Day 3 Focus – The Word
What verses get your focus off yourself and back onto God?
James 4:6-8 says “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee. Draw near to God and he will draw near to you.”
For me the 3rd day of a 5 day fast is the most difficult. I am most tempted to focus on myself and yearn for what I’ve determined to give up. I experience spiritual opposition. And that’s because our fasting, submitting ourselves to God, is spiritual, not only physical. Satan, our spiritual enemy, is against us. He hates our determination to draw near to God so will try to derail us. This is the time we must stand our
ground and resist him, but how?
Satan tempted Jesus 3 times in the wilderness. (see Matthew 4) How? Tempting Jesus to take his attention from God and put it onto himself. Hungry? Use your supernatural power and make bread for yourself. Will God really protect you so you can save mankind? Prove it and throw yourself off this tower. You came for a kingdom. Worship me and I’ll grant you all the kingdoms of the world. And 3 times Jesus used scripture to counter the temptations. “Man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.” “Do not put the Lord your God to the test.” “You shall worship the Lord your God and serve Him only.” He kept his focus on God and the truth of his word.
The proper use of God’s Word was the key to resisting the devil. And Satan left.
Ephesians 6:10 states that we are in a spiritual battle against forces of wickedness, but praise God, he has given us armor and a deadly weapon: the sword of the Spirit, the Word of God (vs. 17) Scripture is how we resist Satan, and he has to flee. Why? Because Satan is the father of lies (John 8:44) and can’t stand in the presence of truth, specifically God’s truth.
If you are tempted to satisfy your longing, think of verses that get your focus back onto God. Whether you know hundreds of scriptures or just a few, God’s word is powerful because it is true. Here are a few to get you started: My soul will be satisfied as with fat and rich food, and my mouth will praise you with joyful lips. -Ps. 63:5
I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. -John 6:35
I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. -Isaiah 41:10
Jesus’ fasting came to an end and so will ours. In the meantime, “draw near to God and he will draw near to you.”
And as a note, at the proper time and place and by God’s power, Jesus DID make bread supernaturally; he DID walk right through a crowd that tried to throw him off a cliff, and all the kingdoms of the world WILL bow down and worship him!
