When the children of Israel journeyed in the wilderness after their deliverance from Egypt but before their entry into the Promised Land, they received food from the Lord called manna. It’s not something that we’ve knowingly seen since then, but through the scriptural record we can still learn many lessons about obedience from it today.
Manna was an interesting thing. According to Exodus 16, it was a “small round thing” that appeared on the ground in the morning like dew or frost. The word manna comes from a phrase in Hebrew that literally means, “What is it?” The children of Israel did not know what it was when they first saw it. But Exodus 16:31 tells us that “it was like coriander seed, white; and the taste of it was like wafers made with honey.”
Moses, their prophet, explained to them that it was from the Lord. They were instructed to gather what they could eat in the morning, and then they would have the food that they needed. This was indeed a great blessing from the Lord, and a sign that He was mindful of their needs and taking care of them. Furthermore, the Lord said in Exodus 16:4, “I will rain bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go out and gather a certain rate every day, that I may prove them, whether they will walk in my law, or no.” So it was part of the Lord’s plan that the people demonstrate their obedience to His laws.
But the people didn’t always follow the instructions. They soon learned that they had to follow them exactly or they would not have the food that they needed. They had to gather the manna in the morning; if they waited until later, it would melt in the sun. And they couldn’t gather extra one morning and have some left for the next day, because it would spoil and become infested with worms. However, on the day before the Sabbath they were commanded to gather twice as much as usual. That extra manna that was gathered at that time would stay good through the Sabbath, allowing them to both eat and keep the Sabbath day holy. Those who did not gather extra, but instead went out on the morning of the Sabbath expecting to find food were sorely disappointed to find that there was none.
So the early house of Israel learned that taking shortcuts and breaking the rules resulted in no food for them. It’s a lesson we can all learn from. Often we expect to gain blessings or rewards while putting in as little work as possible. Some people hope to profit from “get-rich-quick” schemes, while many others expect to find happiness and peace while living lives of immorality and discarded integrity.
In the Doctrine of Covenants, a book regarded as scripture by members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, commonly known as “Mormons,” we read:
There is a law, irrevocably decreed in heaven before the foundations of this world, upon which all blessings are predicated—
And when we obtain any blessing from God, it is by obedience to that law upon which it is predicated. (Doctrine and Covenants 130:20-21)
The Lord through His prophets has told us that in order to receive blessings, we must obey the laws associated with those blessings. There is not a shortcut to true happiness. Only by following the commandments that the Lord has given us will we find true peace and joy.
