Warriors Arise: August 4, 2023
Matthew 4:2-4 (NKJV) And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry. 3 Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.” 4 But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’ ”
Jesus' response is in quotes and He says, "It is written." Do you know where He is quoting from? I didn't. I had to check it out. Although, when I got there, I had it underlined. So at some point, I knew the correlation.
Deuteronomy 8:3 (NKJV) So He humbled you, allowed you to hunger, and fed you with manna which you did not know nor did your fathers know, that He might make you know that man shall not live by bread alone; but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord.
Moses is reminding the people what God did to supply for their need. Yes, God allowed them to get hungry just like He allowed Jesus to get hungry after forty days and forty nights. In reading Deuteronomy 8:1-5, I was reminded of another verse.
Philippians 4:19 (NKJV) And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.
God supplied for over 2 million of His people who chose to walk through the wilderness rather than be fed in the land He promised, the land flowing with milk and honey. Many times we don't have what God has offered because we won't go where He has made provision for us.
God had to take baby steps with His people. Just like a baby can't supply for its own needs, God provided manna for His children. God didn't cause His children to be without food just because they rejected the provision He had prepared for them in the Promise Land. God met them where they were. God offered them the Promise Land, but they couldn't receive it. They wouldn't go with Him and take it.
God didn't abandon them to provide for themselves just because they wouldn't go where He had already made the provision. He met them every day, right where they were. He provided for them six mornings a week, manna from heaven. Only on the sixth day could they collect enough for two days. Only on days one through five could they collect for just that day or it would rot. God, was patient to provide for them every day. Their action of going out to collect the manna, the provision of the Lord, was an invitation to experience God's endless desire to provide for them. They were to remember who provided for them every day. They were to know God was giving them a day of rest every week. Do you think they got a day of rest when they were slaves? I don't think so. God was giving them a day of rest every week. This was an amazing gift they had never experienced in their life!
Just as the children of God learned to daily collect food from heaven, Jesus knew God meant for it to feed so much more than their physical body. The daily collection of God's provision was to feed their spirit and their soul. It was to give them strength to one day build their trust in God. He would provide for them. If they learned this lesson, the lesson of collecting God's provision from His word, they would one day trust God to provide the strength needed to receive what He had promised them.
Jesus trusted God to provide for Him body, soul, and spirit. He trusted God to strengthen Him and without a doubt, He would receive the promise, He would be the Messiah, the Savior of the world, the King of kings, the Lord of lords, the Prince of Peace, the Christ, the first resurrected from the dead. Jesus would not remain in the wilderness. He would defeat the devil and set His face toward the prize, mankind. He would be our triumphant hero. He would demonstrate the power of God through His overwhelming love. He had feasted on the Word of God. He was well nourished and strengthened by the Word of God. He knew where His strength came from. He didn't have God speaking to Him until His baptism. He had to learn of God's word just like you and I. He had to read and study God's Word. It prepared Him for this battle. He would not be Esau. He would not sell His birthright, mankind, for food. He feasted on the Word of God and it gave Him strength to defeat the temptations the devil placed before Him.
Father, daily I will seek You. I do not have to know chapter and verse but I do have to pick up Your Word every day and apply it to my life. You are my source of strength. I will be nourished by Your Word. I will feast on it, meditate and allow it to renew my mind and clarify my thoughts. Your Word is strength to my spirit and my soul. Your Word gives me wisdom and understanding. Your Word give me hope and I am loved by You. You provide for me every day. I set myself at Your table and receive nourishment to my body, soul and spirit in Jesus' name amen.
A Warrior in the Lord’s Army,
Veridee Joy Hand
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