“Man Does Not Live By Bread Alone” Deuteronomy 8:1-5

After His public baptism in the Jordan, Jesus went out into the wilderness. All three of the first gospel accounts (John doesn’t include it) indicate Jesus was led into the desert by the Spirit for the specific purpose of being tempted by Satan. Jesus was there for 40 days, fasting and praying. Both Matthew and Mark indicate that Satan came to Jesus after the fasting and tempted Him with food. It’s not surprising; after all, Jesus was hungry. The temptation was straight and to the point: You’re the Son of God; all You have to do is turn some of these stones into bread. And, voila—no more hunger. Jesus quoted from the Old Testament in His response. In fact, His response is found in v. 3 of today’s passage: “Man does not live by bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.”

Jesus’ quote and understanding of the verse are very accurate, but when we look at the surrounding verses and put it into context, we discover that there is a much richer, deeper meaning to the verse.

Background

The book of Deuteronomy is in many ways a summary of Exodus, Leviticus and Numbers. For the most part, Moses spends the chapters reminding the people of the things that happened and the laws that were given, and he puts them both into context. The events in Deuteronomy come toward the end of the 40 years of wandering. The generation that was of fighting age when they left Egypt have all died out with a few exceptions. A new generation, hardened by life in the wilderness, relying on God and His leadership, is now ready to claim the promise of the land given to Abraham over 400 years ago. Moses spends this time reminding the people of how they got to this point and the importance of walking in obedience with the Lord.

As we consider this particular passage, we come to the following truth:

Central Truth: Part of living is through the Word of God.

The Word of God is used to:

1. Bless us (1)

It is not unusual in Deuteronomy for Moses to urge the people to obey God’s commands. He has witnessed the consequences of disobedience both in the people of Israel and in his own life. He understands the gravity of failing to trust God and follow His will.

So it is today. Moses encourages his listeners to follow every command, not just of God but also of their human leader, Moses. God’s commands are mandatory; Moses’ commands are strongly encouraged, come upon by experience and spiritual understanding and growth.

The reason God seeks their obedience is His desire to bless them in their new land. The blessings given—live and increase and enter and possess—are all contingent on their obedience to the commands being given them by God and by Moses.

The unspoken part of the verse is failure to obey will result in the people being unable to live and increase and enter and possess. Failure to obey is an invitation to be swallowed up by others, to be taken from the land, to be punished and forced to endure additional hardships beyond their imaginings. Sadly, the history of the nation of Israel shows just these things happening as they turn from God and turn to other gods and other practices.

But for now, the promise is before them—obey and enjoy God’s blessings.

1. Humble us (2-4)

I find the truly interesting part of this passage is found in these three verses. In them we find the reason for the hardship the people endured as they left Egypt and came near to the Promised Land. The reason Moses states is for the Lord to humble the people, to teach them to rely on Him and to expose the true nature of their hearts.

“Remember how the Lord your God led you all the way in the desert these forty years, to humble you and to test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep His commands” (v. 2).

It’s hard to imagine a people who had suffered slavery for all their known lives to have pride, but it seems the people of Israel did. Maybe that pride came about as they walked away from Egypt as a conquering army, with the wealth of the nation in their possession. Yes, it was God that had brought about this wondrous occasion, but it probably didn’t take long for the people to begin to see themselves in a new light, in a greater light than they truly deserved. I think of this like a person who grew up poor, then suddenly strikes it rich. We hear too often of how such people squander their new-found wealth, unable to handle it wisely, flaunting it and throwing it away. Perhaps that was what had happened to Israel. They needed to be humbled, to be reminded of how they got where they were.

So God led them from Egypt through the Red Sea to Sinai. He led them from Sinai to Kadesh Barnea just outside the Promised Land. All during that time, it was God who had provided them with food and water. All of this was designed to humble the people.

The Bible is very clear that God knows our hearts, He knows our thoughts, He knows our needs and He knows us better than we know ourselves. I suspect that the act of humbling the people was as much to teach them about themselves as it was to prepare them to enter the land. They needed to come to an understanding of their tendency to complain, to have a short memory when it came to how God had led them. They needed to realize that they were a people who expected so much more of God than they were willing to give to Him of themselves. They needed to know whether or not they were willing to obey, willing to believe, willing to trust.

The giving of the manna was to remind the people that food and all physical needs come ultimately from God. We do not live by bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord. The manna was a reminder that God is the Provider and Sustainer of His people. He is faithful to meet our needs and provide for us as the need arises. But we also need to realize that God provides our needs, not our wants. He provides our daily requirements, not our long-range desires.

The Word that comes from the mouth of the Lord is the Word of life, the Word of hope and assurance and warning and instruction. The Word is the Son of God, made flesh to give us the greatest understanding we can have this side of glory of Who and What God really is.

As the final reminder to the people of God’s humbling them and providing for them, Moses reminds them that their clothes never wore out nor did their feet ever swell in the forty years of wilderness wandering. God took care of His people, even as He humbled them.

1. Discipline us (5)

This last verse is a reminder of the special relationship God has with His people. “As a man disciplines his son, so the Lord your God disciplines you” (v. 5).

This is a verse that underscores the hardships they have endured. They were not the tests of an angry God who grew impatient with them. It was not the act of an impartial Judge who just wanted to see what they would do, like mice in a lab maze. No, this was the act of a God who sees His people as a father sees his own son or daughter.

The reason parents discipline their children is because a child needs to learn discipline. Discipline prepares them for a life of learning and working, a life of caring and understanding. As Luke tells us about Jesus, “And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man” (Luke 2:52). He also wrote, “And the child (Jesus) grew and became strong; He was filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was upon Him” (Luke 2:40). The idea in these verses is what a disciplined person will do. They will learn, they will grow, and they will become a valuable member of society and walk in humility with God.

Moses’ hope is that the people will know this in their hearts—they will have an emotional attachment to God as well as an intellectual one. When we know in our heart that something is so, it finds an added strength and certainty to it.

Conclusion

Moses wants Israel to see the love of God evident in the events that have led them to this momentous occasion. He wants them to understand that everything God has done for the people has been to bring them to the point where they can be successful. And their success lies in the obedience to the Word of the Lord. And that obedience comes from understanding that the Word of the Lord is life itself.