Luke #49 – A Good Habit

Luke #49 – A Good Habit

“And He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up: and, as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up for to read” (Luke 4:16 – King James Version).

When I was growing up there was absolutely no discussion about whether we liked the food that was put in front of us. If mama cooked it and put it on that table, we were going to eat it. For some reason I used to abhor lima beans. One time I tried to hide them under the edge of my plate; on the side opposite of my dad’s eyes. That didn’t work. I had to eat them and another helping before I was allowed to leave the table. You may think that was cruel, but I am actually thankful for those lessons. To this day I am not a picky eater. Eating what is put in front of me became habit.

This little verse fills in a lot of Jesus’ childhood years. We know that on the Sabbath Jesus was in the Synagogue because the Scripture says that was “His custom”. As I said in an earlier devotion, a lot of folks think there are a great many missing years in Jesus’ childhood, but that’s not entirely so. This Scripture takes care of about thirty years of Sabbath days.

There is something to be learned here. Making congregational activity a habit on the Sabbath is a good habit to get into. It will never be that if we don’t discipline our lives towards that. I hear too many parents today tell me that they give their children a choice about Sunday worship. That’s a bunch of mess! Teach a good habit! Have one yourself! A little personal testimony: if my family goes on vacation, one of two things are going to happen; we are either going to a worship service wherever we are or we will be home by Sunday morning. That’s that; end of discussion. You may say, “That’s different Tim; you work for the church.” So what? I didn’t always and that was our habit then and it will remain so. Weekend getaways? No problem; the same applies for our family…end of discussion. It is our habit and I believe it is a good one.

Another thing to be learned by the example of our Savior is participation. Christ got up to “read” Scripture during the worship time. Too many folks simply go to worship service on Sunday mornings without participating in the mission and ministries of the church. We need to be involved. We need to take part in ministering to others and take part in Kingdom work through our local church. Just sitting on the pew from 11:00-12:00 won’t cut it. If participation was good enough for Jesus, then it’s good enough for me!

Without reservation or condition make regular attendance and participation a good habit in your life. Good habits are usually tougher to begin, but begin they must to become a habit. What do I suggest? Let nothing outside family emergencies (real ones, not Aunt Gertie stumping her toe) or bad sickness stop you from going to worship service each week. Set a goal to not miss for the next six months. Most likely, you will have a habit that will stick after that. Also, research the ministries of your church; pray, asking God which He’d have you participate in; ask someone how to become involved. Bad habits are a dime a dozen. We need some good habits. Make attendance and participation good habits in your life.

As things might appear...

Sometimes God uses strange things to tenderize me...

I think quite often about Matthew 9:36; it says, But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd (KJV - emphasis mine).

I want to tell you a story...at first it will seem like I am judging someone, and perhaps I was. I don't feel like I was; I feel like I was simply being observant.

I was in a neighborhood store called Roseville Grocery. I stopped to get some gas. As I pulled up a man was walking over from the license office, which is beside that store. I noticed he had a little girl with him; she might have been 5. They got inside the store before I did. The man pulled lots and lots and lots of change out of his pocket. The little girl had a dollar bill in her hand. It didn't take long to determine what was going on; the man was broke and needed to renew his driver's license. He'd gathered his change to do just that; rather than going to the bank, he asked the store clerk if they could use the change because he'd like bills. So, they began to painstakingly count change as I waited a bit impatiently for my turn. (All I wanted was to pay for my apple juice and gas and move on; I had places to be.)

I noticed the man's clothes; work clothes. The shirt had a trite southern phrase and a Confederate flag. He had a matching flag and trite saying tattooed on his inner, right forearm. I noticed the little girl and thought, "Wow, she's cute. That's a home haircut." The little girl was patiently holding her dollar. I think her dad had told her that he might need it if he didn't have enough change. She pensively offered it to him several times. He patiently, tenderly said, "Wait honey" or "Just a minute, baby..." She had stains on her shirt. Her shoes were too big.

The little girl had beautiful eyes. She looked at me several times. Of course, I smiled and winked. I was a bit worried that she would have to give up her little dollar and was wondering if it would be okay to give her one; I realized I had NO CASH. Wow, I felt bad, but I almost felt relieved because there was no possibility to become involved if I had no way to help. Then I felt guilty that I was in a rush. Then I felt powerless again, except this time I was said because I realized that I WANTED to become involved.

I've been known to complain. I noticed this little girl and her dad. Obviously they were poor. I began to imagine scenarios. Did they drink it away? Did they waste it on dumb stuff? Were they the "working poor" that I know so intimately from my own experience? I don't know.

The change counted, the dad had a nickel extra and gave it to the little girl to bring her total to $1.05. I stepped aside and chose to wait a little longer. I wanted to watch the rest of this scene unfold. Would she pick chocolate? Gummi worms? Chewing gum? None of that; she chose a $.65 package of cheese and crackers -- you know the type with the little, flat red stick that you use to spread the cheese. She paid and the total was $.69. She looked at me and this time she smiled back.

I wanted to cry.

She was happy!

Here I am, in touch with the God of the universe and I wanted to rush through my day. This little girl was happy with cheese and crackers. I felt shame for me and joy for her.

I began to think about a lot of things in life. How many people are struggling every day to pay for license renewals and buy cheese and crackers for their precious little children? How many people wear work clothes everywhere they go because that's all they have? How many people are struggling in general? Many, I know, make bad decisions. Many suffer under the hardship of foolish parents. Many are socially decent people simply struggling to live in a tough world. Many young people are holding their little valuables (sense of decency, self-esteem, etc.) wondering if their parents will require that they give what they have. How many people could use a heart of compassion and all the receive is a look of judgment?

When Jesus looked on the world, it was with a heart of compassion. Tim, not so often.

Lord, change me! Give me the heart of Jesus that I might see the world through Your eyes and discern it through Your heart. Help me to, not only UNDERSTAND my world, but to be moved with compassion when I see what's going on. Help me point people to the Good Shepherd.

This little writing might not make sense to you, but it does to me. What a great way to get the bulk of my day started; just watching a family work through a little of life awakened my senses to the compassionate heart of God. I stopped thinking about my wife's broken down car, my cramped schedule, my feelings of insufficiency, all the things I am running behind in...I began to talk with God, hear from God and a parade of faces came into my mind and I sensed God saying to me..."Tim, be moved with compassion today." I was. Thank God what He does in me.

What might be different in our lives if we are moved with compassion more often?

GIG #1 - The Opening Gun

GIG #1 - The Opening Gun

"You therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand, be on your guard so that you are not carried away by the error of unprincipled men and fall from your own steadfastness, but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory, both now and to the day of eternity. Amen" (2 Peter 3:17-18 - New American Standard Bible - emphasis mine).

As a group activity our youth all planted a flower in a small pot. For several weeks we cared for those little flowers, with the exception of a few teens who were not so diligent in their attendance to youth group and a few who were diligent in attendance, but careless in tending to their plant. After several weeks one teen lamented over the fact that their plant had sprouted and then died. I said, "It's your own fault." To wit the teen replied, "It's not my fault! I can't make something grow!" I said, "You're right; that's God's business. What I do know is that you didn't do your part. He left you to tend the plant."

That sounds like the beginning of a stewardship lesson; rightly so, because in a way it is. God intends to grow each of us in our faith and a good portion of the work is up to Him; I believe He desires we do our part.

I am not talking about becoming more secure, more pardoned, more saved...all of those things are complete the moment we surrender fully to Jesus, for "in Him you have been made complete" (ref: Colossians 2:10). With equal strength I am not talking about sitting around waiting for God to drop a new bucket of grace on our heads as if we can do nothing to participate with Him in the work of growth. Let me be clear...what I am talking about is best described by Dr. J. C. Ryle who said, "When I speak of a man 'growing in grace' I mean simply this,--that his sense of sin is becoming deeper, his faith stronger, his hope brighter, his love more extensive, his spiritual-mindedness more marked. He feels more of the power of godliness in his own heart. He manifests more of it in his life" (Holiness, page 122).

Growth in grace is a real thing: Peter said some are "babes" (2 Peter 2) and John said some are "little children", some are "young men", and some are "fathers" (1 John 2). We know growth is what God wants; our Lord Jesus said, "My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples" (John 15:8 - NASB - emphasis mine). As a tree cannot bear fruit without grow neither can the child of God. Not only does God desire we grow, but He "delights" in our progress (ref: Psalm 35:27).

The point of today is simple; God desires growth, expects growth and will empower growth in His children. We not MUST NOT get in His way of growing us but MUST ALSO desire that we indeed do grow in grace. Do you desire growth? Are you the type of Christian who puts on his faith like he does his Sunday clothes...once a week? Carefully notice the words of Peter above he commands, and as it is in God's holy word I believe God commands, that we indeed do GROW IN GRACE.

In the coming days we will look at some measuring marks of growth and also at ways that we can grow.

Let me close with this warning by way of an illustration about a little boy. This certain boy fell out of bed every night. His parents put a guard at the edge of the bed; he still managed to fall out. His parents strapped him to the bed; he still found some way to fall out. When a family member asked the little boy why he thought he fell out each night his theory was simple: "I guess I sleep to close to where I got in." The warning is simple, if we don't move away from the edge of our faith by GROWING IN GRACE we will continue to slip and fall. Growth does not mean we will never slip, but it does mean the likelihood decreases and it does mean the severity of the fall is made less.

Yes, God is in charge of growth, but He expects us to cooperate with Him in the tending of the plant that is our life. We are stewards of the fields of our minds, hearts, and hands. Have you been a good garden helper?

Luke #48 – Our Nazareth

Luke #48 – Our Nazareth

“And He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up” (Luke 4:16a – King James Version).

When I surrendered to a call for full time Gospel ministry I never imagined that God would have me serve so close to home. I honestly thought I would be a traveling evangelist or a missionary. I remembered talking with my wife, getting her prepared to move away from home. It didn’t happen that way; not even close. My home church is Clement Church and I was called to serve at Berry’s Grove Church; they are only eight miles apart. At this writing I have been there over three and a half years. Moving away from home to some other area or another country has a lot of challenges; being away from family and friends, loneliness, cultural adjustments and a host of other difficulties that must be overcome. Being at home has a great amount of challenges as well; people seem to only see the kid they knew growing up or the pre-salvation fool that I was rather than the forgiven Christian and called servant of God.

God must have known the passion He would build in me for the people right around me. Recently someone asked me, “If you could go anywhere in the world to serve God, where would you go?” With all seriousness, I replied, “Right here; in the area where I was brought up.” This is a very religious area, but not an area that has a great amount of people of faith. This is my Nazareth, and this is where I want to minister more than any other place.

I believe with all my heart that we are supposed to be on mission all over the world, but it seems we neglect the area around us all too often. The people around us are the hardest people to minister to it seems. We don’t want to upset anyone and we want to be accepted and be thought of in a favorable way. We definitely don’t want to be ostracized because of our faith. Those may be the very things that happen if we witness and minister where we were “brought up”.

What also will happen is that some lives will be changed. Granted, Jesus words weren’t that well received in Nazareth, but He tried (Luke 4:28). We should not ignore those around us. We should keep giving to global mission efforts and we should keep going on global mission trips, but let us never forget to serve God in the place where we were “brought up”.

Further, Jesus commanded the disciples to be His witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and all over the world (Acts 1:8). If I were to put that in language to fit where I am it might read something like this: “You will be my witnesses in Person County, the United States, Mexico, and the rest of the world as well.” The principle is this; do not ignore evangelism and ministry opportunities right around us. Sure, it may be the hardest mission field, but we still must serve in it. Sure, we may not be accepted, but we’ve got to try.

Luke #47 – Children Go Where I Send Thee

Luke #47 – Children Go Where I Send Thee

“And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit into Galilee: and there went out a fame of Him through all the region round about. And He taught in their synagogues, being glorified of all” (Luke 4:14-15 – King James Version).

My pastor is a pastor’s son. He grew up knowing full well the pressure and time consuming ministry of being a pastor. He has often commented on how tough it was being a pastor’s son. Craig has told me that he used to say, “I’ll never be a pastor!” HAH! Little did Craig know what God’s plans were for his life. Craig left home, attended and graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a bachelor’s degree in psychology. He moved out into Orange County and began going to a little country church. He would probably say he was going to church and minding his business when God issued the call. Here’s the thing…I believe Craig was being led all along. He grew up in a pastor’s home, got a degree in psychology, and the Spirit issued the call; Craig had two choices…cooperate or rebel. The first sentence of this paragraph will tell you that Rev. Craig Willingham did not rebel. That degree in psychology? Well…even God will let someone go to Carolina if He wants to use them…Craig is one of the most gifted counselors I have ever met and I must believe that course of study was no coincidence. Growing up in a pastor’s home gave Craig experience that no one can teach in school. Coincidence? I don’t think so. Craig said “Yes” to God, took further education at seminary and is still following the Spirit’s leading today. Would Craig have chosen to be a pastor? I doubt it, but Craig has chosen obedience, so he follows where the Lord leads…whether he likes where God leads him or not.

Jesus was led of the Spirit into the wilderness and now He is led of the Spirit into Galilee. Take it from someone who knows, it’s tough to minister in the place where you are from. Jesus goes to the region that He is from to begin His public ministry in earnest. Jesus wholeheartedly supported the will and plans of the Father so He was simply being obedient by following where the Spirit led.

If we are to be obedient to God today, we must follow where the Spirit leads. That automatically means that we may be sent to places or become involved in ministries that we’d never choose if it were totally left to us. We may have to do a lot of difficult things if we follow the Spirit, but wherever the Spirit of God leads us to we can be sure that the Spirit will be there with us.

I believe that there are many Christians that are completely miserable today because they are in rebellion to the leading of God. I cannot help but think of several specific individuals that I know who said God called them into ministry, but they have not yet to act upon that call. I can also think of many Christians who God has called to a deeper level of service who are miserable because they have not responded. I think there are entire congregations that are miserable because the Spirit is leading them to places and ministries that they refuse to act upon.

Are you miserable because of rebellion today? Has the Spirit spoken to you, calling you to serve, go, or give and have you failed to respond as of yet? The Holy Spirit may lead us places that we do not want to go, but the Holy Spirit will not leave us alone. Whether it is the wilderness or your own hometown or some rotting jungle on the other side of the globe or to open your checkbook wider…respond to the leading of the Spirit.

Luke #46 – “This Fight Ain’t Got Any Rear!”

Luke #46 – “This Fight Ain’t Got Any Rear!”

“And when the devil had ended all the temptation, he departed from Him for a season” (Luke 4:13 – King James Version).

I love studying history; the War of Northern Aggression and World War II are my favorite subjects. Historian Shelby Foote tells of a soldier who was wounded at the battle of Shiloh during the American Civil War and was ordered to go to the rear. The fighting was fierce and within minutes he returned to his commanding officer. “Captain, give me a gun!” he shouted. “This fight ain’t got any rear!”

Once Satan finally realized that he had no ground to stand on in trying to tempt Christ he left Jesus alone. It is key to note that it was only for a season. That is to say that Satan stopped trying to tempt Jesus for the time being.

We are in a fight that does not have a rear! There may be moments of relief, but there is no permanent let up. The apostle Paul commented on the forces arrayed against Christians in this manner: “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places” (Ephesians 6:12 – KJV). As our battle is against supernatural forces I imagine that quite often their schemes run short, but I do not think their energies wane.

Today’s word is plain and short: be watchful and be ready. We already know Satan will come against us with deception and will try to appeal to every one of our facilities. What we need to realize is that he is pretty much relentless too. He picks his moments too. Like a lion, Satan watches for the prey to become weak (1 Peter 5:8). He will come against us when we are most near to God, but his predatory nature means he tries to catch us when we are under strain or distracted more than any other time.

Again, today’s word is simple, straight and to the point. Don’t get cocky if you have victory over some temptation, because the battle may be over but the war wages on. That Civil War soldier summed up the way we should view battling temptation: “Captain, give me a gun! This fight ain’t got any rear!” Our prayer may echo that: “Lord, arm me with the sword of the Spirit; the war is never ending!”

Luke #45 – Twisted

Luke #45 – Twisted

“And he brought Him to Jerusalem, and set Him on a pinnacle of the temple, and said unto Him, ‘If Thou be the Son of God, cast Thyself down from hence: For it is written, He shall give his angels charge over Thee, to keep Thee: And in their hands they shall bear Thee up, lest at any time Thou dash Thy foot against a stone.’ And Jesus answering said unto him, ‘It is said, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God’” (Luke 4:9-12 – King James Version).

When my wife an I were baby Christians we were having a conversation on how much we were to put into serving God. Somewhere along my wife’s childhood someone taught her about serving and giving in a goofed up way. Some preacher or teacher told her that giving to God meant giving a tenth of all she had; a tenth of her talents, a tenth of her material resources and a tenth of her time. PHOOEY! She said that they even used Scripture to support that whacked out thinking. The only Scripture I could find that would lead someone to think that would be Genesis 28:22 which states, “And this stone, which I have set for a pillar, shall be God's house: and of all that Thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto Thee” (KJV). Now be sure of this my friends, that verse was not talking about a tenth of each part of our lives, but was talking about a tenth of Jacob’s material resources. To think we could only give God a tenth of our time would be crazy! For the record, my wife got straightened out on that whole mess.

Friend, let me tell you something, and hear me clearly, we cannot afford to twist Scripture. The temptation is to look at God’s Word and make it say what we already believe or what we want to hear. When we approach Scripture we cannot change it, we must let it show us how we are to change. In doing that we will encounter Scripture that we don’t like; it will fly in the face of things we enjoy doing or in attitudes or character traits that we have had for years.

Even Satan used Scripture in trying to tempt Jesus. In the above passage Satan MISQUOTES Psalm 91:11-12 in this way: “He shall give his angels charge over Thee, to keep Thee: And in their hands they shall bear Thee up, lest at any time Thou dash Thy foot against a stone.” It’s original, and right, rendering reads thusly: “For He shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways. They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone” (KJV). The difference is that Satan left off “to keep thee in all thy ways”. That’s the difference in words, but the big difference is in intent. The original is an assurance of God’s protection for those who trust. Satan uses the Scripture to tempt Jesus to dare God, which is the opposite of trusting.

That’s the same kind of mess that Satan did in the garden when he tempted Adam and Eve. It’s deceptive and tricky and just the kind of thing that Satan does to throw God’s people off of track. Of course, Jesus did not fall for it; He knew Scripture and how to apply it properly.

The only way we will be able to mimic Christ on this account is if we know Scripture too. We must be in the Word constantly; searching it out and finding what it really means. I always read and study the Scripture my pastor preaches on each Sunday. Sure, I trust my pastor and I trust what he says, but I want to check it out for myself. I would imagine that rather than being agitated that I check behind him, my pastor would commend me.

We cannot afford to be fooled when it comes to God’s word, nor can we afford to fool ourselves. We cannot twist God’s word to suit what we want or how we already feel. We must have our minds renewed and be transformed daily by being challenged by truths from God’s word. Satan wants us to get off track and one of his most subtle tools is deception through the Word of God. Be careful, be watchful and be studious.

Luke #44 – Fighting Temptation

Luke #44 – Fighting Temptation

“And Jesus being full of the Holy Ghost returned from Jordan, and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, being forty days tempted of the devil. And in those days He did eat nothing: and when they were ended, He afterward hungered. And the devil said unto Him, ‘If Thou be the Son of God, command this stone that it be made bread.’ And Jesus answered him, saying, ‘It is written, that man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.’ And the devil, taking Him up into an high mountain, shewed unto Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. And the devil said unto Him, ‘All this power will I give Thee, and the glory of them: for that is delivered unto me; and to whomsoever I will I give it. If Thou therefore wilt worship me, all shall be Thine.’ And Jesus answered and said unto him, ‘Get thee behind Me, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve.’ And he brought Him to Jerusalem, and set him on a pinnacle of the temple, and said unto Him, ‘If Thou be the Son of God, cast Thyself down from hence: for it is written, He shall give His angels charge over Thee, to keep Thee: And in their hands they shall bear Thee up, lest at any time Thou dash Thy foot against a stone.’ And Jesus answering said unto him, ‘It is said, thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.’ And when the devil had ended all the temptation, he departed from Him for a season” (Luke 4:1-13 – King James Version).

Back to my roadside breakdown...as I stood on the side of the road, I begin to think about my recent car history. The previous summer my Nissan just up and quit on me. When it was towed to the mechanic, he had no idea what went wrong with the car, but it was obvious that it would not run any more. Before and after my Nissan broke down I had trouble with my truck. On the first occasion a tie rod broke and left me and Katie stranded on the roadside. On the second occasion the right wheel bearing had a melt down. As I said before, when all the distractions were removed, Satan showed up and made it personal. He was tempting my mind by saying, “Here you are, serving God, and all you have for that is trouble. And you thought God would take care of you?” The Holy Spirit recalled Romans 8:28.

Every time I read this account of Jesus temptation in the wilderness I carefully take note of how Jesus battled those temptations; He did it with Scripture. Satan used Scripture too, but He twisted it (more on that tomorrow!). Whatever the devil said to Jesus, Jesus countered it with God's word. We should note that Jesus was filled with the Spirit. The Spirit was there, giving recall of Scripture and leading Jesus in recognizing the temptations and properly applying the Word.

Those are the same two ingredients we need in fighting temptation. We need to be filled with the Spirit and we need to apply God's word. To further illustrate this, let's go back to the roadside. As I said, the devil showed up and tried to get me to look at my circumstances; he wanted me to question God's provision and love for me. Romans 8:28 says that God work even bad situations out for good for those who love Him and have been called for His purposes. Right behind that, the Spirit recalled Matthew 28:20, where Jesus promised to always be with us. No part of that promise says that we will not experience difficult times, but it does promise that Christ will be with us. I also remembered the words of the apostle Paul who said nothing can separate us from the love of God (Romans 8:35). I begin to pray to God and to resist Satan by reminding that scoundrel of God's promises. Pretty soon, Satan left me alone on that temptation.

I could go on and on, but the point is that the way to deal with temptation is by confronting Satan with God’s truths. He can’t handle it and he can’t defeat it! That and the power of the Holy Spirit at work both in and through believers stymie Satan’s attempts to cause us to sin. Now…we need to walk in the Spirit and we also need to study God’s word. King David said “Your word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against You” because he understood that was the way to stick to holiness and to avoid sin (Psalm 119:11 – NKJV).

How do you battle temptation? Do you simply try to grit your teeth and say “I think I can. I think I can.”? If we try to fight temptation in our own power, we will succeed only sporadically at best. Fighting temptation can be done! Will you accept God’s promises, apply His truths, and walk in the Spirit? There lies the keys to victory!

Luke #43 – Three Keys to Being Wholly Well

Luke #43 – Three Keys to Being Wholly Well

“And Jesus being full of the Holy Ghost returned from Jordan, and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, being forty days tempted of the devil. And in those days He did eat nothing: and when they were ended, He afterward hungered. And the devil said unto Him, ‘If Thou be the Son of God, command this stone that it be made bread.’ And Jesus answered him, saying, ‘It is written, that man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.’ And the devil, taking Him up into an high mountain, shewed unto Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. And the devil said unto Him, ‘All this power will I give Thee, and the glory of them: for that is delivered unto me; and to whomsoever I will I give it. If Thou therefore wilt worship me, all shall be Thine.’ And Jesus answered and said unto him, ‘Get thee behind Me, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve.’ And he brought Him to Jerusalem, and set Him on a pinnacle of the temple, and said unto Him, ‘If Thou be the Son of God, cast Thyself down from hence: for it is written, He shall give His angels charge over Thee, to keep Thee: and in their hands they shall bear Thee up, lest at any time Thou dash Thy foot against a stone.’ And Jesus answering said unto him, ‘It is said, thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.’ And when the devil had ended all the temptation, he departed from Him for a season” (Luke 4:1-13 – King James Version).

Johnny Smith used to explain the whole wellness of a person using an upside down triangle; he said he learned the concept from the School for Pastoral Care. On the bottom point of the triangle Mr. Smith would write “spiritual”. On the top left point he would write “physical”. On the top right he would write “mental / emotional”. He would tell us that a sick body will affect the mind and the spirit. He would say that an emotional sickness or being mentally unwell will affect both the spirit and the body. Of course we all know that if a person is spiritually sick both the body and the mind will be affected. Johnny would say that being spiritually well is the foundation for whole wellness, but he would also say that we often overlook the other two areas.

If we realize this delicate balance in the area of wellness, then it would be logical to look at each area in the light of what makes them most sick; and that is sin. Our Lord Jesus was thoroughly tempted in the wilderness and we can see how He was tempted physically, psychologically, and spiritually.

Verse 3 says that Satan tempted Jesus by asking Him to turn the stones in bread. The temptation was to satisfy Himself with a need rather than trusting God for provision. Often our physical temptations are different. Sure, we are tempted to concentrate on our needs rather than concentrate on God, but we do something else physically that is sinful. We overemphasize pleasure. Pleasure is when the body is getting what it wants. SOMETIMES what we want and need are the same thing. I am sure Jesus was hungry and WANTED bread and if He’d not eaten in forty days I am sure He NEEDED bread. But our body often craves things that we don’t need such as alcohol, sex, drugs, etc. Our body may also be sinfully lazy and we may fall to the temptation to do nothing but lie around and sleep. The point here is this; we are often physically tempted to concentrate on pleasing our bodies. We need to be aware that Satan is a tempter in this area and to constantly analyze ourselves. Do we concentrate on pleasure too much? Are we susceptible to physical temptation?

Our minds are often tempted. In verses 6 and 7 Satan offered Jesus a short cut; instead of winning the world with the cross Satan offered his earthly kingdom if Jesus would bow to him. That was a mental temptation. It was a choice between the right way and the easy way. We too have many mental temptations. We have choices every day; several involve taking the easy way or taking the right way. Think about tax season; if we render unto Caesar that which is his we will have to do what is right, not what is easy. We have thousands of mental decisions every day; we must decide to do what is right, not what is easy many times a day. Happiness can be defined as the mind getting what it wants. Human beings will often compromise morality and holiness to find happiness. We cannot afford to do that. When we compromise what is right for the sake of happiness, we succumb to temptation. When we succumb to temptation, we sin. When we sin, we become unwell. Do we fall often to mental temptations? Do we sacrifice holiness for happiness?

Finally, Jesus was tempted spiritually. In verses 9-11 Satan tempted Jesus to tempt God. Satan wanted Jesus to prove Himself; he wanted Christ to dare God. Faith is not daring God; it is waiting patiently, doing His will, and cooperating with God’s plan (OVER our agenda). GOOD GRIEF! How many times a day do we struggle with that? People, by our very nature, are impatient plan makers. By that I mean we don’t want to wait and we don’t want to follow anyone’s plans but our own. We are rebellious too. We don’t want to obey anyone, unless what they are telling us to do is already what we want to do. Do we wait patiently on God? Do we dare God to prove Himself? Do we obey Him and follow His plan?

If we are to be wholly well and fully balanced we need to realize that temptation comes physically, mentally, and spiritually. We need to be ready. We need to be aware. We need to NOT ignore any area and be ready to fight the good fight against temptation. Temptation is opportunity; sin occurs when those opportunities are fulfilled. Let’s be well…wholly well. Realize and resist temptation; your health depends on it!

Luke #42 – Deceiving Temptations

Luke #42 – Deceiving Temptations

“And Jesus being full of the Holy Ghost returned from Jordan, and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, being forty days tempted of the devil. And in those days He did eat nothing: and when they were ended, He afterward hungered. And the devil said unto Him, ‘If Thou be the Son of God, command this stone that it be made bread.’ And Jesus answered him, saying, ‘It is written, that man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.’ And the devil, taking Him up into an high mountain, shewed unto Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. And the devil said unto Him, ‘All this power will I give Thee, and the glory of them: for that is delivered unto me; and to whomsoever I will I give it. If Thou therefore wilt worship me, all shall be Thine.’ And Jesus answered and said unto him, ‘Get thee behind Me, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve.’ And he brought Him to Jerusalem, and set Him on a pinnacle of the temple, and said unto Him, ‘If Thou be the Son of God, cast Thyself down from hence: for it is written, He shall give His angels charge over Thee, to keep Thee: and in their hands they shall bear Thee up, lest at any time Thou dash Thy foot against a stone.’ And Jesus answering said unto him, ‘It is said, thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.’ And when the devil had ended all the temptation, he departed from Him for a season” (Luke 4:1-13 – King James Version).

You’re going to laugh, but this illustration is the one I felt led to share. I want a new truck. I do not need a new truck, but I want one. I have never had a new truck and I want a Ford F-250, 4WD, crew cab pickup. Knowing how much I like trucks, a friend of mine, John Austin, sent me a calendar from the Ford dealership that had the picture of a different 2004 Ford truck for each month. It was a thoughtful gift, but it had a strange effect on me. I had to throw it away! If I’d kept it I would have sat around drooling over those trucks for the next year! The next time I saw John I told him that he could have given me a calendar full of naked women that would not have had as bad effect on me as did those trucks. I realized how subtle sin is. Now, let me be clear, I am in no way advocating calendars of naked women. What I am saying is that it is not always the things that are obvious that tempt us and cause us to sin.

Let’s look at that in light of Jesus wilderness temptation. There are recorded three temptations Jesus experienced after the period of forty days fasting that illustrate that. Of course, Jesus was tempted the entire forty days, but we only have these three temptations to look at specifically.

The first way that Satan will use subtlety is that he will tempt us with what we need. In verse three, knowing Jesus was hungry, Satan tells Jesus to turn rocks into bread. Of course, Jesus indicates that bread is not our greatest need with the statement “Man shall not live by bread alone.” Food is a need; one of the basic necessities of life. I think a lot of folks get bent out of shape at noon on Sundays when the preacher is still preaching and they are hungry. Is that a temptation? Does taking focus off of God because the belly is rumbling constitute sin? I think Jesus’ answer is clear, even the most important bodily needs should not take precedent over God. Matthew 6:33 tells us that if we keep our focus on God, He’ll take care of our needs. How about this…are we ever tempted with other needs? Sure, I think so; we need shelter, but how many times do we buy houses that are too big for us and struggle under the weight of the payments? That’s bad stewardship! Clothing is a need, but we exercise bad stewardship and vanity in that many times. We often buy clothes that are far too expensive so we can “look good” or “fit in” with the crowd. The object is to be clothed, not exalt our status. I could go on and on, but the point is clear; Satan WILL tempt us with things we need. Be watchful!

The next thing we find is that Satan will tempt us with what we will get. In verse five Satan tempts Jesus by offering Him the world as a kingdom. Lest we forget, Jesus is God! He made the world! It’s already His and on the cross He bought it back again; He redeemed it. Satan tempted Jesus to shortcut that process; avoid the cross. The devil tempts us with the same kind of things. Most notable in my mind is the temptation to have sex outside of marital bonds. Sex is a beautiful gift from God and if we wait until we are married, it is even more beautiful AND it honors God AND it keeps us from disobeying Him. I also think of gambling; we’d get money if we’d only work, but the devil tempts us with shortcuts; the easy way out. There are no easy ways out when it comes to honoring God. Even in the garden of Gethsemane Jesus proved that to us; His prayer was “Not My will, but Thine be done.” We are to put God first, but Satan’s subtle way is to try and make us impatient and resentful; to take shortcuts. Be watchful!

Lastly, Satan will tempt us with what is already ours. In verses 10-11 Satan tells Jesus to jump from the top of the temple to prove that God would care for Him. Jesus response was to tell the devil that we are not to tempt God; we are not to try to make God prove Himself. For us, He’s already done that by giving Christ on the cross. Too many times we come to God with “if you…” prayers. What I mean is that we pray saying “If you…” do such and such then I will do such and such. God’s love was extended to us while we were still in our sins. His love and provision are ours already; we do not need to try to get Him to prove it over and over by demanding that things from Him. Be watchful!

Watch out for Satan. His temptations are often very deceiving. We need to be very alert. We need to constantly analyze what is going on by the Word and in prayer; falling before God begging for His guidance. Also, we need to be honest with ourselves and not try to justify even our most subtle of sins. Remember, God hates ALL sin; it is an affront to Him. Whether subtle or obvious, be on guard for temptation. Be watchful!