Getting Rid of the Grumbles
Selected Passages
Thanksgiving Message - November 19, 2006
Morning Service
Introduction
A young preacher began a ministry at a church that was rife with disunity, so he devised a simple method to eliminate the bickering. Whenever a member came to him to complain, he would take a spiral notebook out of his desk drawer. It was brand new-still had the Wal-Mart sticker on it. Across the cover of the notebook he had written in magic marker, "Complaints." Then he would say to the member, "I’m glad you’re here. Let’s go over your complaints against so-and-so one by one, and I’ll write them down, and you can sign the complaint. At the next church meeting we’ll bring it up, and you can present your case then." When the church member saw the open book, he or she would inevitably back down, saying, "Oh no! I couldn’t sign anything like that." During ten years of ministry the preacher opened that notebook dozens of times, but he never wrote anything in it.
What is grumbling? Why do we do it? What does it do to us?
Grumbling is simply an extreme form of complaining. It is complaining to the point of overkill.
Over and over again we see examples of this throughout the Bible. People who were never satisfied with anything that God gave to them. Specifically the Old Testament tells us the Israelites and their struggles with grumbling.
The truth is essentially this: When we grumble we can’t be thankful and if we’re thankful we can’t grumble.
10 Ways to Ensure a Thankless Heart
1.) Be happy about nothing in your life
2.) Believe that you deserve every good thing in your life and more that you don’t yet have
3.) Take all of your blessings for granted
4.) Expect everything in your life to always go your way
5.) Find satisfaction in nothing: nothing you have, nothing you do
6.) Complain about everything, everywhere with everyone
7.) Thank God for absolutely nothing
8.) Take credit for the blessings in your life
9.) Figure out something that you don’t have that you want and get fixated with it
10.) Be negative when anything goes wrong
4 The rabble with them began to crave other food, and again the Israelites started wailing and said, "If only we had meat to eat! 5 We remember the fish we ate in Egypt at no cost--also the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions and garlic. 6 But now we have lost our appetite; we never see anything but this manna!" Numbers 11:4-6
The trouble here begins within those who were called the rabble. This was a group of non-Jews who had followed Israel out of Egypt. The King James and the New King James says that they were a mixed multitude. These people were traveling with Israel but were not a part of the Israelite nation. This mixed multitude was mixed both ethnically and spiritually. What was happening was that this group was causing trouble about the food. The problem was that the trouble didn’t stay just in this group but passed into the Israelite camp.
This whole thing more than likely started small and spread like wild fire. One of the rabble started complaining about what they did not have, then moved into what they had back in Egypt and maybe even moved to something like this: if your God is so good why don’t you have meat. The other group was craving other food. In other words they were tired of what God was giving to them and wanted something else.
We sometimes complain don’t we? We complain about things of earth shaking importance.
Complaint
Where we park at the grocery store
Too few people in church
The job that we have
The food that we eat
Worship service was too long
The time of the service is too early
Gratitude
We have the ability to walk
Those who are here
There are many who have none
Many today will go hungry
Freedom to worship
Some would be but can’t get out
This kind of complaining is nothing more than whining. This is what was going on so long ago in the Israelite camp
The end result was wailing in the camp. Wailing is literally a load and unconsolable crying. There are tiems when Samuel cries for something to eat. When Samuel wants to eat he is usually not patient about it. He gets upset when that bottle takes too long and he is tired of waiting for it. He will cry until that bottle arrives. Once he has the bottle the crying stops.
The wailing that is described here reminds me of Samuel getting upset for his bottle. These people were very upset and were to the point of crying. The rabble was causing such a stir in the camp that people in every family were wailing. Can you hear the whining in those words? Can you see the tears running down their faces? Their situation must have been horrible. The distress was too much. What they were crying about - If only we had meat. These people were literally crying over the fact that they wanted different food.
It is highly unlikely that the Egyptians provided meat for the Israelites. There is no way that they were given fine meats to eat. This is a major exaggeration. The only additional resource in Egypt that would have been the canals to and from the Nile. This would have given them an ample supple of fish but they had to catch the fish themselves.
These people were remembering what they had in Egypt with a sense of nostalgia. They were remembering all of the food that they had in Egypt and all of the good things that were there. In all of this remembering they had forgotten one major fact - they were slaves in Egypt. These people were willing to trade their freedom for corn flakes. They would give up their freedom for a life of bondage for food. Remember they were not starving; God was supplying the food they needed. They just didn’t want it anymore.
This may sound ridiculous but don’t we see people doing the exact same thing today? The problem came to the issue of craving. People trade their freedom in Christ for the things of this world. They give up what they have for what they crave.
Often we crave the things that cause us to slip in our walk with Christ. The word crave in verse 4, literally meant to crave a craving. This was an intense craving. How many people do you know that give into their cravings?
Cravings for different things
Coffee - Got to have that morning start up
Chocolate - want to satisfy that sweet tooth
Attention - want to be the center of everything at any cost
Affection - want to be loved in a genuine manner
The key issue was that the people no longer wanted what God was providing. They didn’t want the manna anymore. They wanted what they were craving. At the end of this passage the location where Israel camped was named Kibroth Hattaavah which means Grave of Craving. The people rebelled against God over His provision. What was manna? It must have been bad for these people to rebel over it.
The Israelites were in the desert and in need of food. Their supplies had run out and God promised Moses that he would rain down bread from heaven. Manna was a bit unusual to say the least.
Every day the manna came down on the camp with the morning dew. The description given of manna was fairly vivid. Manna was said to be white like coriander seed, which is more like a cream color or pale yellow. It also came down in flakes like the frost. When God sent the manna it covered the ground like a light snow or a heavy frost. Morning after morning the Israelites got up to a covering of manna on the ground.
Manna tasted like wafers made with honey and like something made with olive oil. Both descriptions give the impression that manna had a sweet flavor to it.
The root of the problem is that the people had taken God and His provision for granted. Instead of thanking God for what he gave them, they complained about it.
How do we ever overcome a complaining heart?
Why should we give thanks to God?
* He is worthy
* His love endures forever
* His salvation
* His mercy and grace
* His blessings - wealth, honor, strength and power flow from His hand
* His righteousness
* His deliverance and help
* His holy name and presence
* His faithfulness
* He gathers His people from the nations
* His unfailing love
* His wonderful deeds
* He is good
* He answers prayer
* He is above all things
* He is the lord of lords
* He is the God of all creation
Way that we can thank God
* Call on Him and thank Him personally
* Sing songs to Him with upraised voices
* Play music to Him on and instrument - Trumpet, cymbals,
* Give Him offerings and sacrifices
* Lift up praise in the assembly
Give thanks to the LORD for He is good and His love endures forever. This phrase appears at least 11 times in scripture. Over and over again we are called to offer thanks to God but why?
Conclusion
Forgive Me When I Whine
Today upon a bus, I saw a lovely maid with golden hair; I envied her -- she seemed so gay, and how, I wished I were so fair; When suddenly she rose to leave, I saw her hobble down the aisle; she had one foot and wore a crutch, but as she passed, a smile. Oh God, forgive me when I whine, I have two feet -- the world is mine.
And when I stopped to buy some sweets, the lad who served me had such charm; he seemed to radiate good cheer, his manner was so kind and warm; I said, "It’s nice to deal with you, such courtesy I seldom find"; he turned and said, "Oh, thank you sir." And then I saw that he was blind. Oh, God, forgive me when I whine, I have two eyes, the world is mine.
Then, when walking down the street, I saw a child with eyes of blue; he stood and watched the others play, it seemed he knew not what to do; I stopped a moment, then I said, "Why don’t you join the others, dear?" He looked ahead without a word, and then I knew he could not hear. Oh God, forgive me when I whine, I have two ears, the world is mine.
With feet to take me where I’d go; with eyes to see the sunsets glow, with ears to hear what I would know. I am blessed indeed. The world is mine; oh, God, forgive me when I whine.
Five things you can do to have a greater Thanksgiving
1.) Take some time to count your blessings and start small
2.) Start thanking God for them all
