Morning Manna by Rufus Parker: 2011 April 22

Friday, April 22, 2011

2011 April 22 - Morning Manna

Now about that time Herod the king stretched forth his hands to vex certain of the church. And he killed James the brother of John with the sword. And because he saw it pleased the Jews, he proceeded further to take Peter also. (Then were the days of unleavened bread.) And when he had apprehended him, he put him in prison, and delivered him to four quaternions of soldiers to keep him; intending after Easter to bring him forth to the people (Acts 12:1-4)

Today's Morsel: The Greek word for Easter here is the word pascha, pas'-khah which means the Passover (the meal, the day, the festival or the special sacrifices connected with it). The Passover was instituted in Exodus 12 with the last plague upon Egypt. It was one of those feasts that God required that His children obey and never forget. He told Moses, "And thus shall ye eat it; with your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and ye shall eat it in haste: it is the LORD'S Passover.... And this day shall be unto you for a memorial; and ye shall keep it a feast to the LORD throughout your generations; ye shall keep it a feast by an ordinance forever." (Exodus 12:11-14). We celebrate the Passover, on the Friday that some call "Good Friday." It was good because that is the day that Christ died for our sins. "For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him" (2 Corinthians 5:21). "And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission" (Hebrews 9:12-22). But the third day, is the day He rose again. Easter is a time that every believer should celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ. As Jesus told Martha, "I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live" (John 11:25). Easter represents newness of life. When we have died with Him through repentance, and have been buried with Him in baptism, we are then risen to walk in newness of life. Are you celebrating ?

Sing: Go ahead, drive the nails in my hands, laugh at me where you stand; Go ahead and say it isn't me; the day will come when you will see! Cause I'll rise again; Ain't no power on earth can tie me down; yes I'll rise again, death can't keep me in the ground!

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About Morning Manna

And it came to pass, as Aaron spake unto the whole congregation of the children of Israel, that they looked toward the wilderness, and, behold, the glory of the LORD appeared in the cloud. And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, I have heard the murmurings of the children of Israel: speak unto them, saying, At even ye shall eat flesh, and in the morning ye shall be filled with bread; and ye shall know that I am the LORD your God. And it came to pass, that at even the quails came up, and covered the camp: and in the morning the dew lay round about the host. And when the dew that lay was gone up, behold, upon the face of the wilderness there lay a small round thing, as small as the hoar frost on the ground. And when the children of Israel saw it, they said one to another, It is manna: for they wist not what it was. And Moses said unto them, This is the bread which the LORD hath given you to eat (Exodus 16:10-15).

“Morning Manna” is a short daily devotion which began in 2002, with just a short note of encouragement to a friend who was facing difficulties at the time. Through their response, I was encouraged to begin a daily devotion via email and send it to people who asked to be put on the distribution list. It is now reaching around the globe. Its birth came about during Morning Prayer. The Lord revealed to me that I should forward my friend a word of encouragement, since it is through patience and comfort of the scripture that we find hope. Thus, I forwarded him the words the Lord had given to me for him, and he forwarded it on to someone else who was having difficulties in their life as well, and thus the original list began.

The goal of “Morning Manna” is to provide people with a quick, thought provoking Word from the Lord, as well as provide encouragement from His Word that can help them through the day and during unexpected trails and circumstances in their daily lives.

Several years ago, Jesus moved on my heart to start writing daily devotions; thus began “Morning Manna”. Today, many people are receiving these daily devotions and many of these people are forwarding it on to their family and friends. It is my hope to encourage even more through posting the devotions to this blog-page.

I pray that you, too, will enjoy reading the manna from this site.