Demanding What They Craved

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Scripture
 
Psa. 78:17        Yet they sinned still more against him,
        rebelling against the Most High in the desert.
18     They tested God in their heart
        by demanding the food they craved.

Observation

This is a Psalm about the faithfulness of God, and yet it also reveals when the people refused to follow in obedience. The Israelites were testing God’s faithfulness while they wandered in the wilderness. They had seen God part the waters but now, they were tired of their travels and and they didn’t believe that God had the power to provide them with necessary food and water. They chose to stop believing until God would again prove to be faithful.

Their desire for proof of God’s power came out of a lust for things that they craved. This wasn’t what they needed, but what they wanted. God had a way of providing for their every need, but now they wanted what they craved, and were demanding it from God.

Application

The Israelites were willing to put God to the test by demanding what they craved. Their attitudes revealed a people who had no personal relationship with God, but instead saw God as someone who simply provided for their every whim. If he didn’t do what they wanted, they threw a tantrum!

We wouldn’t want to imagine that we ever respond the way in which the Israelites did, demanding what they craved! Our relationship with God is to be one in which we intimately learn the heart of God. When this happens we can no longer simply see God as a provider of things, but as one with whom we abide and get to know on a very personal level. Suddenly there can be no demanding of our own rights or desires, because our hearts become aligned with God’s passions.

The demands of the Israelites simply revealed their spiritual immaturity. When we begin to demand God respond in particular ways we are also reflecting an immature relationship with God. God has so much more for us than simply what we might demand. God knows what satisfies our very deepest needs and when we demand the things we want, we miss out on the very best for our lives. Why be satisfied with our personal cravings when we can have abundant life when we are united with Christ!

Prayer

Lord, thank you for your provision in life. Amen.


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