#DailyDevotion Are You Going To Grumble Like The Israelites?
Exodus 16:2–21 2In the wilderness the whole congregation grumbled against Moses and Aaron. 3 “If only we had died by the LORD’s hand in Egypt,” the Israelites told them, “when we sat by our pots of meat and ate all the food we wanted! You brought us into this wilderness to starve this whole congregation to death!” 4 “I will send you bread like rain from heaven,” the LORD told Moses. “And I will test them to see if they will do what I tell them or not: Each day the people will go out and gather only what they need for that day. 5But on the sixth day, when they prepare what they bring home, it will be twice as much as they gather any other day…” 8Moses added: “This evening the LORD is giving you meat to eat and in the morning all the bread you want, for the LORD has heard you grumble against Him. What are we? You didn’t grumble against us but against the LORD.” 9“Tell the whole congregation of Israel,”… the LORD said to Moses. 12“Tell them: ‘At twilight you will eat meat, and in the morning you will get all the bread you want, and then you will know I am the LORD your God.’”
So this is the second time the Israelites grumbled against Moses and the LORD in Exodus. Before they were grumbling because of water. Now they are grumbling about food. They really would have preferred to die in Egypt, under the bondage of the Egyptians than be a little hungry and free with the LORD in the wilderness. They accused Moses of bringing them out to the wilderness to die. I guess we could also say they grumbled against Moses even in Egypt when they were forced to make bricks without straw being provided to them. Even then, that was part of the action of the LORD preparing them to be freed from the bondage to Pharaoh and Egypt.
How often do we grumble against the LORD? We might note they were grumbling against Moses and Aaron but they the Israelites they are grumbling against the LORD! Do we grumble about what our pastors are doing and even when they are doing the LORD’s work just because either a. we don’t like the results and/or b. we just don’t like what they are doing? Like Moses and Aaron they will be judged by the LORD Jesus Christ for what they do. But they are the LORD’s servants, not yours. How often do we grumble against the LORD? Are we like the Israelites who may be experiencing a hard patch and think like would be easier if we abandoned our LORD Jesus Christ? Do we long for the days when we could just act on our sinful desires without anyone around us judging what we do and not rebuking our behavior because everyone we were with were engaged in the same behaviors? If so, you may be the rocky ground or the thorny ground Jesus talks about. You may be the dog that returns to its vomit.
The LORD was testing the Israelites’ faith and most of them failed. Nevertheless out of the great mercy of his heart he promised he would take care of them. The LORD may be testing and trying your faith as well. Are you going to believe his promises of salvation in Jesus and that he will never leave or forsake you or are you going to return back to your old way of life?
Heavenly Father, when our faith is being tested give us your Holy Spirit that we will not grumble against you but turn to you for care and give your thanksgiving. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.