MORNING DEVOTION- "O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee..." (Psalm 63:1)
Scripture Reading: Matthew 4:1-11
Long before Jesus faced those painful last hours in the garden of Gethsemane He had been led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil. In the beginning of His earthly ministry Jesus was brought back to a place, much like where the Israelites had sinned against God and were required to undergo a period of personal testing to prepare them to enter the promise land. "Remember how the LORD your God led you all the way in the desert these forty years, to humble you and to test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep His commands" (Deuteronomy 8:2). The Israelites' journey of judgment lasted forty years; the time necessary to discipline His wayward people and prepare them to take up residence in the promise land. Jesus' time in the desert lasted forty days - a time of preparation to fulfill the greatest ministry in all human history.
The enemy tempts us to make us fall away from God, but God tests us to confirm our faith and draw us into closer dependence upon Him. Jesus began His earthly ministry after He was baptized. He was sent to walk the path of sinful man, even though He was without sin. The time spent in the desert would allow Him the opportunity to experience the temptations and trials that His followers would experience when it came time for them to take up their cross and follow Him. "For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are - yet was without sin" (Hebrews 4:15).
During His forty day fast, Jesus became the target of three strategically placed arrows of the enemy: Satan directed his first arrow at the bullseye; attempting to trap Jesus in His physical weakness, the enemy tried to tempt Jesus to focus on His personal and pressing need: "...tell these stones to become bread." Jesus knew the Truth: The truth that God desires His children to be consumed with Him and His kingdom first, and to trust that He will be our Sustainer and Provider in everything else (reference Matthew 6:33). Jesus' hunger was satisfied with the Word of God, but the enemy wasn't satisfied; he prepared his next arrow. The second arrow was aimed at tempting Jesus to prove His supernatural power. Jesus knew He was dependent upon the Father for everything, and that God would protect Him and lift Him up when the time was right. He would wait on God's power and not display His own. He was interested in God's glory alone, and not the applause of men. We, also, must surrender to the Lord's will, and not selfishly seek after personal acclaim and success; rather we are to humble ourselves before the Lord, and allow Him to lift us up in His perfect time to fulfill His greater purposes (reference James 4:10). The enemy desires to tempt our devotion away from God and turn our focus to material and temporal things. He attempted this with Jesus as he aimed his third flaming arrow, but Jesus didn't flinch. He would not surrender the position on the throne that belonged to God alone. Jesus successfully destroyed the deadly flaming darts of the enemy by wielding the mighty Sword of the Spirit, the Word of God (reference Ephesians 6:16). Jesus demonstrated His absolute dependence upon the Father and provided for us the example we would need to follow as we walk the path He has prepared for us: "Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God" (Matthew 4:4).
The enemy went away with his tail tucked between his legs; crawling back to his drawing board until a more opportune time. Jesus would face temptation again at the end of His ministry in the final days leading up to the cross. The Father had fully prepared His Servant Son, who, after fasting forty days, demonstrated that His food was to do the will of His Father and complete His work (reference John 4:34). It is His desire for us, in these forty days, to discover the same; so that we will live our lives in obedience, fully surrendered to the One Who will never harm us, but will protect us and bring us good so that we can bring Him glory by accomplishing His work in the world - a work that begins and continues in prayer!
Heavenly Father,
There is nothing in this earth
that can possibly satisfy like you do.
Nourish and strengthen your children daily through Your Word,
so that we will have the weapons we need
to fight the enemy's temptations to trust self
rather than You.
In Jesus' Name. Amen.
Satan has a way of making his temptations attractive and appealing. The enemy of God wants us to be so focused on satisfying our immediate, physical needs that we have little time left over for the eternal, kingdom matters of God. The prince of this world wants to entice us and distract us with personal pleasures and fleshly fulfillment, with the ultimate goal of seeking to rob us of our intimate relationship with God. We must not negotiate with the father of lies; instead we must stand on the Truth and trust fully in our heavenly Father, and keep the enemy at bay with our constant and fervent prayers for all the saints; remember, he trembles in fear when we pray. Praise God this morning for His powerful Word that He has written on your heart to protect you in times of great tribulation or temptation. What Scripture(s) has He given you in this season of prayer to stand upon and verbalize every time doubt and despair begin to creep into your thought life? Take time this morning to meditate on them, and pray them out loud. Let them be "a lamp to your feet and light for your path" and walk out of your prayer closet with peace and security for your day.
AFTERNOON DEVOTION -"Evening, and morning, and noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and He shall hear my voice" (Psalm 55:17, KJV).
Scripture Reading: James 1:13-14
God cannot be tempted by evil. Jesus made this absolutely clear during the unsuccessful attempts of the enemy to prove otherwise during His forty days in the desert. However, God will allow His children to be tested to affirm, and strengthen, our faith, and to reveal our need of total dependence upon God (reference Genesis 22:1). "Moses said to the people, 'Do not be afraid. God has come to test you, so that the fear of God will be with you to keep you from sinning" (Exodus 20:20). Jesus died to pay the penalty for our sins. He has set us free so we can walk in the abundant and fruitful new life He has purchased for us instead of wandering in the dry, desert wasteland of our old sinful life. "The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil's work" (1 John 3:8b).
God is our Friend, but Satan is the enemy of God. Jesus sits at the right hand of the Father interceding on our behalf, while Satan stands arrogantly before the throne as our constant accuser. "For the accuser of our brothers, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down" (Revelation 12:10). We have a very real enemy who is burning up the midnight oil frantically slinging flaming arrows, with the little time he has left, to wound God by attempting to destroy His children's relationship with Him, while trying to keep all others away from God, trapped in a state of unbelief and ungodliness. We are in a real spiritual battle with a real spiritual being. "For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms" (Ephesians 6:12). Satan is a created being; and while he is not human, he has the ability to affect the physical and spiritual realm. He is the prince of this world, and anyone who continues to sin belongs to him. The whole world of unbelievers is under his control (reference 1 John 3:8-10), but he has no ability to harm the believer; he can only do what God allows him to do. "The god of this age has blinded the minds of believers, so they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God" (2 Corinthians 4:4).
Satan, the archenemy of God, thought that he had triumphed when he saw Jesus stripped of his robes and hanging on the cross like a conquered soldier who was finally defeated. Satan tried to make a spectacle of Jesus back in the desert, instead Jesus made a spectacle of him and all his evil angels. "And having disarmed the powers and authorities, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross" (Colossians 2:15). We have no reason to be overwhelmed by Satan's attempts to defeat us; he has been defeated and his final overthrow is most certain. "And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur..." (Revelation 20:10). The battle is not ours, it is God's (reference 2 Chronicles 20:15); and He has achieved victory over the evil one for us. We walk victoriously through this life when we turn our backs on sin and wield our mighty Sword of the Spirit, speaking the Truth against the enemy's lies, and praying in the Spirit on all occasions (reference Ephesians 6:17-18).
Heavenly Father,
I praise You for the victory You
have achieved for me in Christ.
I am more than a conqueror;
help me to live and walk like a victor,
standing firm on Your truth
and fighting each day's battle with prayer.
In Jesus' Name. Amen
Temptation goes through three phases: desire, sin, death; "a slow fade" as it is sung in the popular song. Our heavenly Father desires to draw us closer to Him; He has given all to restore our broken relationship with Him, and He will do nothing to hinder that relationship. The enemy, however, will stop at nothing to cause us to doubt our Father's love for us and tempt us away from the intimate and abiding relationship the Father desires with His children. One of the enemy's greatest tactics is to keep the children of God so busy and distracted they have little time for prayer. Prayer is the one thing the enemy fears the most, because he knows it touches the heart of God and moves His hand, ultimately furthering His kingdom - the one thing the enemy is bent on stopping. We know the conclusion to this grand story; we have read the end of the Book, and we know how it turns out for the devil (reference Revelation 20:10), but until that time he will not give up his evil pursuit. The Lord has fought the battle for us; we are not to waste our time trying to reason with the devil, our job is to simply pray - to receive our protection from God and to keep the enemy away! If the enemy is relentless in his assaults upon man, the people of God should be all the more relentless in their praise to God. Praise God this afternoon for His acts of deliverance and constant protection. He is faithful!
EVENING MEDITATION -"...and on His law he meditates day and night" (Ps. 1:2)
Scripture Reading: 1 Corinthians 10:11-13
We are not to be surprised by the enemy's attacks. If we are true followers of Christ we can expect that the enemy will work all the more diligently to hinder our usefulness to God. There is nothing more destructive to the devil's plans than a praying child of God; Satan wants nothing more than to put a stop to our communing with God. We need to expect temptation, remembering that temptation is not sin unless we yield to it. The Lord has provided us a way out, He will enable us to resist the temptation to sin, and He is praying for us. "My prayer is not that You take them out of the world but that You protect them from the evil one" (John 17:15). Jesus has work for us to do in the world - to be salt and light - so those trapped in this tasteless and dark world can be drawn into His glorious light and life (reference Matthew 5:13-16). He will protect us from the enemy's attacks so we can fulfill His mission. "The LORD will keep you from all harm - He will watch over your life; the LORD will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore" (Psalm 121:7-8).
Heavenly Father,
I praise Your for Your faithfulness
to strengthen us and protect us from the evil one.
I lift up those who are facing extraordinary temptation
and are struggling with their flesh. Help them to
see the victory they have in Christ and be willing to surrender
to the power of Your Spirit so they can be delivered
from their temporal desires and find joy and contentment
in Your eternal plans.
In Jesus' Name. Amen.
God's power is displayed in our weakness. The enemy may think that he has won the battle because he's brought us to our knees, but he has only put us in a position to cry out to God and find the deliverance we need. "...we know that anyone born of God does not continue to sin; the One who is born of God keeps him safe, and the evil one cannot harm him" (1 John 5:18). May we daily take up our positions on the battlefield of prayer, asking God's protection over all those He's entrusted to our care. We are victors in Christ; we can go out on the battlefield with confidence that we are protected and have been equipped to advance the kingdom of God in the lives of those He has placed in our life. Pray Psalm 91 over them this evening, asking God to give them rest and restoration knowing He neither slumbers nor sleeps, but is watching over them and protecting them.
