Metaphors: Bread of Life
June 9, 2024Pastor Patrick presented today's message, "Metaphors: Bread of Life." Here's a video of the message.
My essay today is going to go off on a "Manna Tangent" as manna was mentioned early on in the message. What do we learn from the manna story?...
The first interesting thing is that the Hebrew word for manna, man or mon (מָן), at its roots is derived from an Egyptian phrase that means "what is it?" (see Exodus 16:15). How appropriate. It could also mean something like "portion of food." All we really know about it is that it was edible directly but was also baked into cakes or bread. The point was that it was entirely sufficient for nutrition. God provided. Exodus 16:31 is a brief description of manna. Here's the Wikipedia entry for manna.
A key aspect of the manna story (Exodus 16) is that it comes right after the Israelites start complaining about being taken out of Egypt! After all the plagues, the parting of the Red Sea, the wiping out of the Egyptian charioteers, etc., the Israelites already have lost faith in God. After all the miracles of the Exodus, they thought God was going to let them starve to death in the desert?! One of the key points is that miracles don't last long in the sense of sustaining a faith in God. It's almost like "what have you done for me lately?"
It is interesting to note that the daily distribution of manna is changed for the sake of the Sabbath. On the sixth day, the morning brings double the daily portion of manna so that on the seventh day, the Sabbath, no work has to be done to gather the manna. Observing the Sabbath is important. Note here, too, that this first mention of the Sabbath precedes the Ten Commandments which come later (Exodus 20). It is clear by this first reference that the "bread of life" and the Sabbath are related. We can rely on God for our daily bread. This assumes, of course, that we buy into the whole package, which includes putting the gifts we get from God to work both for ourselves and to build God's kingdom.
There is an implied message to not worry beyond the day. They are instructed to gather only a day's portion and no more and not save any of today's manna for tomorrow. Worrying too far into the future can be distracting and debilitating. Miraculously, whatever a person gathered was sufficient for them that day. Among other things, this probably avoided competition for food. The not-saving-for-tomorrow was also a lesson in trusting in God. But people being people, some did save for the next day at which time they found the manna "infested with maggots and stank." God meant what he said. Again, counting on miracles to sustain a faith is not a good idea. It should also be noted that the manna for the Sabbath day, collected the day before, did not stink or become infected.
Prager notes that the distribution of manna is totally unnatural. There is no "six-days-on one-day-off" cycle in nature. It's God's handiwork.
Manna continued to be provided from heaven for the forty years in the wilderness. It did not end until Joshua's days of leadership (see Joshua 5:12). From then on, they ate "the produce of Canaan."
At the end of the manna story, the Torah indicates how much one day's supply of manna per person, one omer, is: about 3.5 liters.
Also at the end of the manna story, God tells Moses to keep an omer's worth of manna down through the ages so future generations will remember this. The text says Joshua placed this jar of manna in "the Pact" which refers to the Ark of the Covenant. Since this ark has never been found, neither has the jar containing one omer of manna.
From Christianity.com: "While we may not experience manna in the literal sense today, the story of heaven's manna still holds profound lessons for us. It reminds us of God's provision and care, encouraging us to trust in Him for our daily needs. It also challenges us to seek spiritual food, to nourish our souls with God's word, and to seek a deeper relationship with Him. In conclusion, the story of manna from heaven in the Bible is a powerful reminder of God's physical and spiritual provision. It teaches us to trust in God's provision, to seek spiritual nourishment, and to obey God's commands. Whether we call it spiritual food, angelic bread, or heaven's manna, its lessons are timeless and relevant to our lives today."
Bonus
For the Poor and Strangers
"When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not wholly reap the corners of your field when you reap, nor shall you gather any gleaning from your harvest. You shall leave them for the poor and for the stranger: I am the LORD your God" (Leviticus 23:22).
It's handy that we're talking about metaphors in church these days. This, too, includes metaphor. It's not just what you reap from your land. It's anything and everything that you gather throughout life.
This law says don't take for yourself everything that you gather/earn. Leave some for the poor and the stranger.
There are some very important aspects to this law that are not exactly spelled out in the text:
1. Farming was hard back in the day. Generally speaking, even today, people work hard for what they get. Some of it should still be available to the poor and the stranger. It's good for society.
2. This law, like many others, ends with "I am the Lord your God." We've talked about this before. The phrase makes it abundantly clear that God requires this, and that He's watching even if no one else is. It's as much about obedience as it is helping the poor.
3. Note that this is not any kind of payment transfer. The poor and the stranger still have to work for what they glean. The farmer/landowner does not harvest the crop for them. This protects, among other things, the pride of the gleaners. It's not a handout. Given the essay above, it's interesting to note that manna wasn't a handout either; it had to be gathered.
Thanks to CBN Israel for some of these thoughts: Weekly Devotional: Gleanings.