Exodus 18:13-16 – The ineffectiveness of a one-man show

The challenge Moses had was a mammoth one. He was not just leading a huge number of people, in fact, he was leading a nation. Here he was leading some two million of imperfect men, women, and children, drew out of bondage. People who were progressing but not fully accustomed to the new lifestyle as yet. From what we know about them so far, they were not an easy lot to lead. Complains and murmuring were their usual reaction to every problem they encountered. Yet we cannot deny that God had always ordained Moses as their leader. He was empowered and given the leadership mantle. He was their teacher concerning the ways of God and also their mediator in times of their disputes. Yet as capable as Moses was, he didn’t realize that he was not a machine and he could not effectively fulfil his leadership task alone. It took Jethro to point that out to him.

Moses was the sole mediator for all the disputes the children of Israel had at this point of time. And knowing the level of the maturity of the people, we can understand why he had to spend the whole day from morning to evening settling disputes. How he went about dealing with the disputes the people had with each other was the perfect recipe for a burn-out. We surmise that Moses who had a good heart would like to settle everyone’s problem by himself. But was it realistic? Apart from God, no one can bear all the problems of others alone. Besides, if the situation persists, there could be a tendency for a leader to feel that he alone must be involved in everyone’s problem. Such a leader tends to falsely feel that he alone has the solution to everyone’s problem. Unknowingly, he would soon develop a messiah’s complex, thinking that he has the solution to every need. This would unwittingly raise the expectation of the followers. And before long we would see they clamour for the attention of the leader alone even though someone else could quite easily help them deal with it.

God must have allowed Jethro to come at this point of time to help Moses see how foolish it was to try to manage everyone’s problem by himself. Because of his relationship with Moses, Jethro the older and wiser man could provide a reality check for him. This reminds us that we need people in our lives to help us have a clearer perspective of how we can be more effective. God will provide a “Jethro-like” person in our life to help us progress with Him. Don’t ever develop the attitude that we don’t need the help or the advice of another person. It was never the intention of God for us to go solo. We need to learn to surface others with skills to help with the ever-expanding work of God. 

Bear in mind that in God we live in the community of the redeemed. Growth is best experienced in the community. We are placed together within the body to sharpen and hone each other’s walk in the Lord.  God has also given us different giftings to complement what each one of us has and supplement what we may lack. It is never the intention of God to have one man bear the weight and burden of the whole ministry. There will always be one person whom God would empower to bear the burden of the ministry but he would also be given others to help him. We must approach the ministry with the understanding that one-man show will always cause the leader to suffer a burn-out. The leader must not think that he alone must bear the burden. There will always be different levels of need and we put people in place based on their competence. The ordained man of God should be the resource person. To avoid needless clamouring for his attention, only cases that others cannot deal with should be attended to by him. This would enable the whole community to become interdependent and grow as God intends. Don’t be a one-man show if we want to be effective in ministry. Get others to share the load!   

Exodus 18:5-12 – Be a bearer of the good news of God

Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, was not a believer of Jehovah when he came to see him at Horeb. How do we know? Exodus 18:1 says that he was the priest of Median and was serving a pagan god. Verse 11 further attests to it. It was not until he heard all the marvellous things that the God of Israel did for Moses and the children of Israel that he exclaimed, “Now I know that the Lord is greater than all the gods; indeed, it was proven when they dealt proudly against the people.” So convicted was he that we are told in the very next verse that he “…took a burnt offering and sacrifices for God….” So he became a believer of the LORD, and he joined in a fellowship meal before God with Aaron and the elders of Israel.

Moses was very respectful toward the father-in-law. He must have liked Moses since the day he was told by Zipporah, his daughter, how Moses had defended her against some bullies at the well. In that incident, we are told how Moses even helped to water Jethro’s sheep whom Zipporah had brought to the well. It was he who chided Zipporah for not inviting him to the tent. And when he met Moses, he was glad to give to him his daughter’s hand in marriage. Moses also had regard for him, that was why when he was leaving for Egypt he came and sought his permission. Now when told of his coming at Mount Horeb, Moses quickly arose and went out to meet and greet him. The relationship had always been a warm one. So, Moses took him into the tent to show hospitality. Like him, we must also be hospitable people. It is one good way to open the heart of the people we meet to introduce them to the Lord.  

On that day Moses probably had only one thing in mind, i.e. to tell Jethro about all that God had done for him and the people of Israel. So, he must have poured out a lengthy and wonderful testimony of all that God had done. He told him how God had delivered them. No doubt he would talk about the parting of the Red Sea and how they crossed over it on dry ground. And how Pharaoh’s army was drowned when they followed suit. He even shared with him the many difficulties he had encountered in the journey and how God saw him through each one of them. So reverting was Moses account of what God had done that Jethro was convicted. Like him, we must seize every opportunity to tell of the wondrous things of the Lord. We should make evangelism an objective in our life. One easy way to begin in conversation is to confidently share about the things God had done in our life. We don’t need to be a pastor or a theologian to share about God. We only need to have a personal encounter with Him and then share about that experience of what He has done for us in our life. The conviction is the work of God. We just need to be an instrument. What’s critical in any sharing of our testimony is to be God-centred. That was what Moses did. He gave God all the credit for the victories in his life.  

In a short while, Jethro was won over to the Lord. So, he showed his belief and began to praise the Almighty, saying, “Now I know that the Lord is greater than all the gods; indeed, it was proven when they dealt proudly against the people.” He was convinced of the supremacy of God and embraced Him as His own LORD. How do we know? Verse 12 tells us that he offered a burnt offering and sacrificed to Him. Though Jethro was a Median and thus was an enemy of Israel, yet the love of God knew no bounds. He reached out to him through Moses and brought him into His eternal family. That’s the extent of God’s love. So, God’s love for the world is not just a New Testament concept. Right here in the Old Testament, the love of God for all can be seen and felt. Jethro was said to rejoice when he heard about God. There is no doubt that the good news of God always bring joy.  So, let us joyfully bring good news to the world. But like Moses, let us begin with our family. Why don’t we identify those unsaved members in our family, pray for them and then seek for an opportunity to share the goodness of God with them? Don’t be surprised at what God can do to draw them to Himself through us. This is our obligation to them and to the Lord. Like Paul said in the book of Romans, we are debtors. We must discharge the Gospel debt by sharing about the goodness of Christ. Just do it for His glory!      

Exodus 18:1-4 – Let’s honor God in our family

In Exodus 17, the battle the Israelites had with the Amalekites teaches us about spiritual warfare and the need to persevere in earnest prayer in our spiritual journey. Without a doubt, the enemy of our soul is always seeking to disrupt our walk with God. That explains why we constantly have to battle external trials and inward temptation. Undoubtedly, the root cause can almost always be traced to the devil. For we are not battling against flesh and blood but against principalities and powers and wicked forces in the unseen realm. That’s why we need to constantly engage in persevering and earnest prayer. As we come to Exodus 18, we will learn about other aspects of Christian responsibilities which we must discharge. We need to raise our family and we also need to be witnesses to testify of the goodness of God.  

In Exodus 4, we were given a brief introduction to Moses’ own family, when he came to seek Jethro, his father-in-law, out of respect and sought his permission to go back to his own people in Egypt. Now we are told that Jethro came to him with his wife and two sons. We have no clue as to when or why his wife and children went back to his father-in-law. But we can guess that along the way, he could have sent them back to Jethro for safekeeping. It could also be when they were near Horeb, a place located near to where Jethro was staying, he sent them to visit and stay with his father-in-law for a while. Meanwhile Jethro, having heard of the things that God had done for Moses and his people, probably was curious and wanted to hear more about the things that had taken place in his son-in-law’s life. So besides sending his wife, Zipporah and his two sons, Gershom and Eliezer back to Moses, he seized the opportunity to visit him.

Here we are given the meaning to the names of his two sons, Gershom and Eliezer. The names a father gives to his children will reveal the history and the circumstances surrounding the birth of his offspring. It would of course also reveal to us the desire and wish of a parent for the child through the name that was given to them. When Gershom, his first son was born, he was away from his own family in Egypt. He was a foreigner in Median, an alien land to him. So, he named his first son, Gershom, meaning exile or alien. He named his second son, Eliezer, meaning God has helped. He called him by this name because he said, “The God of my father was my help, and delivered me from the sword of Pharaoh.” The names of his two sons tell the story of his life. Whatever we can make out of these names, we know that Moses’ life and family testify to the work of God in his life.  

God played a key role in Moses’ life and everything that happened to him bear a mark of God’s work in his life. These four verses reveal the important role family members can be to our ministry. We should serve God as a family as far as possible. It will be irresponsible for us to pursue ministry without considering our family. A home well- ordered serves as a better testimony to the grace of God. We must not neglect our family and use serving God as an excuse for neglect. To all heads of family, remember family life is a divine calling. We must lead it well for the glory of God!   

Exodus 17:14–16 – The Lord our banner

The battle with the Amalekites might seem like one of those usual things that would happen when God’s people place their dependency on Him. This record of how they won this battle serves as a timely reminder to us concerning the need for prayer and dependency on the Lord in our spiritual journey. Needless to say, there probably are many of such instances of success in our own lives whenever we brought our struggles to the Lord. Victory is always a potential experience for one who dares to believe God and brings his or her prayer and supplication to Him. Moses who stood at the Hilltop to intercede and support Joshua and the fighting men in prayer saw how needful prayer was to experience victory. He would probably never forget how God answered his prayer that day. But it cannot be said of the people. So unflatteringly, Exodus 17:14 tells us that the Lord instructed Moses to “Write this in a book as a memorial and recite it to Joshua, that I will utterly blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven.” 

We may be wondering why the Lord told Moses so precisely to have this captured in a record and to recite it to Joshua that He would blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven? Numbers 13 help us to understand why. In that passage, we are told that the spies returned from their spying mission of Canaan and reported that the Amalekites were in the land. And instead of praying and trusting the Lord for victory, the people of Israel on hearing that became afraid and did not have the courage to go into the promised land. As a result, they were made to wander in the wilderness for the next 38 years. The record of the victory over the Amalekites was also important because God wanted them to remember what He had done for them so that when they faced any future enemy, they would know that God was fighting for them. Certainly, in their journey toward the promised land, there would be many enemy forces that they had to encounter. This record would remind them that they have God with them and victory can be experienced if they dare to trust Him.  

Hence, in this we can see the good reason why it is a good habit to record God’s answers to our prayers. In revisiting the victorious experiences that we have captured in our journal, we can recall the goodness and magnanimity of God toward us. It will help us to trust God and to be grateful to Him for all that He has done. In remembering our past successes, we will certainly be encouraged to trust God to see us through life. Moses then built an altar and called it: The Lord is My Banner. This altar that Moses built was not an altar for sacrifice but one built in thanksgiving to God. It was God who brought them the victory and the only appropriate thing to do was to respond with thanksgiving and praise. Like Paul who exhorted the Thessalonians, we should give thanks to God in everything. We must thank Him for the great things He had done to give us our salvation. But we must also thank and praise Him for the victories we experience over our temptations along the way.  

In verse 16, we are introduced to another covenant of God – The Lord my Banner or Jehovah-Nissi. A banner is a long strip of cloth bearing a slogan or design, carried in a procession by the army. The banner bearing the insignia would be raised on a pole to rally the people and give them courage in the battlefield. As long as it is up there, the soldiers would know that they have not lost the battle. Our banner in life is, of course, the cross of Jesus Christ. The Lord Himself had promised that when He is lifted up, He will draw all men to Himself. The cross of Christ is our victory. By looking up to Him, we have no battle in life that we need to be afraid. Let us allow the banner of Christ to be hoisted in our life. And we shall always enjoy the victory He has already secured for us. Praise the Lord!  

Exodus 17:8–13 – The power of prayer

The combat the Israelites had with the Amalekites at Rephidim is a type of the spiritual warfare we all engage in our journey with Christ. No one is exempted from this battle. Satan and his cohorts of demons want to waylay us and disrupt our journey. The attack often comes suddenly in different forms of temptation and trial. The source of the fight can be identified in the unseen realm. That’s the reason why Paul tells us that we do not fight against flesh and blood, but against powers and principalities in high places. 

Exodus 17:9-13 give us the battle strategy. It is clearly the instrument of prayer. Like Moses, we need to engage in resolute and earnest prayer. In verse 9, he instructed Joshua to take with him capable men who could fight and to engage the Amalekites in battle while he would go up to the top of the hill with the staff of God. Joshua was Moses aide. This is the first time he was introduced to us. He was an able fighter but yet winning the battle was not due to his fighting ability alone. It was the prayer support he had from Moses, who was supporting him and his men in prayer. Remember, verse 11 says that “So it came about when Moses held his hand up, that Israel prevailed, and when he let his hand down, Amalek prevailed.” Moses with the staff was interceding for the people. Though not explicit, what Moses did when he pointed his staff heavenward was an indication of his dependence on God. He was making his appeal to God to come to His people’s assistance.

How do we come to the conclusion that Moses was engaging in prayer? It is because of the posture he adopted. It is understood that when the Israelites praise or pray to God, they lifted up their hands toward heaven. Perhaps this is why Paul’s instruction to the church through 1 Timothy 2:8 is for men everywhere to lift up their holy hands in prayer. Lifting hand toward heaven is a sign of dependence on God. It is He who will grant us the victory. So long as Moses lifted up his hands, Joshua and his men advanced in the battle. So long as Moses’ hands were held up, Joshua and the men would gain the ascendancy in the battle. When Moses' hand became tired and he let down his hands, the enemy would prevail. So, Aaron and Hur who went up with him to the hill, each supported his hands, one on each side.

What Moses did show us how important it is to engage in prayer. Even when our battle gear is on and we are armed to the hilt, if we are not praying, the battle cannot be won. If we are to be victorious, we need to actively participate in the battle but we must also pray earnestly like Moses. We pray because without God we cannot, and without us engaging in prayer God will not. Moses, Aaron and Hur engaging God on the hilltop, reminds us of what Jesus said in Matthew 18:19-20.  He promises to be present whenever two or three are gathered in His name. Better still when they agree. He promised that when two or three brought a certain matter to God in agreement, it shall be done for them. Beloved, there is power in prayer, united earnest prayer. Victory is just a prayer away. So, let us pray!

Exodus 17:8 – We are engaged in a spiritual battle

The journey of the children of Israel is a type of our spiritual journey. It is a picture of the process of our salvation in Christ. In this journey, there are many battles we have to encounter. Each one is permitted by God whose intention is to make every one of us a more complete person in Christ. We need to note that the battles we wage against start internally where God began by shaping our attitude. He wants to get us to rely and depend on Him, thereby building trust and obedience. Like how He dealt with the whining, complaining and murmuring of the Israelites, He will also deal with our spirit of discontent and help us to know that He is always with us in our journey. Then there will come times when we have to battle external forces. Whether the dealing is with our inner life or outer life, without a doubt prayer needs to play a key role in our life. In Exodus 17:8 we see the Amalekites came to attack the children of Israel. For no apparent reason or for whatever reason we are not told. The Amalekites, the descendants of Esau, attacked them. The Amalekites are like the forces of darkness that will come to disrupt our walk with God. Their aim is to prevent us from entering into our God-given promises in Christ. We need to be alert to their attack and learn to adopt the best battle strategy to thwart them in taking us down.  

The war the Israelites had to engage in now was no longer an internal but an external one. We notice from their earlier experience that the source that led them to bicker and murmur against the Lord and Moses, their God-appointed leader, started from within them. But in this battle with the Amalekites, the attack came from outside of them. And the attack was sudden, unexpected and unprovoked. So far as we know, this was the first external battle they had to fight since coming out of Egypt. This incident took place at Rephidim. And Moses in recalling this battle in Deuteronomy 25:17-18 said, “Remember what Amalek did to you along the way when you came out from Egypt, how he met you along the way and attacked among you all the stragglers at your rear when you were faint and weary; and he did not fear God.” The Amalekites is a type of the devil’s cohorts of demons. These enemies of our soul, at the command of Satan, always attack us when we are tired and weary. This reminds us to maintain our spiritual vibrancy at all times, to connect with the Lord and to stay alert. Remember, the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking the weaker moment in our life to devour us. Like the Amalekites, Satan and his cohorts of demons have no regard for God and His people. He will always go for those who are weaker and defenceless.    

This battle that the Israelites engaged with the Amalekites at Rephidim is a picture of the spiritual warfare that the people of God will encounter in their walk. Their deliverance from Egypt is a picture of the salvation we have obtained in Christ. And now in Christ, we have embarked on a spiritual journey. Though our ultimate victory has already been secured in Christ, we need to know that the devil will not leave us alone. He will come to disrupt our journey, to dislodge us from our peace and security. So, our journey with Christ will constantly be waylaid by Satan’s diabolical forces. What we often have to encounter will be sudden and unannounced. This is the battle Paul described in Ephesians 6:12. He said, “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.” 

We need to know that though the malady of the battle is felt in the physical realm, the battle we engage in is in the realm of the unseen. To win the battle, we need to identify the real enemy. And Paul is right, our real enemies are not the people we thought have given us all the headaches, miseries and troubles. They are actually the devil and his cohorts of scheming and diabolical demons who are on assignment. They will keep attacking us to cause us to do some stupid things and bring disrepute in our walk to dishonour God. The strategy to win is to be aware of the enemies’ presence but not to be so demon conscious until we think that they could overtake the goal God has for our life. Never lose sight of God, Who in the person of the Holy Spirit is fighting with us to win the ongoing battle. Know that the devil may be prowling around us, but let’s focus on God!    

Exodus 17:4-7 – Don’t put God on trial

These children of Israel were people full of complaints. Every time they grumbled against Moses, they were really picking a fight with the Lord. Theirs was basically an issue of trust. Their behaviour revealed how far short they were from being the person the Lord desired them to be. Their journey was part of God’s pruning process. He was taking out from them the childish mentality of a slave they had inherited from their life of bondage. In our reflection on Exodus 17:1-3, we saw how they had disparaged God. They treated Him as if He was their servant to be at their deck and call. Then, they accused Him of leading them into the desert to kill them. Here in Exodus 17:7, we see them casting yet another slur against God. They had the audacity to ask, “Is the Lord among us, or not?” Essentially, they were doubting God’s presence among them. The lack of water at Rephidim had caused them to doubt that God was really among them. Couldn’t they see the pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night that did not leave them through their journey? How could they be so patently blind and insulting to doubt that God’s presence was not with them? Let us learn from them – never to practise selective amnesia, by failing to remember God’s bountiful provision, total protection and ever presence in our life. When we forget what God has done for us, we will entertain the spirit of complaint. To overcome this malady, we must constantly count our blessings one by one. They will amaze us when we consider the things God has done.   

Despite all their complaining, God still attended to their needs. So, in verses 5-6 we read, “Then the Lord said to Moses, “Pass before the people and take with you some of the elders of Israel; and take in your hand your staff with which you struck the Nile, and go. Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock at Horeb, and you shall strike the rock, and water will come out of it, that the people may drink.” And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel.” God met their need even though they did not fully trust Him. They were a disappointing people. Notice what Moses said of them when he named this episode Massah and Meribah. He told them that they had put God on a trial which was needless. Bear in mind that God has nothing to prove to us because He is the faithful God. He will always keep His promise to us. But we cannot say the same thing of us. Like the Israelites, we are a vacillating people. We often change with circumstances and with what others think. We hobble over opinions many a times. We need to be more trusting of God. He will never change. We are the one that God needs to test ever so often. Every time we encounter a difficult situation, bear in mind that it is a test of our growth. This is our ongoing spiritual education. And we must not become lethargic and fail to grow in the Lord as He prunes us. Life is not just a stretch of smooth road. The bumpy rides are intended for our spiritual growth. Let us learn to trust God with each tough situation. 

Here’s what Annie Johnson Flint, a poet and hymn writer, so famously wrote for our encouragement. 

·       God hath not promised skies always blue,
Flower-strewn pathways all our lives through;
God hath not promised sun without rain,
Joy without sorrow, peace without pain.

·       God hath not promised we shall not know
Toil and temptation, trouble and woe;
He hath not told us we shall not bear
Many a burden, many a care.

·       God hath not promised smooth roads and wide,
Swift, easy travel, needing no guide;
Never a mountain, rocky and steep,
Never a river, turbid and deep.

·       But God hath promised strength for the day,
Rest for the labor, light for the way,
Grace for the trials, help from above,
Unfailing sympathy, undying love.

Exodus 17:1-3 – Trust God even in tough circumstances

At this point in the journey, the people of Israel had arrived and camped at Rephidim and found no water to drink. This was part of the Lord’s training process for their life. He was using a moment like this to sanctify them. They could trust the Lord and sought a solution from Him. They seemed to have forgotten what God did for them in Exodus 15. He had helped them once when the water of Marah was bitter and undrinkable. They should have remembered how God showed Moses a way to turn the bitter water into sweet and drinkable water. What they were going through should have made them gather in prayer and wait for God to provide a solution. But instead of doing that and trusting the Lord, they again quarrelled with Moses. Angrily, they demanded that he gave them water to drink. Including this time, they would have already grumbled against Moses four times. The first time was in Exodus 14:11 and 12 when they were caught between Pharaoh’s advancing army and the Red Sea. Then again in Exodus 15:24 at Marah when they discovered that the water was bitter. The third time can be found in Exodus 16:2 when they craved for the meat and bread. Here at Rephidim would be the fourth time they grumbled against Moses.  

They were literally accusing Moses of plotting their death. Verse 3 puts it this way, “Why, now, have you brought us up from Egypt, to kill us and our children and our livestock with thirst?” One can almost detect the hostility in their tone. The quarrel they picked was not with Moses per se. They were picking a fight with the Lord. How do we know? We know from how Moses framed his response. He asked them “Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you test the Lord?” Moses was only God’s instrument to guide them. He was not God, and could not possibly have been aware that there was no water there. Herein is a key lesson. It is perfectly alright to bring all our problems to God in prayer, in a posture of trust. To murmur and complain is a reflection of our distrust for God. He has no problem with our honesty or even our doubt, but He cannot accept when we rebel against Him and malign Him.

Rephidim was supposed to be a resting place. Instead of resting in the Lord, they bitterly complained against Him. In these three verses, we can see that they were guilty on two counts. When they angrily demanded, “give us water to drink,” they were being childish and insisting on their own way. We should never treat God as if He is our servant. Like them, we must remember that we should be serving Him and not the other way around. Don’t ever treat God as if He is our servant to serve us at our deck and call. Don’t expect God to serve us at our terms, we must be the one to take God at His word and run with it. Secondly, when they accusingly said, “Why, now, have you brought us up from Egypt, to kill us and our children and our livestock with thirst?” They were saying that God could not protect them. There was a deeper implication in this question. In reality, they were saying that God did not have the capacity to protect them and see them through their problems. It is not uncommon in our day, to hear of Christians complaining bitterly against God when they encounter a seemingly tough situation in life. Let us never doubt God’s capacity to see us through, no matter how difficult our circumstance may seem. God is faithful. In every tough time, He is working out the situation for our good. Trust Him! 

Exodus 16:27-30 - Learn to honor the Sabbath

How did the people of Israel know about Sabbath observation here in Exodus 16? For the instruction on Sabbath keeping was only specifically instructed in the Ten Commandments given at Mount Sinai, recorded in Exodus 20:8-11. We need to know that Sabbath keeping was an integral component of the creation account. In Genesis 2:1-3, the Bible unambiguously say that “Thus the heavens and the earth were completed, and all their hosts. By the seventh day, God completed His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made.” There is a high probability that from the creation story that this principle was well understood and practised. Then God reiterated it specifically only at Mount Sinai in the Ten Commandments.

Sabbath keeping is recorded as the fourth of the Ten Commandments. Exodus 20:8-11 say: “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labour and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath of the Lord your God; in it, you shall not do any work, you or your son or your daughter, your male or your female servant or your cattle or your sojourner who stays with you. For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day; therefore, the Lord blessed the sabbath day and made it holy.” The verses start with a reminder. It was a call to remember to keep the Sabbath. This gives the impression that all along the Israelites knew about the need to observe the Sabbath.

Hence, we keep the Sabbath not because it’s in the Ten Commandments, but because it’s a principle God had ordained from the very beginning of creation. This is a day set aside to enjoy God and His Creation. It is also a day we ceased from work and enjoy the fruit of our labour. It’s a day to enter into the joy of all that God had done. This call to rest was not just an instruction for the Israelites. It is also one instruction for all mankind to embrace. God set this pattern Himself in creation, it is meant for all human who is made in His image and likeness. Being made different from all animals, this is our distinctive mark. Of all of God’s Creation, we alone have the privilege of imitating God in the way He operates, concerning work and rest.  

Here in Exodus 16, we see God teaching the Israelites to observe this pattern of living. He supplied manna for six days and twice as much on the sixth day. The purpose was to enable them to observe the Sabbath rest. But unfortunately, there were those that would not follow instructions. They went out in the morning trying to pick mana. Exodus 16:27 says, “It came about on the seventh day that some of the people went out to gather, but they found none.” This was such a disappointment that the Lord said to Moses, “How long do you refuse to keep My commandments and My instructions?” It was needless for them to go out on the Sabbath, for God had already made the provision on the sixth day. More than just not keeping the word, this disobedience showed their distrust. They obviously did not trust the Lord nor His word. The breaking of the Sabbath by the Israelites gives us an indication that the people who refused to keep the Sabbath were not even willing to serve God one day in a week. What about us? Sabbath is a gift from God. He makes it so that we can enjoy Him. We must learn to observe the Sabbath and to set it apart for His glory

Exodus 16:21-26 – Work with God and grow spiritually

We have said that the journey into the promised land is a type of a Christian’s sanctification process. Just as God used the hard encounters which the Israelites had experienced in their journey to sanctify them, He also uses the difficulties we face in this life to help develop in us a life of consecration. It behoves us then to seize the God-moment in life and grow.

The manna that came from heaven was a provision of God. This unique bread is described in Exodus 16: 31 as something like white coriander seed that tastes like wafers with honey. Can’t imagine how it tastes like, but it certainly sounded delicious. God’s provisions in life will always be something good, delicious and palatable. Jesus said that as a good Father, He will never give us a scorpion when we ask for an egg, or a stone when we ask for bread. And He assured us that if we earthly fathers know how to give good gifts to our children, how much more will the heavenly Father gives us what is good and real. Yes, God will give us what is needful and good to live meaningfully for Him.

However, there is a need to exercise responsibility and collaborate with God in our gathering of the spiritual food we need to sustain our spiritual growth. Exodus 16:21 tells us that each morning they had to go out and gather the manna, and by noon when the sun is hot, the manna would melt. This was to be a new way of living for them. While in Egypt they didn’t have the need to go out and gather their own food. But now they do. They had to get up in the morning to pick the manna. If they don’t, by noon they would all be melted. To have food for the day, they needed to rise each morning and go out and gather the manna. This discourages a spirit of laziness. The principle is the same for us who want to grow spiritually, we cannot afford to be lazy. We need to actively do our part. Find the time to study the Word of God and gather the spiritual food that can make us wise unto salvation. Our spiritual sustenance comes from the spiritual manna that God in His grace will provide daily when we make time to pick it.

In Exodus 16:4-5, God told Moses that he would test the obedience of the people. He said to Moses, “Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go out and gather a day’s portion every day, that I may test them, whether or not they will walk in My instruction. On the sixth day, when they prepare what they bring in, it will be twice as much as they gather daily.” They were already told to gather their fresh portion of manna daily. But on the sixth day, in anticipation of the Sabbath rest, they should collect twice as much. So, on the sixth day, twice as much of manna was there for their picking. In verse 22, the way they came and reported to Moses tells us that they were taken by surprise. It was as if they didn’t know that there would be a double-portion of manna for them to pick on the sixth day. They shouldn’t have, for God had already told them so earlier. This episode reminds us to be attentive and alert to what God is saying to us in our spiritual journey. We need to carefully divide the Word of truth so that the legitimate experiences in Christian living will not be missed nor be caught by surprise. Our heavenly Father has made all the provisions. When we pay attention to what He says in His Word, we will be able to know His heart.   

What’s so miraculous about the manna was that ordinarily, whatever manna they kept overnight would turn putrid. But what they had collected on the sixth day and left for their Sabbath’s consumption never became rotten. The Lord is very precise. The Sabbath should be a day of rest. And He always makes provision for that day when we dare to obey the principle of Sabbath rest. It is not just about ceasing from work, it is about making a pause each week and make time to enjoy God, to enjoy His creation and the fruit of all our works. It’s a time to be joyful in all that God has done. Let’s be thankful for God’s provision. Let’s also learn to take time to enjoy Him, and the provision He has made as we serve Him.  

Exodus 16:13-20 - Let God be your source in life

Exodus 16:13-15 tell us that as sure as God had promised to the children of Israel, everything He said happened. “So, it came about at evening that the quails came up and covered the camp, and in the morning there was a layer of dew around the camp. When the layer of dew evaporated, behold, on the surface of the wilderness there was a fine flake-like thing, fine as the frost on the ground. When the sons of Israel saw it, they said to one another, ‘What is it?’” God had made good His promise. They were provided with quails at night. In the morning after the dew had dried up, manna, thin flakes like frost, appeared all over the desert ground where they were. Moses told them that they were bread that God had provided for them to eat.

Quails were small migratory birds that would fly over Sinai during springtime or fall each year. Flying over long distance, they would be tired and would perch on the ground. Hence, they were easily picked up. So, God had miraculously provided them with meat as He had promised. Hence, it was not a surprise that the birds should be there at that precise time. They were there at the right time and also in the right amount. It was truly God’s doing so as to provide them with the meat they longed for and so acrimoniously grumbled about. Besides, we are told in Numbers 11:31 that it was the Lord who had brought the wind and drove the quails from the sea.  

Manna was a unique bread. It appeared all over the ground after the dew of the early morning had dried up by the sun. The children of Israel must have seen this unusual bread for the first time. Hence, their first expression was “What is it?” Moses had to tell them “It is the bread which the Lord has given you to eat.” This was the heavenly bread that they ate for forty years until they settled in the promised land. God had provided this supernatural food as their staple diet for the duration of their journey. However, God gave very specific instruction on what they should do. Like the quails, God supplied the right amount and there was enough for everyone. Regardless of the amount they gathered everyone had enough, nobody was in lack. What a great thought to know that God is the source of all our needs in life. It is no wonder that King David should so aptly say that with the Lord as his shepherd, he shall never lack anything.      

Here God truly was showing His glory. What’s disturbing in this account, however, was some of the people’s unwillingness to follow instructions all the way. They were told not to keep any for the next day yet they did. What happened was that they became putrid and bred worms. This is a reminder that we need to gather fresh portion of spiritual food daily. We cannot live on yesterday’s experiences. Every victory should make us trust God more and encourage us to obey Him more exactly. Daily we must come to God and receive a fresh portion of His Word for our spiritual sustenance. The question we need to ask is will we trust God explicitly. God is looking for our absolute trust in Him. Untested faith is not worth believing, so also an untested life is not worth living. God will take us through our hardship. As we trust Him in those moments, we will soon realize that He is trustworthy in every situation of life. So, cast your cares upon Him for He cares for you!

Exodus 16:4-12 – Learning to see God’s grace more clearly

It’s amazing that despite the many miraculous interventions that they had seen, yet the children of Israel couldn’t trust God. This was seen in their endless complaining. In Exodus 16:4-12, four times it was said that God heard their grumblings: in verse 7, then in verse 8 and again in verse 9 and 12. If there is anything we must learn from this episode, it is a warning not to grumble and whine. God knows our needs and it is perfectly alright to bring to Him our legitimate needs in prayer and request for His intervention. But to gripe and murmur will be out of character with our calling as His children. A complaint is a reflection of a personal inability to trust the Lord to see him or her through. The best test of trust is to rest in the Lord’s ability to provide.   

This episode also shows us how gracious God truly is. Instead of taking a hard stand and punish them for their childish behaviour, even though He heard their murmurings, yet amazingly, He made a plan to meet their needs. He not only provided them with manna, the heavenly bread but he also provided them with meat. This was indicated in verses 4-5. God told Moses, “Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go out and gather a day’s portion every day, that I may test them, whether or not they will walk in My instruction. On the sixth day, when they prepare what they bring in, it will be twice as much as they gather daily.” And again in verse 8 when Moses told them, “This will happen when the Lord gives you meat to eat in the evening, and bread to the full in the morning….” In these three verses, God was making a promise to provide for them. And it will not come in trickles but in abundance. The word used to describe His provision is “rain.” This word gives the idea of plenty. Then again in verse 12, He said that He would fill them with bread. This is His great generosity on display. Despite their grumblings, yet God would give them what they did not deserve. It is a testament of God’s infinite graciousness. As God made a plan to provide, He also gave specific instructions. They were to gather their daily portion whatever they needed for that day. But on the sixth day, they were told to gather twice the portion. This, of course, was to make sure that they would have bread on the Sabbath as well. The reason God gave the instruction was that He desired their obedience. This was to be a test of their obedience.

Exodus 16:7 mentions the glory of the Lord. And more than just testing their obedience, the miraculous provisions would also be God’s way of revealing His own glory. He wanted them to know that He was the Lord. In the ten plagues that set them free, God was showing to Pharaoh and the Egyptians who He was. Now in the miraculous provision of the manna from heaven and the meat, He would be showing His people the same thing. The provision God would be making required each of them to go and gather it for himself or herself. God wanted them to know Him not only as the God of Israel but as the God whom each of them could know personally.  

When God said He would show them His glory, He was saying that He would make known to them His reputation and honour. In every provision God made, He was declaring His own glory. His provisions for us must always be met with a thankful heart that will be willing to offer praise and thanksgiving to Him. God acts to provide for us. Divine Providence must cause us to see His goodness. They must surely enable us to repent from our sin and draw near to Him. Every provision He makes must make us see Him better. We must see beyond the good things we have in life to a God who alone is the source of all the things we enjoy.     

Exodus 16:1-3 – Don’t develop the spirit of discontent

God will take us through hardship even as He will also give us moments of great abundance and rest. The wise learn to trust God in little as well as in abundance. In Christian living, there may come a time of scarcity but there will also be moments of plenty. We can expect life to consist of both Marah and Elim type of experiences. In times of difficulty we must trust God. In times of plenty we must praise Him. But at all times we must learn to give thanks.

Since the day prior to their departure from Egypt, the Israelites were already a people full of complaints. Every time when things did not go as they had expected, they would become negative and murmur, gripe and complain. Even after such a glorious deliverance from the army of Egypt, as soon as they reached Marah they were filing a protest concerning the bitter water. God, of course, gave them a reprieve and brought them to Elim to enjoy the abundance of cool water. But soon it was time to go back on the journey. It was again time to test their willingness to rely on the Lord and grow in the process. So in Exodus 16:1 we are told “…they set out from Elim, and all the congregation of the sons of Israel came to the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after their departure from the land of Egypt.” Understandably they were tired and probably hungry. But that could never be a good reason to rail at the Lord’s servant and God. Verse 2 tells us that “The whole congregation of the sons of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness.” Just look at their audacity. They said to God’s servants, “Would that we had died by the Lord’s hand in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the pots of meat, when we ate bread to the full; for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.”

Their besetting sin was whining. Throughout their wandering, the book of Moses reveals that they grumbled all the way. They grumbled when they did not have water. They grumbled when the food ran out. They grumbled when they had no meat. It seems that all that they knew to do was grumble, grumble, and more grumble. This is just a symptom of a deeper issue. For right at the heart, they were a lot of discontented people. Discontentment is an inner disease of the attitude. Grumbling is a sign of rebelliousness. So right at the heart of the Israelites was the spirit of rebelliousness. They were in effect rebelling against God and His salvation plan for their lives.  They, in actuality, were saying that God did not know what He was doing. And they would be better off dead in bondage than alive in the wilderness. Oh, would to God that none of us will ever entertain a complaining spirit! For every time we gripe and complain against our circumstances or our leaders, we are finding fault with God. This is a clear indication of a disconnect with Him. Let us rather give thanks in everything. For in so doing, we acknowledge God’s sovereignty and control over our lives.    

Exodus 15:25b-27 – Living in God’s abundance

Progress in our journey with God is made whenever we trust and rely on Him in the difficult moments of life. Instead of whining and murmuring over the tough circumstances that we encounter, there is always this better option. We need to trust God and know that He has no ill intention for us. He wants to work out all things in our life to bring about His best for us. Philippians 4:6 gives us a key to overcoming every anxiety that we may encounter in our progress with God. It tells us to “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.” And our Lord will use every moment we encounter to teach us a precious lesson on resting in Him.

God’s purpose of leading the people of Israel through the wilderness journey was to sanctify them. It was to test their obedience. And being obedient to God help to remove the slave mentality they had adopted while in the bondage of Pharaoh. In much the same way, every tough circumstance we encounter in life is God’s sanctifying work in us. He seeks to remove the fretting we so often engage in when we encounter a problem. If we learn to bring all our difficulties to Him in prayer, we begin to rest in the comfort of His loving presence. We begin to take steps of obedience as He shows us what we need to do. In obedience we build trust. In trust, we gain confidence. In confidence, we develop character and character gives us hope and hope will not fail us.

Every privilege comes with responsibility. The privilege of knowing God and experiencing His goodness and grace comes with the responsibility of being obedient to Him. The situation at Marah was God’s teaching moment. After they had drunk of the bitter water turned sweet, God seized the moment and said, “If you will give earnest heed to the voice of the Lord your God, and do what is right in His sight, and give ear to His commandments, and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have put on the Egyptians; for I, the Lord, am your healer.” Here God was making a promise to them to help them stay obedient to His command. Obedience is a demonstration of trust. It is always easier to act impulsively in the flesh than to rest in the Lord and wait upon Him, seeking a solution from Him. But when we wait upon the Lord and seek to keep His Word, we are keeping faith with Him. And in so doing we reap the benefits of the trust. It brings perfect peace of mind and its inherent consequence is the freedom from worrying. It also sets the condition for healing to take place. 

In the last verses of Exodus 15, we see God bringing the children of Israel to Elim. It was an oasis. We learn that here there were twelve springs and seventy palm trees. It was here that they camped near the water. It was a place of abundance. Twelve springs, one for each of the 12 tribes and 70 palm trees, one for each elder of Israel. Obedience was what God wanted to teach the Israelites in the bitter water of Marah. At Elim, we see another aspect of God’s goodness. It is found in His abundant provision. God will never short-change us. We don’t really need many things to survive, we only need a provider. God promises to be our provider. His name is Jehovah Jireh, our provider. Remember in Christ we have received grace upon grace, an overflowing grace. God wants us to flourish in Him. And this can be found at the fountain of His everlasting grace. May our prayer always be: Come O Lord and overflow us with your love. As we bring our hearts before You like vessels to your ever-flowing stream.” Come, O Lord and overflow us with your grace! 

Exodus 15:22-25a – Living a sanctified life progressively.

The story of Exodus is also the story of our redemption. This is why the New Testament often depicts our redemption as an exodus. We depart from the life of sin to walk with God. In this walk, there are three clear phases. Hence, we can clearly understand that redemption is a process and not a point as many have so often mistaken. The starting phase is often referred to as salvation. The Bible teaches that God is the one who initiates us into our salvation. By the convicting power of the Holy Spirit, He convicts us of our sin. At that moment we are given a measure of start-up faith, enabling us to acknowledge our sinful nature and willingly invite Jesus into our heart to be our personal Lord and Saviour. This first step commonly frees us from the penalty of sin.

The endpoint of this process, of course, is glorification. It will only take place when we are in heaven and free from the presence of sin. At that point, we will be perfected. However, the process between salvation and glorification is known as sanctification. This process takes place while we are here on earth. It is our daily journey where God is sanctifying us daily and incrementally freeing us from the power of sin. The Holy Spirit is sent alongside us to empower us to deal with the flaws that hinder our connection with God. If we yield to the Holy Spirit’s leading, we will be free from the dominion of sin progressively.

The deliverance of the children of Israel from the bondage of Pharaoh and Egypt depicts the first phase of the redemption process we called salvation. The Passover lamb is, of course, a type of our Lord Jesus, the Sacrificial Lamb of God. Like the Israelites, we were once a slave to sin and were living in bondage. When we acknowledge Christ as our Lord, His blood like the Passover lamb shields us from the angel of death. Just as they crossed the Red Sea and were freed from their bondage of the Egyptians, we too have crossed from our past life into the new walk with the LORD. Our sanctification process is depicted in the wilderness journey of the children of Israel. This is the path where God deals with our sin nature and frees us from the sway of the power of sin.   

The wilderness wandering of the Israelites was not needful for their salvation but it certainly was needful for their sanctification. They had left Egypt, but the nature of slavery in Egypt had not left them. God had to surface them and excise each one. It was not possible to deal with all at once but one at a time. So, the journey in the wilderness revealed areas that needed to be removed. The wilderness is a tough place. But it is the place where God encounters our old nature and helps us to progressively remove each flaw as it surfaces. This phase is to teach us dependence on God.  

The journey into God’s promised land started when Moses’ song had ended. They were ushered into the wilderness, the desert of Shur. This area stretched from Egypt all the way to Palestine. The desert was sparsely populated with vegetations and there was a scarcity of water sources. It was natural joy when the Israelites having travelled for three days found water. But their joy was short-lived for as the place, so aptly named Marah, the water was bitter and undrinkable. It was then that the Lord revealed to Moses a certain tree. He cut one of the twigs and threw it into the water of Marah. It instantly became drinkable and sweet. The twig speaks of the cross of Calvary. Any bitter experience in life can be treated when we apply the finished works of the cross in our life. The disappointment was the way the Israelites complained. Learning from them we must not be a complaining people. The Lord has a solution for all our bitter experiences in life. We can come to Him and be assured that He will provide the solution in Christ. Let us stop whining and start trusting. Whining is common among children but it is unbecoming for an adult. As we grow in Christ, we must learn not to whine over every little inconvenience. We must co-operate with the Holy Spirit and be sanctified.  

Exodus 15:13-21 – God’s purpose is for us to experience His presence

More than showing who Moses and the people thought God was, the song they sang also sought to praise Him for what He had done. In Exodus 15:13-18, this song specifically demonstrates what He purposed to do for His redeemed people. God’s purpose in saving them was highlighted. He acted specifically by leading them with His mercy and love and kept them in His covenant love. The goal was to guide them to His holy habitation or presence. The loving-kindness of God mentioned in verse 13 shows us how absolutely loyal God truly is. Here He proved His love for the Israelites by faithfully keeping His promise. Everything they had experienced was entrenched by the love of God. He kept His promise and brought them out of slavery. And He would be leading them into the land He had promised to give them.

As Moses and the people praised God, the prophet began to look into the future and expressed confidence that God would lead them in the journey forward. The path they would take into Canaan was traced. He saw how God would defeat their enemies. Exodus 15:14-16 outlined in advance what God eventually did in the book of Joshua as follows:

“The peoples have heard, they tremble;
Anguish has gripped the inhabitants of Philistia.
“Then the chiefs of Edom were dismayed;
The leaders of Moab, trembling grips them;
All the inhabitants of Canaan have melted away.
Terror and dread fall upon them;
By the greatness of Your arm they are motionless as stone;
Until Your people pass over, O Lord,
Until the people pass over whom You have purchased.”

God did not act randomly. He acted with love to keep His people with specificity as the enemy in Canaan would be defeated one by one. He would bring them into the land and help them to conquer it. God’s ultimate purpose was to bring the people He brought out to live with Him. The mountain of inheritance was referring to Mount Zion and the city of Jerusalem where God called His dwelling place. In the Bible, Mount Zion and Jerusalem are references to God’s presence. We can see from these verses that God’s whole intention was that His people could come into His presence and enjoy Him. This is not just God’s plan for the Israelites but an indication of His plan for all of us. He wants us to come into His presence and enjoy His love. The climax of the song was for the people of God to experience His reign forever and ever. That was how Moses concluded in verse 18 saying, “The Lord shall reign forever and ever.”  

As we reflect on this song of Moses, we can’t help but see a great God worthy of our praise and worship. He is the eternal and all-powerful God. He is a God of love and loyalty, seen in His faithfulness in keeping the covenant He had made with the people. He is the kind of God that we cannot afford to do without. And He will see us through till we experience His divine presence. He is all we should ever want and need. If we are to experience Him in all His fulness there is no way to do so but to personally enter into a relationship with Him. Let us make Him our strength and our song. Moses made it a point to enter into an experience of a personal relationship with God. What about us? We must make this great and glorious God our strength and our song, and He shall become our victory. It was for this reason that Miriam, Moses’ sister, also responded with timbres and dancing, inviting us to “Sing to the Lord, for He is highly exalted.”! 

Exodus 15:1-12 – God is worthy of our praise and thanksgiving

This song tells us that God is powerful and is the strength of His children’s life. Hence, He deserves all praise and adoration. It is He who has become His people’s saviour and a warrior who will fight on their behalf. Here we see God’s mighty deliverance described. He hurled Pharaoh’s mighty army into the sea. He drowned Egypt’s elite army by bringing the water of the sea back. He had opened it to make a way for the children of Israel to walk on a dry path across the sea. The song saw the east wind that God caused to blow and walled up the water as the breath from God’s nostril. This, of course, is anthropomorphic language, i.e. using a human term to depict God. Bear in mind that without such language, it is hard for us to imagine how God is like.

This song tells us that God is powerful and is the strength of His children’s life. Hence, He deserves all praise and adoration. It is He who has become His people’s saviour and a warrior who will fight on their behalf. Here we see God’s mighty deliverance described. He hurled Pharaoh’s mighty army into the sea. He drowned Egypt’s elite army by bringing the water of the sea back. He had opened it to make a way for the children of Israel to walk on a dry path across the sea. The song saw the east wind that God caused to blow and walled up the water as the breath from God’s nostril. This, of course, is anthropomorphic language, i.e. using a human term to depict God. Bear in mind that without such language, it is hard for us to imagine how God is like.

This song also tells us that there will be an end to man’s boasting. No one should exalt himself and try to usurp the place that is reserved only for God. Pharaoh boasted and overestimated himself. In verse 9 he said to himself, “I will pursue, I will overtake, I will divide the spoil; my desire shall be gratified against them; I will draw out my sword, my hand will destroy them.” He was so blinded with rage that although he could see the hand of God behind the mighty works, yet he dared to defy the Almighty. This was the obvious reason why God dealt so drastically with him. Boasting is a display of self-centeredness and pride. Never should we for a moment try to usurp God’s role in our daily living. Instead, let us face each moment of life with complete dependence on God who alone is all knowing.  

So, verses 10 and 12 affirm that while God always resists the proud. So, these verses say unambiguously that, “You blew with Your wind, the sea covered them; they (the Egyptians) sank like lead in the mighty waters.” And “You stretched out Your right hand, the earth swallowed them.” No wonder in Micah 6:8, God through the prophet reminds us saying, “He (God) has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” It behoves us, therefore, to always seek to praise God and also let the fruit of thanksgiving abound in our life. He is worthy of them all!