Gtcotr/ss031515
Today
we will be taking our text from Luke 4. As you
turn allow me to read one of my favorite scriptures from:
Deuteronomy 8:3 And he
humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou
knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that
man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out
of the mouth of the LORD doth man live.
Story
- In June of 1980 God told me that He would make me rich …
·
I
believed the word I received from the Lord but I did not understand what He
meant by rich nor what I would go through in my making.
o In time I came to understand
that anyone who ends the day with more bread than they have eaten or more joy
than they have sorrow is truly a very wealthy person.
o Rich is what we are
when we have more than enough for ourselves so that we are able to share a
little of our abundance with those who are poor. This is the abundant life …
o I later realized
that when God said that He would make me rich … He did not say that He would
give me riches. The giving or riches can be instant but the making took time
and hard work and trust on my part and much patience and grace on His.
·
Just
after God spoke to me about making me rich He told me to sell and give away
everything we owned and give the money to a Church – it was a Church I had
never attended. He told me that He did not want me to be able to say that my
hands had gotten me anything but only that “The Lord had provided.”
o We had completely
furnished our house with things we had bought and brought back from Europe. Our
living room furniture, dining room table and hutch, kitchen, stereo, pictures,
bedrooms, nursery, and even our clothes and children’s toys … we even sold both
of our cars, my 4 wheel drive Ramcharger and her Volkswagen.
o We prayed, heard
from God, knew His will, believed and acted on His Word, and we expected His abundant
provision … He was going to make us rich and we really expected He would do it
immediately.
o However, our initial
expectations were a little off …
o In fact, we moved
into an unfurnished apartment with not even a folding chair. Brenda went to a
local grocery store’s dumpster and retrieved boxes which she turned on their
sides to make places for the clothes we were believing God to give us any day
and more boxes, one big one she made into a dining room table and little boxes
she turned upside down for our 2 children to sit on.
o After 2 months we
bought our first piece of furniture was a $5 bean bag we were so proud to own.
That was the only piece of furniture we owned for over 7 months.
o We graduated from
that 2 bedroom apartment and moved into a borrowed 23 foot camper trailer.
o We did not own a car
for 2 whole years – even though the Lord gave us the cash and told us to buy
and pay for 2 cars during that time and give them away to other people, one of
which was a hitchhiker.
o Although I did not
know, I am certain the Lord knew what He was doing.
·
Now,
35 years later, I can truly testify that the Lord has kept His word above and
beyond anything I could have ever imagined. He has made me rich.
·
You
see … the devil would love for you to have trust issues with God however, the
truth is:
The Lord humbles us, and allows us to hunger, and feeds us with
manna, which we knew not, neither did our fathers know; that He might make us
to know that we do not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out
of the mouth of the LORD. (Deuteronomy 8:3 Paraphrased)
Luke 4
1 ¶
Then Jesus, being filled with the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan
and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness,
2 being tempted for forty
days by the devil. And in those days He ate nothing, and afterward, when they
had ended, He was hungry.
The 1st Temptation:
3 And the devil said to Him,
"If You are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread."
4 But Jesus answered him,
saying, "It is written, ’Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every
word of God.’" (Deuteronomy 8:3)
5 Then
the devil, taking Him up on a high mountain, showed Him all the kingdoms of the
world in a moment of time.
6 And
the devil said to Him, "All this authority I will give You, and their
glory; for this has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I
wish.
The 2nd Temptation
7 "Therefore, if You
will worship before me, all will be Yours."
8 And Jesus answered and said
to him, "Get behind Me, Satan! For it is written, ’You shall worship the LORD
your God, and Him only you shall serve.’" (Deuteronomy
6:13 & 10:20)
The 3rd Temptation
9 Then he brought Him to
Jerusalem, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, "If You
are the Son of God, throw Yourself down from here.
10
"For it is written: ’He shall give His angels charge over you, To
keep you,’
11
"and, ’In their hands they shall bear you up, Lest you dash
your foot against a stone.’" (Psalms 91:11&12)
12 And Jesus answered and
said to him, "It has been said, ’You shall not tempt the LORD your
God.’" (Deuteronomy 6:16)
13 Now when the devil had
ended every temptation, he departed from Him until an opportune time.
What
were the temptations and how will we face those same temptations?
1.
Provide for Yourself
2.
Promote Yourself
3.
Prove Yourself
The
greatest temptations we face in life come straight from the devil. Satan is constantly trying to get us to make everything all
about us. He uses the same tactics on today that he used on both Eve and
Jesus. There might be different situations but it’s the same issue …
These
issues are Trust Issues …
·
Can
you trust God right now?
·
Can
you trust God with your destiny?
·
Can
you trust God with your eternity?
If
the devil can get you to doubt God and make life all about yourself and:
·
Provide
for yourself
o here in this world
o in the world to come
(by works which can never save)
·
Promote
yourself out of time or place
·
Prove
yourself to the world that you are somebody …
…
then he’s got you just where he wants you and he can control your life.
“If
you are the Son of God …” – Subtle conversations of seducing spirits
questioning God’s character and commitment – We have nothing to prove
We
can trust God with our today, our tomorrow and with our forever.
The
remedies for us are thus:
·
The Word of God supplies our daily bread.
·
Worship and Service secure our destiny.
·
Relationship assures our eternity.
Let
me encourage you to increase your intake of Word, Worship and service to the
Lord. And … if you do not have a relationship with God …
It’s hard to trust God for your eternity if you can’t trust Him for
your today!
It’s
all about souls – God wants to save your soul and the devil wants to destroy it
… who are you going to trust?
35
years ago I began a journey of learning how to trust God one day, one step, one
issue at a time. I can truly say that the Lord has been faithful to me. He has
never failed me or forsaken me and I know you can trust Him today.
What
will you trust God to do for you right now?
