Christ - The True Bread

It is impossible, totally impossible,
for the natural mind to get from Scripture the spiritual meaning. He can get the meaning of words,
but the spiritual meaning. The Bible, as one old writer
said, doesn't only mean what it says, it means what it means. And we need to pray that the
Holy Spirit will be our teacher, that we might understand what
God means, get the spiritual meaning. We need His Spirit.
And I believe that God has shown me something in my preparation
for the message this evening, a most heart-searching point. having to do with the bread of
life, having to do with the manner, having to do with our perseverance
in faith. Now let's read John chapter 6,
beginning with verse 46. Not that any man hath seen the
Father, save he which is of God, he hath seen the Father. Verily,
verily, I say unto you, he that believeth on me hath everlasting
life. I am that bread of life. Now watch the Lord reach back
in the Old Testament and pick up a type, the manna in the wilderness. Your fathers did eat manna in
the wilderness, and they are dead. This is the bread, speaking
of himself, which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat
thereof and not die. I am the living bread which came
down from heaven, if any man eat of this bread, He shall live
forever. What was this manner from heaven? What's our Lord talking about?
Well, go back to Exodus chapter 16. Exodus chapter 16. And here in verse 1 of Exodus
16. Now this will help you if you
look at it. Helped me. Challenged me. Made me search
my heart. warned me, Exodus 16 verse 1,
talking about Israel, and they took their journey from Elam.
And all the congregation of the children of Israel came unto
the wilderness of Sinai, which is between Elam and Sinai, on
the fifteenth day of the second month after their departing out
of the land of Egypt. Now they were thirty days from
Egypt. They had left Elam. And they were 60 miles from Mount
Sinai. And the Scripture tells us in
verse 2, And the whole congregation of the children of Israel murmured
against Moses and Abel in the wilderness. They began to murmur
against the providence of the Lord. You say they murmured against
Moses and Abel. No, look at verse 8. Verse 8,
Exodus 16, The Lord and Moses said, This shall be, When the
Lord shall give you in the evening flesh to eat, in the morning
bread to the full, for that the Lord heareth your murmurings
which you murmur against him. And what are we? Your murmurings
are not against us. You're not finding fault with
us. Moses and Abel were but second
causes. You're finding fault with God.
The children of Israel were only 30 days out of Egypt. 30 days
out of captivity, 30 days out of slavery, 30 days away from
the bondage of Egypt. And here they were out in the
wilderness, and they began to murmur against God's providence.
They began to murmur against Moses and against Abel, and they
began to pick at these second causes. And Moses said, You're
not murmuring against us. What are we? Who are we? You're
murmuring against the Lord. You know, it's amazing. When
the Lord brought Israel out of Egypt, it was not for the purpose
of allowing them to die in the wilderness. They should have
known that. When God delivered this group of people out of Egypt
and brought them on their way to Canaan, the promised land,
they should have known that He didn't bring them out of Egypt
to slay them. He didn't bring them out of Egypt
to allow them to die in the wilderness. That was not His purpose and
not His call. They should have known that.
They should have walked in a confidence and assurance of the love and
mercy of God. God loved them, that's why He
redeemed them. God loved them, that's why He
brought them out. They should have known that, but no, they
began to murmur. One old writer said this, 10,000
mercies are forgotten in the face of one trial. 10,000 mercies,
10,000 blessings. are forgotten in the face of
one trial, one disappointment. Israel had been in captivity
400 years, and they had seen the blessings and power of God
in delivering them. They'd seen the mercies and blessings
of God in preserving them and keeping them. They'd seen the
mercies and blessings of God in bringing them thus far. And
here they have a trial. Here they're hungry. And they
began to murmur and complain and find fault against God. We
do the same thing. We've been forgiven of all our
sins. We've been redeemed in Christ Jesus. We've been accepted
in the Beloved. Our pathway has been flowered
with countless mercies. We see the hand of God in our
lives down through the years. And yet, let a cloud the size
of a man's hand appear on the horizon And we forget all those
mercies. And we forget all those blessings.
And we forget all those benefits. And we forget all those years
of grace. And we begin to murmur and find
fault with God's providence. And yet, that cloud, that cloud,
if we are one of His own, that cloud will break with blessings
on our heads. Huh? Yes, sir. They were about 30 days out of
Egypt. They were between the little town of Elam and Mount
Sinai. And they ran out of food. And
they began to gripe. They began to complain. And Moses
said, You're not complaining against me. Who am I? You're
not complaining against Abel. Who is Abel? You're not finding
fault with the weather. You're not finding fault with
the creek. You're not finding fault with the dry spell. You're
not finding fault with the car. You're not finding... You're
finding fault with God's what you're doing. You're not finding
fault with the pain. You're not finding fault with
the neighbor. You're not finding fault with the law. You're finding
fault with God. That's what Moses said. You're
murmuring against God. Murmuring against God. And ten
thousand blessings. It was grace that taught my heart
to fear, and grace my fears relieved. How precious did that grace appear,
the hour I first believed. Through many dangers, toils and
snares, I have already come. His grace hath brought me safe
thus far, and His grace will lead me home." And then boom,
a little trial appeared, a little conflict, a little trouble, a
little disappointment, a little sickness, a little sorrow. Just
forget all those blessings. We forget all those years. We
don't sing, "'Twas grace that brought me safe thus far." We
forget all that grace. We forget all those mercies.
We forget all those blessings. And we focus our attention on
this one cloud, on this one disappointment, on this one bit of trouble, and
begin to murmur and complain. And Moses said, it's not me.
It's not the trial. It's God you're finding fault
with. It's God. Oh, how unlike our blessed Lord
we are. how unlike Him we are. Our Lord
was rich and yet became poor. Our Lord, the crowning glory
of heaven, became a man of sorrows, despised, rejected, acquainted
with grief, lied on, lied about by false witnesses, falsely accused
of being a devil. Even his own brethren didn't
believe on him, accused of being a drunkard and a gluttonous man,
forsaken of all men, stood alone, even deserted by God, and yet
open not his mouth. There is nothing more dishonoring
to God than a manifestation of a murmuring spirit. There's nothing
more dishonoring to God Almighty than a manifestation of a complaining
spirit on the part of a person who claims to know Him, who claims
to believe that all things work together for good to them who
love God. A man who only recites that with
his lips and does not give evidence of it in his heart does not believe
it in his head. Turn to Romans chapter 1. Hold
Exodus 16. Turn to Romans 1. Now listen
to this. Romans chapter 1. And we're in this chapter of
wrath. We're in this chapter of judgment. We're in this chapter of God
reprobating men. And he says in verse 21 of Romans
1, because when they knew God, when they knew God, They glorified
Him not as God, neither were they thankful, neither were they thankful that
they became vain in their imagination, their foolish hearts were darkened,
professing themselves to be wise, they became fools. And verse
24 says, God gave them up. God gave them up. Oh, the murmuring, the murmuring,
complaining spirit, forgetting all the blessings of the past
and focusing my attention on the trial of the present, I began
to question the wisdom of Him who brought it, question the
providence of Him who sent it. But anyway, Exodus 16, verse
4, but the Lord gave them bread. The Lord gave them bread. It
says in verse 4, Then saith the Lord to Moses, Behold, I will
reign bread from heaven for you. I will reign bread from heaven
for you. The people shall go out and gather
a certain rate every day, and I will prove them whether they
will walk in my law or no. Now look at verse 14 and 15.
Now here's the matter. The Lord gave them meat in the
evening, the quail, he gave them manna in the morning. In verse
14, and when the dew that lay was gone up upon the face of
the wilderness, there lay a small round thing, it was white, it
was small as the hoarfrost on the ground. And when the children
of Israel saw it, they said one to another, it is manna, or what
is it? What is it? For they wished not
what it was, and Moses said unto them, This is the bread which
the Lord hath given you to eat." In other words, when they got
up each morning, out there as the dew lifted, before the sun
came out, covering the ground, was this white manna everywhere. It was just everywhere. And the
people went out and gathered up enough. Each family gathered
up just enough. They didn't gather up several
days' supply, because if you kept it past the evening, it
was decayed and eaten of worms. But you gathered every morning
before the sun came out, you gathered enough for your family,
all that you needed for that day. And then on Saturday, or
rather Friday, they'd go out and gather enough to last over
the Sabbath day, because there was none out there on the Sabbath
day, none at all, just Sunday the first day, Monday, Tuesday,
on through to a Friday, and then enough was gathered for the Sabbath
day. They made bread of it, and it
tasted, look at verse 31, it says in verse 31, and the house
of Israel called the name thereof Manna, and it was like Coriander
seed. And it was white and the taste
of it was like wafers made with honey. It had a sweet, delicious
flavor. Coriander seed, that's what that
is. Now verse 35, And the children of Israel did eat manna forty
years, until they came to the land inhabited. They did eat
manna until they came unto the borders of the land of Canaan,
and then the manna ceased. Now here's the second question.
In what ways, in what ways is this manna a picture of Christ? In what ways is this manna, this
bread from heaven, a type of Christ? Our Lord chose to use
it himself. He said, I am the bread from
heaven. Your fathers out in the wilderness, Moses gave them bread.
But he said, I'm the living bread. They ate that bread and died.
I'm the living bread. He that eateth of my flesh shall
live forever. Well, there are several ways
in which this manner is like Christ. First of all, it was
bread from heaven. It came from God. It came from
God. And our Lord Jesus Christ came
from heaven. Turn to John 6. The Lord Jesus
Christ came from God. Christ, the Word says this in
John chapter 6 verse 32, look at this. Then Jesus said unto
them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Moses gave you not that
bread from heaven, but my Father giveth you the true bread from
heaven. For the bread of God is he which cometh down from
heaven and giveth his life, giveth life unto the world. And then
said they unto him, Lord, evermore give us this bread. And Jesus
said, I am the bread of life. He that cometh to me shall never
hunger, and he that believeth on me shall never thirst. Jesus
of Nazareth is God Almighty. He's God in the flesh. the incarnation
of God in human flesh. He came from heaven just as Israel
got up each morning and went out and looked over the wilderness
and there was the bread. It came from God. God gave it.
God sent it. And even so, the angels appeared
to the shepherds, and they said, Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace and goodwill toward men. We bring you good
tidings of great joy, which shall be to all the people. Unto you
is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ
the Lord. He has come down from heaven. I tell you, preachers who admit
that they cannot see a reason for the virgin birth, are revealing
their ignorance, not only of the Word of God, but of the nature
of sin, and revealing their ignorance of God Himself and of who Christ
is. Christ could not have a human
father and be born of God. He was conceived in the virgin
by the Holy Ghost. That thing which shall be conceived
of thee, the angel said to Mary, that holy thing which shall be
born of thee is conceived by the Holy Spirit. The Spirit of
God shall come upon you, and the power of the highest shall
overshadow you, and that holy thing shall be called the Son
of God." God had to give him a body. That's what Christ said, a body
thou hast prepared for me. Joseph had nothing to do with
it. Another thing, if Christ had not been virgin-born, he
would have been the son of a sinner, and consequently would have been
a sinner himself. He would have partaken of Adam's fall and of
Adam's sinful nature. So many reasons, but Christ came
from God. Jesus of Nazareth, the babe in
Bethlehem's manger, is God in human flesh, who was born, as
we are born, of woman under the law, made under the law, that
he might be our representative, that he might be flesh. All right? Look at verse 15 of Exodus 16. How is this manna like Christ?
Well, first, it came from God. And Christ came. As my Father
has sent me, He said, so send I you. It came from God. And secondly, this manna was
mysterious. In verse 15 of Exodus 16, the
people saw it and they said, what is it? What is it? Never seen anything like that
before. What is it? They didn't know what it was.
And Jesus Christ is a mystery to natural men. Even the angel
said that holy thing. Christ was a man, but not only
a man, he's God. He's God, not only God, but a
man. That holy thing, never been anything like it before or sinned.
A God-man. Divine nature and a human nature.
in one person. God clothed in human flesh. Great
is the mystery of godliness. God was manifested in the flesh. What is it? Scene of the angels, justified
in the Spirit, preached to the Gentiles, believed on in the
world. Look at John chapter 1. John
the first chapter again. Look at verse 10. He was in the
world. And the world was made by Him. And the world knew Him not. And
the world knew Him not. He came unto His own, the Jews,
His own things, the ceremonies, the tithes, the sacrifices, the
shadows, the law. And His own received Him not.
So this manner is mysterious. Never been anything like it.
It was sent from God, a new thing, mysterious. What is it? And even
so, this infant born in Bethlehem, laid in Bethlehem's stable and
manger. Mysterious. And then thirdly,
manna was a gift. Completely free. It cost the
Jews nothing. It required no plowing. It required
no planting. It required no watering. It required
no cultivating. It only required eating. That's
all. They went out and picked it up.
It was totally free. Even so, turn to John 4 verse
10. Our Lord Jesus Christ, what he
has done for us in his person and work is a gift, a free gift. Men want to do, they want to
do something, but Christ is received. There's nothing we can add to
him. Look at John 4, verse 10. Jesus answered and said to this
woman, If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that saith
to thee, Give me a drink, you would have asked of him, and
he would have given you living water. It's a gift. Israel walked
out of their tents in the morning. They made no preparation, no
plowing, no planting, no cultivating. Went out, picked it up. The bread
was a gift, free. And even so, Christ our Lord,
the bread of life, is free. And when you go about to add
something to Him or add your works or merit, then you're seeking
to establish your own righteousness instead of receiving His. And
then in the fourth place, this manna was given to everybody
who wanted it. It was open and free to the rich
and to the poor. To the old and to the young,
to the learned, to the ignorant, no one was forbidden to take
it. There it is. It's free. Help yourself. That's what Moses said. Take
all you need. Everyday supply. Every morning was right out there.
All you had to do was take it. That's the way Christ is. He's
free to all who want Him. And then this manna. Now watch
this. When did this manna fall? When did it come? They never
had it in Egypt. Never had it in Egypt. They received
it only in the wilderness. And they received it when they
reached the point of needing it the most. They came to the
point of hunger. They came to the point of hunger. They needed something to eat.
And that's when God met their needs. Turn to Psalm 107. This is what we were talking
about. We read this in the study a while ago in the men's prayer
group. in Exodus, in Psalm chapter 107. Listen to this. This is what
men miss. And this is something that you
can't teach. This is something that has to
be revealed, like all the rest of God's Word. But listen to
this, Psalm 107. Give thanks unto the Lord. He's
good. His mercy endureth forever. Let the redeemed of the Lord
say so, whom He hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy. The
enemy is Satan and sin and the law. and gathered them out of
the lands from the east and from the west, from the north and
the south. They wandered in the wilderness in a solitary way.
They found no city to dwell in. Hungry and thirsty, their soul
fainted in them. Then, then, when they came to
the end of themselves, then, cried to the Lord in their trouble.
And He delivered them. He delivered them. Look down
at verse 12. He brought down their heart with
labor. They fell down. There was none to help. Then
they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and He saved them. Turn
the page there and look, if you will, at verse 18. Their soul abhorred all manner
of meat. They draw near unto the gates
of death. Then they cried unto the Lord
in their trouble, and He saved them. Look at verse 27, they
reel to and fro and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their
wits end. Then they cry unto the Lord in
their trouble, and He bringeth them out of their distresses.
It was not in Egypt when the matter came, it was in the wilderness
of Sin. It was out there in the desert.
It was out there when there was none to help, when there was
no source of supply, when they were hungry and weary and thirsty
and fainting and dying. That's when God sent them. Food
is always welcomed by a hungry person. Turn to Proverbs 27. I want you to listen to this
scripture, underline it, and then go back later and study
it. The gospel, our Lord said that
the well do not need a physician. Those that are well-fed don't
need food. He said, whosoever is a thirst,
let him come. Now, I stand up here and preach
this wonderful gospel. And some sit and, well, they'd
be glad when it's over, you know, and they have no interest. Their minds are somewhere else.
They really don't have any real keen interest in it and hunger
for it and desire for it. It's just a matter of form or
it's a matter of responsibility or duty or it's carrying on religion
or it's taking the service and preaching just part of it. But
look at verse 7 of Proverbs 27. The full soul, the full soul
loatheth the honeycomb. A man can come into a house There's
the finest food on the table even a pure food like a honeycomb
with its sweetness and tastiness, but now if he's just eating and
He's full He doesn't even want that He doesn't have any need
for it. The fella comes in though. That's
real hungry. He hasn't eaten for days he He's
hungry. He doesn't have any food. He
doesn't have anything to sustain him or nourish him. Look at the
next line. But to the hungry soul, even bitter things are
sweet. Even bitter things are sweet. It depends on your appetite.
That's what it all depends on. An interest in God's Word, an
interest in Christ, an interest in the things of Christ depend
on a man's needs. Depends on his needs. And our
Lord does not reveal Himself to full souls, He reveals Himself
to hungry people. Blessed are they that hunger
and thirst they shall be filled. Why don't you folks get such
a joy out of this? No, why don't I get any joy out
of this? You're not hungry. You wouldn't get any joy out
of the finest meal ever set before a king if you're already full. Have you ever sat down and ate?
And sat down and eating, and when you got through, the lady
of the house offered you my favorite strawberry shortcake with whipped
cream, about four inches deep. And I've been to the place where
I, boy, it just looked, no way, take it away, take it away. I don't want, I don't have, I'm
up to here, you know. I don't want it. Boy, I've seen
the time when I was so hungry that just a, Just a piece of
molded bread with a little peanut butter on it would have been
like a steak. It's so good, you're so hungry.
Without hunting all day, you know, and don't have anything
to eat, come in and sit down, and anything's good. And that's
the way it is. If you're full of this world,
and you're full of intellectualism, and full of philosophy, and full
of tradition, and full of religion, and full of custom, and full
of hatred, and full of bitterness, and full of pride, and full of
all these things, there's no room for God. There's no room
for God, and God's not coming in. Not coming in. God can't give you an appetite.
He's not going to set the table for you. That's right. Israel had to get out of here.
That manna never came. They never saw it, partook of
it, never ate it, until they got hungry. And then in the next place, manna
was not only plentiful, And not only sufficient, but it was sweet
to the taste. It was good. It was good. He said it tasted like wafers
dipped in honey. Wafers dipped in honey. Turn
to Psalm 34. Psalm 34. Listen to this. Psalm
34, verse 8. Psalm 34, verse 8. Oh, taste
and see. That the Lord is good. I'm going
to tell you something, I wouldn't lie to you. I'll tell you the truth. I enjoy
God's Word more now than I did 10 years ago, 20 years ago, 30
years ago. I enjoy it more than I did 5
years ago. I enjoy worshiping the Lord. I look forward more
to praising God and fellowshipping with His people and studying
His Word just to read it and God reveals something to me.
It's fresher and sweeter and richer than it ever has been
before. It's not only sufficient and
not only plentiful, but it's pleasant. It's pleasant. Let's try John 6, 35 and see
what this says here. John 6, 35. He says here in verse 35, And
Jesus said to them, I am the bread of life, he that cometh
to me, he that cometh to me. That's not a once for all thing,
that's a continual coming. Shall never hunger, he that believeth
on me shall never thirst. Because it's new every morning. It's new every morning. I heard
the voice of Jesus say, come to me and rest. Lay down thy
weary one, lay down thy head upon my breast. And I came to
Jesus, just like I was, weary and worn and sad. And I found
in him a resting place. And he made me glad. I heard
the voice of Jesus say, behold, I freely give. The living water,
thirsty one, stoop down and drink and live. Well, I came to Jesus,
and I drank of that life-giving stream. My thirst was quenched,
and my soul revived, and now I live in Him. And it's something
that... You know why preachers have to
have all of this entertainment in the churches? People have
no appetite for the Word. No appetite for the bread of
life. I'll tell you why they have to have a supper on Wednesday
night to get enough crowd in prayer meeting. They have no
appetite for the Word of God. And this is not something that
I can give you. This is something God gives you.
And I tell you, God gives it to you. That appetite, that thirst,
that hunger, that desire will never be fully satisfied till
you see Him face to face. Do you see him face to face?
That's so. Pleasant. Oh, how pleasant to
the taste. How pleasant to the taste. And
if you don't get anything out of preaching, don't blame the
preacher. Blame your full soul. It loatheth even a honeycomb. But to the hungry, it doesn't
matter if the fellow says, drops his Uses the wrong grammar and all
these other things, you know double negatives and all this
other stuff that Fellas hungry won't have much say about whether
you put that in a can or a glass. He glad to get it glad to get
it here's the third thing now this this is something here that
I want you to look at see if See if you can get hold of this
right here Now, remembering what we've said about the manna, right
over here in verse 4, there's a forgotten statement that's
repeated over and over and over again about this bread from heaven
and other dealings of God with Israel. Look at verse 4, Exodus
16. Then said the Lord to Moses,
Behold, I'll rain bread from heaven for you, and the people
shall go out and gather a certain rate every day, That I may prove
them. That I may prove them. Look hard
at it now. That I may prove them. Turn back
to Exodus 15 just a moment. Verse 24. Just a page back. Exodus 15, 24. And the people
murmured against Moses saying, what shall we drink? And he cried
unto the Lord, and the Lord showed him a tree, which, when he had
cast it into the waters, the waters were made sweet. And there
he made for them a statue and an ordinance, and there he proved
them. Now if you will turn to Deuteronomy
chapter 8. Now watch this. Deuteronomy 8 verse 2. And thou
shalt remember all the way which the Lord thy God led thee these
forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove
thee." To prove thee. All right, look at verse 16 of
Deuteronomy 8. Verse 16, Deuteronomy 8. Now
look at it, this is important. "...who fed thee in the wilderness
with manna, which our fathers knew not, didn't understand what
it was, that he might humble thee, and that he might prove
thee." That he might prove thee. Now, that's too many times to
overlook that. This is just written too many
times. So what I'm saying is this. This is what I believe
this is teaching. The manna served a two-fold purpose. The manna served a two-fold purpose. First of all, it proved to be
a sufficient, tasty, life-giving portion to those who hungered. Yes, it did. It proved to be
just what they needed, just what they wanted. Oh, how they rejoiced
to be out of Egypt. How they rejoiced. They didn't
yearn for that evil country with its idolatry and with its sin
and evil. And they looked forward to Canaan. They looked forward to the land
of rest which God had promised them. And while they were going
through this wilderness for forty years, God gave them the manna
every morning, and it was tasty, it was acknowledged as the grace
of God and the providence of God, they were content, happy
with it, those who knew the Lord. But this manna served a second
purpose. To those people it was sweet
and precious and the gift of God, but to others, to the evil-hearted,
to the evil-hearted whose appetites had not been changed, who longed
for Egypt and the garlic and onions And the flesh pots, they
said. This light bread. You know what
the finest said about turn to Numbers. Numbers 21. Listen to them talking. Numbers
21 5. Here they are. This is later. And they said
to Moses. They speak against God and against Moses. And they
said Numbers 21 5. Wherefore have you brought us
out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? There's no bread, neither is
there any water, and our souls hate this white bread. We hate it. Boy, they didn't hate it
that first few days. Good. They went out and got it,
you know, everybody did. All alike. Here's all of Israel,
you know, and they were hungry. God sent the bread, and there
it was out there. Everybody went out and got the
bread. It's something new, you know, and they baked up this
and baked up that and baked up something else, you know, and
ate it. And the next day they went out, everybody got up before
the sun rose, went out and got it again, baked up this, and
after a while it became a division. Some of the people continued
to eat it and to rejoice in it and to love it and to thank God
for it and continue to enjoy it. Some of the rest stopped.
They're weary of it. They long for the onions and
garlics of Egypt. They said, we hate this light
bread. We're tired of it. We're weary
of it. We wish we were back in Egypt
with the garlic and onions. Now, what's this? Christ, the
bread of life, has a two-fold effect on everybody, a two-fold
effect on the people who are exposed to Him and His gospel,
to the redeemed, who have an appetite for His Word and an
appetite for His grace like the manner it's new every morning,
like the manner it's tasty as honey wafers, like the manner
it satisfies the mouth and the heart, like the manner we never
grow weary of His mercies. But to some empty professors,
they grow weary, they grow tired. And you know why? Their appetites
have never been changed. They never really enjoyed this
manner. Their appetites still crave the
garlics and onions and flesh pots of Egypt. And they're soon
wearied of this bread. Listen to this. The bread of
life is never sweet to anybody's taste till God's given him an
appetite for it. An appetite. We see the, this explains the
excitement and emotions of the religious. And I'll tell you
this, now listen to me, I'm very serious about this. We see the
people of Israel, and this manna is a new thing. They go out there,
can't you just see them like you were there that morning?
Look, it's new. Isn't that something? Look at all that. What is that?
What is that? Moses said it's bred from God. We call it manna. What is it? They gathered it
up, and real excited. Well, the days went along, and
that same manor was there every morning, you know, a different
supply, but still manor. And after a while, it got to
be old hat, it got to be tiresome, and it got to be where they were
sort of, they lost their excitement. And that's the way it happens
in religious circles. People come to church and they
hear the preacher preach, talk about Christ and salvation and
heaven and hell and finding your solution for your problems and
bringing your home together and raising your children and happy
in the Lord. And they go down the aisle, make
a profession, sit there a while and get excited. Maybe start
teaching Sunday school and they start wearing a sign up here
and start carrying a Bible, you know, and go to church for a
while. And then what happens? Well, what happens is this. This manor met the need of those
who had an appetite for it. They had a desire for it. They
had an appreciation for it. People whose appetites had been
changed. And those whose appetites still
craved these other things, you know, they hadn't been changed.
And the manor revealed it. You see a continuation of the
gospel. A lot of churches are trying
new things. They're always shifting gears.
They'll try this for a while. They'll try a revival. They call
in different personalities. They change preachers. They change
preachers after two or three years. Then they change song
leaders. Then they'll change ministers
of education. Then they're trying stuff like
a baseball team changing managers. Why? Because people's appetites
are not centered on the gospel and on Christ. So they have to
keep giving them new things. They loathe this light bread.
We're tired of this. We want something different,
something new. And that's the same preaching
of the gospel is what reveals that. That's what it says. So
God says to them, I send you manna. Keep on sending it. And what does that manna do?
It reveals the condition of a man's heart. That's what it does. And that's the reason I say you
have to... Somebody says, well, so-and-so got saved last Sunday.
Well, I'll give so-and-so a little while and wait and see if he's
saved. I'll give him a little while. Give him the test of time.
And I know this, if he is well saved, his appetite's been changed,
and he loves the Word, and he hungers for the Word, and you
can't satisfy him with anything else but God's Word. And if in
five years he's running around talking about he'd loathe at
this light bread, and he's out here chasing prophecy, Or he's
out here chasing some unanswerable question about Cain's wife. Or
he's out here chasing some fly-by-night hotshot healer that's come through.
Or he's out chasing intellectualism or something else. He's weary
of that bread. Christ said, I'm the bread. I'm
the bread. And he's weary of Christ. He's
weary of Jesus Christ. He's weary of that same old gospel. He's weary of that substitution.
He's weary of that cross. He's weary of the blood. He's
tired of hearing about it. He wants something new. That's one of those folks that
the bread reveals it. God says, I'll give you this
bread. I'll prove you. I'll prove you. I'll reveal what's
in your heart. Listen to this poem. I quit.
Leave thee? No, my dear Savior. Thee whose
blood my pardon bought, Slight thy mercy, scorn thy favor, perish
such a wicked thought. Leave thee never. Where for peace
could I resort? Be offended at thee? Never. Thee
to whom my all I owe? Rather shall my heart endeavor
with unceasing love to glow. Leave thee never. Where for safety
could I go? Thou alone art my salvation.
There's none can save but thee. Thou, through thy divine oblation
from my guilt, hast set me free. Leave thee? Never! Thou art bread
and milk to me. But, O Lord, thou knowest my
weakness. Thou knowest how prone I am to
stray. God of love, truth, and meekness,
guide and keep me in this way. Blessed Redeemer, let me never
stray from thee. Leave thee never. This is what
he's saying here. You look that over a little bit
and think about it. God says, I give you that bread
to prove you, to reveal what's in your heart. You grow weary
of it, you say, my soul loathes this light bread, wishes back
in Egypt. Your appetite hasn't been changed.
Appetite that's what so it's twofold really this bread of
life serves a twofold purpose Christ grows more precious more
precious to those who know him and needed and finding him all
they need and then those that Whose appetites have not been
changed by God's power, but they've got religion from the hand of
some preacher weary of it Here we are. We've heard that before
But you've never heard it enough. You've never heard it enough. How would you be happy in heaven
where we're going to sing His praises for eternity? How would
you be able to sing the songs of Moses and the...

Christ - The True Bread

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Christ - The True Bread

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