No Satisfaction
1. “Be careful to obey all the commands I am giving you today. Then you will live and multiply, and you will enter and occupy the land the Lord swore to give your ancestors.
2. Remember how the Lord your God led you through the wilderness for these forty years, humbling you and testing you to prove your character, and to find out whether or not you would obey his commands.
3. Yes, he humbled you by letting you go hungry and then feeding you with manna, a food previously unknown to you and your ancestors. He did it to teach you that [we] do not live by bread alone; rather, we live by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.
4. For all these forty years your clothes didn’t wear out, and your feet didn’t blister or swell.
5. Think about it: . . . The Lord your God disciplines you for your own good.” Deuteronomy 8:1-5
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“I’m starving!” we often say in deliberate exaggeration. It’s just a signal to those nearby that we’re really hungry and open to devoting great energy to getting access to food as soon as possible.
In this reminiscence by Moses, God reminds the Israelites that he allowed them to experience hunger for a purpose, to help them learn something about finding satisfaction. As you read, look for the lesson on where to find spiritual nourishment.
There’s plenty more to learn in this passage: seeing God’s place in everyday experiences; responding whenever success strikes; heeding warnings; and reading God’s Word.
Jesus quoted Deuteronomy 8:3 when the devil tempted him to turn stones into bread (see Matthew 4:4). God’s Word is the ultimate source of nourishment, and we should be much more concerned about feeding our spirits than feeding our bodies.
Many people think that life consists of satisfying physical appetites and indulging their desires. If they can earn enough money to dress, eat, and play in high style, they think they are living the good life. But indulging such desires does not satisfy a person’s deepest longings. Instead, satisfaction comes from total commitment to God, the one who created life itself. This means relying on God and feeding on his Word. It requires discipline, sacrifice, and hard work—which is why most people never find it.
Be careful not to equate indulgence with satisfaction. When are you tempted to place your physical desires above your spiritual needs? Keep your focus on the Lord, and find your satisfaction in him.
