{"id":19644,"date":"2022-01-06T22:00:48","date_gmt":"2022-01-07T05:00:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/exodus-15_19-27-copy\/"},"modified":"2022-01-02T16:13:36","modified_gmt":"2022-01-02T23:13:36","slug":"exodus-16_1-18","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/exodus-16_1-18\/","title":{"rendered":"When You\u2019re Tempted to Grumble and Complain"},"content":{"rendered":"

Exodus 16:1-18\u00a0 Click here for Bible Verses<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Hi GAMErs!<\/p>\n

Today\u2019s passage is Exodus 16:1-18.\u00a0\u00a0Let\u2019s go!<\/p>\n

Exodus 16:1-3 (NIV)<\/em><\/strong>
\n1\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0The whole Israelite community set out from Elim and came to the Desert of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after they had come out of Egypt.
\n2\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0In the desert the whole community grumbled against Moses and Aaron.
\n3\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0The Israelites said to them, “If only we had died by the\u00a0LORD’s hand in Egypt! There we sat around pots of meat and ate all the food we wanted, but you have brought us out into this desert to starve this entire assembly to death.”<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses 1-3:\u00a0\u00a0When we\u2019re having a tough time with life today, sometimes we can be tempted to idealize and even worship the past.\u00a0\u00a0Have you ever done that before?\u00a0\u00a0It\u2019s when we speak in exaggerated terms about the past versus the present:\u00a0\u00a0\u201cBefore life was so happy and perfect; now everything sucks.\u00a0\u00a0Things were so good back then.\u00a0\u00a0Today things are so bad.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0That\u2019s what the Israelites were doing: in their hunger, they grumbled against their leaders Moses and Aaron.\u00a0\u00a0The Israelites idealized their lives in Egypt when they apparently \u201csat around pots of meat and ate all the food they wanted\u201d (v3).\u00a0\u00a0Of course, in their worship of the past, they conveniently left out the fact that when they were slaves in Egypt they were crying for deliverance.\u00a0\u00a0They also seemed to ignore the fact that whenever you start a new season, there will be new things to learn, new skills to develop, and new systems to create and get used to.\u00a0\u00a0To expect that life would be perfect as soon as they stepped out of Egypt would be unrealistic.<\/p>\n

What can we learn from this?\u00a0\u00a0Don\u2019t live in the past.\u00a0\u00a0Realize that with every new season there are new opportunities to pursue, new lessons to learn, new systems to build and new blessings to appreciate.\u00a0\u00a0Especially in new seasons, give yourself and others time to adjust.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Exodus 16:4-5 (NIV)<\/em><\/strong>
\n4\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0Then the\u00a0LORD\u00a0said to Moses, “I will rain down bread from heaven for you. The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day. In this way\u00a0I will test them<\/u>\u00a0and see whether they will follow my instructions.
\n5\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0On the sixth day they are to prepare what they bring in, and that is to be twice as much as they gather on the other days.”<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses 4-5:\u00a0\u00a0Does God tempt people?\u00a0\u00a0No (see James 1:13).\u00a0\u00a0But God does test people.<\/strong>\u00a0\u00a0What\u2019s the difference?\u00a0\u00a0To tempt means to entice someone to do wrong with the hope that they will do that wrong thing.\u00a0\u00a0To test means to put that person in a pressure situation to see what they are able to do.\u00a0\u00a0Here God was going to test the Israelites by providing bread from heaven and telling them only to gather as much as they needed\u00a0for that day<\/em>.\u00a0\u00a0I find it interesting that God mentions testing in connection with Him providing food, not withholding food, from the Israelites.\u00a0\u00a0It goes to show that\u00a0the provision of a good thing can be as much a test from God as the lack of a good thing.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Exodus 16:6-8 (NIV)<\/em><\/strong>
\n6\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0So Moses and Aaron said to all the Israelites, “In the evening you will know that it was the\u00a0LORD\u00a0who brought you out of Egypt,
\n7\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0and in the morning you will see the glory of the\u00a0LORD, because he has heard your grumbling against him. Who are we, that you should grumble against us?”
\n8\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0Moses also said, “You will know that it was the\u00a0LORD\u00a0when he gives you meat to eat in the evening and all the bread you want in the morning, because he has heard your grumbling against him. Who are we? You are not grumbling against us, but against the\u00a0LORD.”<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses 6-8:\u00a0\u00a0To grumble means to complain about a problem in a prideful, impatient and self-centered way.<\/strong>\u00a0\u00a0Whenever the Israelites encountered a difficulty, their first instinct was to grumble against their leaders, Moses and Aaron.\u00a0\u00a0Here Moses tells the Israelites that when they grumble against Moses and Aaron, really they are grumbling against the LORD.\u00a0\u00a0When we grumble against our God-given leaders, what we\u2019re really doing is grumbling against the LORD who placed those leaders in our lives.<\/strong><\/p>\n

So does that mean we should never bring up problems with our God-given leaders?\u00a0\u00a0No.\u00a0\u00a0The key is to do it in a wise and mature way.\u00a0\u00a0Ask yourself: is this problem really worth bringing up?\u00a0\u00a0Do you have all your facts straight or are you jumping to conclusions?\u00a0\u00a0Are you simply complaining or are you suggesting a practical solution that considers not just your own preferences but also the feelings and situations of others, including your leaders\u2019?\u00a0\u00a0Is the way in which you are communicating about the problem kind and respectful?\u00a0\u00a0The way we deal with the problems that we see around us is a revealing measure of our maturity in Christ.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Exodus 16:9-12 (NIV)<\/em><\/strong>
\n9\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0Then Moses told Aaron, “Say to the entire Israelite community, ‘Come before the\u00a0LORD, for he has heard your grumbling.'”
\n10\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0While Aaron was speaking to the whole Israelite community, they looked toward the desert, and there was the glory of the\u00a0LORD\u00a0appearing in the cloud.
\n11\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0The\u00a0LORD\u00a0said to Moses,
\n12\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0“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\u00a0LORD\u00a0your God.'”<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses 9-12:\u00a0\u00a0Perhaps you wonder, \u201cWhy is it that God seems to provide for the Israelites only after they grumble and complain?\u00a0\u00a0Isn\u2019t this showing that grumbling actually works?\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Was grumbling the only way for God to give the Israelites food?\u00a0\u00a0Certainly not.\u00a0\u00a0When you keep in mind that God loves the Israelites and is committed to providing for their needs, I believe it was only a matter of time before God, in His love, would provide food for the Israelites.\u00a0\u00a0What was in question was not God\u2019s heart for the Israelites, but the Israelites\u2019 heart toward the God who had saved them time and time again.\u00a0\u00a0Would they come before God humbly and make their request for food in a respectful, humble way?\u00a0\u00a0Or would they take the entitled, self-centered approach and grumble against God and their leaders?\u00a0\u00a0In this way I believe the time when the Israelites were hungry for food was probably a test from God to see how the Israelites would respond.<\/p>\n

What can we learn from this?\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Difficult times when things don\u2019t happen when or how we want are a test of our heart toward God and how we really regard Him.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Also,\u00a0when you\u2019re tempted to grumble and complain, ask yourself: is there a better, more God-glorifying way to approach this problem?\u00a0\u00a0It is more effective to do it the God-glorifying way than the self-centered way.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Exodus 16:13-15 (NIV)<\/em><\/strong>
\n13\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0That evening quail came and covered the camp, and in the morning there was a layer of dew around the camp.
\n14\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0When the dew was gone, thin flakes like frost on the ground appeared on the desert floor.<\/em>
\n15\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0When the Israelites saw it, they said to each other, “What is it?” For they did not know what it was. Moses said to them, “It is the bread the\u00a0LORD\u00a0has given you to eat.<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses 13-15:\u00a0\u00a0In response to the Israelites\u2019 hunger, God provides the Israelites with quail for dinner and frosted flakes for breakfast (\u201cthin flakes like frost\u201d \u2013 v14).\u00a0\u00a0Not knowing what these frosted flakes were, the Israelites gave the frosted flakes the funny name \u201cManna\u201d, which means \u201cWhat is it?\u201d<\/p>\n

Exodus 16:16 (NIV)<\/em><\/strong>
\n16\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0This is what the\u00a0LORD\u00a0has commanded: ‘Each one is to gather as much as he needs. Take an omer for each person you have in your tent.'”<\/em><\/p>\n

On verse 16:\u00a0\u00a0An omer is about two quarts, some scholars say.\u00a0\u00a0The Israelites are commanded to collect an omer of manna for each person in their tent.<\/p>\n

Exodus 16:17-18 (NIV)<\/em><\/strong>
\n17\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0The Israelites did as they were told; some gathered much, some little.
\n18\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0And when they measured it by the omer, he who gathered much did not have too much, and he who gathered little did not have too little. Each one gathered as much as he needed.<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses 17-18:\u00a0\u00a0Instead of hoarding whatever they could get, the Israelites gathered only as much as they needed, based on God\u2019s command that they should take an omer of manna for each person in their tent (an omer being about two quarts, some scholars say).\u00a0\u00a0On one hand, by not hoarding, this shows that the Israelites passed this particular test of not gathering too much.\u00a0\u00a0On the other hand, the fact that God would command the Israelites to gather an omer of manna per person and that no one had too much or too little shows that God\u2019s planning is always perfect.\u00a0\u00a0God knows just how much we need and is committed to giving us what we need.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Heavenly Father, thank You for all the lessons we can learn from Your Word today.\u00a0\u00a0I pray that we would not be people who selfishly and impatiently grumble against You or against our God-given leaders, but that we would be wise, humble, sensitive and proactive in the way we deal with problems around us.\u00a0\u00a0Thank You that You know just what we need and are committed to meeting our needs.\u00a0\u00a0I pray that we would all pass the tests that You set before us.\u00a0\u00a0In Jesus\u2019 name, AMEN!<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Hi GAMErs!<\/p>\n

Today\u2019s passage is Exodus 16:1-18.\u00a0\u00a0Let\u2019s go!<\/p>\n

Exodus 16:1-3 (NIV)
\n1\u00a0\u00a0The whole Israelite community set out from Elim and came to the Desert of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after they had come out of Egypt.
\n2\u00a0\u00a0In the desert the whole community grumbled against Moses and Aaron.
\n3\u00a0\u00a0The Israelites said to them, “If only we had died by the\u00a0LORD’s hand in Egypt! There we sat around pots of meat and ate all the food we wanted, but you have brought us out into this desert to starve this entire assembly to death.”<\/p>\n

On verses 1-3:\u00a0\u00a0When we\u2019re having a tough time with life today, sometimes we can be tempted to idealize and even worship the past.\u00a0\u00a0Have you ever done that before?\u00a0\u00a0It\u2019s when we speak in exaggerated terms about the past versus the present:\u00a0\u00a0\u201cBefore life was so happy and perfect; now everything sucks.\u00a0\u00a0Things were so good back then.\u00a0\u00a0Today things are so bad.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0That\u2019s what the Israelites were doing: in their hunger, they grumbled against their leaders Moses and Aaron.\u00a0\u00a0The Israelites idealized their lives in Egypt when they apparently \u201csat around pots of meat and ate all the food they wanted\u201d (v3).\u00a0\u00a0Of course, in their worship of the past, they conveniently left out the fact that when they were slaves in Egypt they were crying for deliverance.\u00a0\u00a0They also seemed to ignore the fact that whenever you start a new season, there will be new things to learn, new skills to develop, and new systems to create and get used to.\u00a0\u00a0To expect that life would be perfect as soon as they stepped out of Egypt would be unrealistic.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":19647,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-19644","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-gametime-sharing"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19644","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19644"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19644\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19645,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19644\/revisions\/19645"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/19647"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19644"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19644"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19644"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}