But He [Jesus] replied, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” Matthew 4:4, TLV
Test Answers? Here’s a difficult question. Have you ever cheated on a test? Getting the answers to a test by cheating foils the purpose of a test — to see if we understand the material enough to utilize it.
The context of chapter four is when Yeshua [Jesus] was led into the wilderness by the Holy Spirit — for a major test. Not His most difficult test, but definitely one of the big ones.
Did you know that every test “question” — well, actually temptation — was overcome by passages in the Torah [the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy]? The enemy tempted Yeshua using passages outside the Torah—the rest of the Old Testament—and what was His response? A passage from the Torah. Why is that significant?
He afflicted you and let you hunger, then He fed you manna—which neither you nor your fathers had known—in order to make you understand that man does not live by bread alone but by every word that comes from the mouth of ADONAI [the LORD]. Deuteronomy 8:3, TLV
Because those first five books of the Bible are the
very foundation of our faith. Any time we need to “test” a truth, we hold it to those books, just like Jesus did.
Yeshua could defeat the temptations not just because He had memorized the Torah. No, He was and is the Word made flesh.
And the Word became flesh and tabernacled [temporarily lived] among us. We looked upon His glory, the glory of the one and only from the Father, full of grace and truth. John 1:14, TLV
We’re not the “Word made flesh” but guess what? The very foundation of the New Covenant is that the Law would be written in our hearts to become a part of us.
“But this is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after those days”
—it is a declaration of ADONAI—
“I will put My Torah within them.
Yes, I will write it on their heart.
I will be their God
and they will be My people.” Jeremiah 31:32, TLV, Emphasis Mine
So, memorization is good, in fact it is important. But once we memorize it, the word must engrave itself upon our hearts. We live it. Every. Single. Day. Because when those temptations arise today — and we know they will — we can speak against them, yes, but if GOD’s truth is engraved on our heart those temptations will be obliterated.
It’s not cheating to know the answers, it’s cheating when we don’t live them.
Think More About It
How do you answer the tests of life? Do you memorize? Or do the word write themselves in your heart so you “just know”? Thoughts? Testimonies?
Praying for Israel
My heart is stirred with a good word.
I speak my verses to the king.
My tongue is the pen of a skillful writer. Psalm 45:2, TLV
Does the LORD sometimes give you a “knowing”? It usually happens in the middle of challenges where a peace and joy bubbles up, even though, well, there is chaos around you. This is more than a peace that God gives us, it’s like a love moment. Does praise well up? Follow it.
When this happens while praying for Israel, follow the peace and joy.
The Levites were sometimes placed before the battle—in front of the warriors—to worship and praise. Talk about a test—a test of faith. But, this act of faith guaranteed their victory.
Today’s verse ushers in worship of the King—the King of Kings for us. Personalize your praise. Let the sweet peace and joy carry those prayers for Israel. Amen? God bless you!
