Mat 4:1-11; Satan Practices Spiritual Jiu-Jitsu.

                                         Wednesday February 28, 2024

Probably all of us understand that Satan would attack our greatest weakness. Weaknesses are where we hunger. They are the things that we have become convinced will satisfy our hunger for joy, life, fulfillment, etc.; things that will scratch our itch. Over the years, we develop preferences for this, from alcohol to shopping.

God has come to us. Take My yoke upon you and I will give you rest.

We never lose our weakness. We all are and forever will be. We never lose our hunger. They are one and the same. However, if our weakness and the hunger it manifests is set upon the Lord, then, and only then, will we be satisfied. Blessed (happy) is he who thirsts and hungers for righteousness.

Idea: After Satan attacks weakness, he attacks strength.

Not what we would expect. We likely imagine that after he attacks our greatest weakness (hunger), if that doesn’t destroy us, he’ll then go after our next greatest weakness. Rather, he attacks our strength.

Jesus is strong in the Scriptures and so Satan is going to attack that.

Temptation one smells like a bakery.

Temptation two has the aroma of an orthodox liturgy (holy city, holy temple, holy Scripture).  
 

1) Jesus must be a practicing believer and a seeker of God before He is a missionary.

If we are defeated in either weakness of strength, meaning that the area of your soul is splintered from God, then we will evangelize that rather than God.

Practicing believer lives on the Word of God.

The meaning of life for Christians is to find their various ministries under Jesus’ Lordship.

There are false spirits in the world (1Jo 4:6).

Life is made up of the mundane, not the spectacular. Spectacular was repugnant to Christ, Mat 12:38f; 16:1f.

Are we willing to follow Him into the mundane or are we going to seek for more of the world?

2) Jesus must be a seeker of God before He is a missionary.

It is easy to mistake worshiping the work you do for God rather than worshiping God - temptation 3.

Jesus’ second temptation shows us that Satan attacks strength after he attacks weakness.

Spiritual warfare jiu-jitsu. Not what we would expect.

Satan is in the wilderness and the temple (local church).

3) Identify your weaknesses and your strengths.

Weaknesses - where you hunger (could be God’s Word).

Strengths - your go to solutions (could be faith in God’s Word).

Identify your weaknesses and strengths.

Biblical examples of both.

Paul - strength in tenacity and drive, self-discipline; God gives thorn (2Co 12:7-10).

Timothy - weakness in where Paul was strong:

Did not disqualify him.

Paul encouraged him (1Ti 4:6-16; 2Ti 1:7; 2:15).

Find the Scriptures that apply to your situations of weakness and strengths. Satan is going to attack both areas.