What Voice Shall We Hear?
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Matthew 4:1 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry. 3 Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, "If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread." 4 But He answered and said, "It is written, 'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.'" Pseudo
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Jesus overcame every temptation because he knew the difference between the voice of God the Father and the voice of the enemy. Every temptation that Satan brought to Jesus was based upon trying to get Jesus to trust in His own doings as opposed to trusting in the word of God. It is possible to know with clarity and distinction the difference between the voice of God and all other voices.
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Satan tempted Jesus with “if” every time. His tactics have not changed. If you are the Son of God do this work of changing bread into stone. Jesus had already heard the voice of God the Father even before the temptation began.
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Matthew 3:16 When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him. 17 And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased."
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The devil said “if you are the Son…” The voice of the enemy brings doubt fear and death. The Father spoke “ This is My beloved Son in whom I am well pleased” The voice of God brings life!
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John 10:10 "The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.
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Jesus' reply, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God”. So many of the saints are chasing the bread - doing the doings. Stop pursuing the bread and listen to so that you can hear the voice of God! The abundant life found in Jesus can only be lived by living by the word from the Father!
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Colossians 1:12 giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light. 13 He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, 14 in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.
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Those who are truly the children of God have had a transfer. The transfer is out of the power of darkness into the kingdom of the Son of His love. It is based upon the forgiveness of sins found exclusively in the blood of Jesus Christ. We sing it in our songs, “What can wash away my sin, nothing but the blood of Jesus.” The only way to be a son of God is surrendering to the Lordship of Jesus Christ and the completed work He did at Calvary . Will you hear the voice of the Father and live? Oh that the church will live by the words that proceed from the mouth of God.
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Matthew 4:5 Then the devil took Him up into the holy city, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, 6 and said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down. For it is written: 'He shall give His angels charge over you,' and, 'In their hands they shall bear you up, Lest you dash your foot against a stone.'" 7 Jesus said to him, "It is written again, 'You shall not tempt the LORD your God.'"
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Notice the devil brings Jesus to the religious place, the holy institution ordained by God. Satan will try to trip you up in what looks likes a very good religious atmosphere. He starts the attack again “if you are the Son of God”… The first temptation was to get Jesus to meet a physical need with stone to bread. One might ask what wrong with that. If the work is based upon proving who you are and not bringing glory to the Father, it is a work of the flesh. However in this religious place, satan was tempting Jesus to prove the goodness of the Father. Notice the devil threw a little of the Word at Jesus. The implication was, if you throw yourself down from the pinnacle of the temple and you truly are the Son of God your Father will save you! This was not only an accusation against who the Son was, but an accusation against Jesus' trust in the goodness of the Father. Because Jesus knew the word He was able to answer wisely “You shall not tempt the Lord Your God.”
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1 John 2:14 I have written to you, fathers, Because you have known Him who is from the beginning. I have written to you, young men, Because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, And you have overcome the wicked one.
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If we ever are going to walk as mature Christians it will be because the word of God abides in us. The young men in this passage overcame the wicked one because they gained strength by the word of God abiding in them. If abundant life is found by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God it is only natural for the believer to hunger for the word of God. So many Christians are living by earthly bread without pursuit of the word that proceeds from the mouth of God.
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1 Peter 2:2 as newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby, 3 if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious.
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It is not a word spoken by an outside source that brings you victory; it is the word that abides in you. It is the word that God has spoken to you in the midst of having sweet fellowship and relationship with God. It is the word spoken by the Word of the covenant of grace.
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Hebrews 13:9 Do not be carried about with various and strange doctrines. For it is good that the heart be established by grace, not with foods which have not profited those who have been occupied with them. 10 We have an altar from which those who serve the tabernacle have no right to eat.
Hebrews 13:20 Now may the God of peace who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, 21 make you complete in every good work to do His will, working in you what is well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.
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Acts 20:32 "So now, brethren, I commend you to God and to the word of His grace, which is able to build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified.
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There are some saints who are struggling; they have gone from one prayer line to another looking for deliverance. The word has already proceeded from the mouth of God and they will not receive their deliverance in another prayer line! When one’s heart is established upon the divine influence of God, it is able to be built up to such a degree they become inheritors of the abundant life in Christ! We have been called to live by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God. If you are walking in an area of bondage in your life perhaps it is time to receive the word of grace that can set you free from the snare of the fowler. It is the alter that Jesus Christ prepared for us to eat at that brings victory!
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2 Timothy 2:24 And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all, able to teach, patient, 25 in humility correcting those who are in opposition, if God perhaps will grant them repentance, so that they may know the truth, 26 and that they may come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, having been taken captive by him to do his will.
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There are saints who are genuine in their faith yet have struggled in bondage. The struggle can’t be cast out through prayer! Telling God I am sorry for the bondage has done you no good; you find yourself back in the same struggle a few days or may be hours later. Receiving the word that proceeds from the mouth of God produces freedom.
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Romans 6:5 For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, 6 knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. For he who has died has been freed from sin. 8 Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, 9 knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him. 10 For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. 11 Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord. 12 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts.
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Do it like Jesus did! Jesus died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, He lives to God! True believers have died to sin at the point of salvation; after that it is a reckoning! You as a believer must recognize you have died to sin once for all. So many believers still see themselves alive to sin! They almost forget they have an advocate with the Father that has taken away the sin, not of only the believer but the sin of the world. By faith reckon yourself dead indeed to sin but alive unto God! Sinless perfection? No! Complete and total reliance upon the finished work of Calvary ? Yes! Beloved if you do sin remember your Advocate with the Father!
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Matthew 4:8 Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. 9 And he said to Him, "All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me." 10 Then Jesus said to him, "Away with you, Satan! For it is written, 'You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.'" 11 Then the devil left Him, and behold, angels came and ministered to Him.
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The devil invites Jesus to take a short cut. Satan knew that the Son had been sent for the deliverance of the fallen human race. If you will but fall down and worship me I will give the kingdoms of the world! Forget the cross Jesus, here is better way! Forget the dying to self, here is a great short cut! The devil was throwing the greatest prize in his arsenal. If you will… satan wanted Jesus to do a work outside the will of the Father to gain the purpose without submission to God. We must beware of satan’s devices and not take the short cut of convenience. Worship God and serve Him exclusively!
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2 Corinthians 10:3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. 4 For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, 5 casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ,
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True spiritual warfare is bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Jesus Christ. Are we so hungry for God we will allow Him to change our mindset? Do we dare submit our thought life to such a degree that we fully are dependant upon the obedience of Jesus Christ? Will we hear His voice and live?
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Luke 8:11 "Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. … 15 "But the ones that fell on the good ground are those who, having heard the word with a noble and good heart, keep it and bear fruit with patience.
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Whose voice shall we hear? The words of the devil produce pseudo life but ends in death; however, if we receive the words that proceed from the Father we will have abundant life. To hear with a noble and good heart is to hear it, believe it, keep it (hold it as precious) and bear fruit with patience. Live on God’s word!
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