Daily Devotional

Satan tempted Jesus in the wilderness three times, and each time the results were the same.  Jesus crushed the devil’s lies with the truth of Scripture.  

If you go back and read Matthew 4:1-11, you’ll see that the devil hurled three different temptations at Jesus, appealing to the lust of the flesh (bread), the lust of the eyes (the glory of the world’s kingdoms), and the pride of life (proving his identity as the Son of God by leaping from the temple.)

But each time Jesus replied: “… it is written….” And each time he drew out a quotation from the Book of Deuteronomy.

What’s fascinating is that the devil also quoted Scripture. He also said, “it is written…,” but he twisted and distorted the word of God to serve his own purpose. God help us if the devil knows more Scripture than we do!

Like Jesus, we need to memorize the word of God and hide it in our heart, because that’s how we defeat the father of lies.

In 2010, thirty-three miners in Chile became trapped 2300 feet underground during a cave-in. For 17 days they rationed their food, eating two spoonfuls of tuna, half a cookie, and a few sips of milk every 48 hours. Imagine how they savored and appreciated every morsel, because they knew that was the only food keeping them alive.

Is that how you view the word of God – as if your very life depended on it?  Jesus taught that feeding our spirit is just as important as feeding our body. So don’t starve yourself to death spiritually. Open your Bible and nourish your soul with every precious word that proceeds from the mouth of God.  

New International Version (NIV)
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