In this passage the people of Israel accuse Moses of a capital crime by endangering their lives in the wilderness. By doing this they are putting God to the test. In his grace God “stands before” Moses and instructs him to strike the Rock upon which He is standing with the rod of God’s judgment. God symbolically receives the punishment that Israel deserves and in that way provides the water of life.
Read Exodus 17:1-7
Responding to people who were fascinated by his miracles, Jesus warns not to live for things that will pass away but to live for what will last forever. It is by coming to Jesus as the Bread of Life that we live for what endures to eternal life.
Read John 6:22-36
When the women came to the tomb, they expected to find a dead body. Instead angels appeared to them and told them that Jesus was risen. The resurrection of Christ is the great turning point in history because by his death and resurrection Jesus has won the victory over sin and death.
Read Luke 24:1-12
This passage provides a summary of the gospel message. In the grumbling and disobedience of the people we see our own sin. In God’s grace to them in providing manna we see God’s grace to us in providing Jesus as the Bread of Life. The response of trusting obedience that God required from his people, helps us understand what God requires of us.
Read Exodus 16:1-36
The story of the disciples in a boat on a dark stormy lake is a symbol of the people of God surrounded by the enemies of God and his people. Jesus coming to the across the water reveals Jesus as the God of Israel who is sovereign over the stormy waters and who delivers his people from danger.
Read John 6:16-21
This passage presents Jesus Christ as the Passover Lamb who brings life for his people. The miracle of the feeding of the five thousand points to the abundance of the provision of life that Jesus gives. Jesus is also presented as the prophet/king who is not an earthly king, but one who has come to suffer and die to bring the life that is offered in the gospel.
Read John 5:1-15
In this passage, the Lord leads his people into a situation of difficulty, thus testing them. The people fail the test by grumbling. In his grace God delivers them by making bitter water sweet. He calls them to obedience and promises to be their healer.
Read Exodus 15:22-27
In this passage, Moses and the Israelites sing praise to God for saving them from Pharaoh and his army. The content of their song gives us insight into the kinds of themes that should be included in our songs of praise.
Read Exodus 15:1-21
In this passage, Jesus describes the conditions on earth in the period between his time on earth and his return. He also gives specific instructions about how his people are to live in the light of these conditions.
Read Matthew 24:1-14
In this text Jesus deals with the unbelief of the Jews and as he does so he gives us some important insights into the whole matter of faith and unbelief and the role of evidence. He presents a number of testimonies to his identity as the Son of God and the Saviour of world which should have brought the Jews to faith. His point is that there was plenty of evidence in these testimonies to persuade people that Jesus was the Christ and the Son of God, and that the unbelief of the Jews did not lie with problems with the evidence, but rather with the Jews themselves.
Read John 5:31-47
