Devotion
Know the Word
Luke 4:1-13
Yesterday the Lord showed us that we must be on guard because the enemy is waiting to make us stumble by testing our faithfulness to the Lord. Knowing the weaknesses of the flesh he is able to put ideas before us that are very tempting and even sound right, that is why we must be prepared to defend our faith and stand strong on the word. Jesus knew this and was fully aware of the schemes of the devil because He faced them himself while on the earth. Let’s take another look at Luke 4 and see how Jesus was able to guard His spirit against the devil.
Open up to Luke 4 and read verses 1-13.
Notice that in verse one Jesus is full of the Holy Spirit. This is when He is returning from the
Jesus is then led by the Spirit into the wilderness for fasting and praying. (The wilderness is often the place in our lives when we are facing challenges, but they are what the Lord uses to strengthen our walk with Him which prepares us for the coming blessings.) Note: This is a second time the enemy uses to tempt us with giving up. Notice how he tries to tempt Jesus during this time.
Read verse two again. What happened at the end of His 40 days of fasting? ________________________________________________________________________
Do you see that? It says that when the fasting had ended, THEN He became hungry.
Go to verse three. What does the devil do knowing Jesus is hungry? ________________________________________________________________________
What does he say to Jesus? ________________________________________________________________________
So what we see is the devil trying to tempt Jesus to create a miracle of turning the stones into bread so He can fill the emptiness of His belly. Satan knows Jesus is hungry for food and uses the food as a means for wanting to make Jesus stumble. I think this is an area most of us can relate to at one time or another in our lives. Knowing that food is an area of weakness for most humans, what can we do to fight the temptations? Let’s look at what Jesus did, how He replied to the temptation.
Take a look at verse four. What is Jesus reply? ________________________________________________________________________
With His reply what do you gain from what He said? ________________________________________________________________________
It is important for us to notice that Jesus was not just being clever here with His words. Jesus was fighting the enemy with the Word. As we continue to study this chapter we will see over and over again that Jesus was able to stand firm by knowing the Word and knowing how to use the Word in times of testing.
Think about your own life right now. What areas of your life are being tested? Do you wonder how you are going to overcome? Well the first step we each need to take is to have a relationship with Jesus by asking Him to be not just our Savior, but also the Lord of our lives. Next, get in His word. We must do as Jesus did. We must know the word so that we can recall it in our times of testing. The sword of the Spirit is the word of God (Eph 6:17). It is the sword that pierces the enemy.
Jesus is our example. Know the word; know what it says and how to quote it. In order to recall it, to quote it when you need it, you must hind it in your heart. This means we must memorize it. When you memorize it, meditate upon it, and apply it to your life you will be equipped as Jesus was to fight the temptations of the enemy. In fact you will not just know how to fight you will know when the enemy is setting a fight before you.
Read Ephesians 6: 1-20 and which ever verse stands out to you, memorize it. Let the word strengthen you. Know the word and you will be able to overcome the temptations of the devil upon your flesh and spirit.
Write the verse you want to memorize
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Now write a letter to the Lord asking Him to help you recall it when you need it.
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