Face to Face With Jesus - a Lenten MeditationSample

The Bible records some world-class conversations, one of which is the dialogue between satan and Jesus in the wilderness. Jesus has fasted for forty days and is then led into the wilderness by the Holy Spirit. In this less than ideal situation, the devil makes his appearance and begins to taunt the Son of God. He addresses firstly his physical hunger, asking Jesus to perform a cheap magic trick of turning stones to bread. He then challenges Jesus to do a spectacular feat of throwing himself off a tall building and making it out alive. He finally offers Jesus the chance to rule over the nations of the world if He would bow and worship him. Jesus uses His words, or rather the “Word who became flesh” used the “written word” of God to push back the enemy.

God never tempts us but he will allow us to be tested so that the genuineness of our faith is revealed and that our convictions be based on the bedrock of His word. If we don’t know His word how will we combat the enemy? How will we root out his lies and deceptions? Without God’s word deeply embedded in our hearts, we could get overwhelmed by evil and forget whose side we are on. We are called conquerors because Jesus overcame sin and death and won the ultimate victory. In Jesus, we are more than conquerors. We will be triumphant over the ploys and plots of the enemy!

Questions to ask yourself

Has the enemy been toying with me?

Have I been having a defeated mindset or a conqueror’s mindset?

What scripture should I focus on and use to disarm him?