Monthly Archives: December 2018

Overcoming Temptation

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“But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’ ”” ‭‭Matthew‬ ‭4:4‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

img_1609In Matthew 4:1-12 We see Jesus being led into the wilderness, by the Holy Spirit, to be tempted by Satan. After Jesus fasted for forty day’s Satan’s first temptation was for Jesus to turn stones into bread, to satisfy His physical hunger. While Jesus certainly could have done this, I believe His response was an indication that God had not released Him from His fast. Jesus was waiting for a WORD from God.

Even though Jesus was fully man, He was also fully God and He with the Father when Satan attempted to take over the throne. He recognized His enemy. He knew how to respond to the tempter.

Here are three valuable lessons we can learn from these verses.

◾️ We do not have to fight the enemy in our own strength. Jesus did not respond to Satan out of emotion or logic. He responded with faith in God’s voice as the guiding force of His life. If we want to overcome the enemy we too have to learn to distinguish all other voices from the voice of the Father.
◾️ Satan knows The Word. Just because someone quotes scripture to you doesn’t mean they are a true messenger from God. When Jesus responded to the first temptation with, “It is written”, Satan changed his strategy. He shifted to quoting scripture out of context. He challenged Jesus to throw Himself off the pinnacle of the temple. Satan tried to bully Jesus into proving He was the Son of God. Jesus was confident in His relationship with the Father. He had nothing to prove, especially to His enemy! 2 Timothy 2:15(KJV) admonishes us … “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” It takes time to develop knowledge of the Word. As a Christian this must be a priority in our life if we want to be victorious. We cannot rely on others to spoon feed us the Word. We have to learn to feed ourselves. People can twist scripture to justify just about anything. When we know of heart of God we have a better understanding of His written Word.
◾️ The Word is a weapon. Even though Jesus was the Son of God, He responded to temptation with, “It is written”. Hebrews 4:12NKJV tells us: “For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” Jesus could have rebuked Satan at the first temptation, but I believe chose to withstand the temptation to show you and I that we can overcome by following His example. Take a proactive approach to temptation instead of a reactive approach. Most of us know the things that are a struggle for us to overcome. Look up, write down, and memorize scriptures that address your issues, or encourage you to press through. Have those scriptures ready and available when you need them.
PRAYER: Father, I thank You that Your Word is more powerful than any temptation I will ever face. Thank You for the written Word, and for the voice of the Holy Spirit whom You sent to teach, lead and empower us. Give me the wisdom to discern Your voice over the voice of the enemy. As I study Your Word, Father birth spiritual insight and revelation within me. I am eternally thankful that, “greater is He that is within me, than he that is in the world”! Amen

He is Worth the Cost

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When He had called the people to Himself, with His disciples also, He said to them, “Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it.” 
Mark 8:34‭-‬35 NKJV

1544619082004_imageJesus didn’t pull any punches. He didn’t water down His message to attract people. He wanted them to know the cost of following Him was great; but the reward was greater.

In the verse following Jesus asks, “What shall it profit a man if he gains the whole world but loses his soul?”

The cross represents life to us, because of the resurrection of Christ, but to the crowd Jesus was addressing that day it was a symbol of death. They, like many of our brothers and sisters around the world knew that following Jesus could very well mean death to them. The fact that they were willing to remain faithful to His call in spite of the cost speaks volumes about the radical impact Jesus has on people.

I often wonder what would happen in America if following Christ became a crime punishable by death. While we enjoy the freedom to worship, this is still a reality for Christians in many nations today. The profound truth is that persecution produces purity, and purity births revival. No matter how hard the enemy tries, he cannot silence or defeat the blood of Christ!

We are living in a time predicted in 2 Timothy 4:3-4 “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables.”

While it is the love of God that draws men to repentance, I also believe a time of sifting in coming. We reap what we sow – good or bad – and a time of harvest is inevitable. The sheep will be separated from the goats.

In my lifetime I have seen the acceptance of Christianity in our culture greatly decline. Unfortunately many times the church has responded by shifting from preaching the cost Jesus proclaimed in Mark 8 to a message that focuses on salvation without repentance and transformation. This only results in a powerless church!

Jesus said we would do even greater works than He did. Can you imagine the impact the church (the body of Christ) would have if we sought to minister to the world the way Jesus did? Do we truly believe in the power of God to save the lost, heal the sick, raise the dead, deliver the captive? Are we fervently seeking Him to use US to continue the ministry of Christ?    

I am challenged today by these verses to examine myself and ask, am I truly willing to take up my cross to follow Him? Am I willing to lay down my life; not just in death but in serving God and others? Why do I not see the greater works Jesus spoke of as fruit in my life?

My prayer today is that the resurrection power of Jesus would become so evident through His people that the lost would run to Him like the multitudes that followed Him in His time on Earth, and would be so convinced of the prize of Him that they (we) recognize that He is worth the cost!

 

Temporary Praise or Godly Reward?

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“But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, that you charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly.” Matthew 6:3-4 (NKJV)

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Matthew 6:3-4 is an eye-opener for those of us who struggle with the need for approval and validation from others. Generally when I read about charity I think of financial giving; but this morning as I read this verse God reminded me that the motive behind what I do is just as important as the act itself. Who am I trying to please?

I am a people pleaser. I’m getting better at learning to say no, and checking my motives for what I say yes to, but it’s difficult. I want to please God and others. Clearly I cannot do both. Why? Because I have to choose between the approval of man or the reward of God. The approval of man is temporary; the reward of God eternal. It should be a simple choice … but it usually isn’t. 

If I feel the need to boast of my good deeds could it be that I don’t trust God to reward me for what I do in secret? Why settle for a ‘pat on the back’ from people when you can receive an open reward from the Lord Himself?

Motive is the key factor in determining when and what to share. Is my desire to glorify God or myself? Sometimes it isn’t pride that drives us to share our good deeds. Sometimes it is excitement over the fruit produced by that deed, especially when if it had a life changing impact on someone. Sometimes the things we share can be an encouragement to others and even a motivator to spur others to serve. Just be sure to check your motives and be honest with yourself about your intent. The reward of the Lord will far surpass any self gratification we receive from the praise of men.