Weekly Devotional

“Then the tempter approached Him and said, ‘If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.’ He answered, ‘It is written: Man must not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” - Matthew 4:3-4 

Let us be sure, if the tempter approached Jesus, he will also approach us. Sin is not in the temptation, it is in our response to the temptation. Satan knew Jesus was hungry. He knew the weak spot and he went for it. He knows your weak spot, and he will come for it. The question is not 'if', or even 'when', but 'how will you respond?'. Jesus may have been weak with hunger, but He was not weak through and through. He was well armed with a knowledge and reliance on the Word of God. Just because you have a weakness, it doesn't mean you are weak through and through. God has given us His Word, with all its’ power. We can choose to lean into that Word and believe it, trust it, and rely on it when our weakness is being tempted. What will you give the enemy when he comes for your identity? For your need for approval? For your tendency toward comparison and envy? What will you give him when he hits your need to escape emotional pain? Beloved, he will come for your need for significance and your fear of missing out, and I'm asking you - what will you give him? Will you give him a response that fuels his scheme, or ends it? Jesus showed us that just because Satan comes for our weakness, that doesn't mean we have to give it to him. We can give him the Word of God instead. We can offer our obedience to God, our trust in God, and our conviction that His Word is the solid ground we stand on. We can give the enemy everything he does not want.

My challenge to you is this - acknowledge where you are weak and target those areas with the Word of God. Arm yourself in the very areas where you feel the most vulnerable. And when the enemy comes for your weak places, "it is written" will be your victory. 

Author: Karla Wasion, Assistant to Pastor Josh Vaughan