What is it That You Want?

Matt.20:32 – And Jesus stood still and called them and said, What will ye that I shall do unto you?

    There is something about the nature of Jesus and the way that He works that insists upon us choosing and being specific. The two blind men had just cried out for mercy and Jesus had heard them. He obviously understood that they wanted mercy but, apparently, mercy comes in drops or showers and it can cover a lot of ground.

    What do you want mercy for? Do you want the mercy that cleanses the soul from any taint of sin that you may have committed? Do you want the mercy that extends compassion toward you in the form of a meal to eat or a place to sleep? Do you want the mercy that lifts you out of the hopeless mindset of the beggar and restores vision and purpose to your floundering soul? Or, do you want the mercy that heals the diseased condition? What is your want? What is your desire?

    Mercy is general but faith is specific. The cry for mercy gets God’s attention but the cry of faith gets God’s answer. Mercy moves you in God’s direction but faith moves God in your direction. God is a Father who wants to deal with us as mature children. When your adult children want your help, all they have to do is ask. You won’t necessarily, do it for them; you desire for them to honour your relationship by asking. In the book of Exodus when God revealed Himself as, ‘I am that I am’, I believe that He is implying that He will be to us whatever we need or desire Him to be, all within the confines of his will, of course. He will meet us on whatever level of faith we are at. Jesus said to the blind men, ‘What will ye that I shall do unto you?’ I can be a comfort to you in your blindness, or I can be a healer to you of your blindness. I can be a provider to you of your daily needs or I can bring you to a place of providing for your own needs. I can give you a hand-out that will temporarily satisfy your hunger or I can give you a hand-up that will change your life forever.

    It would appear that our choices ultimately determine both the quality and the direction of our life. We may not be responsible for all that has happened to us but we are in charge of our response. In fact, when we analyze the word responsible, we can see that response is included. Dr. Edwin Cole once said that maturity doesn’t come with age but, maturity comes with the acceptance of responsibility. If that statement is true, then every time we respond in obedience to God, every time we respond to pressure and difficult situations, we grow; we increase our capacity for handling more; we develop and become more mature.

    Whether or not the blind men knew it, when they asked for sight, they asked to become responsible for their lives. They would no longer be looking to others for their sustenance but would become responsible contributors and participants in society.

    What are you asking for from the Lord? Please do not misunderstand me; God is so good and he is way better than we have known; he will bless us in ways that we would never consider for ourselves. His mercy will free us from poor choices and neglect, his mercy will rescue us; he is indeed a Saviour. However, there will come a time in our walk with him that he will require us to mature by accepting complete responsibility for our lives. We must stop pointing the finger and blaming others for where we are at, be it our finances, or our marriage, or any area of our life. There are some people who constantly blame others; it’s my boss’s fault or, my parents or, the government or, my church. Enough of that! What will ye? What do you want? Decide. Choose. Use your power and take action. How long will you hesitate?

    Lord, have mercy on us. Give us the mercy that enables us to take charge of our lives and to accept responsibility to cooperate with you in the fulfillment of your will and plan for each one of us. In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen!

No Vacancy for the Enemy

   Mat 12:43-45 -   When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walks through dry places, seeking rest, and finds none. Then he says, I will return into my house from whence I came out; and when he is come, he finds it empty, swept, and garnished. Then he goes, and takes with himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter in and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first. Even so shall it be also unto this wicked generation.

    Quite often when we read this portion of scripture we relegate it only to those poor souls who are completely taken over and have become demon possessed, but there is unique insight and powerful principles here for all of us to consider and learn.

    Firstly, we can see the nature of the enemy in that he is a restless entity; ever seeking, never finding; an eternal vagabond, always aware of a gnawing sense of agitation. That is Satan’s disposition and that sensation is what he attempts to foster in the heart of man. If you have ever had any acquaintance or dealings with a restless person, you know that it is seems almost futile to help them; true rest can only come from above, and only a restful person has genuine authority and lasting victory over the adversary.

    Another thing that we see with respect to the nature of the enemy is that he desires to own, possess and occupy man. He is ever seeking to influence, manipulate and control whomever he can; accordingly, then, the enemy, once dealt with, must continue to be dealt with. We can exercise authority and cast him out but, subsequently, we must exercise vigilance and keep him out. The enemy desires to return and to come back in to the same place that he once ruled, and because he is a persistent opponent, watchfulness and attentiveness are just two of the necessary elements that will secure our continued freedom.   

    Not only does the unclean spirit want to return but, he wants to reinforce his previously held stronghold; bringing the man into a worse state than the first. So again, we get a glimpse into his strategy and tactics. The enemy has an intention to strengthen his wicked purpose and ultimately bring utter devastation and ruin to the man. Make no mistake friends, there is a war and we are the targets; our foe hates all that even remotely resembles the image of God in man. We may have met some harsh, hard-hearted people but they pale in comparison with just how malicious, menacing and ruthlessly cruel this evil spirit truly is.

    When the unclean spirit had the rule of the house disorder and uncleanness was the norm. Once that spirit was gone the man was able to clean up his life and set things in order, however that is not enough. Any house, even if it is located in a posh neighborhood, must be occupied to ensure its safety and maintenance. Thieves love to find clean, orderly and vacant houses, because unoccupied houses have no one home to defend them. The problem with this house was not that it was clean and orderly, the problem was that it remained empty. There is an old saying that tells us that nature abhors a vacuum, but so also does the human heart; something will inevitably fill it.

    The principle we are being taught here is what we might call the Law of Displacement. When the children of Israel were commanded to go in and possess the Promised Land, the first thing they had to do was deal with the occupants of the land; they had to drive out the enemy. Once the enemy had been driven out he was to be kept out by their occupation of the new land, in other words, they displaced the enemy. We could also describe this law another way; how would one get the air out of a glass? You couldn’t shake it out. You could turn the glass upside down but, still the air would not come out. The only way to get air out of a glass and keep it out is to fill the glass with another substance, such as water. The water displaces the air, takes up residence and thus, prevents its return.

    Holy Spirit, please come and fill our hearts with your presence, fill our minds with your thoughts and fill our lives with a renewed sense of purpose. Let this next season be one of an awakening to all that God has for us. Let us be filled, be focused and remain free, in Jesus’ name, amen!

Are You Building to Last?

Mat 7:24 – 27 - Therefore whoever hears these sayings of mine, and does them, I will liken him unto a wise man, who built his house upon a rock: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. And every one that hears these sayings of mine, and does them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, who built his house upon the sand: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.

    These are the last few verses of Jesus famous discourse to his disciples which we call; The Sermon on the Mount. Only God can calculate the value of these statements and the impact that these words have had, and continue to have, on Earth’s inhabitants. Let’s look closer at how Jesus concludes this ‘sermon’.

    Jesus contrasts two different people; the wise and the foolish. Many times when we read this, we mistakenly assume that Jesus is talking about believers and unbelievers. A closer examination, however tells us that Jesus is speaking of believers. Unbelievers are not sitting at the feet of Jesus hearing his teaching. So this instruction and warning is for all of us as believers. Which type of man will I be? Will I be wise or foolish? I, alone, am in charge of that choice.

   The wise man built his house on the rock, so the question arises, ‘What is the rock?’ Most believers respond to that question by saying that the rock is God. It is true that in the book of Psalms, God is known as the Rock of our salvation; our steady, unchanging, always reliable and permanent security. However, in this verse, God is not the rock upon which the wise man built his house. The rock is his personal application and consistent practice of the words that he heard; it is the bending of his will to the Lord and the forming of his integrity. He did not simply hear but he acted on the word of God, thus constructing his life and character on the security and permanence of eternal foundations.

   Apparently, wisdom and knowledge are not the same thing. Both men heard the words of Jesus, so they both had knowledge, but only one had wisdom. Knowledge alone does not guarantee that we are building securely; in fact, we could be building on shifting sand, all the while quoting Bible verses. In contrast, wisdom is always looking way down the road ahead. Wisdom plans and builds for the future, even peering into the distance and preparing for eternity. The wise man did not take the easy route by digging a foundation in loose soil; no, he took the harder route by digging deep and chipping into the rock, slowly laying his foundation in the bedrock of faithfulness. We can imagine that the foolish man’s house seemed to be making better progress; he had his roof on before the wise man was finished with his foundation. In our fast-paced, get-it-done-now culture, slow and steady progress may be just what we need.

   Both men heard the word of God and built their lives; one by commission and diligence; the other by omission and negligence. From the outside both houses looked the same; it was only in the hidden realm that there was an infinite difference; and it was only when the storm came that the difference was revealed. The storms of life will inevitably come to all of us, at various intervals of our lives, and wise is the one who foresees such storms. Wisdom is not taken by surprise but foolishness always is. A fool builds on the sand, presuming that no storm will come, and even if it does, he seems to think his house will stand.

    I have heard it said that in one Oriental language there is only one symbol that stands for both crisis and opportunity. When the trouble and the tests come it reveals our character and it is our character that predetermines whether it will be a crisis causing our lives to crash or whether it will be an opportunity causing our resolve to be strengthened by God. Dr. Edwin Louis Cole once wrote, “There are no spur-of-the-moment decisions, but every decision is based on a lifetime of previous decisions which either enhanced or diminished one’s character”.

    I pray that we would awaken to a deeper resolve to continue to build on the firm foundation. If we have sinned and made mistakes, as all of us have, then make this an opportunity to repair the faulty foundations and get back on a path of wisdom; building the unseen life one brick at a time. It will definitely be worth it!

Crisis and Opportunity

Proverbs 5:22 - His own iniquities shall take the wicked himself, and he shall be held with the cords of his sins.

    The world we live in and, sadly, many sectors of the church,do not like to even acknowledge that sin exists and still has power. Many laugh and mock at the idea of sin but, if all of us were honest; we would admit there is an unseen and undetected power that tempts and drives men to commit horrendous and shameful acts against ourselves and one another. We can say that we don’t believe in poison but we will die if we ingest it regardless of our beliefs. In the final analysis men will suffer the consequences of continuing in their sin. Responsibility rests with the individual to choose the wisdom of God in avoiding certain evils. 

    In this very pointed chapter of Proverbs, we have frank and straight forward instruction and warning to shun sexual sin of every form. The strange and seductive woman has boldly come into our homes through the television and the computer screen, and we are the ones who have opened the door. We are the consumer, we are the reason that pornography and all sexually explicit material sells. We are the purchasers of sin. Iniquity is the power that holds men and keeps men shackled within a prison of addiction and weakness. Why does man do the things that he does? How can man treat himself and his fellow man and woman with such lack of respect and value? It could only be because of iniquity, which is the power within our fallen natures that clearly exhibits that something has gone terribly wrong. It is the propensity and the tendency to crave what we do not have. It shows itself in the fact that we are attracted to things that will eventually destroy us. Someone has written that habits are first threads then cables; easily broken at first and almost impossible to break later. We form the habit and then the habit forms us. 

    Sin is a powerful and compelling force that always has and always will entice men of all ages and all cultures. Sins' insidious power pervades and reaches to the highest levels and echelons of our society and it dives down into the lowest and darkest sectors of our culture; it is no respecter of persons; sin hates all men equally, Christian and non-Christian alike. Satan is the archenemy of God and the nemesis of mankind. He despises man; he deviously delights in the destruction of everything that is good and fair and kind.     Eventually if a sin is persisted in, the cords of that sin will hold the man captive. It will control the man and keep him in a cursed state. Regardless of what it looks like on the outside, he will be continually wrapped up, entangled and confined to a very tiny space, when all the while it is the will of God for that man to be blessed and free and ever-expanding in prosperity and influence. Sin, especially sexual sin, keeps men from becoming all that God intended for us. It restrains mature character and the full expression of the image of God. It diminishes true manhood. It promises much but delivers little. It is deceptive by nature and destructive in result. All of us need a Saviour; one who will free us from all iniquity and, thank God, Jesus has already done it! The power of sin has been neutralized. The shackles of sin have been broken. The prison doors are open. Captive humanity is now free to go. Why would we continue to stay inside?

    The crisis of life come to all of us, whether it be in the form of a sickness, the loss of a job, the end of a marriage or the shock of a fallen brother. When we find ourselves in turmoil because of a crisis, we have an opportunity to re-evaluate and re-examine our lives, and take a close and prayerful look at our spiritual condition. I want to exhort you to take advantage of this opportunity, as I am doing, and as Isaiah has exhorted us; 

 "Seek the LORD while he may be found, call upon him while he is near. Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous person his thoughts. Let him return to the LORD, So he'll have mercy upon him, and to our God, for he'll pardon abundantly." Is.55:6,7

Can you say, Amen?

Luke 1:35-38 - And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. And, behold, thy cousin Elisabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her, who was called barren. For with God nothing shall be impossible. And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her.

    Mary asked how this would happen and the angel answered; the Holy Spirit, that’s how. This will not be the result of the action of a man; it will be a result of the action of the Holy Spirit. Just the mention of the Holy Spirit should be enough to answer all of our questions. He will find a way; He will make a way to bring about the word and the works of God in our lives. He is ever-present in our lives to reveal the will and plan of God to us. Mary, the Holy Spirit shall come upon you as when He would come upon the prophets of old and they would work miracles or perform superhuman feats.

    The power of God shall overshadow you. Mary would not have known that this was the same word that was used in the Greek translation of the Old Testament in Genesis 1:2 – ‘The spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters’. Moved could also be translated hovered or fluttered, as a mother bird would crouch and huddle over her eggs, or as the Latin Vulgate says; incubat. God incubates new worlds and He can incubate anything within us. Whatever we need can be incubated by a process of gestation commenced within us by the Word of God and the Power of the Holy Spirit. Mary was, no doubt, aware of the creation story in Genesis and similar language was recorded there. This may have given her a powerful image for her faith to grasp hold of; the original creation took place as the Holy Spirit waited for the Word of God to be spoken. God said…and it was so. He commanded and it sprang into being. The Word of God and the Spirit of God working together released the creative, constructive and explosive power of God resulting in the formation of our universe, a brand new world.

    For with God nothing shall be impossible – With God. Are we with God? Or are we with this world? The person we stand with is the person who will stand with us. If we stand with God then He will stand with us. If we stand with God then we can withstand anything. Nothing shall be impossible. Nothing! Not one thing! Not large and obstructive things or small and deceptive things. Nothing shall be impossible. Nothing shall stand in the way of God. Nothing shall stop the Word of God from coming to pass. Impossible does not exist with God; that word is not in His vocabulary. Is that word in ours? There are some words which hinder our faith and limit our ability to believe and to trust God. The word ‘impossible’ is one of those words. We must eradicate it from our thinking and from our speech. If we are walking with God and agreeing with God then there is no such thing as impossible. The word with is a very instructive preposition in English as well as in Greek. The Greek word is para, which means, among other things: in close proximity, near, or beside. With God; in close proximity to God, so near as to be beside him as His close companion. The word implies and suggests an intimacy with God. Wuest’s translation renders para, ‘In the presence of’. In the presence of God nothing shall be impossible. Possibilities become available to all those that walk in the Will of God, following the Ways of God and fully believing the Word of God. This is a powerful phrase as translated in the King James, but the Greek is even more powerful; ‘No word from God shall be void of power’. Every word of God has self-fulfilling power including this word to Mary, ‘You shall conceive in your womb’. If God has said it then it must come to pass, however, there is a part that we must play in cooperating with the purposes of God.

    God has chosen to limit Himself to the faith and prayers of His people. He comes and knocks on the door of our hearts and gives us an opportunity to open the door and grant Him access to our lives. Mary had to open the door of her heart and allow the Seed of the Word of God to be sown within her. Someone has said that Mary received the Word of God as seed in her spirit and it manifest by conception in her womb. God hid Himself and all of His power in the tiny seed and submitted Himself to the laws and processes of growth. Think of the tremendous trust that God showed to Mary and subsequently to Joseph. He sowed Himself into the human race and entrusted Himself into the safe-keeping and nourishment of the womb. God embedded Himself inside humanity. The Word was made flesh. God absolutely became a man.

    Be it unto me. I see the meaning of the word ‘Amen’ in this phrase. Dr. A.T. Pierson said that the word ‘amen’ means, not ‘let it be so’, but rather ‘it shall be so’. Amen comes from the Hebrew ‘aman’ as it is used in Genesis 15:6 and is translated believed. Of course Mary would have a familiarity with the story of their nations’ father, Abraham. He ‘believed’ God and it was accounted to him as righteousness. Just like it was critical for Abraham to believe and to add his ‘amen’ to the Word, so it was also critical for Mary to believe and to add her ‘amen’. She is considered blessed by multitudes today because of her willingness to receive and surrender to the Word of God. Let’s follow the example of Mary and receive the Word of God into our hearts, believing it and adding our Amen to it! Nothing is impossible with God!

Three Vital Factors

Acts 24:25 - And as he reasoned of righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come, Felix trembled, and answered, Go thy way for this time; when I have a convenient season, I will call for thee.

   Paul was a master conversationalist. God gave him an ability to speak to men in a way that kept their interest. Jesus had said to Paul that he would stand before the Gentiles and kings, and in fulfillment of that, we read that he reasoned with Felix concerning three vital spiritual realities; righteousness, temperance and judgement to come.

   Righteousness is an often misunderstood subject. What is it? I have heard several definitions such as; an ability to stand in the presence of God without any sense of condemnation; right standing with God; right living and right ways. The same underlying word is used to describe someone who is just. Righteousness and justice then are related. God is designated as the justifier of the ungodly. Whatever our definition, one thing is for sure; we do not make ourselves righteous, we cannot justify ourselves. We need God to make us righteous and we need him to make us just. That is not in our nature; we must have a new nature from God; a righteous nature. Right standing with God results in being able to be yourself before the Lord. It is the sense of being completely accepted and therefore not needing to be false in any way. We can present our true selves to the Lord because that is what he sees anyway, righteousness simply enables us to do so without fear of reprisal. We have been made right through the work of Jesus on the cross; the shedding of his blood. The scripture even speaks about receiving the gift of righteousness; so, if it is indeed a gift, then righteousness can never be earned, it simply must be received and walked in.

    Temperance is an old English word which we do not really use much today, however, it is packed full of meaning that certainly applies to us. To temper steel is to make it pliable and flexible yet stronger and less susceptible to shattering. You would have to agree that we could definitely use some tempering. How many of us have been damaged simply because we have not been able to roll with the punches, so to speak? Many people who have been hurt in car wrecks are hurt because they tried to brace themselves for the impact and the jolt of it damaged their bodies. I have been told that people who are under the influence of alcohol and who end up in a car accident are less likely to be hurt because they are relaxed and flexible. To be tempered by God is to become like a shock absorber, continually adjusting oneself to the contours of the road. Somebody has once said, ‘Blessed are the flexible, for they shall not be broken’. One of the things that is evident in life is the need to be tempered by God; to go through a process that causes us to have an adjustable demeanor, adapting ourselves to different circumstances and to varied people. I am definitely not suggesting that we let go of our principles but that we adjust our practices. My pastor used to tell us that when we faced difficult things it was important to respond and not react; response has the tempered feel to it; reaction seems much more rigid and tense.

    The word judgement carries with it mostly negative connotations; a critical, nit-picky boss who loves to point out all your flaws, an angry, heavy-handed man with a gavel in his hand eagerly passing out a sentence of punishment, or a mean-spirited church-goer who looks down his nose at everyone. However, from God’s perspective, judgement is always a positive thing. Everybody wants to be rewarded but there is no reward without judgement. Any contest or competition has a panel of judges who determine whether you win or lose, and even our schools have a system of judgement through examination and grading; no promotion without passing a test. We raise our children with a view to helping them learn to exercise good judgement and wisely choose the proper path in life. Judges preside over court rooms, listening intently as each lawyer argues their case, after which the judgement must be made. Judgement is normal to God’s kingdom; he is a judge and he will adjudicate his will in the Earth. According to the New Testament writings there will be a judgement to come, there will be an account given for how we have lived our lives, and how we have stewarded our skills, our time, and our resources.

    Be encouraged, friends, because of the Blood of Jesus and His amazing grace, we can continue to walk in the gift of righteousness, remain yielded to God’s process of temperance and stand confidently in the light of his merciful judgement.

The Inborn Desire to Praise

Luke 19:40 - And he answered and said unto them, I tell you that, if these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out

           God will receive praise, He will get the glory due His name. His preference is that we would willingly lift up praise and adoration but if, for some reason we decide that we are not going to praise God then the rocks would cry out. The picture I get is when one would try to hold down water that is coming up out of the earth, if I press down in one place the water will squirt up in another. That is what is called hydrostatic pressure. It is when water is forced up out the ground because of the pressure created by water flowing from higher ground. This downward pressure creates an upward response. God is high above so, as long as we keep the relationship with Him in its proper place by acknowledging His loftiness, the water of praise will flow down from Him and will flow out of us. God by nature attracts praise, He does not need to force praise out of people, He will get praise; He will be praised. 
        In creation man stands at the pinnacle. He was created in the highest place of all created beings. However, if man does not take his rightful place of worship before God, then the lower levels of creation will fill his place. The rocks will cry out. The actual material earth senses the weight of the choice of the first man, Adam. It reels under the curse of sin and feels the burden of the fallen world. Romans chapter eight tells us that creation is groaning, longing to see the full and final redemption. All of creation was made to respond to its creator, even the rocks. Scientists tell us that material substances are made up of invisible molecules which in turn are made up of atoms. Amazing discoveries have been made regarding the tiny ‘worlds’ that exist in every molecule. God created these worlds and ultimately, they will praise Him. The rocks will cry out. 
         This cry is a cry of praise acknowledging God’s supremacy and it’s a cry for help, acknowledging man’s inadequacy.  It is a plea to the Creator God for deliverance. It is a cry of instinct. All of creation has an instinctive and innate desire to cry out to God. As we said, there is a groaning within creation. Man groans within, the animal kingdom groans, the earth also groans. That groaning is an inner longing, it is the built-in cry that will find expression no matter what may try to hinder it. Just as the branches and leaves of a tree will intrinsically grow toward the light so our spirits reach out to God and all of His creation reaches out for the light to touch the presence of God. We are created for interaction and communication. We are interactive spirits designed for relationship to our Father God; created for worship. 
         Don’t get replaced by a rock. Praise God!

A Voice for God

Luke 3:1, 2 – Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate being governor of Judaea, and Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of Ituraea and of the region of Trachonitis, and Lysanias the tetrarch of Abilene, And Annas and Caiphas being the High Priests, the Word of God came unto John, the son of Zacharias, in the wilderness.

    Luke lists government leaders and spiritual leaders that were contemporaries of John. They were his contemporaries but not, necessarily, his peers. These men were known…John was unknown. These men had a platform…John did not have a platform. These men were recognized authorities…John was not recognized as an authority. These men were included in everyday society…John was excluded and isolated. These men had their own agenda…John was a herald with God’s agenda. These men had words…John had the Word. These men had to devise their own words…John had the Word of God come to him.

    While life was going on, somewhere, behind the scenes, unbeknownst to the world, the Spirit of God and the Word of God were working. There was a man being groomed and prepared by God. He was being prepared to be a voice for God. The Word of God came to John in the wilderness; in the solitary place; in the lonely place; in the isolated and obscure place. We mustn't be afraid of loneliness, isolation or obscurity, for there the Word of God will come to us. He will find us as we wait upon Him. In your wilderness; in your isolation; in your desert place, God’s word, God’s voice, God’s direction, God’s wisdom will come to you.

   Once we have the word, and that word has prepared us, then we can become a voice. There must be a vocal expression of the word. The word must not be simply spoken to us, but it must be spoken through us. It is given to us so it can be given through us. We must become vessels of the word. We must become a voice by which the word of God is transported into the ears of this world. We have the words whereby peoples' destinies can be changed. Faith comes to unbelievers as they hear the word spoken. It is a gift of God given to those who hear, through those that speak the words of God.

    Let us not be discouraged in our loneliness and isolation. Remember who you are; you came from God. Remember whose you are; you belong to God. He has not forgotten you. Wait on Him, listen to Him, worship Him, yield to Him. For He has enlisted you in the army of believers who come from the spiritual lineage of John; a people who know their God and who are faithful to be the voice of the Word of Life to this generation!

Jesus: Our Powerful Example and Hero!

Luke 4:2 – Being forty days tempted of the devil. And in those days He did eat nothing: and when they were ended, He afterward hungered.

    Imagine forty days in the wilderness; forty days and nights alone, without any human company or support; forty long days and nights without a friend to console you or to simply converse with. He was entirely alone. This was an intense test of who he truly was. It was a test of character, identity, security and destiny. The wilderness represents the place of fallen man; the wild place where nothing submits but, all things vie for supremacy. Tozer once wrote that, “The bias of nature is toward the wilderness, never toward the fruitful field”. Because Jesus was in the solitary and isolated place, he can identify with all these emotions and realities of our fallen world. He was there. He was tempted of the devil. He was scrutinized ‘of’ the devil. The Greek word for ‘of’ is the word ‘under’ which powerfully illustrates a concentrated, forty day experience of suffering. He underwent rigorous scrutiny and severe interrogation of the devil. The enemy is aptly called Diabolos; the slanderer and defamer of all that is righteous. One can only imagine the vindictives hurled against him; the slander, the accusations and the lies of the enemy, the constant barrage and cacophony of sounds from which we want to plug our ears.

    During all of this time that he was under this test, he did not eat even one thing. He did not do the most basic human thing. Eating is necessary for survival, for strength and for clarity of mind. Not once did Jesus take anything natural into himself. He lived on the basis of the Word of God; he was literally sustained by it. He overcame the enemy with powerful quotations from Scripture. He used the phrase, “It is written” to form the premise for his stance. He is our perfect example and we can follow in his steps. These words, “It is written” declare the spiritual and legal precedent for us as believers. It is written, it still stands, and it is still in force, therefore we can say with all authority, “Get thee behind me Satan!”