Devotional of the week: Words of Life (5 in Luke 4 series)

Photo: Savio Sebastian, flickr

“You must worship the Lord your God and serve only him.” Luke 4:8

When I was a young Christian, I took part in the Navigators’ Scripture memory program. Decades later, I can still recall many of the Bible verses I learned. I love having the riches of God’s word so deeply embedded in me, although of course I wish I had more memorized. (In fact, the renowned writer on the spiritual disciplines, Dallas Willard, said that if he had to choose between a daily “Quiet Time” or memorizing Scripture, he’d choose the latter.)

Jesus relied on Scripture, and quotes from the Hebrew Bible each time he replies to Satan during these three temptations. In just a sentence or two his words of truth slice through Satan’s oily schemes. For instance, when Satan invites Jesus to take control of the kingdoms on the earth, Jesus replies with words spoken by Moses, when he was the Lord’s mouthpiece to give the Israelites God’s law: “You must worship the Lord … and serve only him.” Jesus knows that his allegiance lies with his Father and won’t bow to Satan.

We won’t face the particular tests that Jesus did, but as we grow stronger in our Christian faith, we’ll face other temptations and battles by the father of lies. One weapon against his schemes is the word of God, planted in our souls. Then when we face trials, we can ask the Holy Spirit to bring to mind God’s words to counter the attack.

Is there a special verse from Scripture you could put to memory this day?

Prayer: Triune God, increase my love for your Word, that I might take, read and inwardly digest it, and bring glory to you. Amen.