sufficient for us. God's promise is to provide for us on a daily basis. Why on a daily basis? Why not just give to us more than sufficient for one year or ten years or until the day we die?
Well, the obvious reason is that when God provides more than we need, let's say until the day we die, what will happen? We will look to our bank accounts rather than to God Himself. We will start to think of all the things we have accumulated, ‘they come from our own hands’, whether it be based on our wise investments or our own hard work or based on the good financial decisions we have made. Like the story of a church member whose pastor said to him, "You must always look to God for His gracious provision."
That church member was a multi-millionaire, so he was very proud of his resources, and he said, "What do you mean, look to God for His gracious provision? Without my hard work, how am I able to pay the bills for my condominiums, for my car, for my children's overseas education, etc.?" The wise pastor said to him, "But you have forgotten that even the good health and strength you have come from God. If not for God's grace and mercy, you would be lying on your sick bed, unable to wake up. And God is the one who has blessed you with jobs and opportunities”. Dear friend, no matter how wealthy you are, please do not forget that God is the one who has blessed you. He is the one who has provided for all your needs.
Some people may question, "But how can God's provision be not too much or too little? Obviously, some people are much more wealthy than others, right?" Well, the Apostle Paul gave an excellent application in 2 Corinthians 8:13, based on Exodus chapter 16. Maybe you can turn with me to this passage, 2 Corinthians 8:13. Let me read for you. Paul said, "For I mean not that other men be eased and ye burdened:" which means “my desire is not that others may be relieved and then you be hard pressed”. Verse 14, "But by an equality, that now at this time your abundance may be a supply for their want, that their abundance also may be a supply for your want: that there may be equality:” which means everyone will have enough, no more, no less.
How? Because at this present moment, you have plenty, and you can supply to those brethren who are in need. Or others may have plenty, and they will supply to you who are in need. So everyone will have enough. And notice Paul quoted Exodus 16:8 to support this biblical principle of Christian sharing. He said in verse 15, "As it is written, He that had gathered much had nothing over; and he that had gathered little had no lack." Apparently, the Christians in those days all had exactly what they needed. How was that possible? Because they all shared. That is the meaning of fellowship, “koinonia”, which can mean communicating, distributing, or sharing.
In other words, they fellowship with one another by communicating, distributing, and sharing their wealth with those brethren who were in need. How can we learn these spiritual lessons and apply them into our lives in the same way today? As Christians, we are called to communicate, distribute, and share what we have with those brethren who are in need. You see, God's plan for providing for His people is through Him blessing us with plenty and then through our willingness to share with one another.
Again, this is a test of our faithfulness. Are we willing to share or not? By the grace of God, Australia is a country blessed with much resources—agricultural resources, minerals, energy, and many of us are gainfully employed. We may not see many people in the church who are in need. But what about our fellow brethren in the Myanmar missions or in the Philippines?
Many years ago, when I was a young Christian, I joined a mission trip to visit some of the churches in one of the Southeast Asia third-world countries. Before the people worshiped God, about an hour before the worship service started, the church would provide a simple meal for the worshippers. One of the participants of the mission trip, who was from a first-world country, she made an insensitive comment: "We are here to provide spiritual food, not physical food. Why must the church provide the meals for these worshippers?" Later on, the pastor explained that those brethren were poor peasants. They had to save up enough money to travel that long distance to come to church. And by the time they arrived at church, they were already so tired and hungry. How can they worship and listen to the message when their stomachs were empty and hungry?
Upon hearing that, the sister was humbled because she realised that those brethren who were blessed with plenty all came together to chip in to provide the meals for those poor brethren. Remember, didn't even our Lord Jesus himself feed the 5000 not only with spiritual food but also with physical food? He multiplied the five loaves and two fishes to feed the hungry multitude, didn't he?
So the lessons we can learn from God providing the daily manna for the children of Israel is that God is faithful to provide for our needs, and He is faithful to provide for us on a daily basis to teach us to trust and believe in His providence. And there is also this element of communicating, distributing, and sharing what we have with those people who are in need, so none of God's children will go hungry. This is our Almighty God's plan, and His purpose.
II. Man’s Responsibility to Trust and Believe
Will the children of Israel obey His command and pass the test of faith? This brings us to our second point: ‘Man's Responsibility to Trust and Believe’. Moses reminded the people once again in verse 19, "And Moses said, Let no man leave of it till the morning", which means do not take more than you need, do not take more than you are commanded. Do not store up extra manna thinking that you can make it last longer than it should. Most of the Israelites were willing to trust God for their daily bread; however, some did not.
Look at verse 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." So some of them collected more and kept part of the manna until the next morning, and what happened? It was full of maggots, and it began to smell. That was why Moses was so angry with them. If Moses was angry with them, how much more God? How could God not be angry with them? Remember, at this point in time, they had already witnessed God's power being demonstrated in the temple.
They had already experienced God's deliverance in opening up the Red Sea. They had already seen how God was able to provide the water at Marah. And now God said to them, "I will provide for you manna on a daily basis, and all I want you to do is to obey my command, to trust and believe in me, and only take what you need for each day." Sadly, they failed terribly. Instead of only taking what they needed, the Israelites tried to make God's provision last longer, to last an extra day. Not only was it absolutely unnecessary, but it showed their lack of faith in God's promise. Obviously, you and I know that they took more than they should simply because they wanted to feel secure. By doing that, they were doubting God's promise.
Dear friend, isn't this the attitude of many people in our time, especially the people in the world, including the people in the church? Didn't God teach us to pray, "Give us this day our daily bread"? (Matthew 6:11). Didn't God promise, "I shall supply all your needs according to my riches by Christ Jesus"? (Philippians 4:19). And yet, we want to accumulate more and more in order to feel secure. Sadly, our security is in our accumulation, not in our Almighty God. Like the children of Israel, many have failed terribly.
How much is enough? Have you ever asked yourself this question? Truly, how much is enough? We live in a culture of accumulation, where enough is never enough. This reminds us of Rockefeller, who was once the richest man in this world. When he was asked how much is enough, his response was, "One more dollar." Can you imagine the richest man in this world at one time, and yet he said, "One more dollar," which means for the sinful heart, it is never enough; we always want a little bit more. Isn't it true? When we don't have a house, we want a house, and when we have a house, we want another house or a better house, a bigger house. When we don't have a car, we want a car, and when we have a car, we want another car or a better car. And the list goes on and on.
But all we really need is our daily bread, and God has promised to provide our daily bread and sustain us from one day to the next. You and I are called to live our lives daily depending on God's provision. Some people have this misconception that when they have plenty, they would have happiness. Do you really think so? Do you realise that the happiest people on this Earth are not those people who don't have any needs or those people who have much in life, but rather, they are those people who experience their needs being met by the Almighty God? Those are the happiest people on the face of this Earth.
God wants you and I to be happy and content, not in our savings, not in our bank accounts, but by trusting Him on a daily basis. By realising that the peace and strength we have, our provisions, come from this continual dependence on Him. This happy and content life can be ours if only we learn to trust him, and we must learn to trust Him on a daily basis.
At this point, we have to say that it is not wrong to save up for rainy days. There are other Bible passages that teach us to prepare for our family members, to provide for our own households, and to work hard like the little ants in the Book of Proverbs who store up their goods. However, here it is a prohibition against the sin of hoarding.
You see, when we fall into the sin of hoarding, we will not only allow our own hearts to drive away from trusting and obeying God, believing in His provision, but we will also break the other commandments as well. Take, for example, because of hoarding, how many people have sinned against God by stealing from their tithes and offerings, by refusing to help other believers who are in need, by not supporting the gospel work, or by choosing to work on Sundays in order to earn more money instead of worshiping God. It all stems from the sin of hoarding because they want to feel secure, and their security is based on their accumulation, not on the almighty God who promised to provide.
How sad, dear friends. You and I must trust God for today as well as tomorrow and every day all of our lives. We are called to believe that God will continue to provide what we need on a daily basis. So every day of our lives is a test, a test of our faith, whether or not we will trust and believe in his provision, whether or not we will trust that God will provide our daily bread day by day, week by week, and year by year. You and I must depend on Him for everything. Will we obey His command and pass the test of faith, or will we be like the children of Israel and fail because of the sin of hoarding? May the Lord have mercy on us. Let us pray.
Father in Heaven, we thank Thee for enabling us to consider this portion of scriptures. Indeed, as we live our lives from day to day, month by month, and year by year, we learn to trust and believe in Thy promise and Thy provision. Oh Lord, remind us that we will not live our lives hoarding the things of this world, that we will not trust in our own hands, thinking that it is because of our own hands that have brought in all these good things and forget Thee, the Provider. Thou art the One who has provided all our needs. Thou art the One who has blessed us with all these good things. Help us and remind us because, as humans, we always forget.
We do not want to be like the children of Israel, that they hoard the manna thinking that they could make it last longer than it should. Today, as we live our lives, we trust in Thee at every step of the way, that whatever we have comes from Thee. Even the strength and the good health we have, the jobs and opportunities that we have cometh from Thee. Help us always to fix our eyes on thee and never to fix our eyes on the things of this world. And we pray that we will pass the test of faith and we want to hear our Lord Jesus say to us, "Well done, thou good and faithful servant. Enter into the joy of the Lord." We pray all this in Jesus' name. Amen.
THE BOOK OF EXODUSGod’s Prophecy and Promise Had Come To PassGod’s Prophecy and Promise Had Come To PassExodus 1:1-7
From Prosperity to PersecutionFrom Prosperity to PersecutionExodus 1:8-14
God’s Protection in the Midst of AdversitiesGod’s Protection in the Midst of AdversitiesExodus 1:15-21
The Faith of JochebedThe Faith of JochebedExodus 1:22-2:10
Moses in EgyptMoses in EgyptExodus 2:11-15
Moses in the Desert of MidianMoses in the Desert of MidianExodus 2:16-25
Moses and the Burning BushMoses and the Burning BushExodus 3:1-9
Who Are You?Who Are You?Exodus 3:10-15
Who Am I?Who Am I?Exodus 3:10-15
God’s Message to Israel and EgyptGod’s Message to Israel and EgyptExodus 3:16-22
What If They Still Don’t Believe?What If They Still Don’t Believe?Exodus 4:1-9
Send Someone ElseSend Someone ElseExodus 4:10-17
Moses’ Return to EgyptMoses’ Return to EgyptExodus 4:18-20
When Things Seemed to Get Better, They Got WorseWhen Things Seemed to Get Better, They Got WorseExodus 5:10-21
When We Have Done Everything Right, and Yet Trouble ComesWhen We Have Done Everything Right, and Yet Trouble ComesExodus 5:22-6:5
Having to Learn the Same Lesson TwiceHaving to Learn the Same Lesson TwiceExodus 6:6-12
Faithful or UnfaithfulFaithful or UnfaithfulExodus 6:13-27
What God Wants Is Our Faithfulness and ObedienceWhat God Wants Is Our Faithfulness and ObedienceExodus 6:28-7:7
The First Plague - The River of BloodThe First Plague - The River of BloodExodus 7:14-25
The Second Plague - The FrogsThe Second Plague - The FrogsExodus 8:1-15
The Third PlagueThe Third PlagueExodus 8:16-19
The Fourth PlagueThe Fourth PlagueExodus 8:20-32
The Fifth PlagueThe Fifth PlagueExodus 9:1-7
The Sixth PlagueThe Sixth PlagueExodus 9:8-12
The Seventh PlagueThe Seventh PlagueExodus 9:13-35
The Eighth PlagueThe Eighth PlagueExodus 10:1-20
The Tenth PlagueThe Tenth PlagueExodus 11:1-10
The First PassoverThe First PassoverExodus 12:1-13
The Feast of the Unleavened BreadThe Feast of the Unleavened BreadExodus 12:14-28
Departure From EgyptDeparture From EgyptExodus 12:29-42
This Do In Remembrance of MeThis Do In Remembrance of MeExodus 12:43-51; 1 Corinthians 11:23-32
Message 2: What is Church to you? My Covenantal Family!Message 2: What is Church to you? My Covenantal Family!Exodus 12:48-49, Colossians 2:11-12
Redemption and ConsecrationRedemption and ConsecrationExodus 13:1-2, 11-16
Precious Lord, Take My HandPrecious Lord, Take My HandExodus 13:17-22
Between the Desert and the Red SeaBetween the Desert and the Red SeaExodus 14:1-14
Crossing the Red SeaCrossing the Red SeaExodus 14:15-31
The Song of PraiseThe Song of PraiseExodus 15:1-21
Will You Obey Or Not?Will You Obey Or Not?Exodus 15:22-27
The Danger of a Complaining SpiritThe Danger of a Complaining SpiritExodus 16:1-3
God’s Response to Israel’s ComplaintsGod’s Response to Israel’s ComplaintsExodus 16:1-10
The Test of FaithThe Test of FaithExodus 16:11-20
Lessons About the SabbathLessons About the SabbathExodus 16:21-36
Do Not Test GodDo Not Test GodExodus 17:1-17
Lift Up Your HandsLift Up Your HandsExodus 17:8-16
The Blessedness of ReunionThe Blessedness of ReunionExodus 18:1-12
Why Do We Have Leaders?Why Do We Have Leaders?Exodus 18:13-27
I Will Carry You On Eagles’ WingsI Will Carry You On Eagles’ WingsExodus 19:1-6
Approach God Fearlessly or FearfullyApproach God Fearlessly or FearfullyExodus 19:7-15
God Reached Out And SpokeGod Reached Out And SpokeExodus 19:16-25
Thou Shalt Have No Other GodsThou Shalt Have No Other GodsExodus 20:1-3
Thou Shalt Not Make Graven ImagesThou Shalt Not Make Graven ImagesExodus 20:4-6
Thou Shalt Not Dishonour God’s NameThou Shalt Not Dishonour God’s NameExodus 20:7
Thou Shalt Keep The Sabbath DayThou Shalt Keep The Sabbath DayExodus 20:8-11
Honour Thy Father And Thy MotherHonour Thy Father And Thy MotherExodus 20:12
Thou Shalt Not KillThou Shalt Not KillExodus 20:13
Thou Shalt Not Commit AdulteryThou Shalt Not Commit AdulteryExodus 20:14
Thou Shalt Not StealThou Shalt Not StealExodus 20:15
Thou Shalt Not LieThou Shalt Not LieExodus 20:16
Thou Shalt Not CovetThou Shalt Not CovetExodus 20:17
The Response To The Ten CommandmentsThe Response To The Ten CommandmentsExodus 20:18-21
How God Wants Us To Worship HimHow God Wants Us To Worship HimExodus 20:22-26
Why Would God Allow Slavery?Why Would God Allow Slavery?Exodus 21:1-11
The Punishment Fits The Crime — a life for a lifeThe Punishment Fits The Crime — a life for a lifeExodus 21:12-17
The Punishment Fits The Crime — an eye for an eyeThe Punishment Fits The Crime — an eye for an eyeExodus 21:18-36
The Punishment Deters The Crime — property lawsThe Punishment Deters The Crime — property lawsExodus 22:1-15
The Character Of GodThe Character Of GodExodus 22:16-20
Reaching Out To The Down-And-OutReaching Out To The Down-And-OutExodus 22:21-24
The Compassion, Authority & Holiness Of GodThe Compassion, Authority & Holiness Of GodExodus 22:25-31
Truth Cannot Be Subjected To Anything But TruthTruth Cannot Be Subjected To Anything But TruthExodus 23:1-9
Remember Who God IsRemember Who God IsExodus 23:10-19
What Must We Do To Have VictoryWhat Must We Do To Have VictoryExodus 23:20-33
How We Ought To Worship GodHow We Ought To Worship GodExodus 24:1-4, 7
On What Basis Can We Approach His Majesty?On What Basis Can We Approach His Majesty?Exodus 24:4-8
Responding To God’s InvitationResponding To God’s InvitationExodus 24:9-18
The Right Attitude Of GivingThe Right Attitude Of GivingExodus 25:1-8
There I Will Meet YouThere I Will Meet YouExodus 25:9-22
Physical Or Spiritual Bread, Which Is More Important?Physical Or Spiritual Bread, Which Is More Important?Exodus 25:23-30
Let Your Light So Shine Before MenLet Your Light So Shine Before MenExodus 25:31-40
If Thy Presence Go Not with Me, Carry Us Not Up HenceIf Thy Presence Go Not with Me, Carry Us Not Up HenceExodus 33:12-23
