Pearls of Wisdom

God’s Word is full of Him, Who is Wisdom. Jesus is spoken of as the Wisdom of God. In the Bible the book of Proverbs is a definite book of wisdom, which is to be studied. This page is dedicated to bringing the wisdom of God’s Word to you so that you may find daily wisdom for your own life.

Wednesday, January 28, 2009

Man Does Not Live By Bread Alone

The very first temptation that the devil presented to Jesus in the wilderness concerned what we live by. Jesus was hungry. His flesh was more than likely crying out to be fed, even though he had been fasting for 40 days, and hunger leaves after a certain period of time. His body was still tempted, or it would not have been a temptation. He had a choice. He could either satisfy His flesh or yield to His spirit. Jesus made a very clear statement to the devil for him to hear and for us to hear. This is the statement: “It is written, MAN DOES NOT LIVE BY BREAD ALONE, BUT BY EVERY WORD THAT PROCEEDETH OUT OF THE MOUTH OF GOD” (Matthew 4:4). He was referring to Deuteronomy 8:3 in the Old Testament.

We are sustained by the Word of God. It is what gives us life. It is the very lifeblood of our being. I truly believe that we are living in the time on this earth when only those who stand firmly on the solid foundation of God’s Word are going to make it. There is no other solid foundation. God told us in His Word that everything that could be shaken will be shaken. He told us that everything will pass away, but His Word will still be standing firmly. All else shall pass away. Only God’s Word will be left. And those who are standing on that Word will be left firmly standing, not clinging on “for dear life.”

The Word of God breathes with the life of God. The life of God sustains our physical body. That life comes into the critical situations in our existence to infuse those situations with the vibrancy of God’s very being. God is the source of life. He is the One Who makes things live. Now isn’t that a profound statement! But I ask you as a child of God: Are you living on the Word of God? Or are you living from day to day on what this meager world has to offer to you? Don’t give me your “pat” answers. Search your heart. Are you willing to let everything else go but the Word and depend on it? What if you are placed in that situation? Will you be able to make it? I’m not talking about being killed. I am talking about living in the day-to-day world, going to work, taking care of the family, knowing that you will have food to eat and clothes on your body and no worries about tomorrow. Can you truly answer that the Word is your source? Can you say that God is your source?

I have been doing much thinking lately about my source in this world. Am I really depending on God the way I talk? Or is it just “talk”? I believe it is time to do some check-ups. I believe we need to get very serious with the Lord and ask the Holy Spirit to show us where we need our foundation “firmed up.” For those of us who live by the Word of God, we must keep our faith muscles toned all the time. Lack of exercise causes them to become flabby.

How much time are you spending with the Lord and His Word? Have you allowed the pressures of this present world to squeeze out time with the One Who loves you the most? I don’t know about you, but I am doing some fresh evaluations of my life with the Lord. I know there is great room for improvement. It is my determined purpose to live by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.

Until we as individuals get past this first temptation, we cannot overcome any other temptations. Every temptation has at its root one goal: to steal the Word of God from our lives. In the Parable of the Sower in Mark 4 we see the various ways that satan tempts us to keep the Word of God from producing results in our lives. Lack of Word power weakens us in the battles of life. It is the Word that brings strength and vibrancy into our lives. Without the power of the Word we will fail every time. The Word is God’s gift to us while we are here on this earth. The Holy Spirit has been given to us to make that Word come alive with the power of God. Without the Spirit and the Word, we will not make it in the days that are ahead of us.

We all need to take notice of those things that keep us away from the Word. I leave you with thoughts to ponder today over your own life. Take inventory. Here are the things which steal: trouble, persecution, cares, anxieties, and distractions of the world, offense, the deceitfulness of riches (love of money, not money itself), lust for other things. Do some of these sound familiar? There is a cure. It is called the Word cure. It is time to start taking a big dose every day. There is no danger of ever overdosing. Get out your Bible and start eating.