40 Days of Words
Dr Jim Brown's TruNorth Devotional
40 Days of Words
Day 28 | GOD’S WORD | Matthew 4:4
40 Days of Words
Day 28 | GOD’S WORD | Matthew 4:4
GOD’S WORD
Matthew 4:4
But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.’”
I’ve got to be honest… when I first heard or read this when I was a boy, I thought, “That doesn’t make sense.” As a boy, I liked to EAT. In retrospect, I don’t know how my folks could afford having to throw so much food at me when I was a teenager!
But Jesus here – being tested by Satan after his baptism in the Jordan River by John the Baptist – is combating with Satan and using Scripture as His “weapon.” Jesus is saying that the WORD of God is more important that food.
Which makes me think: If the Word of God is THAT important, and Christians NEED to read, ponder, and DO the Word of God (“Be doers of the Word and not hearers only” – James 1:22), then… how are we doing?
Today, we have many choices as to the food we eat (and I admit, we are BLESSED). But many people choose unwisely. They choose something with too much of this or too little of that. Sometimes, we give thought to what we eat and Drink. Other times… not so much.
So now, let’s ask the same question of our “intake” of the Word of God?
Are we getting enough (of God’s Word)? Do we read and ponder? Or are we just speed reading to get through it?
In the Psalms you will sometime find the little word “Selah” after a phrase. Analogous to the “rest” you’ll find in musical nomenclature, the word “Selah” is Hebrew and it means to pause, ponder, and/or consider what the phrase said.
Next time you read in your Bible, try adding your own “Selah” after a verse or two or three. It will help you to get the most “nourishment” from it!
PRAYER: Lord, help me to gain from the Scriptures exactly what YOU want me to get. Help me to pause more often and seriously ponder YOUR WORD. Amen.
Matthew 4:4
But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.’”
I’ve got to be honest… when I first heard or read this when I was a boy, I thought, “That doesn’t make sense.” As a boy, I liked to EAT. In retrospect, I don’t know how my folks could afford having to throw so much food at me when I was a teenager!
But Jesus here – being tested by Satan after his baptism in the Jordan River by John the Baptist – is combating with Satan and using Scripture as His “weapon.” Jesus is saying that the WORD of God is more important that food.
Which makes me think: If the Word of God is THAT important, and Christians NEED to read, ponder, and DO the Word of God (“Be doers of the Word and not hearers only” – James 1:22), then… how are we doing?
Today, we have many choices as to the food we eat (and I admit, we are BLESSED). But many people choose unwisely. They choose something with too much of this or too little of that. Sometimes, we give thought to what we eat and Drink. Other times… not so much.
So now, let’s ask the same question of our “intake” of the Word of God?
Are we getting enough (of God’s Word)? Do we read and ponder? Or are we just speed reading to get through it?
In the Psalms you will sometime find the little word “Selah” after a phrase. Analogous to the “rest” you’ll find in musical nomenclature, the word “Selah” is Hebrew and it means to pause, ponder, and/or consider what the phrase said.
Next time you read in your Bible, try adding your own “Selah” after a verse or two or three. It will help you to get the most “nourishment” from it!
PRAYER: Lord, help me to gain from the Scriptures exactly what YOU want me to get. Help me to pause more often and seriously ponder YOUR WORD. Amen.