SOAP Devotional 2014-09-10

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SOAP Devotional 2014-09-10

Scripture – Observation – Application – Prayer

Part four of five with this text…

Scripture:

Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted there by the devil. For forty days and forty nights he fasted and became very hungry. During that time the devil came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become loaves of bread.” But Jesus told him, “No! The Scriptures say, ‘People do not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’ ” Then the devil took him to the holy city, Jerusalem, to the highest point of the Temple, and said, “If you are the Son of God, jump off! For the Scriptures say, ‘He will order his angels to protect you. And they will hold you up with their hands so you won’t even hurt your foot on a stone.’ ” Jesus responded, “The Scriptures also say, ‘You must not test the LORD your God.’ ” Next the devil took him to the peak of a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. “I will give it all to you,” he said, “if you will kneel down and worship me.” “Get out of here, Satan,” Jesus told him. “For the Scriptures say, ‘You must worship the LORD your God and serve only him.’ ” Then the devil went away, and angels came and took care of Jesus. (‭Matthew‬ ‭4‬:‭1-11‬ NLT)

Observation:

Third temptation: tempted with personal power if he would Just worship the devil. The devil promised things that he could not deliver. Jesus again answered with scripture. Resisting did not require deep theological quotes from complex passages, just the basic introduction to the Ten Commandments.

“Then God gave the people all these instructions: “I am the LORD your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery. “You must not have any other god but me. “You must not make for yourself an idol of any kind or an image of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea. You must not bow down to them or worship them, for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God who will not tolerate your affection for any other gods. I lay the sins of the parents upon their children; the entire family is affected—even children in the third and fourth generations of those who reject me. But I lavish unfailing love for a thousand generations on those who love me and obey my commands.” (‭Exodus‬ ‭20‬:‭1-6‬ NLT)

Application:

The devil can not deliver on his promises, but even if he could, momentary gain could never be worth eternal failure. We have one God. Our source and our sufficiency is in Him. We worship Him alone and we serve Him alone. If we are not careful, way too many things that promote self worth rather than service to God. These things can become idols in our lives that we begin to worship more than being obedient to God. Do you want to see if something consumes you more than serving God? Look at your calendar. Where does serving God show up there or is something else more prevailing?

Prayer:

Father help me to always make sure that I stay devoted to you and not to anything else. Do not even let the work of the ministry become more important than me taking time to worship and serve you.

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