“And the manna ceased on the morrow after they had eaten of the old corn of the land; neither had the children of Israel manna any more; but they did eat of the fruit of the land of Canaan that year” (Josh. 5:12). Here is the third stage of eating in the life of God’s people.
The Christ we eat is first for our full salvation, as is depicted for us by the eating of the Passover. Not only does the blood provide us with redemption and release from God’s condemnation, but also, by eating of the lamb, the unleavened bread, and the bitter herbs, we are energized to walk out of Satan’s territory and cross the Red Sea. Full salvation includes redemption, regeneration with the life and nature of God, and deliverance from the world. Are you enjoying this full salvation, or are you still lingering in Egypt?
In the second stage we have Christ to sustain us on our wilderness journey. The eating of the manna is not for our salvation but for the building of God’s dwelling place and the carrying on of God’s testimony. Here in the church life we are eating Christ for the building up of the house of God.
In the previous message we covered these two stages.
In the Bible two is the number of testimony, not of completion. Our eating is not complete with just two stages. As 1 Thessalonians 5:23 says, for our whole sanctification we must be preserved in spirit and soul and body. While the eating in Egypt was good in that it strengthened us to make our exodus, the eating in the wilderness was better because the tabernacle resulted. Not until its erection did God’s glory descend from the heavens to fill the house for Him on earth.
To be in the third stage required that God’s people leave the wilderness, by crossing the Jordan River, and enter into Canaan, the land promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as an inheritance for their children. It represented the promised goal of God.
What then is this third stage? It is eating for the house of God to be settled on a solid foundation. Instead of a movable, portable tabernacle, there was a temple constructed on a firm, settled base. This construction could not be done in the wilderness. The temple was built in the good land, and it meant that the kingdom of God was established, expressing God and His authority.
These are the three stages of eating, and they form a history of our Christian experience. Just as God is triune and man is tripartite, so our spiritual eating has only these three stages. Our spiritual growth depends upon our eating. Are you still eating lamb and bitter herbs? Is manna your daily food? Manna is the food for wanderers, those still in the wilderness of the soul. Are you in the good land, enjoying the produce of Canaan in your spirit?
You may find it hard to be sure which stage you are in. You may feel that even in one day your experience can shift back and forth from the good land to Egypt or to the wilderness. However, if you have ever tasted the experience of being in the good land, declare by faith that that is where you are. Do not believe Satan’s lie that you have slipped back.
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