“Remember how the LORD your God led you all the way in the wilderness these forty years, to humble and test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands.”
Deuteronomy 8:2 (NIV)
In Matthew’s account of the temptation of Jesus of Nazareth, our Lord quotes 3 Scriptures to overcome the temptation, 2 of these Scriptures come from Deuteronomy 6 and 1 response comes from Deuteronomy 8.
The simple lesson for a Christian from reading this account of victory over temptation is that knowledge of the meaning of Scripture, and a willingness to obey those Scriptures is absolutely key to victory over sin.
The negative example of this truth is contained in Genesis 3 where Eve allowed Satan to twist Scripture, he added to it (any tree), and then took away from it (you will not die) which deceived Eve and led Adam into sin.
Surely we must Know the Word and Obey the Word in order to have victory over sin!
Part of Knowing the Word is understanding why God leads us into the wilderness.
He led Jesus into the physical wilderness to give Satan an opportunity to test His heart.
He led the people of Israel into the wilderness to humble them and to test their heart.
Will they Obey the Word while in a wilderness?
Will they worship and serve God only while in desperate need?
God does this to you and me today - He leads us into the wilderness, into a place of great need to test our heart - will we be true to Him alone?
If we learn the lesson of Scripture - we will not trust ourselves, for the people of Israel failed.
If we learn the lesson of Scripture we will trust in Christ Jesus to bring us thru the wilderness, thru the temptation, thru the test of our heart.
If we learn the lesson of Scripture we will know the good purpose wilderness brings to our heart, for only wilderness will reveal whom we truly trust.
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