My Food is to Do the Will of the Father

 

Deuteronomy 8:1-5; Matthew 4:1-4

Man Shall Not Live by Bread Alone

We celebrated a joyous Chinese New Year, as usual last year 2020, but we were placed under MCO 2.0 in this 2021 Chinese New Year. Chinese New Year is the grandest festival celebrated by the Chinese. What do man live by in all seasons of life? What are those things that do bring us joy and happiness? Is it a feast repleting with all sorts of delicacies served on the table?

When the pandemic spread rapidly with all kinds of “lock-down” measurements implemented over all places, people rush to purchase their food and groceries, and those empty shelves displayed do indicate items that are indispensable in our lives.

Government has made a restriction on people that they would only be allowed to leave their homes on the basis of purchasing their “essentials”, and those stores that sell non-essential products and services have to temporarily suspend their businesses. There are disputes over the definition of “essential” and “non-essential” products and services. However, there is not much to be argued over when food is classified as essential, for man shall live by food.

Yet, “man shall not live by bread alone.” Bible has this statement appeared whenever it describes the moment food is needed by men, with one of those found in the time when the Israelites were facing their food issue in the wilderness (Deuteronomy 8:2-4), and another found in the time when Jesus became hungry after His 40 days fast (Matthew 4:1-4; Luke 4:1-4).

When we face an immediate need, the Word of God reminds us that, “Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.”

We Live by Following the Leading and Guidance of God

To those Israelites who were about to enter the Canaan land, Moses said,

“Remember how the Lord your God led you all the way in the wilderness these forty years, to humble and test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands.  He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your ancestors had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.  Your clothes did not wear out and your feet did not swell during these forty years.” (Deuteronomy 8:2-4）

The problem of having daily three meals provided was among one of the many tests faced by the Israelites in the wilderness. They crossed over the Red Sea, left Elim and traveled into the wilderness, and they worried they would be starved to death. They grumbled against Moses and Aaron, and said, “But you have brought us out into this desert to starve this entire assembly to death.” (Exodus 16:3)

It was there that God began to rain down manna and instructed them to collect only their daily portion. And on the sixth day they had to collect their portion for two days, for on the seventh day they would have to rest (Exodus 16:13-32).

Manna was the daily food of Israelites, and more importantly, the act of collecting manna was a means for the Israelites to live in accordance with the instructions given by God.

God gave manna in order “to teach them that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.” (Deuteronomy 8:3) Since God led the Israelites passed through the wilderness, He would surely provide all their needs.

Far more than having their daily bread provided, Moses said, “Your clothes did not wear out and your feet did not swell during these forty years” （Deuteronomy 8:4）What the people of God needs to learn is not merely to live by bread, but to follow the instructions of God and to live in accordance with His leading and guidance.

The Heavenly Father shall watch over our lives (Matthew 6:25-34; Luke 12:22-31). Surely, we must to work hard for our food, but we must pay more attention to “what is in our heart” (Deuteronomy 8:2); Do we plan and strategize in a way that we ignore the instructions of God and not follow His leading and guidance?

In those years, some of the Israelites wanted to get their manna outside of God’s arrangement, and they refused to take heed of His instruction. They kept the manna until the next morning, and they even collected the manna in the Sabbath. This proved their rebellion (Exodus 16:20,28).

This action revealed their heart condition. They thought that it was not enough to have God’s leading and guidance, and they thought that God did not give them the best arrangement. Hence, they did things beyond God’s instructions with their own ability and strategies. They planned for themselves and thought that they could gain more.

Man does not live by bread alone. We must examine our hearts and observe to see if we have kept the commandments of God (Deuteronomy 8:2). Be it for our daily meals or our various pursuits, we must keep watch and be alert. If what we pursuit goes beyond the instructions of God, we will eventually rebel against Him and fall into testing.

Whenever we face trials and shortages, we should remember even more not to live by relying on ourselves, but to follow closely the arrangement and the leading and guidance of God. It was God who gave manna in the wilderness, and it was God who kept their clothes from wearing out and their feet from swelling.

We must trust God wholeheartedly.

We Live by Doing the Will of God and Accomplish His Works

Jesus used the statement that says, “‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God” to resist the temptation of devil.

Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. The tempter came to him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.” Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.  (Matthew 4:1-4）

Jesus became hungry after He had fasted for forty days. He was hungry and it indicated that though He was the Son of God, He was completely a human being, and hence He was restricted physically.

However, devil tempted Jesus and when Jesus became hungry, he tempted Him to do miracle outside of the will of God. He instructed Him to turn the stones into bread in order to remove His sense weariness caused by His hunger.

Jesus did possess the power to turn the stone into bread, for He had turned water into wine before, and He fed the five thousand men with the five loaves of bread and two fish. He enabled the professional fishermen to have a big catch after they had labored the whole night without catching anything.

However, Jesus did miracle to enable people to know Him and believe Him (John 2:11). Jesus healed the sick, drove out the demons, calmed the raging seas, for He wanted others to know and believe that He was the One who would lead them overcome death and evil forces.

Someone ridiculed Jesus when He was crucified on the cross, and he said, “You who are going to destroy the temple and build it in three days, save yourself! Come down from the cross, if you are the Son of God!” (Matthew 27:40)

However, Jesus refused to come down from the cross, for He wanted to give up His life for the ransom of many in accordance with the will of God. Though it was a bitter cup, Jesus did whatever to follow the heartbeat of God (Matthew 26:39) in order to accomplish the work of salvation.

When Jesus mentioned about food, He said, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work.” (John 4:34) He rejected the temptation offered by the devil, and He persisted to do things in accordance with the will of God amidst his weariness and pains.

Life inevitably will have moments of lacks and uncertainties. May we “not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God,” so that we will recall the experiences encountered by the Israelites and the example of Jesus, and that we will trust in God’s leading and guidance in the wilderness, and to keep the will of God in our lives.

God will surely watch over us and keep us safe, and He shall lead us through so that we live victoriously and are able to enjoy His peace.