Spirit and Life

Jesus didn’t just know the Scriptures; He depended on them. He spoke of them not merely as something beneficial, but as something vital to life itself. When weariness and hunger plagued Him in the wilderness and the devil enshrouded Him in clouds of perplexity and temptation, Jesus did not consult His feelings. He did not consult His reason, or His knowledge, or His heart. There was only one thing He knew He could trust. And so He answered the devil not with His own words or thoughts, but with the words of Scripture: “It is written . . .” “It is written . . .” “It is written” (Matthew 4:4, 7, 10). The Scriptures were more than motivational or inspirational to Jesus. They were His lifeline. “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God’ ” (verse 4).

When Jesus was pushed to the brink, He found victory by relying upon the divine inspiration of God’s Word. So it is with us. We must have a power and wisdom greater than our own to navigate the storms and temptations of daily life. We can find this power and wisdom only in God’s Word, the written revelation of “Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God” (1 Corinthians 1:24).