Tell the devil, "It is Written!"

In September, JJ and I led The Gospel of Identity class for AMT, it is a class based off a book written by Mike Petzer. Something Petzer said that has been echoing in my mind is the finality of "it is written." It is Jesus's response to temptation in Matthew 4 and Luke 4. It has been one of the most edifying lessons for me personally this past season and I want to impart that same faith into you. Matthew and Luke 4 go like this...

Jesus "full of the Holy Spirit" went into the wilderness to face a temptation by the devil. After 40 days of fasting, the devil came and tempted Jesus. The devil said, "if you are the son of God, command this stone to become bread." Jesus responded, "It is written, my son shall not live by bread alone." Then the devil told Jesus to worship him and in return Jesus would receive all the kingdoms for His possession. Jesus responded with "It is written, You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve." The last temptation, "If you are the son of God, throw yourself down from here, for it is written, "He shall command his angels concerning you, to guard you,' and 'on their hands they shall bear you up, lest you strike against your foot against a stone.' Jesus responded, "Again it is written, "You shall not put the Lord your God to the test."

Before Jesus said it is written, He had already developed a deep internal faith in what was written. It is important to recognize that in these chapters, the devil tried to tempt Jesus with the same schemes that tempted Adam and Eve in the garden. Adam and Eve were created in the image of God and given full dominion over the earth. They had full reign with the exception of the warning to not eat of a certain tree. God told them that whomever ate of this specific tree would know both good and evil and would surely die. Satan came and spoke with Eve and told her that if she ate from the tree, "(she would) not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil," Genesis 3:6. The lie she believed was that she was not already like God. That God was holding back his character from them when in reality they already had the fullness of Him as they were made in His image. Later in Luke 4, the devil comes again to tempt man in our true nature. He comes to Jesus and starts with, "if you are the son of God." What was Jesus's response? IT IS WRITTEN! He knew in his spirit and soul that He was the son of God, and nothing that Jesus did or didn't do would change that. He knew His identity and all He had to respond was, "it is written."Jesus did not have to do any works to prove what He already knew about Himself. Who He is has been written in the Word and the Word of God is final!

When I reflect on this, I see that the enemy is not creative in his tricks and schemes but that he comes to make us question our nature given to us by God. In moments of adversity and temptation, we must all be able to stand on the Word and declare "it is written!" Temptation will come just as it came to Jesus. It is not the temptation that is the sin but how we respond to such temptation. According to Romans 14:23, sin is anything not done in faith. Therefore, when the enemy tempts us we either respond in faith or out of a lack of faith, resulting in sin.

Like Christ, we do not have to work for the truth of God to be true in our lives, we simply must believe in it. So I want to take a second and encourage you in lies that may seem harmless but is actually steering you away from the nature Jesus died for you to have.

Lie - I am weak and cannot carry on because of (blank) struggle.

IT IS WRITTEN:

"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me," Philippians 4:13.

"But he said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. THEREFORE I will boast all the more gladly at my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong," 2 Corinthians 12:9-10.

Lie - I am only a (insert your career).

IT IS WRITTEN:

I am an ambassador of Jesus Christ and the minister of reconciliation to the Earth. - 2 Corinthians 5:11-21

Lie - I am a worthless sinner that God is ashamed of.

"For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast," Ephesians 2:8-9

I am a child of God and God loves me so much, He died for me. That will not change no matter what I do! - John 1:12, John 3:16, Luke 15:11-32, Galatians 3:26, Galatians 4:7, 2 Corinthians 6:16-18

2 Corinthians 5:17 says we have been made into a new creation, literally meaning a whole new creature. How? Because when we put our trust in Jesus we are born again into a new man and given the nature of Christ, so by faith we must not look at ourselves according to our old nature. "What you were, what you used to be, is the least important thing about you," Petzer. Walking in our new identity is immersing ourselves in the truth of the word to come to an understanding of the finished work of Christ. Paul often greets the congregations of the churches in the epistles as saints. He is constantly calling people saints! If you had read those letters then you know those churches were dealing with some serious character and idolatry issues, yet Paul still greeted them as saints. Why? Because there very nature was Holy because Jesus took away the DNA of Adam and gave them a new seed, a new DNA. That DNA in nature is Holy! (1 Peter 1:23, 1 John 3:9)

Becoming a child of God by receiving salvation is sometimes treated by Christians as simply as a "ticket to Heaven," but it is so much more! Here is an image to explain it. When I am traveling, I get to stop through countries because it is on my ticket. I have gone to China so many times but I have never left the airport. So even though I had the ticket to be there, I never actually experienced China. The same thing happens to Christians. Salvation is not just simply a ticket to Heaven, rather it is the fullness of Heaven now here on earth (Matthew 6:10). What does that look like? After you accepted Jesus you have been saved, now move forward with everything that truth entails! Understand the fullness of Christ in you and the inheritance He died for you to have, not one day in the future but now! When you realize these things, the glory of God will shine through you to everyone you come in contact with. You will bring freedom to the spiritually captive, heal the broken, and reconcile the lost back to God. You will be restored and will receive the power to restore others.

Jesus is so good. For all the reasons and as believers, we are BLESSED! As the world goes through tough times, we can remember these worldly issues are temporary, not eternal. What is eternal? What is written. So I encourage you to dive into the word of God and find out the beautiful eternal truth that defines your life and exercise a faith to it manifest because it is the only truth that matters.