It Is Written

(Luke 4:4 NIV) Jesus answered, "It is written: 'Man does not live on bread alone.'"

The Hymn, “Onward Christian Soldiers” has been dropped from some hymnals because it is about warfare. They did not want people to sing about war and warfare. They want a message just about love. The truth however is that in this world there has been a horrendous battle going on between God and the Devil and God’s people and the devil. We have entered the Lenten season, a time of battle, a time of spiritual conflict,  the battle between Jesus Christ, God’s Son and Satan, the adversary and accuser of God, the Devil, the Liar from the beginning. What is at stake is not just the person and the work of Jesus Christ; but also is the assurance for each of us for our own personal salvation. This is THE BATTLE FOR MY SOUL. Satan attacks God’s word. He attacks God’s law in every corner to get us to sin and when we have sinned, he attacks the Gospel to destroy the comfort God has spoken in his word. Keeping Jesus words before us, may we consider Jesus answer to the Devil, “It is Written.”

We might wonder how this is a temptation. The Devil is attacking the very words God had said to his own Son, “This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.” The weapon of Satan was a temptation, an allurement to sin. Jesus had been in the wilderness for 40 days. Satan had been attacking through out this time. We have the one temptation at the end of the days. Jesus had not eaten. Satan then tempted, “turn these stones into bread.” Oh what a blow. What was so wrong with that?  There is no law that prohibits turnings stones to bread.  This is what to watch out for; his temptations don’t seem that bad. But it was a challenge to Jesus’ very faith and trust in his heavenly Father; it was a challenge to deny that God was His father and would take care of him. 

We find that Satan offers things that are not his; all he wants is the worship. The devil led him up to a high place and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. 6 And he said to him, "I will give you all their authority and splendor, for it has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to. 7 So if you worship me, it will all be yours." 

            Satan is not even afraid to use part of the word of God, only for his twisted purposes.    The devil led him to Jerusalem and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. "If you are the Son of God," he said, "throw yourself down from here. 10 For it is written: "'He will command his angels concerning you to guard you carefully; 11 they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.'" Satan didn’t care if Jesus followed the will of God. Luther has written that Satan came first as a black devil with a temptation, then came as a divine devil offering the world and then the white devil quoting the Bible.

We face a personal battle: Jesus told his disciples:  (Mat 26:41 NIV) "Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak." Paul wrote to other Christians (1 Cor 10:13 NIV) No temptation has seized you except what is common to man.  James warned his readers less they blame God rather than the Devil for their problems. (James 1:13-14 NIV) When tempted, no one should say, "God is tempting me." For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; {14} but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed.

Satan will attack each one of us where he knows we are weak. He will not play fair. He will even use God’s word to justify sinning.  Lies, doubts, even friends like Judas, he will use anything or anyone to get us to fall away from the Lord.  He will try to cause us to be convinced we are not even responsible for our own actions; it is always someone else’s fault. We all know our own weaknesses. We would be foolish to go into battle with Satan all by ourselves. 

Like a sword in the hands of a skilled swordsman, Jesus opened his mouth and answered, "It is written.” With the powerful double edge sword he takes on the prince of darkness and returns the attack.   How can a simple Bible verse make a difference in this spiritual war? Because Jesus knew that this was more than simple thoughts by Moses of old, this was the Word of God, the living and active word of God, sharper than any double-edged sword. At each attack of Satan Jesus turned to the powerful Word of God and answered again: "It is written.” This would happen again the third time, and again Jesus answered, Jesus answered, "It is written.”  

A few years later Satan would come back again and work among Jesus’ own disciples. We hear Jesus’ use the powerful word again when he told Peter, “Get behind me Satan.” We see also the casualty of the war when we read: (Luke 22:3 NIV) Then Satan entered Judas, called Iscariot, one of the Twelve. Judas failed to heed the warnings or learn how to use what Jesus had given him in his powerful word. 

But the end result of the battle with Jesus, the conquer, the victor: (1 John 3:8 NIV) He who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil's work.  We also need to remember what God had promised to the devil, that one would crush his head. Jesus would deliver that crushing defeat just at the time Satan looked like he had won the battle. There on the cross, the Son of God died, but that would mark the defeat of Satan, for sins would be paid in full and death conquered. 

            What Jesus accomplished was to be enjoyed by us and used by us for our own spiritual journey to heaven. 

            (1 Pet 5:8 NIV) Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. … Resist the Devil and he will flee. The Bible says at this time the devil is chained…like a vicious dog, he can go only as far as the chain will allow. But if we want to play near the dog house, then plan on getting devoured. 

            In your own spiritual struggle God’s word has comfort for you and ideas for you to help you. Go back to Jesus, the one who defeated Satan: (Heb 2:18 NIV) Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted. (Heb 4:15 NIV) For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are--yet was without sin.

            In our battle we are reminded (Eph 6:17 NIV) Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Remember Judas who fell, but the Bible reminds us of victories, we don’t all have to be victims in this war:  (1 John 2:14 NIV) I write to you, fathers, because you have known him who is from the beginning. I write to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God lives in you, and you have overcome the evil one.

            My mission to you is the same that Jesus gave to the Apostle Paul: I am sending you to them to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.' Resist Satan and he will flee.

In 1521, disguised as a knight, Martin Luther began working on his incomparable translation of the New Testament from Greek into German. The devil was furious and full of hellish rage. Dreadful noises in his chamber at night would awaken him from sleep. Howling as of a dog could be heard at his door, and on one occasion as he sat translating the New Testament, an apparition of the Evil One, in the form of a lion, seemed to be walking round and round him, and preparing to spring upon him. Seizing the weapon that came first to his hand, which happened to be his inkstand, Luther hurled it at the devil with such force, that he put the fiend to flight, and broke the plaster on the wall. So the story goes of the ink stain in the castle he was staying. He real comfort was written in our opening hymn for today, Almighty Fortress is our God. Verse four:

Though devils all the world should fill,

All eager to devour us,

We tremble not, we fear no ill;

They shall not over pow'r us.

This world's prince may still Scowl fierce as he will,

He can harm us none. He's judged; the deed is done!

One little word can fell him. Amen.