Sermon Notes: Exodus 16:21-36 – Manna and Sabbath: Faith and Responsibility

Exodus 16:4 tells us that the Lord is going to give Israel manna with some commandments in order to test them about living according to his law. 

With the manna will come necessarily how they are to deal with the Sabbath and gathering so they can eat. 

This will indeed be a test. 

The Lord’s testing them here in Exodus 16 is preparatory for what is to come. 

The sanctifying of the wilderness will be a challenge. 

This testing is part of the Lord’s process of sanctification to disrupt the old systems of Egypt to install the new system of the kingdom of God that operates on faith with a new way of being responsible in their trust in the Lord. 

Remember, the Passover and Exodus prepare us for the good news, and the wilderness prepares us for the life of sanctification in Christ. 

As 1 Corinthians 10:1-9 reminds us, what can we learn from Israel here? 

We know the Lord is disrupting the systems of the dark kingdom and teaching his people how to live as citizens of his kingdom. 

How does the Lord continue to disrupt Egypt’s systems in his people and prepare them for life under his good rule?

The Lord saved Israel, gave them manna, the Sabbath, and laws as testing to grow their faith.

1. There is no such thing as boundaryless existence.
   1. What does this have to do with our text? Hang with me. 
   2. The Lord’s good means of rooting out dark systems (manna and Sabbath) and teaching them to trust him comes with boundaries we are to obey.
      1. Humans never get to live without boundaries. 
      2. Boundaries are good and part of what it means to be a creature rather than the Creator.
         1. Boundaries protect us and train us.
            1. God’s boundaries will provide restoration to the healing of his kingdom
               1. Understanding boundaries here will serve us well in a moment. So, hang on. 
2. The Lord gave the gifts of supernatural food and productive rest. Exodus 16:4, 29
   1. Israel has been enslaved for a long time and thus they cried to the Lord for help. 
   2. The Lord has heard them, and he has set them free from Pharaoh to belong to him, and in belonging to the Lord he supplies them with food and rest.
      1. Manna. 16:21-24, 31
      2. Sabbath. 16:23, 25, 26, 27-30
3. How does belonging to the Lord and receiving his provision disrupt the dark systems of Egypt?
   1. Slavery and oppression rewire the brain, get into the soul, and teach humans to rebel against authority at a more nefarious level than what we already are prone to, regardless of who that authority is.
      1. The person recovering from tyranny tends to push back against all authority and boundaries.
         1. These souls distrust at deeply rooted and neurologically ingrained places. 
         2. This totally makes sense. 
         3. Yet, when rescued, pushing back against good boundaries ceases to be appropriate and becomes sin.
            1. Israel will do this with the Lord, and they will rebel against the Lord’s good commandments at almost every turn. 
   2. The Lord provides laws that govern his good gifts that are to test their growth into citizens of Jesus’ kingdom as they are transformed from slaves of Egypt to be a kingdom of priests to the Lord.
      1. Israel’s ingrained response is to push back against the laws, the boundaries of God’s kingdom. 
      2. This pushback and tension is where sanctification happens. 
      3. It is in this tension that trust in the Lord is developed. Our faith grows. 
         1. We know this is how creation works.
            1. Tension builds muscles. 
            2. Tension builds knowledge. 
            3. Tension builds skill.
            4. The tension between receiving good from the Lord and his laws or boundaries is where we learn to trust.
               1. So, the Lord tests us with boundaries that create tension between the habits of the dark kingdom and the boundaries of Jesus’ kingdom. 
4. So, we have to recognize that the sanctification of the wilderness involves the tension of learning to navigate leaving the habits of the rebellion for the life of the kingdom of God.
   1. The Lord uses this tension to disrupt the systems of the dark kingdom in us. 
5. Remember the question: How does the Lord continue to disrupt Egypt’s systems in his people and bring his kingdom reign of trust in him? 
   1. Let’s take this second answer to this question a little further. 

The Lord gives commandments for the manna and the Sabbath that require faith and a new standard of responsibility. 16:28. 

1. This is where Israel began to feel the tension, and we will begin to feel the tension, and this is where our growth in faith will happen if we obey.
   1. “After this [Red Sea crossing], Moses, by the command of God, whose providence is over all, led out the people of the Hebrews into the wilderness; and, leaving the shortest road which leads from Egypt to Judaea, he led the people through long windings of the wilderness, that, by the discipline of forty years, the novelty of a changed manner of life might root out the evils which had clung to them by a long-continued familiarity with the customs of the Egyptians.” – Clement of Rome, “The Recognitions of Clement,” in The Twelve Patriarchs et al., eds. Alexander Roberts and James Donaldson, Ante-Nicene Fathers, 10 vols. (1886; repr. Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 1994), 8:87. This is cited by Philip Graham Ryken and R. Kent Hughes, Exodus: Saved for God’s Glory (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 2005), 434–435.
2. Another way to say it is that the Lord is rooting out the habits, practices, and customs of the world system inherited from the curse of sin and perfected in Egypt.

2. I get Israel. It’s a challenge enough to follow the explicit instructions that are written, not to mention what I do when an unexpected challenge arises in which there is no book, chapter, or verse to tell me exactly what to do.
   1. This kind of challenge is going to come for them soon, so they need to learn now how to trust the Lord by living in faith and his standard of responsibility.
      1. Future Challenge: Actually entering Canaan. 
      2. Obstacle: Giants!
         1. Response: Run. 
         2. The logic is impeccable.
            1. Judas’ response to Mary’s use of nard on Jesus’ feet is logically spot on. 
            2. Yet, he’s wrong because he is not operating in faith and a new standard of responsibility and logic that are completely transformed by complete trust in the Lord. 
   2. Israel starts feeling this tension immediately between the gifts of manna with the commandments/boundaries of the Lord and the way they have been operating in Egypt.
      1. Only enough for today?
         1. The need to trust that it will be there again tomorrow with no vindictive trick on God’s part if one messes up might be a challenge for them.
            1. They are used to the capricious nature of these demonic gods, and now they have to believe the Lord to not be like that.  
      2. Don’t gather any food on day seven? Stop working?
         1. NOTE: We will say more about the Sabbath when we get to Exodus 20, so I don’t want to get in the details now.
            1. However, notice Exodus 16:26. It’s not that the Lord puts manna out there on the Sabbath as a lure to see if they’ll obey.
               1. No. The Lord does not provide manna on the Sabbath. The Lord stops production.
                  1. So, when they go to look for some manna in 16:27-28 there is none, and the Lord questions Moses about how long it is going to take them to trust him. 
               2. This is because the Sabbath is rooted in the nature of God and displayed in creation as he completed his work in six days, and he stopped on day seven and thus wove “stopping” or “Sabbath” into the rhythm of how all creation works.
                  1. There was no manna because the Lord didn’t supply any because he stops production at certain times and asks us to imitate that by stopping. 
                  2. So, if we violate the created rhythm of the Sabbath, don’t be shocked when we fall apart.
                     1. BE CAREFUL TO NOT READ THAT LIKE A PHARISEE WHO WAS ANGRY THAT JESUS AND HIS DISCIPLES PICKED GRAIN AND ATE ON THE SABBATH. 
   3. These commandments in Exodus 16 are the opposite of their life under the world systems of Egypt, and they are going to wrestle with the tension of living by faith and their former manner of “responsible living” as slaves.
      1. The manna was to be gathered before the sun melted it. 16:21
         1. They had to believe the Lord’s word and get to work early. They could not wait.
            1. Faith and responsibility.
      2. The manna was to be gathered on day six in a double portion for the Sabbath, UNLIKE each other day when they were only to get the amount for a single day. 16:22
         1. They had to restrain themselves on days 1-5 from storing extra, and on day six they had to do the opposite of their five-day routine and store extra believing that it would not breed worms and stink on day seven.
            1. Faith and responsibility. 
      3. They had the option to prepare the manna for the Sabbath in ways they chose, and it was to be set aside for use on the Sabbath. 16:23
         1. When they prepared it and left it for day seven, it did not rot like it would on days 1-5.
            1. Faith and responsibility.
         2. NOTE: The manna was a supernatural gift, and as such, when the people gathered their prescribed omer of it, notice on two occasions (verses 16, 21) the gathering of the omer was referred to as “as much as he can eat”.
            1. Then Exodus 16:18 says that the omer gathered worked out in such a way that those who gathered a full omer did not have anything left, and the one who gathered a slightly less full omer did not lack.
               1. Paul will quote Exodus 16:18 in 2 Corinthians 8:15 regarding how we are to give and share in the local church so that no one lacks what they need.
                  1. The point Paul makes is that giving and generosity are like manna in that it’s a supernatural means of supplying for the mission and the people of God on mission. 
            2. The point? The Lord’s supernatural gift of manna not only showed up miraculously, but it also achieved its created intent miraculously regardless of their perception of how much to squeeze into the omer. 
      4. They were not to attempt to gather any manna on day seven. 16:23, 25, 26, 27-30
      5. The Sabbath was to be a day of rest. 16:29-30
         1. The Lord was undoing dark systems and introducing new systems that created a tension point for Israel. 
3. This tension of faith and responsibility is not new to me, but with each season of sanctification, I discover that my distrust runs deep and my idolatry is more robust than I previously would have admitted, which is why the Lord is still working on me.
   1. Jesus addresses these tension points that build faith and trust from the wilderness in Matthew 6 as part of the Sermon on the Mount. 
   2. Jesus is trying to help us learn the 1 Corinthians 10:6 lessons we need to learn from the wilderness so that we can have a frame of reference to help us in the sticky situations of the wilderness of our sanctification.
      1. Example: Prayer.
         1. When Jesus teaches us how to pray (Matthew 6:5-15), it’s not an introduction to something new. 
         2. It is a correction of his people praying like unbelievers. 
         3. There is the responsibility to pray (when you pray) and then prayer is to be done in faith which looks like not long-babbling pagan praying like the prophets of Baal.
            1. Responsibility: Pray. 
            2. Faith: Pray using fewer words.  
   3. The Lord gave them commandments that are faithful and responsible, the question is will they hear and obey, and will they apply the lessons as they grow in their faith so they are ready when they get to the Promised Land?
      1. We know that answer, and this is why Paul told the Corinthians we want to learn from their example so we don’t repeat what they did. 
4. Remember the question: How does the Lord continue to disrupt Egypt’s systems in his people and bring his kingdom reign of trust in him? 
   1. Let’s make a final observation before we get to our application.

The Lord commanded Israel to keep an omer of manna throughout their generations so that they would see it and remember the faithfulness of the Lord. Exodus 16:31-36

1. To remember what the Lord did as they acted in faith with a transformed sense of responsibility would call to mind the faithfulness of the Lord. 
2. Remembering would help them depend on the Lord to provide in faithfulness in whatever challenge they were faced with.
   1. Hebrews 9:4 indicates that in the earthly temple built by Solomon, there was a golden urn holding the omer of manna Moses had Aaron put in a jar to be kept before the Lord throughout their generations.
      1. Therefore, even in obeying the Lord to keep some manna as a testimony to the Lord’s faithfulness, the Lord does the miraculous for his people so they can have a touchpoint to his faithfulness. 
      2. Miracle of miracles, when we live by faith in obeying the commands of the Lord in all of the ways of kingdom-soaked responsibility, even then the Lord is faithful to uphold it for us as an additional good gift for us   

Application

Israel’s existence is going to be marked by distrust that leads to rebellion that leads to discipline, and it was written down for our instruction so we would not do what they did. 

Because of the work of the cross, I’m glad our faithlessness does not nullify the faithfulness of God. Those who the Lord has chosen and who have responded in repentance and faith, he will get to a place of deep trust and a peace that passes all understanding. It just takes time to undo and root Egypt out of our practices. 

Distrust is the root of the fall of man in Genesis 3. 

The serpent dragon used his smooth speech to incite distrust in the Father. “Did God say?” 

Once the question took root, Eve could not see the tree through the lens of good boundaries, faith in the Lord, and the responsibility of keeping that good boundary in place. 

All she could see was opportunity, and all she could feel was the desire to cross the line. 

Distrust. Disobey. Irresponsible. Death.

I don’t trust the Lord like I want to. I want to trust the Lord to the place that my insides and outsides do Philippians 4:6-7 like a champ, yet there are obstacles he’s still rooting out of me. 

Here is what I’ve observed in my short 51 years of living: The church has two kinds of Christians.

1. The bitter and cynical person.
   1. This person has not abandoned the faith, but the challenges of life have left them cold, angry, cynical, and bitter. Thus they are lonely except for all the people who are cold, angry, cynical, and bitter.
      1. Many of these, probably not all, never learned to let go of their worldly sense of responsibility to embrace deep trust and a responsibility wired to the kingdom of God.
         1. This is probably overly simplistic. Yet this is rooted in truth. 
2. The wise and gentle person.
   1. This person has kept the faith, and they chose a different path of trust to just do what the Lord said, and when they didn’t know what to do, they waited and did the best they could.
      1. These people have mastered forgiveness. 
      2. These people also never compromised truth, and they in fact have spines of steel. 

What can we do to learn from Israel in our Exodus study and from those around us who are wise and gentle about trusting the Lord, living by faith, and mastering God’s standard of responsibility? 

I’ll borrow from Jerry Bridges’ table of contents in “Trusting God”. 

1. Give yourself completely to the sovereignty of God.
   1. If you let the Bible speak and not justify talking yourself out of it, you will grow appropriately in knowing and understanding this glorious part of the Lord’s nature. 
2. Give yourself completely to God’s sovereignty over people.
   1. If we can master this, we can learn forgiveness, and we will not be bitter. 
3. Give yourself completely to God’s sovereignty over nations.
   1. Habakkuk will disciple you in this truth. 
4. Give yourself completely to God’s sovereignty over nature.
   1. Job 36:32 (ESV) 32 He covers his hands with the lightning and commands it to strike the mark.
5. Give yourself completely to learning the wisdom of God.
   1. Master the Proverbs.
6. Give yourself completely to the love of God, and fight to experience that love through the finished work of Jesus Christ fully applied to you through faith in him.
   1. The temptation is to question God’s love when in seasons of hardship.
      1. That’s when we have to lean into love by faith. 
7. Give yourself completely to the sovereignty of God for who you are created to be.
   1. This is not an acceptance of sin and its effects as created by God.
      1. If we do that, it is a doctrinal error in saying the Lord created sin and thus my sin is acceptable before God. 
   2. We are talking about acceptance of the good way he put you together in every Psalm 139 way that screams the glory of God.
      1. Example: Don’t wish yourself to be a musician if you are a craftsman. 
8. Give yourself completely to seeing God’s sovereignty and our responsibility acted out in the Bible, then strive to do like that.
   1. Nehemiah 4:9 (ESV) 9 And we prayed to our God and set a guard as a protection against them day and night.
      1. God’s sovereignty biblically worked out never leads to fatalism in which we do nothing. 
      2. Rather, it leads to a responsibility that recaptures Eden and the mission Jesus created us for.
         1. This is going to be harder than it sounds, and it is worth working out in fellowship together on mission. 
9. Give yourself completely to growing through suffering by not quitting on God, his church, or his mission. 
10. Give yourself to thanksgiving to God in all circumstances.
    1. 1 Thessalonians 5:18 (ESV) 18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
11. If we can make progress in these things, we will discover we trust God more and are the kind of saints other people strive to be like.