The towering figure of Moses was gone, creating an immense leadership vacuum. It too was a time of crisis, with the Israelites poised to take possession of the promised land. The mantle of leadership fell to Joshua, who must have felt inadequate and overwhelmed by the weight of responsibility

Some are dismissive of the return of Christ in light of the considerable passage of time since these words were spoken. The seeming delay is the very issue that Jesus addressed. Let us not be lulled into believing that delay is denial; that He will not return. “You too, be ready; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour that you do not expect” Luke 12:40.

Many people have concluded that God’s demands are beyond our reach. No matter how hard we try to please Him, we ultimately always fail. From the perspective of human effort, that is correct: we cannot on our own please Him. But, the point of these verses is that the potential to do so through faith is indeed possible. Notice how Paul framed these verses:

Questioning is key. Perhaps you have heard someone state, “I know this is a dumb question but …” There is no such thing as a dumb question in that anyone willing to ask has a desire to know and learn.

The sin of self-reliance is high on the list in a culture of plenty. Even the poorest among us have choices that many in the world cannot even imagine. When we overly depend upon personal financial resources and/or social benefits, we easily slide down the slippery slope away from reliance on our Creator.

Apparently John never took a preaching class in Bible college or seminary. Calling out listeners as a “brood of vipers” hardly endears an audience. After all, those listening have taken the important step of listening, as opposed to those who didn’t show up at all. It’s like berating the Resurrection Sunday crowd for only showing up once a year.

The real food, however, was not the manna but the Provider; words echoed by Jesus in His wilderness temptation: “It is written, ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.’ ” Matthew 4:4.