Day 4: Tempted
Illustration
Numbers 11:4-6 (NIV) “The rabble with them began to crave other food, and again the Israelites started wailing and said, “If only we had meat to eat! We remember the fish we ate in Egypt at no cost—also the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions, and garlic. But now we have lost our appetite; we never see anything but this manna!”
At this point in their journey, the Israelites had been out of Egypt for over two years. They were no longer slaves; they were God's chosen people. And as God's chosen people, they had repeatedly watched as God protected them and provided for their needs.
Nevertheless, when faced with day after day of hot, barren desert, they wearied and began to complain. Instead of remembering all that God had done for them, they recalled the good food they ate while in slavery, and this led them to a place of sorrow, discontent, and frustration.
Oh, friend, this happens to us too. The world calls us to return to it, reminding us of the pleasure we had in indulging our flesh and promising "abundant life" if we will but return. Our flesh wearies of Jesus, the spiritual Bread (John 6:48-51), and longs for the physical, the natural, and the carnal. But we must not believe the lies of the world, the devil, or our flesh. Only Christ can satisfy your hungry heart. Only Christ provides abundant life to you because He suffered death in your place.