Tomorrow’s manna can be kept overnight without breeding worms. Why is this? Because the Lord ordered it thus in preparation for the Sabbath. Some went out on the Sabbath and found none. There will always be people who put the Lord to the test out of an impure heart.
There is a spiritual lesson here. Let’s follow it up. Shall we obtain enough food for today AND tomorrow? No, no, the Lord said, “sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.” This is how The Message puts it – “Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don’t get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes.” That seems to put a damper on any thought about “tomorrow’s manna”.
But wait a minute. In the Lord’s Prayer He said “Give us this day our daily bread”. And expositors tell us that there is a peculiar Greek word for “daily” in the original, which they think ought to be translated “for tomorrow”. If this is so, then are we encountering a contradiction, or is there some hidden truth here, some “hidden manna”?
“Give us today our bread for tomorrow”. What did the Lord mean? Clearly He was referring back to Exodus 16 and the teaching about the manna needed on the Sabbath. Does that help? In Hebrews we are warned not to become like the Israelites in the wilderness who never entered the Promised Land, their “time of Rest”, through unbelief. But we are told that “there remains a Rest for the people of God.” (Heb.4:9) The Greek is “Sabbatism”. Therefore the Lord taught about a Sabbath Rest.
“Tomorrow’s bread” is therefore connected with “Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” Our thoughts and prayers should be towards the establishment of God’s Kingdom on earth, and our place within that Kingdom. That is the message of the Gospels, where the word Kingdom occurs 124 times.
If the current time in which we live is thought of as the sixth day of the week, then “tomorrow” must be the Sabbath Rest. Are we prepared for the Sabbath Rest? Have we gathered enough manna to prepare us for entry into that Kingdom Day of Rest, and be lifted up to serve the Lord in newness of life?
Am I preparing myself for God’s Kingdom? Have I been asking the Lord for understanding about His Kingdom, His Day of Rest, asking, not just for today’s needs, but manna for the Sabbath?
