Luke Chapter 4 - ACC NT Study

(Verses 4,8,12)
4 Jesus answered, "It is written: 'Man does not live on bread alone.'
8 Jesus answered, "It is written: 'Worship the Lord your God and serve him only.'
12 Jesus answered, "It says: 'Do not put the Lord your God to the test.'

In a few words:
Our best response comes from God's word.

Mark Chapter 4 - ACC NT Study

This passage speaks to me today:
(Verses 35-40)
35 That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, "Let us go over to the other side."
36 Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him.
37 A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. 38 Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, "Teacher, don't you care if we drown?"
39 He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, "Quiet! Be still!" Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.
40 He said to his disciples, "Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?"

Right now I have storms going on in my life. In reality they may be relatively small, however in my mind they seem quite large. And they seem to constantly remind me of potentially negative situations or negative results. Until I take them to Jesus, and ask Him calm my storms.

In a few words:
The worries of this life are quieted by the Savior.

Matthew Chapter 4 - ACC NT Study

It is comforting to know that I am not alone when it comes to temptation. Even Jesus Himself faced three different forms of temptation directly from the devil. He demonstrated how to handle tempting situations by quoting scripture to avoid it. I believe that is an example for us when we face situations we need to avoid. Memorized scripture and a brief prayer can be our escape from tempting situations. I am convinced speaking a memorized scripture passage out loud is always more powerful that we realize.

It is interesting that after avoiding temptation, Jesus goes on to preach, call his disciples and heal the sick. Perhaps when we avoid temptation, we may realize God has great plans for us to help others, just around the corner. What a great motivator!

In a few words:
Strive to live a life that is pleasing to God, for the sake of others.