Friday, Saturday, Sunday—June 7, 8, 9 • Hiding God’s Word Jesus answered, “It is written: . . . ” Matthew 4:4 Knowing Jesus was hungry from fasting, Satan tempted Him to turn stones into bread so He could eat them. When that didn’t work, Satan suggested that Jesus should throw Himself off a high pinnacle to prove He was God’s son. When that failed, Satan offered to give Jesus the world in exchange for His worship. All three times, Jesus resisted by answering him with God’s written Word. Jesus apparently had so filled Himself with Scripture; it was His most natural weapon for confronting temptation. One of our greatest comforts as Christians is that God loved us so much, He was willing to allow His son to be tortured so that we could be delivered from temptation. Hebrews 4:15 tells us, “We do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin.” That one verse summarizes Jesus’ wilderness experience. He was tempted in every way. That means our Lord can sympathize with us when we go through all kinds of temptations, because He has walked in our shoes. Jesus’ example encourages us, because it means we also can overcome temptation and sin. Why? Because we have access to the same weapon that Jesus used. We have God’s Word. And God promised,
“My word . . . will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it” (Isaiah 55:11). It’s a powerful weapon, described in Hebrews 4:12: “. . . the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” But our ability to use that weapon depends on our familiarity with it. The Psalmist wrote, “I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you” (Psalm 119:11). That implies more than a casual familiarity. If I “hide” something in my heart, that implies that I have spent time with it, meditated on it, digested it, made it part of my life. Jesus proved the effectiveness of God’s Word in resisting temptation. We have access to that same weapon, but we must train ourselves to use it.MIMBS 6 Make a list of ways to “hide God’s Word in your heart.” Which is the most effective for you? Which do you need to incorporate in your life more effectively? How will you make that happen? Daily Reading: 1 Kings 2:1–6:38, Acts 5:1–7:29, Psalm 125:1–127:55, Proverbs 16:25–30
For Your Small Group
❏❏ June 3–9: From the questions on this page, what ways have you hidden God’s Word in your heart? •• Did you memorize Scripture verses as a child? Did someone read Bible stories to you in Sunday school? •• Have those verses influenced your life as an adult? How so? •• Why is hiding God’s Word in your heart so important?
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