There are so many treasures of information held within the pages of our Holy Bible. I came across a scripture that gave me an aha moment today.
After Jesus met John the Baptist and was baptized, the Spirit walked Him into the desert to fast and pray for forty days. He is alone. It is hot in the day and cold when night comes. There is danger there. A place where scorpions and snakes live among the rocks.
Jesus was here in the flesh. Flesh like ours. He surely must have been struggling a bit with the elements and the weakness that comes from not eating. Then the walking. There are rocks and steep pathways. Among the predators, He encounters…satan, the devil, the former angel. Satan makes three desparate attempts to stop the efforts of this man walking, fasting and praying on His journey to the cross. He does not want the journey to be successful.
First, he tempts a very hungry man with the idea of turning a stone into bread.
Second, he places Him high upon a mountain and says He can have all the worldly kingdoms He sees…if He will worship him in place of God the Father.
Third, he takes Him to the pinacle of the Temple of Jerusalem and suggests that He throw Himself down from that high point because it was written that the angels would bear Him up.
Thought For Today:
Isn’t that how satan comes after God’s children? He catches us in a moment when we are laboring and he crowds his way into our situation. He attempts to turn our focus from God’s business to his business. He makes the alternative to the godly decision look intriguing and interesting. He is running his mouth non stop hitting our mind and body with one fire tipped dart after another. If you do this, then I will do that. You can have it all…the material things, the friends, the prestige. Jump! Jump!
But, he cannot give us the one thing that is eternal. The thing that our Savior fought the desert and the days that followed, to secure for us. A way for our soul to make it to eternity. Had Jesus given in to the temptations in the desert…Well, I am not sure what God would have done then. Thank You Jesus that You did not choose to go with the evil one. There is no scripture that tells us, “And then Jesus sinned.” Without Jesus willingly allowing His broken body to be nailed to that cross…Without His sacrifice, our last day on this earth would be just that, the last day. No eternal life. Praise God that the believer’s last day here is a day of transition to the place God has prepared for us.
I know. I took the long way home to reach my point. Notice one little verse after that last temptation. Luke says that satan departed from Him until an opportune time. He never stops trying. Not with Jesus and certainly not with us. But what he didn’t count on? The worst day in the life of our Savior, ended in victory. A victory like no other on this earth. He would overcome death for all who believe. We can take comfort that Jesus experienced and overcame the plots of the evil one. The same one who injects himself into our lives trying to replace our peace with his chaos. Jesus used God’s words to send him away…Time after time. We have access to those same words. Take heart dear friends. We are going to have some “worst” days. But Jesus is with us. He walks with us, He talks with us and He tells us we are His own. The Spirit that walked with Jesus into the wilderness? Resides in us. Jesus spoke God’s word all the way to the cross. His final answer? “It is finished.”
Scripture For Today:
Luke 4:12-13
12 And Jesus answered and said to him, “It has been said, ‘You shall not tempt the Lord your God.’ ” (NKJ)
13 Now when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from Him until an opportune time. (NKJ)
John 19:30
30 So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit. (NKJ)
Prayer For Today:
Hello Father! We praise You for sending Jesus. He chose to obey You in every way. He answered the temptations of the evil one with Your words. We pray for strength when our testings come. Help us to study and hold Your words within our hearts. We pray that we return Your words back to the enemy each time he visits. Forgive us our sins. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
© 2015 Kathy Ledbetter. All rights reserved.