Faithfulness
1 Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry.
Matthew 4:1-2
I wonder what you think of this? The Spirit leading Jesus’ into the wilderness to be tempted by Satan. I rekon this can be a bit confronting for some people. Why would the Spirit do such a thing? Doesn’t God lead us into blessing?
And yes… He does. But, how does He lead us into blessing (and perhaps also, when)? It’s always through the trial.
It’s there in the Exodus. God rescues them out of Egypt but before they reach the promised land - God leads them into the trial of the wilderness. So it is with Jesus and so it is with us.
Our trial is the many decisions, situations, opportunities etc. that we might face where we can either trust God and His Word, or trust in something else (our gut, our sinful desires, other ‘saviors’ etc.).
But only when we trust in God, and His faithfulness will we ultimately receive the blessing of eternal life & satisfaction.
Why does God do it this way? Why does there have to be a trial before blessing? Well, I don’t know that the Bible answers this directly. But I do think you can reason it out. You see it in the story of Job.
Remember the start of Job? Satan says to God, sure your servant Job is a righteous man - because you have blessed him so much. Satan queries - what will Job do if you remove your blessings.
Job is such a powerful story because despite all the trials he faced, Job kept trusting in God’s faithfulness. And after the trial, Job enjoyed more blessings than before.
For Today:
Pray:
Matthew 4:1-2
I wonder what you think of this? The Spirit leading Jesus’ into the wilderness to be tempted by Satan. I rekon this can be a bit confronting for some people. Why would the Spirit do such a thing? Doesn’t God lead us into blessing?
And yes… He does. But, how does He lead us into blessing (and perhaps also, when)? It’s always through the trial.
It’s there in the Exodus. God rescues them out of Egypt but before they reach the promised land - God leads them into the trial of the wilderness. So it is with Jesus and so it is with us.
Our trial is the many decisions, situations, opportunities etc. that we might face where we can either trust God and His Word, or trust in something else (our gut, our sinful desires, other ‘saviors’ etc.).
But only when we trust in God, and His faithfulness will we ultimately receive the blessing of eternal life & satisfaction.
Why does God do it this way? Why does there have to be a trial before blessing? Well, I don’t know that the Bible answers this directly. But I do think you can reason it out. You see it in the story of Job.
Remember the start of Job? Satan says to God, sure your servant Job is a righteous man - because you have blessed him so much. Satan queries - what will Job do if you remove your blessings.
Job is such a powerful story because despite all the trials he faced, Job kept trusting in God’s faithfulness. And after the trial, Job enjoyed more blessings than before.
For Today:
- What trials have you faced in life?
- Are you tempted to doubt God’s faithfulness right now? Why?
- Reflect on the pattern of trial before blessing.
Pray:
- Praise the Father for His faithfulness.
- Give thanks that Jesus endured the ultimate trial for us.
- Ask God for His Holy Spirit to help you and others endure in the face of trials.
Posted in Matthew
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