August 5, 2018 Text: Exodus 16:2-15
Dear Friends in Christ,
All right people of Israel, what are you going to do next? You’ve been enslaved in Egypt for 430 years. You heard Moses cry to the Lord, “Let my people go!” Pharaoh has told you over and over no.
People of Israel, what are you going to do next? You’ve seen the plagues from hail destroying to frogs inhabiting. You’ve heard the wailing throughout the night as the firstborn died.
So, people of Israel, what are you going to do next? You’ve followed the pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night. You’ve walked on dry ground with the wall of water to the right and to the left. You’ve seen the Egyptians who pursued you swept into the sea. So, people of Israel, what are you going to do next?
They are going to . . . grumble! “Would that we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the meat pots and ate bread to the full, for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.” (v. 3) Grumble, grumble, grumble. Moses and Aaron have to be thinking, “You bunch of whiners!” The Lord heard the grumbling too.
Of course, you don’t grumble. No, never you. But you do! You grumble when the price of gas is too high. You grumble when it rains too little. You grumble when it rains too much. You grumble when your spouse won’t have sex on a regular basis or when they won’t listen to you. You grumble when your kid won’t pick up their room. You grumble at the four-way stop when the person whose turn it is won’t go. You grumble when you are bored and you grumble when you are too busy. I could stand in this pulpit all day with this little exercise. Shall I go on? Goldilocks, hello. Our porridge is too hot. Our porridge is too cold. We would make wonderful Israelites, wouldn’t we?
So, what does the Lord do with these ungrateful complainers? “Behold, I am about to rain bread from heaven for you.” (v. 4) Later in the chapter, “When the people of Israel saw it, they said to one another. ‘What is it?’ For they did not know what it was. And Moses said to them, ‘It is the bread that the Lord has given you to eat.’” (vs. 14-15) Feeling a little sheepish about your grumbling?
“OUR GOD RAINS . . . FOR YOU!”
Would you look out the window? Why, it’s raining…pitchforks! Never heard that one. Why, it’s raining…stair rods! Never heard that either. Why, it’s raining cats and dogs! Ahhhh…I’ve heard that one Pastor.
In the early 1700s, Jonathan Swift published a satire in which one of the characters fears that it’ll rain cats and dogs. We don’t know the origin. We do know that the other phrases – pitchforks and stair rods were popular at the time.
Wherever it comes from, we do know the meaning. The rain is really coming down. The Lord used an equally strange line: “It’s going to rain bread.” I wouldn’t mind hearing that from the Lord, how about you? Any chance of cinnamon and sugar on a loaf? See, we still want it our way. Israelites, we are right there with you!
Not only did the Lord provide the Israelites with bread he made it a meal by covering the camp in quail. God provides so much from the skies above.
God brought angels who filled the skies and proclaimed, “Fear not, for behold I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” (Lk. 2:10-11)
God commands the skies there on Calvary’s hill. “It was about the sixth hour, and there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour, while the sun’s light had failed. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two. Then Jesus calling out with a loud voice, said, ‘Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!’ And having said this he breathed his last. Now when the centurion saw what had taken place, he praised God, saying, ‘Surely he was the Son of God!’” (Lk. 23:44-47)
God commands the skies above. As the darkness lifted from the skies, the morning of the third day, the women went to the tomb and found it empty. “Why are you looking here? Jesus is among the living!” (Lk. 24:1,5)
God commands the skies above. Our God rains . . . for you. He still rains down daily bread in spite of our grumbling. He rains down clothing and a place to live. He gives us money and possessions. He blesses us with spouses and children. In spite of our grumbling . . . good government and faithful rulers and good weather and peace and health and friends and neighbors.
Even more than that, He gives us the Bread, the Bread of life, the Bread “who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” (Jn. 6:33) He gives us Jesus. So see, you have nothing to grumble about, for God says, “Behold, I am about to rain bread from heaven for you.”
Amen.