Exodus 17:5-6 Rock of Ages!

5And the LORD said to Moses, “Walk on ahead of the people and take some of the elders of Israel with you. Take along in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go. 6Behold, I will stand there before you by the rock at Horeb; when you strike the rock, water will come out of it for the people to drink.”

So Moses did this in the sight of the elders of Israel.

“Here again the divine patience appears, for Jehovah uttered no word of reproach, but in spite of their impatient unbelief provided water out of the rock for them.” (Morgan)

Paul writes of Israel in the Exodus:

1 Corinthians 10: 3They all ate the same spiritual food 4and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ.

“Herein a type of Christ, ‘stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted’ (Isaiah 53:4; 1 Corinthians 10:4).” (Trapp)

In life you have two different roads to choose from, one is worldly, ungodly, where you complain about thirst.

Or

You can rely on the spiritual road and look toward the Rock of Ages that satisfies your thirst.

Rock of Ages, cleft for me,

Let me hide myself in Thee;

Let the water and the blood,

From Thy riven side which flowed,

Be of sin the double cure,

Save me from its guilt and power.

Not the labor of my hands

Can fulfill Thy law’s demands;

Could my zeal no respite know,

Could my tears forever flow,

All could never sin erase,

Thou must save by grace.

Nothing in my hands I bring,

Simply to Thy cross I cling;

Naked, come to Thee for dress,

Helpless, look to Thee for grace:

Foul, I to the fountain fly,

Wash me, Savior, or I die.

While I draw this fleeting breath,

When mine eyes shall close in death,

When I soar to worlds unknown,

See Thee on Thy judgment throne,

Rock of Ages, cleft for me,

Let me hide myself in Thee.

(Reverend Augustus Toplady)

Which road do you travel?

Blessings, David 

Exodus 17:1-4 They contended with him instead of contending with Him!

1Then the entire congregation of Israel left the Desert of Sin, moving from place to place as the LORD commanded. They camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. 2So the people contended with Moses, “Give us water to drink.”

“Why do you contend with me?” Moses replied. “Why do you test the LORD?”

3But the people thirsted for water there, and they grumbled against Moses: “Why have you brought us out of Egypt—to make us and our children and livestock die of thirst?”

4Then Moses cried out to the LORD, “What should I do with these people? A little more and they will stone me!”

“Thirst is the more eager appetite, so they are more eager and earnest for water than they were for bread.” (Trapp)

Cole on to kill our livestock with thirst...... “Who but a cattleman would have worried about his stock dying of thirst, if he were already dying of thirst himself? Here speaks the true Israelite farmer.” Get it?

“In Numbers 33:12-14it is said, that when the Israelites came from Sinthey encamped in Dophkah, and next in Alush, after which they came to Rephidim. Here, therefore, two stationsare omitted, probably because nothing of moment took place at either.” (Clarke)

“One of Moses’ most characteristic and praiseworthy traits was that he took his difficulties to the Lord.” (Kaiser)

Kaiser hit the nail on the head! The problem Moses had with the people was they contended with him instead of taking the problem to the Lord!

Said differently but with the same meaning, they contended with him instead of contending with Him!

We fall into the same trap, we take our problems to man instead of God! 

Lift them up to Him and He will direct your ways!

Isaiah 48:17 Thus says the LORD your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: “I am the LORD your God, who teaches you for your benefit, who directs you in the way you should go.

Does He direct you or do you direct yourself?

Blessings, David 

Exodus 16:31-36 Manna, the true bread from heaven!

31Now the house of Israel called the bread manna.It was white like coriander seed and tasted like wafers made with honey. 32Moses said, “This is what the LORD has commanded: ‘Keep an omer of manna for the generations to come, so that they may see the bread I fed you in the wilderness when I brought you out of the land of Egypt.’”

33So Moses told Aaron, “Take a jar and fill it with an omer of manna. Then place it before the LORD to be preserved for the generations to come.” 34And Aaron placed it before the Testimony, to be preserved just as the LORD had commanded Moses.

35The Israelites ate manna forty years, until they came to a land where they could settle; they ate manna until they reached the border of Canaan. 36(Now an omer is a tenth of an ephah.)

After Jesus fed the 5000, the people wanted Him to keep feeding them, they asked for another miraculous sign, they wanted manna the bread from heaven.

John 6:32Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I tell you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but it is My Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. 33For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”

Jesus is our manna, the bread of God!

Is He your bread?

Blessings, David 

Exodus 16:22-30 The Sabbath!

22On the sixth day, they gathered twice as much food—two omers per person—and all the leaders of the congregation came and reported this to Moses. 23He told them, “This is what the LORD has said: ‘Tomorrow is a day of solemn rest, a holy Sabbath to the LORD. So bake what you want to bake, and boil what you want to boil. Then set aside whatever remains and keep it until morning.’”

24So they set it aside until morning as Moses had commanded, and it did not smell or contain any maggots. 25“Eat it today,” Moses said, “because today is a Sabbath to the LORD. Today you will not find anything in the field. 26For six days you may gather, but on the seventh day, the Sabbath, it will not be there.”

27Yet on the seventh day some of the people went out to gather, but they did not find anything. 28Then the LORD said to Moses, “How long will you refuse to keep My commandments and instructions? 29Understand that the LORD has given you the Sabbath; therefore on the sixth day He will give you bread for two days. On the seventh day, everyone must stay where he is; no one may leave his place.”

30So the people rested on the seventh day.

This is the first mention of the sabbath, but some don’t learn by instruction. They have to learn by experience.

I’ve always had a similar problem, I learn by experience, if I do it, I learn it and master it.

If I receive written instructions I read them a scratch my head, re-reading them and wonder out loud why they don’t make sense in their details because they are out of order or missing a detail.

But if I have an assembly diagram, it’s easy for me to assemble.

Some say I’m a perfectionist, I say, that’s the way the Lord wired me.

“Those who followed the cloud were always certain of their sustenance. Where the cloud brooded the manna fell.” (Meyer)

Do you learn by instruction or by experience?

Blessings, David 

Exodus 16:16-21 But they did not listen!

16This is what the LORD has commanded: ‘Each one is to gather as much as he needs. You may take an omerfor each person in your tent.’”

17So the Israelites did this. Some gathered more, and some less. 18When they measured it by the omer, he who gathered much had no excess, and he who gathered little had no shortfall. Each one gathered as much as he needed to eat.

19Then Moses said to them, “No one may keep any of it until morning.” 20But they did not listen to Moses; some people left part of it until morning, and it became infested with maggots and began to smell. So Moses was angry with them.

21Each morning they each gathered as much as they needed, and when the sun grew hot, it melted away.

Every household had to provide for themselves, “each one”. They had to learn a work ethic.

But what is a Omer? It was a unit of dry measure, some say a measuring cup (1) others say as much as a gallon, we just don’t know. 

But they did not listen to Moses? “No one may keep any of it until morning.” Could it be they didn’t fully trust the Lord to provide for them? 

We suffer from the same ailment. We want what we can see, the things of the world instead of trusting the unseen, the promises from the Lord.

Remember Thomas?

John 20:25 So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he replied, “Unless I see the nail marks in His hands, and put my finger where the nails have been, and put my hand into His side, I will never believe.”

Thomas forever earned the nickname, doubting Thomas!

Are you a doubting Thomas?

Blessings, David 

Exodus 16:10-15 Manna and Quail!

10And as soon as Aaron spoke to the whole congregation of Israel, they looked toward the desert, and there in a cloud the glory of the LORD appeared.

11Then the LORD said to Moses, 12“I have heard the grumbling of the Israelites. Tell them, ‘At twilight you will eat meat, and in the morning you will be filled with bread. Then you will know that I am the LORD your God.’”

13That evening quail came and covered the camp, and in the morning there was a layer of dew around the camp. 14When the layer of dew had evaporated, there were thin flakes on the desert floor, as fine as frost on the ground. 15When the Israelites saw it, they asked one another, “What is it?” For they did not know what it was.

So Moses told them, “It is the bread that the LORD has given you to eat.

Jewish legend states of manna,

“One only had to desire a certain dish, and no sooner had he thought of it, than manna had the flavor of the dish desired. The same food had a different taste to everyone who partook of it, according to his age; to the little children, it tasted like milk, to the strong youths like bread, to the old men like honey, to the sick like barley steeped in oil and honey.” But they also wrote that manna was bitter in the mouth of Gentiles. (Ginzberg)

Quail: an Old World migratory game bird.

“They are small, bullet-headed birds, with a strong but low flight, usually roosting on the ground or in the low bushes at nightfall. When exhausted, they would be unable to… take off again. The birds are good eating, and were a favorite delicacy of the Egyptians.” (Cole)

“Animals are often taught through their food. When they could not be reached in any other way, they have been instructed by their hunger, and by their thirst, and by their feeding.” (Spurgeon)

What was your favorite food while growing up?

My memories were Chef Boyardee pizza in a box, my younger brother and I would make it and bake it.

For dessert it was Sanders Buttercream Cake!

Of course, I cannot eat anything like these foods today.

But the Lord supplies my needs, as with the Israelites in these verses.

Is He supplying your needs?

Blessings, David 

A Time For Fall Ecclesiastes 3 NLT

The leaves are changing, fields of hay are harvested and the ferns are dying in the woods. Winter is on it's way. But first, fall. All it's glorious colors, crisp air and apples.

I've really enjoyed the bounty of the land this year. If asked my highlight of the summer I'd have to say the harvest. It started in spring with morel mushrooms. I'd never had them before, never been successful finding them until this past spring. I found about 25 during their short 3 week season. Our garden did well this year and we had beans and peas. Not a lot but enough. We found a puffer mushroom in the woods and David turned it into a delicious chicken dish. Next we discovered blackberries all around our yard. More then we could eat at one time so we added them to the blueberries we picked at the local farm that are in the freezer. We've gotten fresh corn from local farms and sweet cherries grown locally when they were in season.

One of the best meals were kabobs we shared with neighbors. These consisted of venison I harvested last November with green peppers and cherry tomatoes from our garden. I'm still getting green peppers and we've made a couple of batches of poppers from jalapenos off our plant. In a week or two we will dig up our potatoes.

Now it's time for donuts, apples and cider. I love to make carmel sauce for dipping apple slices in. I love the cooler weather and fall colors.

Ecclesiastes 3 NLT

A Time for Everything

1 For everything there is a season,

a time for every activity under heaven.

2 A time to be born and a time to die.

A time to plant and a time to harvest.

3 A time to kill and a time to heal.

A time to tear down and a time to build up.

4 A time to cry and a time to laugh.

A time to grieve and a time to dance.

5 A time to scatter stones and a time to gather stones.

A time to embrace and a time to turn away.

6 A time to search and a time to quit searching.

A time to keep and a time to throw away.

7 A time to tear and a time to mend.

A time to be quiet and a time to speak.

8 A time to love and a time to hate.

A time for war and a time for peace.

Autumnal Equinox September 23, 2019 The First Day Of Fall

"An equinox is the point at which the sun sits directly above the earth's equator, and day and night are of approximately equal length across the world. The word "equinox" is derived from two words: aequus, which is Latin for “equal,” and nox, Latin for “night.”

This happens twice a year. The autumnal equinox, also known as the fall equinox and the September equinox, occurs in September, while the vernal equinox occurs in March. After the autumnal equinox, the days start getting shorter and the nights get longer."

Blessings, Cecilia

Exodus 16:4-9 Grumbling and a test!

4Then the LORD said to Moses, “Behold, I will rain down bread from heaven for you. Each day the people are to go out and gather enough for that day. In this way I will test whether or not they will follow My instructions. 5Then on the sixth day, when they prepare what they bring in, it will be twice as much as they gather on the other days.”

6So Moses and Aaron said to all the Israelites, “This evening you will know that it was the LORD who brought you out of the land of Egypt, 7and in the morning you will see the LORD’s glory, because He has heard your grumbling against Him. For who are we that you should grumble against us?”

8And Moses added, “The LORD will give you meat to eat this evening and bread to fill you in the morning, for He has heard your grumbling against Him. Who are we? Your grumblings are not against us but against the LORD.”

9Then Moses said to Aaron, “Tell the whole congregation of Israel, ‘Come before the LORD, for He has heard your grumbling.’”

To me there is a reoccurring theme in these verses....

grumbling against Him, grumble against us, grumbling against Him, your grumbling!

Do you think the writer is trying to convey they were complaining?

There’s another important verse, “ I will test whether or not they will follow My instructions”.

He gives us this verse to show us the fallible, not to point out they can’t but to point out we can’t. Yes that’s right, it’s our nature. We can’t stop sinning, we can’t pass His test. We will always fail and fall short.

Ask yourself this question. If you were in Job’s place, would you have cursed God?

(If you don’t know who Job is, read the Book of Job in the Bible)

So what are we to do? 

Don’t complain to Him about your life circumstances. Instead lift them up to Him in prayer. He is a loving Father and waiting for you with open arms. Ask Him to help you get through the day.

Since we can’t be sinless try to sin less and when we fail ask for forgiveness.

Blessings, David 

Exodus 16:1-3 Stop Grumbling!

1On the fifteenth day of the second month after they had left the land of Egypt, the whole congregation of Israel set out from Elim and came to the Desert of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai. 2And there in the desert they all grumbled against Moses and Aaron. 3“If only we had died by the LORD’s hand in the land of Egypt!” they said. “There we sat by pots of meat and ate our fill of bread, but you have brought us into this desert to starve this whole assembly to death!”

“Human nature can never be reduced to a more abject state in this world than that in which the body is enthralled by political slavery, and the soul debased by the influence of sin. These poor Hebrews were both slavesand sinners, and were therefore capable of the meanest and most disgraceful acts.” (Clarke)

Singing to complaining, grumbling.......

They had only been on the journey about a month and the food supplies were dwindling. They hadn’t slaughtered any cattle and only anticipated hunger, not experienced it!

In Clarke’s commentary he says the body is enthralled by political slavery and the soul debased by the influence of sin...therefore capable of the meanest and most disgraceful acts.

Eventually their sin will keep them out of the Promised Land.

The Lord will eventually become fed up with their grumbling.

When you walk through life today try being thankful for your blessings instead of grumbling. When things go wrong be thankful and pray because of the things that went right.

Look towards the positive not the negative and eventually your countenance  will change. People around you will see His light in you and will be drawn to it, wanting to know how to “get some” and it will open the door for evangelism.

Stop grumbling and be His light!

Blessings, David 

Exodus 15:25b-27 Camped there by the waters!

There the LORD made for them a statute and an ordinance, and there He tested them, 26saying, “If you will listen carefully to the voice of the LORD your God, and do what is right in His eyes, and pay attention to His commands, and keep all His statutes, then I will not bring on you any of the diseases I inflicted on the Egyptians. For I am the LORD who heals you.”

27Then they came to Elim, where there were twelve springs of water and seventy palm trees, and they camped there by the waters.

“This miracle was connected with a promise; viz., from now on obedience to commands and statutes would bring healing, both physically and morally.” (Kaiser)

“Israel had no miracle at Elim. Wells and palm trees they had; but they had no miracle there, no miraculous change of the bitter into the sweet; and they had no statute, and no ordinance, and no promise, and no new revelation of God, and no new name for Jehovah there.” (Spurgeon)

I believe we are no different than the Israelites. There are times in our lives that we need water and other times the Lord provides shade and water without asking for it, so we camped there by the waters!

I think we will be surprised when we meet Him to find out how many times He provided for us, commanded miracles and kept satanic spirits at bay!

Blessings, David 

Exodus 15:22-25 How sweet it is!

22Then Moses led Israel from the Red Sea, and they went out into the Desert of Shur. For three days they walked in the desert without finding water. 23And when they came to Marah,they could not drink the water there because it was bitter. (That is why it was named Marah.)

24So the people grumbled against Moses, saying, “What are we to drink?” 25And Moses cried out to the LORD, and the LORD showed him a log. And when he cast it into the waters, they were sweetened.

Three days is the maximum time the human body can go without water in the desert.” (Buckingham)

So the people grumbled against Moses. We need to remind ourselves that the people were slaves. They were use to grumbling to themselves when they needed something. It’s a hard habit to break.

Are you a grumbler?

And when he cast it into the waters, they were sweetened.

Those of us old enough remember.....

How sweet it is! Jackie Gleason

“The Egyptians found enough water, and even too much of it, for they were drowned in the sea, but the well-beloved Israelites had no water at all. So is it with the wicked man; he often has enough of wealth, and too much of it, till he is drowned in sensual delights and perishes in floods of prosperity.” (Spurgeon)

Blessings, David 

Exodus 15:20-21 Sing to the Lord!

20Then Miriam the prophetess, Aaron’s sister, took a tambourine in her hand, and all the women followed her with tambourines and dancing. 21And Miriam sang back to them:

“Sing to the LORD,

for He is highly exalted;

the horse and rider

He has thrown into the sea.”

Miriam was the oldest sister of Moses. Possibly the only sister who released him in the Nile River in the basket as an infant.

But later she criticizes Moses and the Lords anger burns against her.

Numbers 12:1 Then Miriam and Aaron criticized Moses because of the Cushite woman he had married, for he had taken a Cushite wife.

Brethren, we are no different than Miriam! 

We proclaim to be Christian but we also sin, everyday!

Pastor Robert says if you say, “I don’t sin”, you’re a liar because you just sinned!

Blessings, David 

Every human being is under construction from conception to death.
Billy Graham

Exodus 15:1-19 The Lord is my strength!

1Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to the LORD:

“I will sing to the LORD,

for He is highly exalted.

The horse and rider

He has thrown into the sea.

2The LORD is my strength and my song,

and He has become my salvation.

He is my God, and I will praise Him,

my father’s God, and I will exalt Him.

3The LORD is a warrior,

the LORD is His name.

4Pharaoh’s chariots and army

He has thrown into the sea;

the finest of his officers

are drowned in the Red Sea.a

5The depths have covered them;

they sank there like a stone.

6Your right hand, O LORD, is majestic in power;

Your right hand, O LORD, has shattered the enemy.

7You overthrew Your adversaries

by Your great majesty.

You unleashed Your burning wrath;

it consumed them like stubble.

8At the blast of Your nostrils

the waters piled up;

like a wall the currents stood firm;

the depths congealed in the heart of the sea.

9The enemy declared,

‘I will pursue, I will overtake.

I will divide the spoils;

I will gorge myself on them.

I will draw my sword;

my hand will destroy them.’

10But You blew with Your breath,

and the sea covered them.

They sank like lead

in the mighty waters.

11Who among the gods is like You, O LORD?

Who is like You—majestic in holiness,

revered with praises,

performing wonders?

12You stretched out Your right hand,

and the earth swallowed them up.

13With loving devotionb You will lead

the people You have redeemed;

with Your strength You will guide them

to Your holy dwelling.

14The nations will hear and tremble;

anguish will grip the dwellers of Philistia.

15Then the chiefs of Edom will be dismayed;

trembling will seize the leaders of Moab;

those who dwell in Canaan will melt away,

16and terror and dread will fall on them.

By the power of Your arm

they will be as still as a stone

until Your people pass by, O LORD,

until the people You bought pass by.

17You will bring them in and plant them

on the mountain of Your inheritance—

the place, O LORD, You have prepared for Your dwelling,

the sanctuary, O Lord, Your hands have established.

18The LORD will reign forever and ever!”

19For when Pharaoh’s horses, chariots, and horsemen went into the sea, the LORD brought the waters of the sea back over them. But the Israelites walked through the sea on dry ground.

“There are moods of the soul that can only be expressed in poetry and in music.” (Morgan)

“This is the very first of those sacred songs preserved in Scripture, and in some respects it is first in merit as well as in time.” (Spurgeon)

“The first verse of this song was quoted by David. I think you will find it in almost the same words three times in the Psalms.” (Spurgeon)

“Notice, the song is all of God; there is not a word about Moses. Read this song through, and neither Moses, nor Aaron, nor Miriam are in it: God is all in all.” (Spurgeon)

“Note, the word is not ‘The Lord gives me strength,’ but ‘The Lord is my strength’! How strong is a believer? I say it with reverence, he is as strong as God – ‘The Lord is my strength.’” (Spurgeon)

“It is obvious, then, from the plentiful allusions to this song in holy scripture, that it is full of deep spiritual significance. It teaches us not only to praise God concerning the literal overthrow of Egypt, but to praise him concerning the overthrow of all the powers of evil, and the final deliverance of all the chosen.” (Spurgeon)

The first song leaves a lasting impression on book writers of the Bible!

Look deeper at Spurgeon’s quote, “It teaches us not only to praise God concerning the literal overthrow of Egypt, but to praise him concerning the overthrow of all the powers of evil, and the final deliverance of all the chosen.”

For those of us that have read and studied the whole Bible, we know that God wins! You can take it to the bank, His Promise of overthrowing evil and finial deliverance will happen and one day His chosen people, His adopted children will be in His presence!

Come Lord Jesus come!

Blessings, David