Verse for the Day, 21 July 2014.

Exodus 16:19-30  And Moses said to them, "Let no one leave any of it over till the morning."  (20)  But they did not listen to Moses. Some left part of it till the morning, and it bred worms and stank. And Moses was angry with them.  (21)  Morning by morning they gathered it, each as much as he could eat; but when the sun grew hot, it melted.  (22)  On the sixth day they gathered twice as much bread, two omers each. And when all the leaders of the congregation came and told Moses,  (23)  he said to them, "This is what the LORD has commanded: 'Tomorrow is a day of solemn rest, a holy Sabbath to the LORD; bake what you will bake and boil what you will boil, and all that is left over lay aside to be kept till the morning.'"  (24)  So they laid it aside till the morning, as Moses commanded them, and it did not stink, and there were no worms in it.  (25)  Moses said, "Eat it today, for today is a Sabbath to the LORD; today you will not find it in the field.  (26)  Six days you shall gather it, but on the seventh day, which is a Sabbath, there will be none."  (27)  On the seventh day some of the people went out to gather, but they found none.  (28)  And the LORD said to Moses, "How long will you refuse to keep my commandments and my laws?  (29)  See! The LORD has given you the Sabbath; therefore on the sixth day he gives you bread for two days. Remain each of you in his place; let no one go out of his place on the seventh day."  (30)  So the people rested on the seventh day.

Exodus 16 records for us God’s provision of manna and quail. The people of Israel could not carry an indefinite amount of food with them and therefore it was a matter of time before their food would come to an end. As the food supplies came to an end the people were presented with an opportunity to demonstrate faith and trust in God. Unfortunately, they grumbled and complained against both God and Moses. They failed to exercise any faith or trust in God. However, God deals with them graciously and provides manna and quail, and He does so for the next 40 years! This chapter stands as a testimony in Scripture to the enduring, long-suffering patience, faithfulness, graciousness and generosity of God.

This chapter also shows us that God delights in trust and obedience. The people of Israel are given very specific instructions concerning the manna, they are told how much they are to gather, how and when to eat it, and when they are not to go out to gather manna. Sadly, a number of the people show little, even no regard for these instructions given to them by God. Some in their greed seek to gather more, and therefore others are only able to gather a little, in the providence of God, God balances the scales so as to ensure each one had what was needed. There are those who decided to keep the manna for longer than permitted and others who went out on the Sabbath day to look for manna. Both of these groups stir the Lord and Moses to anger, they are not only disobedient the words of God and being greedy, they are also demonstrating a lack of trust in God’s faithfulness and promise to provide for them.

This greed, disobedience and lack of trust in God stands to the shame of the people when we read the concluding verse of this chapter, “The people of Israel ate the manna forty years, till they came to a habitable land. They ate the manna till they came to the border of the land of Canaan.” God had been faithful to people who were faithless, greedy and disobedient. God was faithful because He keeps His promises, and He does all that which He says He shall do.

There can be no denying the fact that we have a faithful God, and a God who remains faithful in spite of who we are. God’s faithfulness is not rooted in who we are and what we do, rather His faithfulness is rooted in His unchanging and holy character. The great challenge for us to demonstrate obedience to and trust in God. We have no reason not to obey or trust God, for His commands, His instructions and His will is for our highest, greatest good and for His glory. Furthermore, He is the unchanging, all-powerful, faithful God, who remains true to every word and promise, there is no one more trustworthy or faithful than God is. It should be for us a joy and delight to obey and trust God, it should be a source of great assurance and peace, knowing that we are being led by a good and holy God, and we are being upheld by a powerful, trustworthy and truthful God.

Faithful Father we thank You for Your enduring faithfulness, a faithfulness that works for our good, even when we live in sin. We are thankful towards You today that Your faithfulness is not rooted in who we are, but is rooted in Your holy, eternal, good and unchanging character. We praise You for the peace and joy we know when trust You for all things and walk in obedience. We pray that You might increase our trust in You and move us towards greater obedience, for we know this is brings You delight and brings us joy. May we walk in the footsteps of Christ, who is the greatest demonstration of Your faithfulness, and who lived in trust and obedience. Amen.