Bread & Water Rations

Carp's Daily Tidbits

"Praise the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits." Psalm 103:2

Date: Friday, March 20, 2015  

Today's Title: Bread & Water Rations  

Today's Scripture: John 6:35  

The Ten Commandments directed by Cecil B. DeMille and starring Charlton Heston as Moses, is one of my all time favorite movies.  I have watched that film many times over and every time I view it I see something I didn’t see before. There are so many wonderful scenes and depictions in the film that have become famous it seems impossible to pick only one to use for today’s devotional.

The crossing of the Red Sea, the plagues on Egypt, the conversation at the burning bush, the giving of the Ten Commandments, and the walk out of Egypt are all wonderfully portrayed by Mr. DeMille.  Any of these is enough to make the hair on the back of your neck stand on end.  However, there is one scene which is not so popular, not so well known, but one I think teaches a great lesson about following Christ.

After Ramses (played by Yul Bryner) discovers that Moses is a Hebrew and not an Egyptian, he bans him from Egypt, sending him into the desert to find his destiny.  As they stand at the border of Egypt, Ramses orders that Moses be given one day’s supply of bread and water and he commends Moses to the God who has no name for safe keeping.  It goes without saying that Ramses does not believe in God and fully intends that Moses should die in the wilderness. Bread and water rations are not the food of kings; they are the sustenance of prisoners and outcasts!

There is great theology in this one scene.  In fact, the entire gospel and its message of salvation are wonderfully depicted in these few moments of film. Just like Heston’s character, we too are living in a world in which we do not belong.  For us, the world is a desert, offering no shelter, no safety, and no comfort.  Sometimes the hot winds blow furiously against us and sometimes the loneliness is overwhelming.

If we were to stop here, we would indeed grow very depressed and want to give up. Why go on in the face of such overwhelming and daunting circumstances?  But we’re not finished yet!  Ramses gave Moses bread and water rations to sustain him across that wilderness.  Although that seemed far less than adequate, he arrived safely in Median where he was able to restore his strength.  DeMIlle, I believe, took great license here but he accurately depicted the way in which God helps us cross the deserts of life and brings us to a place of safety, comfort, and endless provision.

 In John 6:35, Jesus makes the following statement about himself, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty.”  Read that verse again and you will find that our sustenance through life is bread and water.  Jesus knows that we can make it across this wilderness and arrive safely home as long as we have a daily ration of bread and water. 

There is only one catch!  He alone must be our portion!  Notice that Jesus calls himself the bread of life.  When he spoke to the woman at the well (John 4:1-26) he promised to give her living water if she put her faith in him.  Throughout the scriptures we see the elements of bread and water and how God used them to feed His people in the desert.  They ate manna during the entire 40-year march in the desert.  God fed Elijah with bread and water when he was tired.  And Jesus spoke of himself many times as the bread of life providing nourishment and sustenance to all those who believe in him.

Today, we are walking across the desert of life heading toward the land of God’s promise.  We are not there yet; but on the way He is with us.  He will not abandon us in the desert, He will not forget we need food and water, and He will never let us go hungry or thirsty. Instead, He gives us a daily ration of bread and water which is nothing less than His son, Jesus Christ.  Have you had your ration of bread and water today?