What is our spiritual food?

But there is one thing more here. It is not only His tenderness, but He commanded that "something should be given her to eat." What is that if we take it out of the figure now, and apply it? He is the one that gives life, and He is the one that provides for the sustainment of the life He gives. What is the some thing? Shall I tell you? Christ. Not doctrines, not theories, not notions, not thoughts, not opinions; Christ, that is the "something." If you have been quickened by Him, if you have felt His touch of power, He commands that something should be given you to eat. And He commands that to His servants; He did not say that to the girl here, He commands His servants — and, beloved friends, one feels the responsibility of it — He commands that something should be given her, and that something is Christ. Nothing can sustain or nourish or uphold the soul but Christ.

Here, in the face of Satan, our Lord finds His strength; not in doing miracles, or in any provision that He might have made for Himself, but in the word of God. Hunger might have legitimate wants, but here He was, tried by Satan, and He will not step out of the trial till it is over; He will not shift His circumstances or lift one finger for Himself: He waits upon God. "Man shall not live by bread alone," He answers, "but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God." God's word had led Him there, for the Holy Ghost acts by the word, and He would not leave the wilderness till God's word led Him out. This completely set aside Satan's temptations. But more: it brought out the real secret of living in dependence upon God day by day, for the food of the new life is the word of God. Of what immense importance this shows the written word to be, and having it as our household bread day by day; not merely reading it as a task or formal duty, but, as it is indeed, the divinely-suitable provision for the child of God! It is good for every one to study it, because it is in every way for the good of the soul day by day to read it intelligently, heartily, as those that receive it from God Himself. And God does not give that which the heart of man cannot take in, but what is adapted to our daily wants, "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God."

As it is the instrumentality of the new birth, so is it also the proper aliment for the new nature. St. Peter thus says: "As new-born babes, desire the sincere milk of the Word, that ye may grow thereby," (many copies add, "up to salvation"); "if so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious" (1 Peter 2:2-3). Again we are told that "man doth not live by bread only, but by every word which proceedeth out of the mouth of the Lord doth man live" (Deut. 8:3; Matt. 4:4). The Word therefore is the suited food and sustenance for the spiritual life, the means of our nourishment and strength in Christ, as we journey on through the wilderness, waiting for the Lord's return, or to depart and be with Himself, which is far better. I say in Christ, because, as you know, Christ Himself is our food, both as the manna and the old corn of the land, and indeed, to go further back, as the lamb roast with fire (Ex. 12) ; but then it is only in the word of God that He is unfolded to us thus in these several characters. If we would collect the manna for our daily use, we have to roam through the gospels and epistles, where we find Him especially presented to us in this aspect — as a humbled Christ in incarnation; and then, if I would feed upon Him as the old corn of the land, upon a glorified Christ, I am led to the epistles (e.g., Col. 3; Phil. 3, etc.) which present Him as such to our souls. The Scriptures therefore are the green pastures into which the Good Shepherd would lead His flock.

As it is the instrumentality of the new birth, so is it also the proper aliment for the new nature. St. Peter thus says: "As new-born babes, desire the sincere milk of the Word, that ye may grow thereby," (many copies add, "up to salvation"); "if so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious" (1 Peter 2:2-3). Again we are told that "man doth not live by bread only, but by every word which proceedeth out of the mouth of the Lord doth man live" (Deut. 8:3; Matt. 4:4). The Word therefore is the suited food and sustenance for the spiritual life, the means of our nourishment and strength in Christ, as we journey on through the wilderness, waiting for the Lord's return, or to depart and be with Himself, which is far better. I say in Christ, because, as you know, Christ Himself is our food, both as the manna and the old corn of the land, and indeed, to go further back, as the lamb roast with fire (Ex. 12) ; but then it is only in the word of God that He is unfolded to us thus in these several characters. If we would collect the manna for our daily use, we have to roam through the gospels and epistles, where we find Him especially presented to us in this aspect — as a humbled Christ in incarnation; and then, if I would feed upon Him as the old corn of the land, upon a glorified Christ, I am led to the epistles (e.g., Col. 3; Phil. 3, etc.) which present Him as such to our souls. The Scriptures therefore are the green pastures into which the Good Shepherd would lead His flock.

But where, you may again ask, are we to find the needed, suited portion for the soul? Let the Spirit of Truth answer. "Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price." And again, In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto ME and drink." (Isaiah 55:1-3; John 7:37.) Nothing can be plainer than these passages. Christ Himself is the life and food of the soul. "And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life; he that cometh to me shall never hunger, and he that believeth on me shall never thirst." (John 6:35.) Here, and here alone, the soul of man will find eternal rest. He is the only perfect and permanent good of the soul. But He is above the sun. He has gone up on high. We must believe in Him, and through believing, come to Him where He is. We must rise in spirit — in heart, above the sun, to find the spiritual blessings which our souls need. "He that hath the Son hath life." We must possess Himself as our wealthy portion. Oh, have you found your way to Him? Are you occupied with Him? Can you now say — just now — "Whom have I in heaven but thee? and there is none upon earth that I desire beside thee"? Christ not only fills, but overflows the soul which is occupied with Him alone.

But it is not only that by which we are born again, it is also the food of the believer’s soul. As new-born babes we are to desire the sincere milk of the Word, that by it we may grow up to salvation (1 Peter 2:2, N.Tr.); that is, to the complete emancipation of the soul from every evil thing that would hold it in bondage. The prophet could say, “Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and Thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart” (Jer. 15:16). The Word is the food of our spiritual being as natural bread is the food of our bodies. That which is fed with the bread that perishes will itself perish, but that which is fed with the bread of life, the bread that comes down from heaven, will live for ever (1 Cor. 6:13; John 6:58, 63). We are apt to imagine that all that is required is to have the body well nourished with natural bread, and forget that “man shall not live by bread alone, but by every Word of God” (Luke 4:4).

No one is led into the place of weeping without getting some joy. Israel were already God's people: He leads them into the wilderness to humble them; He makes them hunger that He may give them manna; He leads them into trial that He may give them something better. Some would say, If in the midst of the leeks, onions, and flesh-pots of Egypt God had given them the manna, they would have rejected all other things because the manna was better; but it is not so. While the flesh is surrounded by that which suits it, it is fed thereby, and will reject the better things. Day by day, hour by hour, God is leading us to that condition of hunger that He may give us something better, something not discernible by the natural mind, but satisfying. When I have tasted the manna, there is a reality about it; it is not faith any longer. If I am hungry in the wilderness and am fed and braced up by the food, do I not know it? Can power come into my veins and I not know it? It might be a matter of faith that we are to have the manna to-morrow; but it was a matter of feeling and reality that they had eaten it today. As we eat and are strengthened, let us say, I know that man doth not live by bread alone. We feed on Jesus the living bread, the gift of the Father, and we may say that we are miraculously fed from heaven every day by supernatural food, that we might know that man doth not live by bread alone, but by 'every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.'

If these things come by the growing knowledge of God, how can we get that knowledge? By feeding on Him, the Living Bread come down from heaven. We got life by having eaten of it, and we must sustain that life by constant feeding on it.

Now that we know the manifestation of life eternal in Christ and its gifts to the believer, how greatly is the maxim enhanced! What satisfaction can there be outside Him? "He that has the Son has life"; and Christ is the food of that life, both as the true bread out of heaven, giving life to the world, and not to Israel only, by faith, and in raising up at the last day. But there is the further privilege since His death, even to eat His flesh and drink His blood, and thus to dwell with Him, as He dwells in the Christian. He is the Deliverer; what shall man or Satan do to hurt? How shall not God also with Him freely give us all things?

I AM the Bread of Life. Christ is the alone sustainer of spiritual life. It is only as we feed on Him that we are sustained. There are two things about that statement well worth considering. He says, “This is the bread that came down from heaven.” That is to say, that what He was there gave character to what He was here. Also, “And the bread that I will give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world.” This shows that there is only appropriation through death. Out of Him, as having passed through death and settled every question, there is nothing but death. Life and its sustainment is alone found in Him.