Genesis 7:1-25; Matthew 4:1-11; Psalms 4:1-3; Proverbs 2:1-5
NT: “Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. After he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was hungry… He answered, “It is written: Man must not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.” …Jesus told him, “It is also written: Do not test the Lord your God.” …Then Jesus told him, “Go away, Satan! For it is written: Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.” Then the devil left him, and angels came and began to serve him.” (Matthew 4:1-2, 4, 7, 10-11 CSB)
First thing to notice is that the Spirit led Jesus into the wilderness to be tempted. If you are allowing yourself to be led by the Spirit, then the Spirit will probably lead you into dangerous, challenging, or trying places. Many people see challenges as something that is not God’s will. What I have found is that following God’s will is almost never easy and is always challenging. However, if you are following the Spirit, He will give you grace commensurate to the challenge. Jesus countered every single temptation with the Word of God… and specifically, each of His responses came from Deuteronomy, which was a re-telling of God’s commands for a new generation of Israelites about to head into the Promised Land. Jesus was victorious over Satan because He had stored up God’s commands within Him – and then relied on the Holy Spirit to bring those commands to remembrance when He needed them. The same can be true of us if we walk in humility and obedience to the Word by storing up the Word in our hearts and minds.
Proverbs: “My son, if you accept my words and store up my commands within you, listening closely to wisdom and directing your heart to understanding; furthermore, if you call out to insight and lift your voice to understanding, if you seek it like silver and search for it like hidden treasure, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and discover the knowledge of God.” (Proverbs 2:1-5 CSB)
If you delight in and pursue the Word of God and “hide” His words and His commands in your heart, then you will understand the incomparable greatness of God and will discover the knowledge of His will for you in every circumstance… and you, like Jesus, will be able to defeat the enemy and reject his temptations by the truth of God’s word.
Jamie Hicks 