Manna from Heaven

"Then the Lord said to Moses, “Look, I’m going to rain down food from heaven for you. Each day the people can go out and pick up as much food as they need for that day. I will test them in this to see whether or not they will follow my instructions. On the sixth day they will gather food, and when they prepare it, there will be twice as much as usual.”
Exodus 16:4‭-‬5 NLT

"So the people of Israel ate manna for forty years until they arrived at the land where they would settle. They ate manna until they came to the border of the land of Canaan."
Exodus 16:35 NLT

"Then the foreign rabble who were traveling with the Israelites began to crave the good things of Egypt. And the people of Israel also began to complain. “Oh, for some meat!” they exclaimed. “We remember the fish we used to eat for free in Egypt. And we had all the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions, and garlic we wanted. But now our appetites are gone. All we ever see is this manna!”
Numbers 11:4‭-‬6 NLT

How often we take God's work for granted! Here, God was literally raining down from heaven exactly the amount of food his people needed to eat. Every. Day. It's so tempting to look back on the Israelites in judgment for their forgetfulness and complaints. But we have received a blessing even more miraculous and glorious, and all too often it sits in its place unused. I'm talking about our "bread" from heaven: the living and active Word of God.

Now, maybe we do use it. Maybe we're faithful to take it out and read it every single day. But do we fully appreciate what we're experiencing? I'm sure that any one of us, if we could go back and live in the Israelite camp, would insist that everyone we met continued in their amazement of God's provision for them. We'd greet them each morning with an exclamation like, "Isn't God amazing? Isn't he so faithful and good to give us this bread every morning?" At least, I hope we would.

And yet, how many times do we open this book that contains the inspired Word of the Most High God, and say something like, "Oh, I can't wait to get through this part. The next chapter or book is so much more exciting."? Or how many times do we scan through a passage without really thinking about it, only to move on to the next thing without giving this book--this source of our daily spiritual nourishment--a second thought?

Brothers and sisters, don't you know the miracle you are holding? Even the fact that you have it in your hands--and in your language--is a privilege that many have longed for, but few have experienced. And think of the price our fathers paid just to make it possible. And not only do we have it in our homes on our shelves, but it's now more accessible than ever, being found on our phones and tablets, in as many translations and as many languages as we could wish for! I wonder, if generations past could live in our time, what would they be saying to us?

Now, I want to be clear. The very reason this is on my mind this morning is because I've recently been convicted of the very problem I'm addressing. This exercise is more for my heart than for anyone else's. I'm indignant at my own ingratitude. That's why, this morning, I went through everything I could think of that amazes me about the Bible. Then, at the end of each statement, I wrote the same phrase: "May I never take it for granted".

I know I probably will take it for granted again. But may this exercise stand as a written reminder to my future self to stop and think about this miracle in all its glory once more:

• My "Manna" from Heaven: the very Word that came from God's mouth. May I never take it for granted.
• It always accomplishes what he sends it to do. May I never take it for granted.
• It reveals his nature, his character, his goodness, his faithfulness, his love, his justice, and his mercy. May I never take it for granted.
• It serves as a reminder of what he's done for his people. May I never take it for granted.I
• It was incarnated in the form of his Son, Jesus, who also perfectly fulfilled its every purpose. May I never take him for granted.
• It teaches me with divine instruction, laying before me the path of righteousness, to the glory of God my savior. May I never take it for granted.
• It rebukes me when I've strayed from the correct path either in thought or in deed. This kindness serves to point me back to God, and never removes his love for me. May I never take it for granted.
• It corrects me when I'm not living as I should as a free-born child of the Most High God. This sets me back in my proper place, and steers me back onto the proper path. This kindness proves to me that I am not burdened with finding my own way back. For my Good Shepherd, Jesus, always pursues me when I've lost my way, and then shows me the way home again. May I never take him for granted.
• It trains me to do right. It doesn't only show me what I'm doing wrong, or prevent me from leaving the right way to take. It raises me up as a child who is learning to grow and mature in the proper way. May I never take it for granted.
• It never fails to remind me what I need to know about God, myself, and how I ought to live in freedom. It never grows tired or exasperated of repeating itself to me, no matter how many times it takes. May I never take it for granted.
• It is always the same, and yet it's always new. There is always more to discover and treasure about it. May I never take it for granted.
• It sets a clear, unmoving boundary between right and wrong; truth and lie. May I never take it for granted!

I loved doing this, because so much that is true about God's Word is also true about God himself. And when I said that Jesus fulfills every purpose of God's Word, I meant it. That means he also accomplishes everything God sends him to do. He also reveals God's very nature. He also pursues us when we've left the path that leads to him, and is faithful to also point the way back. He also reminds us of everything God has done for us. And he also teaches, rebukes, corrects, and trains us with all patience and love.

I don't know about you, but contemplating all this this morning has filled me with a fresh sense of awe. So how will we respond? I'd say, let's do as David did:
"Oh, that my actions would consistently reflect your decrees!
Then I will not be ashamed when I compare my life with your commands.
As I learn your righteous regulations, I will thank you by living as I should!
I will obey your decrees. Please don’t give up on me!"
Psalms 119:5‭-‬8 NLT

Did you catch it? Here's a formula that he set out for himself:
1. He applied what he heard to his life ("Oh, that my actions would consistently reflect your decrees!")
2. He let himself be convicted where he fell short ("...when I compare my life with your commands.")
3. He lived his life with gratitude, which overflowed in the form of obedience ("I will thank you by living as I should!")
4. He asked God to enable him to stay on the path of righteousness, and to continue his pursuit ("I will obey your decrees. Please don’t give up on me!")

The best way to let our awe overflow is in praise, and in letting the Word of God do its work in our lives. So today, and every day, let us eat our "manna" from heaven with gratitude. Let us bring healthy appetites to God's table, and be satisfied. May we freely receive God's good and miraculous gift, without taking it for granted!