順服帶來祝福
約書亞記五章10至15節
10以色列人在吉甲安營。正月十四日晚上，在耶利哥的平原守逾越節。
11逾越節的次日，他們就吃了那地的出產；正當那日吃無酵餅和烘的穀。
12他們吃了那地的出產，第二日嗎哪就止住了，以色列人也不再有嗎哪了。那一年，他們卻吃迦南地的出產。
13約書亞靠近耶利哥的時候，舉目觀看，不料，有一個人手裡有拔出來的刀，對面站立。約書亞到他那裡，問他說：你是幫助我們呢，是幫助我們敵人呢？
14他回答說：不是的，我來是要作耶和華軍隊的元帥。約書亞就俯伏在地下拜，說：我主有甚麼話吩咐僕人。
15耶和華軍隊的元帥對約書亞說：把你腳上的鞋脫下來，因為你所站的地方是聖的。約書亞就照著行了。
信息分享
吉甲只是一個細小的地方，但它卻成了以色列民得蒙祝福的重要地方。
首先，他們在那裡守了逾越節。也許，他們在四十年前在埃及第一次守節，出埃及後在西乃山下第二次守節以後，這次只是他們的第三次守節。聖經沒有告訴我們，他們在曠野飄流的四十年間有沒有守節。既然忘記了行割禮，也許也忘記了每年守逾越節。因為神曾經在出埃及記十二章48節對他們說，所有男子務要受割禮，才可以守這節。
當眾民遵照神的命令守節，他們真的經歷到神的奇妙祝福。事實也確實如此：只要我們遵行神的教導，我們便會更多和更深的經歷神的恩典。
此外，百姓也在吉甲這個地方，開始改變他們四十年來的飲食習慣。他們在曠野飄流的期間，已習慣每天起來收取神從天上降下的嗎哪作為食物；但在吉甲開始，他們便可以吃迦南地所出的一切土產。
對這新一代的以色列民來說，這是一個全新的經驗。當他們取了玉米，拿在手上的時候，心中一定是在思忖著它的生長過程。它不是從天而降，讓他們俯身就可以拾取。他們將要經過犁地、撒種、耕耘和收割的過程，將要付出勞力和汗水，才可以獲得他們的糧食。未來的生活將是全新的體驗；但他們卻知道，神的信實永不改變。
但神的行事方式卻非一成不變。有些時候，祂會主動賜下祂的靈糧，讓我們的心靈輕易得到飽足。但有時，我們卻要用心鑽研神的話語，才能有豐富的收穫。我們不能夠每週只吃一餐；唯有天天享用靈糧，我們的靈命才能成長。神已經在祂的話語中預備了豐富的靈糧，問題是我們有沒有去認真品嚐？
OBEDIENCE BRINGS BLESSING
Joshua 5: 10-15
10 Now the children of Israel camped in Gilgal, and kept the Passover on the fourteenth day of the month at twilight on the plains of Jericho.
11 And they ate of the produce of the land on the day after the Passover, unleavened bread and parched grain, on the very same day.
12 Then the manna ceased on the day after they had eaten the produce of the land; and the children of Israel no longer had manna, but they ate the food of the land of Canaan that year.
13 And it came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted his eyes and looked, and behold, a Man stood opposite him with His sword drawn in His hand. And Joshua went to Him and said to Him, “Are You for us or for our adversaries?”
14 So He said, “No, but as Commander of the army of the LORD I have now come.”
And Joshua fell on his face to the earth and worshiped, and said to Him, “What does my Lord say to His servant?”
15 Then the Commander of the LORD’s army said to Joshua, “Take your sandal off your foot, for the place where you stand is holy.” And Joshua did so.
Message
Gilgal was just a small place but it became a great place of blessing for Israel.
First they observed the Passover Feast. It may be that it was only the third time they had done it. We know they celebrated it in Egypt the first time, then at Mt Sinai the second time. We are not told whether they celebrated it during the forty years of wilderness wanderings. It may be that in those years when they neglected the rite of circumcision (as we saw in yesterday's reading) they did not keep the Passover annually as they should have. For God had said no uncircumcised person could at the Passover Feast (Exodus 12: 48).
When they did keep the Passover, they found wonderful blessing with God. It is always true that when we do what God wants, our fellowship with him becomes richer and deeper.
Gilgal was also the place where their food was changed by God. For forty years they had gathered and eaten manna every day. God had wonderfully provided for them. Now there was a new experience. They ate the corn and other food that had been harvested in the land of Canaan.
As they looked at the corn, they may have thought of what it had taken to produce that grain. There had been ploughing, sowing, cultivating, reaping. There had been hard work and they knew the same thing was ahead of them. It would be a new experience in every day, but God would be faithful in it all.
God doesn't always work in the same way. There are times when he freely gives us spiritual food almost without our working to find it. There are other times when we need to get down and dig into the Word of God to find what he has for us. We can't live on one meal a week. We need to daily discover what God has for us his world. It is there - God has provided food for us. Are we digging into it?