Luke 4:3-4

Luke 4:3-4 

And the devil said to Him, "If you are a Son of God, speak to these stones in order that they should become bread." And Jesus said to him, "It has been written that man will not live only upon bread. 

Thoughts for Today 

First Thought: 

Look at the words that Satan uses against Jesus.  "If you are a son of God."  Satan knows full well who Jesus is.  Satan knows Jesus' identity.  Yet, he will not confess it.  Satan will not recognize Jesus' power or authority because He refuses to accept Jesus' identity.  Satan doesn't respect any our of identities, either.  If Satan doesn't respect Jesus' identity, he is not going to respect any of our identities as sons of God, either. 

If Satan does not accept your identity, what does that mean?  How can you live out of an identity that others may not accept? 

Second Thought: 

As we go through each of these three temptations, I think it is important to look at why the devil might use this temptation.  This temptation is obviously a ploy to get Jesus to fall to His human will.  Jesus is hungry.  He hasn't eaten for quite some time.  It would be very tempting to take the power of God and turn the stones into bread in order to fulfill His need to eat.  Satan is trying to put Jesus' appetite ahead of His loyalty to God. 

Do your human needs ever take precedence over God's will for your life?  When is this most likely to happen?  What need can the devil place before you to get you to stumble easily? 

Third Thought: 

Jesus' response is classic.  Man will not live by bread alone.  Notice that Jesus doesn't say that man will not live by bread.  Of course mankind will live by bread.  We all need to eat.  But food is not the only thing that sustains us.  In fact, Jesus is even saying here that food is subordinate to the nourishment that comes from the Father.  We all do need to eat, but that which comes from the Father sustains us far better than the food that we will eat. 

From where does your satisfaction come?  Is it easy for you to remember that God is far more satisfying than any of our human means for sustaining us? 

Passage for Tomorrow: Luke 4:5-8