Preschool
Honor all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. 1 Peter 2:17
Bread from Heaven
Memory Verses
Primary
Honor all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king. 1 Peter 2:17
Junior
Thou shalt rise up before the hoary head, and honor the face of the old man, and fear thy God: I am the Lord. Leviticus 19:32
Background Scripture: Exodus 16
Lesson Scripture: Exodus 16:4-8, 13-21
Introduction
Mankind has always been dependent upon God for his natural and spiritual daily sustenance; howbeit, we often forget this truth. Just as our bodies require daily nourishment to remain healthy and productive, so our spiritual man must be sustained by daily bread from heaven. May this lesson remind us how displeasing it is to our heavenly Father when we complain that our desires are not satisfied to our liking. May we be more thankful for His loving kindness as we remember how He has provided for our every need in the past and has promised to continue this care to the end.
Key Verse
Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Moses gave you not that bread from heaven; but my Father giveth you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world (John 6:32-33).
Lesson Scripture
Exodus 16:4 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.
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.
6 And Moses and Aaron said unto all the children of Israel, At even, then ye shall know that the Lord hath brought you out from the land of Egypt:
7 And in the morning, then ye shall see the glory of the Lord; for that he heareth your murmurings against the Lord: and what are we, that ye murmur against us?
8 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; for that the Lord heareth your murmurings which ye murmur against him: and what are we? your murmurings are not against us, but against the Lord.
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.
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.
15 And when the children of Israel saw it, they said one to another, It is manna: for they wist not what it was. And Moses said unto them, This is the bread which the Lord hath given you to eat.
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.
17 And the children of Israel did so, and gathered, some more, some less.
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 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.
21 And they gathered it every morning, every man according to his eating: and when the sun waxed hot, it melted.
Studying the Lesson
The children of Israel had been on their wilderness journey for a month and a half. The bountiful provisions of food that they had carried out of Egypt had been depleted. As they entered the wilderness of Sin, they were beginning to experience hunger. True to human nature, the people looked for someone to blame for their misery, and the stage was set for murmuring against their leaders. They accused Moses and Aaron of leading them into the wilderness to die of hunger. How much better it would have been for the people to have turned to God and asked in simple faith for Him to sustain them. Had they not seen His mighty deliverance at the Red Sea only six weeks earlier?
God had no intention of letting them die of hunger. As grievously sinful as their murmuring was, His response to them was one of love and mercy. In answer to some inaudible command, thousands of quail descended upon the camp to provide meat. God’s formula for “miracle bread” was ready to be implemented and, beginning the next morning, manna appeared on the ground and never failed until they entered the Promised Land.
The size, consistency, and taste of manna are intriguing and left somewhat to the imagination, because it ceased to appear after Israel’s wilderness wanderings were over. We have only the biblical description to help us envision this staple that sustained the children of Israel for forty years. It appeared on the ground when the dew had dried off in the morning. The Bible compares its size to hoar frost. It was white, like coriander seed, and had the taste of wafers made of honey. It could be baked or boiled, making it very versatile. When left on the ground, it melted under the hot sun.
God gave explicit instructions that the Israelites should gather an omer apiece. An omer is equivalent to about half a gallon. If they gathered according to this measure, they all had enough with nothing left over. Those who gathered too much found that it spoiled overnight. Those who did not heed the instructions to gather double the day before the Sabbath found there was none on the ground on the Sabbath morning.
It would be difficult to calculate the amount of manna needed to feed the multitudes of Israelites, or the area of land needed to receive it. But God specializes in miracles, and He continues to faithfully provide and care for His children.
Practical Truths for Today
God delights in sustaining His creation. When He created man, He formed him of the dust of the earth and then placed a living soul from heaven inside this earthen vessel. The physical body is fed with the fruit produced from the same dust of which he was formed. Likewise, the soul being born in heaven must be fed with heavenly bread. God has given His Holy Spirit to born-again believers to be the channel through which this spiritual bread comes.
As the manna was provided daily for the children of Israel, our spiritual nourishment must also be obtained daily. This is accomplished by spending time in communion with God. He knows our needs for each day and provides just what is necessary for the moment. He does not give grace today for tomorrow’s trial, nor can we hope to catch up tomorrow when we neglect our time with God today. Neglecting the bread God provides for our daily needs will leave us weak and vulnerable.
Though God has provided everything to sustain mankind by giving sun, rain, and all the other natural resources needed for our sojourn in this world, there is a part that man must contribute. We must exercise our abilities and talents through working and gathering. Work should not be considered an undesirable obligation but rather a blessing of God. God gave Adam his duties in the garden before the fall, before any curse had been placed on the earth or on man.
The Israelites gathered manna in varying amounts, based on the size of their family. In today’s world we find that some gather [work] more and some less. Our Christian responsibility is to find God’s will in this important part of our life. When greed causes us to gather more than is pleasing to God, we will find that it becomes a curse rather than a blessing, just as the manna bred worms and stank when too much was gathered and stored.
Many times, we look at the Israelites and wonder how they could have been so ungrateful, especially since God had done so much for them. Their murmuring seems disrepectful to us, but we may be guilty of yielding to the same temptation. If the Israelites’ complaining appears shameful to us, how much more offensive is our complaining before God, considering we live in the gospel era? God is deeply grieved when we presume upon His providence and mercy by complaining. Doubts and questions about God’s ability to provide for us is sin.
God would have been justified to rain fire from heaven upon the children of Israel for their murmuring; He would likewise be justified to cast us away when we complain. Herein we see the great mercy of God.Instead of consuming them, He blessed them with manna. He does no less for us. He has indeed given us not only our daily needs, but He has sent to earth the most precious gift of all: His Son who died for our sins and gave us a hope of heaven.
Questions
- How can I be more conscious of God’s natural and spiritual provisions in my daily life? How can I be more thankful for them?
- Share an experience of a time when God gave you direction in your material pursuits.
- What of the financial resources God provides may be used personally?
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Source: COGICM Daily Bible Readings (Daily Bible Readings, PO Box 124, Glenn, CA 95943).