Thanks for the Fullness of His Truth

Prayer-Soldier

Thanks for the Fullness of His Truth

Scripture:

And the priest taking the basket at your hand, shall set it before the altar of the Lord your God: And you shall speak thus in the sight of the Lord your God: The Syrian pursued my father, who went down into Egypt, and sojourned there in a very small number, and grew into a nation great and strong and of an infinite multitude.

And the Egyptians afflicted us, and persecuted us, laying on us most grievous burdens: And we cried to the Lord God of our fathers: who heard us, and looked down upon our affliction, and labor, and distress: And brought us out of Egypt with a strong hand, and a stretched out arm, with great terror, with signs and wonders: And brought us into this place, and gave us this land flowing with milk and honey. And therefore now I offer the first fruits of the land which the Lord has given me. And you shall leave them in the sight of the Lord your God, adoring the Lord your God.
(Deuteronomy 26:4-10)

But what says the scripture? The word is nigh you, even in your mouth, and in your heart. This is the word of faith, which we preach. For if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus, and believe in your heart that God has raised him up from the dead, you shall be saved. For, with the heart, we believe unto justice; but, with the mouth, confession is made unto salvation.

For the scripture says: Whosoever believes in him, shall not be confounded. For there is no distinction of the Jew and the Greek: for the same is Lord over all, rich unto all that call upon him. For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord, shall be saved. (Romans 10:8-13)

And Jesus being full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan, and was led by the Spirit into the desert, for the space of forty days; and was tempted by the devil. And he ate nothing in those days; and when they were ended, he was hungry. And the devil said to him: If you be the Son of God, say to this stone that it be made bread. And Jesus answered him: It is written, that Man lives not by bread alone, but by every word of God.

And the devil led him into a high mountain, and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time; and he said to him: To you will I give all this power, and the glory of them; for to me they are delivered, and to whom I will, I give them. If you therefore will adore before me, all shall be yours. And Jesus answering said to him: It is written: You shall adore the Lord your God, and him only shall you serve.

And he brought him to Jerusalem, and set him on a pinnacle of the temple, and he said to him: If you be the Son of God, cast yourself from hence. For it is written, that He has given his angels charge over you, that they keep you. And that in their hands they shall bear you up, lest perhaps you dash your foot against a stone. And Jesus answering, said to him: It is said: You shall not tempt the Lord your God. And all the temptation being ended, the devil departed from him for a time.
(Luke 4:1-13)

Reflection:

In times of comfort, we are tempted to take our good fortune for granted. When we face tribulation and strife, we lament for better times. We do not always consider the thanks we should give for our blessings or the effort required from us to maintain the path of prosperity for ourselves and all who surround us. From time to time, we should reflect upon on the paths of our life and the source of our blessings and tribulations, then reflect how we should proceed.

The desire of God is that our path should fill us with prosperity, but not in the ways of selfish desires, rather, in the ways of humility, civility, dignity, and respect for God and one another. Prosperity begins with the product of the value we generate and the love which we share, for there is dignity in producing good fruits and even greater blessings when we humbly endeavor to share in love of God and one another. As we work together to solve the problems of our day, we increase our opportunities for accomplishing what is right and just when we approach one another with humility, civility, dignity, and respect.

As tribulations appear to surround us, we should first examine what comes from us. If we walk the path of the Lord, then, we must trust in Him that He will guide us through. If what we discover within ourselves departs from God, then, we should not be surprised at the pain driven by our sin. When we turn from His path, the wages of sin deprive us of the blessings of God.

His commandments are simple, to love Him and one another. (cf. Matthew 22:36-40) If we allow this to be our guide, we will eliminate many of the problems of the world, but as we are lured away from them, peace and happiness eludes us. If we allow selfishness to dominate us, then, we will always struggle; but if we turn selflessly to God, He will heal that which afflicts our soul and prepare us for the day He will gather us into His kingdom.

If we are to see clearly His path, we must arm ourselves with the knowledge of His Word. In the desert, while the Son of God fasted and became hungry and weak, the evil one tempted Him with what was written, but without the full context of what is truly right and just. The evil one tempted Jesus to satisfy His hunger just as God provided the manna from heaven for those who hungered in the desert. (cf. Exodus 16:4) Jesus, though, responded with the full context of the Word, that the fullness of life does not come from the world, but from the Word of God. (cf. Deuteronomy 8:3, Matthew 6:33)

Seeking to appeal to selfish desires for power and wealth, the evil one offered Jesus that which already belonged to the One who was King of kings (cf. Revelation 17:14). The condition was that Jesus worship the dark one. Jesus, again, responded with the full context of the Word that worship and service is to God alone. (cf. Exodus 20:3, Deuteronomy 6:4-5)

Again, the evil one tempted Jesus, telling the Son of God what was written, that if Jesus is truly the Son of God, that the angels would allow no harm to Him. (cf. Psalms 91:11-12) Jesus, though, responds once more with the full context of what is right and just by reminding the dark one that we must not put God to the test. (cf. Deuteronomy 6:16-17)

In this moment, we saw how that we cannot know the fullness of truth simply from snippets, though they may inspire us; but that we must study the fullness of our faith if we are to apply it in the context of what is truly right and just. Of course, as the Word made flesh (cf. John 1:14), Jesus had an advantage over the evil one; the one who sought to use truth out of context for evil agendas. We must also recognize that the dark one will tempt us through partial knowledge, but as we study to understand the full context of scripture, we make more difficult the efforts of the evil one to deceive.

Let us, then, spend time with God's Holy Word. Let us ask the Holy Spirit to guide us in its meaning and purpose. Let us ask the Holy Spirit to guide us in truth. (cf. John 14:17, 26) Let us take inventory of what is within our hearts and ask God to purge us of what drives our sin. Let us turn to Him and give thanks for our blessings. Let us turn to Him and ask Him to help us accomplish that which is right and just.

Questions for further reflection:

In what ways do we take our blessings for granted and in what ways do we give thanks?

In what ways do we take inventory of what is in our hearts so we may reconcile with God?

In what ways do we seek the protection of the Holy Spirit to guide us in the truth of the Holy Word of God?

May the peace and blessings of the Lord be with you always,
Prayer Soldier