MAN SHALL NOT LIVE BY BREAD ALONE
“But Jesus answered him, saying, ‘It is written, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.’ ”
Luke 4:4 (NKJV)
READ: Luke 4:1–13
The Word of God is of utmost importance to man, more than bread (Romans 14:17). It means there should be no desperation about getting any material thing (Matthew 6:25–34). If perchance the material things needed are not available, a believer should not
be driven to desperation (Philippians 4:6,7).
Jesus was feeling hungry, quite all right, because He had just completed forty days of fasting; however, He would not allow hunger to push Him into desperation and turn stones to bread (Luke 4:2–4). Of course, Jesus could have gone without the bread for a while. He
would not allow hunger to make Him do what was not supposed to be done. It was already established that Jesus is the begotten Son of God, and He would not need to prove it by turning stones
to bread (John 1:14).
What the devil demanded Him to do was absurd and demeaning. Who you are, you would not need to prove it before you could be the reality of it. It was like a believer who lives holy and is being challenged by someone saying: if you are a man, and manly enough, slap that person who insulted you. A genuine believer who lives holy and walks in line with God’s Word will not do it. You would not need to slap someone who insulted you in order to prove that
you are a man and manly. Likewise, Jesus would not need to turn stones to bread to prove that He is the Son of God—He is already, and it is known and established.
If Jesus had turned stones to bread, it would have been an abuse of power—an abuse of the authority given to Him by God.
Since He had ended His fasting and was going home, He could send someone to get bread for Him. Thus, Jesus would not need to turn stones to bread. Doing that would amount to testing God! You do
not test God to do what you could get done yourself. God would only do what is beyond your ability; that is why such acts are called miracles.
If you are asking God to do something for you that would only boost your ego, such a request will not be granted by God. One of the reasons why many requests of some believers are not always granted is that most of the things requested are not priorities—they are not things that deserve merited attention before other, more pressing needs. If such requests are brought before God, He would not answer.
Reflect:
• Are you currently asking God to do things that you could and
should be doing yourself? What does today's message teach you
about that?
Peace.
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