The Bread of Life

He humbled you, and in your hunger He gave you manna to eat, which neither you nor your fathers had known, so that you might understand that man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD. Deuteronomy 8:3

There is a theme in the bible that is very pronounced in the children of Israel, David’s life and Christ. The theme points to the need for us to be sustained and live by the voice and instructions of God. In my understanding it is what sets apart David and Saul, Caleb and the rest of Israel. Deuteronomy 8:3 is also repeated in the ministry of Jesus, and is the first utterance he makes after his baptism as a guideline of how he intended to sustain his ministry.

The Exodus

Bread was the staple food for the children of Israel; this is demonstrated by the stories about unleavened bread during the passsover.  It was equivalent to Ugali for some African tribes, it was the food that sustained them. What God did during the exodus is extremely clever, he wanted to teach them an important lesson that they would never forget.

He allowed them to hunger, the bread that they had carried from Egypt ran out. The very thing that they believed their lives depend on, was gone!! The same thing happened to Jesus, he was hungry and the food that his body depended on was not available.  The clever play on words in both this stories is that God is proving a point.. that it is not materiel or external things that sustain us. It is His voice that sustains us, in fact the instructions from the mouth of God sustained the children of Israel for 40 years. By taking away the most import thing from Israel and giving them manna that sustained them for 40 years..he wants them to make his voice the most important thing. If they make his voice the most important thing, then he becomes the one who sustains them, and therefore he becomes their God.

The point is, God becomes God in their lives when his voice sustains them. God uses a number of test to try and enforce this lesson, humbling them and allowing them to have no water, meat and also putting them in battles where the odds are against them. The psalmist reflected on their failure and summarized it into two “they forget the miracles they had witnessed especially parting the red sea” and “they did not wait for his advice/or voice” .

But they soon forgot his works;they did not wait for his advice. Psalm 106:13

When the children of God found themselves in an impossible situation (which God had orchestrated) they grumbled and talked about how they preferred Egypt. The response God was looking for can be found in the life of David

David in the wilderness

Saul made many mistakes, but primarily he disobeyed God’s instructions on two occasions and on the third he inquired from a medium. The root issue was that he believed that he could do it on his own, God’s instruction was one of those things that he could factor in during his decision making (and not the only thing ). The bible records that

Saul died because he was unfaithful to the LORD; he did not keep the word of the LORD and even consulted a medium for guidance 1 Chronicles 10:13

Saul was a rebel, therefore God had to train the next King on how to rely on His voice. Just like He did to the children of Israel, He orchestrated a number of situations that led David into an impossible situation, having lost what was most important to him, his family.

When David and his men reached Ziklag, they found it destroyed by fire and their wives and sons and daughters taken captive. So David and his men wept aloud until they had no strength left to weep. David’s two wives had been captured—Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail, the widow of Nabal of Carmel. David was greatly distressed because the men were talking of stoning him; each one was bitter in spirit because of his sons and daughters. But David found strength in the Lord his God. 1 Samuel 3:6

When the children of Israel found themselves in an impossible situation they complained, Saul obeyed the voice of those he led and consulted a medium. What would David do? This test stood between him and his promised land.

and David inquired of the Lord, “Shall I pursue this raiding party? Will I overtake them?”“Pursue them,” he answered. “You will certainly overtake them and succeed in the rescue.” 1 Samuel 30:7-8

Instead of complaining or taking things into his hands, David consulted God and after God spoke he followed the instructions. The rest is history, David was able to rescue his family, but more importantly he demonstrated the ability to seek God’s voice in an impossible situation.

I believe this ability is what qualified him to be King, the bible documents that David inquired of God during major events in his life more than 9 times. His desire to know God’s opinion and act out his part, made him a man after God’s heart.

Conclusion

I have observed, that as Christian’s God will orchestrate impossible situations, that we can only come out of, if we inquire of Him. That is a test that we all must go through; the ability to hear his voice and follow through is a matter of life and death for us.