By means of God’s discipline the children of Israel saw His glory. However, they did not see it in a pleasant way. In the foregoing message we pointed out that often when we are murmuring against the Lord, His glory appears to us. However, when we are right with Him, His presence may not seem particularly noticeable. For example, in the meetings of the church you may not sense the Lord’s presence in a special way. But if you attempt to indulge in some form of worldly entertainment, you may have a strong awareness of His presence. The Lord within you may be very active, even aggravated. This is the glory of the Lord appearing to you. When you are doing the Lord’s will, you may not sense that the Lord is with you. But when you are disobeying the Lord, you will have the definite impression that He is with you. This is the appearing of the Lord’s glory, but not in a positive way.
Furthermore, usually through some kind of negative experience, many of us have come to know the Lord’s sufficiency. We have learned, perhaps in a shameful way, that the Lord truly is sufficient. For example, a brother from the Far East may arrive in this country very poor. But several years later, he has a doctoral degree and a high-paying job. Now he can testify of God’s sufficiency. Others can testify that although they wanted a home with three bedrooms, God gave them a five-bedroom home. In this matter, God showed them His sufficiency. However, He did so not in a positive way, but in a negative way.
With the Lord there is no scarcity. However, in Numbers 11 Moses did not realize this. He told the Lord that among the people there were six hundred thousand footmen (v. 21). Then he went on to ask the Lord, “Shall the flocks and the herds be slain for them, to suffice them? or shall all the fish of the sea be gathered together for them, to suffice them?” (v. 22). Here we see that Moses wondered how God could supply meat for six hundred thousand men plus women and children for a period of thirty days. According to verse 23, the Lord answered Moses, “Is Jehovah’s hand become short? thou shalt see now whether my word shall come to pass unto thee or not” (Heb.). The Lord did not need flocks, herds, or fish. His intention was to send a vast quantity of quails.
Many of us can testify that, after we were saved, we did receive what we lusted after. In fact, we received it in such abundance that it came out of our nostrils and caused us to suffer spiritual death. For example, the more cars and houses a brother has, the more problems he may have. Eventually, these things became loathsome to him. Although it may be in such a negative way, we come to see that the Lord is sufficient. Then we worship Him for His sufficiency.
Like the children of Israel in Numbers 11, we need to see God’s anger and His sufficiency. Then we shall truly know that the Lord is faithful to meet our needs. Because He is our Shepherd, we shall not want. In fact, we may sometimes have much more than we need. Sooner or later, we shall learn not to lust after anything. We may even have to tell the Lord that we do not want any more cars or houses. In other words, we do not want any more quails. Rather, we are content with heavenly manna. The manna comes in a simple way, and it is never troublesome.
At the beginning of their years in the wilderness, the children of Israel learned not to lust after Egyptian food. For a year, they were not troubled by their diet of manna. But when they complained again, God disciplined them and trained them in a severe way. After this discipline, they learned a lasting lesson. From that time onward, they were satisfied with the heavenly diet. They continued to feed on manna for more than thirty-eight years. Have you learned to be satisfied with heavenly food and not to lust for the things of Egypt? As God’s redeemed people, we should not lust after worldly things. We need to realize that our God is real, living, faithful, and purposeful. Because He has saved us with a purpose, He will surely lead us and care for us in His own way. There is no need for us to worry or to lust after anything. He knows all our need, and He will meet our need at the right time according to the heavenly diet.
The more we enjoy the food the Lord sends us, the more heavenly we shall become. Let us forget the fleshpots of Egypt and be happy and satisfied with the heavenly diet. Let us enjoy God’s heavenly supply so that we may be a heavenly people in every way. Then, although we walk in a wilderness on earth, we shall be a heavenly people with a heavenly diet. The source of our supply is not on the earth— it is in the heavens. Day by day, God rains the heavenly food upon us so that we may eat of it and become a heavenly people.
God’s way to deal with the flesh of His people is to change their diet. This is the real dealing with the flesh of God’s people. Viewing this matter of dealing with the flesh in a superficial way, some Christian teachers say that the flesh is dealt with by the cross. But whether the flesh remains whole or is cut into pieces, it is still the flesh. The proper dealing with the flesh comes through a change of diet.
When the children of Israel were in the wilderness, they wanted to live in the old way. They desired the foodstuffs of Egypt. According to Numbers 11:5, they said, “We remember the fish, which we did eat in Egypt freely; the cucumbers, and the melons, and the leeks, and the onions, and the garlic.” This Egyptian diet constituted the people with the element of Egypt, an element that corresponded to their flesh. God’s intention is not only to deal with the flesh of His people; it is also to cause the flesh to be set aside. His intention is to give His people another diet and thereby to reconstitute them. In Exodus 16 we see that their diet should no longer consist of foodstuffs from Egypt; it should consist only of heavenly food. This is God’s way to deal with the flesh.
As fallen beings, we, in the totality of our fallen nature, are nothing but flesh. Even if this flesh is cut into pieces, it remains flesh. God’s way to deal with the flesh is to put it aside and not to feed it. For this reason, He changes the diet of His people and sends them food which their flesh does not like. By changing their diet and feeding them with manna from heaven, He causes them to have a different constitution. This is the crucial point in Exodus 16. In this chapter we see the change of diet that results in the reconstitution and transformation of God’s chosen people.