Angels Ministered to Him
.
Matthew 4:3-11
3. And the tempter came and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread." 4. But he answered, "It is written, `Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.'" 5. Then the devil took him to the holy city, and 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 will give his angels charge of you,' and `On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.'" 7. Jesus said to him, "Again it is written, `You shall not tempt the Lord your God.'" 8. Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain, and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them; 9. and he said to him, "All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me." 10. Then Jesus said to him, "Begone, Satan! for it is written, `You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.'" 11. Then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and ministered to him.
The angels came and ministered to him. Wow. Can you imagine!? These verses immediately follow the baptism of Jesus by John; Jesus goes away to prepare himself for what is ahead. I’ve often wondered if he bargained with God in that time. Is that what the “temptations” really were? Did he think of offering a great deal--but not his life? Did he ask for a sign to be absolutely certain he was to go down this path? Was Satan, really his own inner human voice, pulling him away from the purpose for which he was created?
Framed in that light, don’t we have a great deal in common with Jesus? Yes, he is our Lord and Savior! Of course he was divine! And he was also human. How did he manage not to succumb to the tremendous power he possessed? How did Mary and Joseph teach him to control that power? How did he lay it aside when he “needed” it most? Why did he become like us? How? Why?
I marvel at this Jesus! I am just overwhelmed every time I ask myself these questions! I look at my own life, and at the relatively little God asks of me. No real comparison there! Would I die for what I believe? Probably not. And I pray I never have to make that decision. Satan offered Jesus everything a human being could ever desire. And it paled in comparison to what awaited him. Even going through the torturous death of crucifixion was worth it -- to get back to heaven.
That being the case, wouldn’t you think I could do the small things God asks of me?! Wouldn’t you think I could spend more time in prayer? Studying the Bible? Taking care of myself? Doing missions? You can fill in the blank for your own situation. I don’t think God wants us to be ashamed of ourselves. He just wants us to change our focus. He want us to live FOR Him, WITH Him, IN Him. He doesn’t want to be an afterthought, but the FIRST thought. When something pulls us away from Him, he wants us to say, “No, God is First.” Is it really so much to ask of us? In the end, what will give you peace? On your deathbed what will you rejoice in? What will you regret?
My prayer today is that you put God first on your To Do list. And that you thank Him for giving us a new chance each day to serve him.
Mary
