Good Morning.

So they gathered it every morning, every man according to his need. And when the sun became hot, it melted. (Exodus 16:21)

We understand that the giving of the manna was a miraculous expression of God’s power and care for His people. As it is written, He “gave them bread from heaven for their hunger” (Nehemiah 9:15). However, He did not put it in their tents. He didn’t put it in their pots. He caused it to appear on the ground after the dew melted away but it was their responsibility to collect it. 

Furthermore, it is interesting that the manna would disappear or melt away when the sun came out, meaning that, if you wanted to eat, you needed to be ready to collect the manna  at the appropriate time. If you slept in and were slothful, you missed out on the chance to eat for that day. It is therefore quite Biblical to expect that men should do the work expected of them if they are going to obtain their daily bread. Though it is apples and oranges in one respect, God told those who had returned from Babylonian captivity that, even though He would be with them in the process of rebuilding Jerusalem and the Temple, they were expected to do the work (Haggai 2:4).

Couple this concept with the idea that the manna is representative of the Word. Should we not conclude that we have a duty to study and not be lazy when it comes to the Word? While we understand that there are times when God decides to download revelation into our Spirit, most of what we learn comes as a result of our efforts to study, learn and be guided by the Spirit of Truth. In other words, when we show the initiative to receive and internalize the Word, God gives us the insight to understand what we’re studying. Also, considering that the manna would melt away at a certain time of day, we need to always be in the right place at the appropriate time and in the right frame of mind to receive what God has for us. 

Each day, we must make ourselves available to hear what the Father has to say to us and to do it on His time table, not necessarily ours. If He stirs us in the early hours to seek Him, then we need to respond appropriately. If we are slothful in our approach to hearing from Him, we may find that we will go “hungry” that day. So let us be those as those that Perry has spoken of when he says, “The early bird gets the Word.”

Blessings and Shalom,  

Bill  

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