Genesis 5:1-7:24
Matthew 3:7-4:11
Psalm 3:1-8
Proverbs 1:10-19
Genesis 6:9 This is the account of Noah and his family. Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked faithfully with God.
Being a righteous man does not mean that Moses never sinned. He experienced temptation and being human sinned but in his heart he desired to please God. And while living "among the people of his time" he had a heart and desire to do what was "right" as God had told Cain. This is what makes him righteous. When he sinned he recognized his sin for what it was and did not allow himself to continue down the path that the people of his time were living on.
Genesis 6:11 Now the earth was corrupt in God’s sight and was full of violence.
The people of his time had fallen into the trap of lies that I talked about yesterday and believed they were in control of their life and they should be able to do whatever they wanted no matter how it might affect anyone else. They had no regard for God and doing what was right. They were unrighteous. Without God it is easy to give into temptation and sin. One sin easily leads to another and quickly becomes a rolling snowball. For example, the temptation to covet something that someone has can easily become the sin of envy. Then it is easy to believe the lie that you are setting goals for yourself to achieve the thing you desire which will quickly become a justification to do whatever it takes to achieve said goal. The snowball grows with the lie that you deserve to have what the other person has, or that the other person doesn't deserve what they have. This now gives you the right to take what they have and if they protest or try to stop you then you have to do whatever you need to which can end in violence. It is easy to see how a group of people who do not put God first can easily go down this path in every area of life.
Matthew 4:1 Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.
Jesus not only came to earth and took on a human nature He lived a human life facing all the temptations that we faced. Even the most righteous person cannot live a life without sin because we are only human. But Jesus being fully God and fully man was able to face the lies of Satan and do what is right. His righteousness is unfailing. This is the next step in evangelism. After a person comes to acknowledge their sin for what it is and know that it separates them from God it is time to introduce them to the perfect lamb who can restore their relationship with God. Learning that Jesus was tempted in the same ways that we are tempted can help some people to believe that Jesus understands them and their struggles. Which is often an important next step in surrender.
If you have already accepted Jesus as your Saviour then we can see how Jesus handled the lies of the devil. He shut them down with the truth of God. Even when the enemy used scripture out of context as his lie Jesus used the true words with the true intent. As believers this is how we can fight temptation. We will all be tempted just as Jesus was. That is not the sin. What we do with that temptation is. Just as God told Cain "But if you refuse to do what is right, then watch out!" We must decide to do what is right and the way to know what is right is to know God's word.
Matthew 4:4 Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”
Matthew 4:7 Jesus answered him, “It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’”
Matthew 4:10 Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’”
Truth is our weapon against lies. The more we know the truth the better we can recognize the lies. Once we recognize a temptation we know that it is a lie that the enemy would love for us to give into so the snowball can start rolling but we can stand up for what is right. We can do as Jesus did. Using Jesus name we can command Satan to leave us and speak the truth of scripture into the situation. When we tell Satan that we Worship Jesus and serve Him only he will flee. We also need to know scripture well enough that when the lost speak a lie that they are believing as truth we can know the real truth so that we can stand for what is right and not allow ourselves to fall into the trap of societal pressures to keep our truth to ourselves. Those who worship the things of the world do not keep the lies to themselves so we cannot keep the truth to ourselves and must be bold in standing for what is right. After all, if we don't then "watch out!" I am thinking that the silence of the church is one of the enemy's greatest assets. When we speak truth into this world that is no better than in the times of Noah perhaps our doing what is right and speaking truth into the lies can help to stop the snowball from rolling for someone. And the light of Jesus can melt away the rest of the layers of lies. So, keep reading, keep praying and be ever watchful of every opportunity that God gives you so speak truth because lies lead to death and truth to life.
Word of Life - https://youtu.be/Hjf278z1atY?si=uKfJwrofgZX0zw4m
Read it ! Thank you!
Thank you Denise for sharing what God is saying to you today through His word! Truths that will not only speak to you but to others who God brings to it. Hang onto Jesus!
As I read the four chapters today, I realized that there is a connection between them.
Genesis:
And Noah did all that the Lord commanded him.
11 In the six hundredth year of Noah's life, on the seventeenth day of the second month— on that day all the springs of the great deep burst forth, and the floodgates of the heavens were opened. 12 And rain fell on the earth forty days and forty nights.
600 years of faithfulness for Noah. 600! and we think with all of our trials and tribulations., In our lifetime, but can you truly imagine at 600 years old the undertaking and then he lived for hundreds of years more. And each of his days…