Constant Prayer Needed to Resist Satan’s Cunning

And Jesus being full of the Holy Ghost returned from Jordan, and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness. Luke 4:1.
Why was it that at the beginning of His public ministry Christ was led into the wilderness to be tempted? It was the Spirit that led Him thence, and He went, not in His own behalf, but in our behalf, to overcome for us. There was no compulsion about it. He was led by the Spirit, His humanity to be proved, as one who had undertaken to stand at the head of the fallen race.
Christ had been, and was then, in perfect harmony with the Father. He was to be tried and tested as a representative of the race. He was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to meet the foe in personal encounter, to overthrow him who claimed to be the head of the kingdoms of the world.
While in the wilderness Christ fasted, but He was insensible to hunger. Engaged in constant prayer to His Father for a preparation to resist the adversary, Christ did not feel the pangs of hunger. He spent the time in earnest prayer, shut in with God. It was as if He were in the presence of His Father. He sought for strength to meet the foe, for the assurance that He would receive grace to carry out all that He had undertaken in behalf of humanity. The thought of the warfare before Him made Him oblivious to all else, and His soul was fed with the bread of life, just as today those tempted souls will be fed who go to God for aid. He ate of the truth that He was to give to the people as having power to deliver them from Satan’s temptations. He saw the breaking of Satan’s power over fallen and tempted ones. He saw Himself healing the sick, comforting the hopeless, cheering the desponding, and preaching the gospel to the poor—doing the work that God had outlined for Him; and He did not realize any sense of hunger until the forty days of His fast were ended….
Christ is in the wilderness, the wild beasts His only companions, and everything around Him tending to make Him realize His humanity. Suddenly an angel appears before Him, apparently one of the angels that He saw not long since, and addresses Him with the words “If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.” “If thou be the Son of God” here is the insinuation of distrust. The words rankle with the bitterness in his [Satan’s] mind. In the tones of his voice is an expression of utter incredulity.—Letter 159, 1903 (Manuscript Releases 21:8, 9)
Christ Triumphant p.189
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Prayer Requests
—–Please pray for Mike’s doctor’s appointment this week. Rose
—–I have two prayer requests. URGENT – Family on camping trip and the following has happened. Ivan and Ethan had a head on collision on trail ride. They were 2 hours from civilization. Ethan has small brain bleed and broken cheek bone. Ivan has broken collar bone, nose, and thumb. Bleeding on the brain is dangerous. Kari, Ethan’s mom is 20 hours away and heading to where he is at in the hospital.
URGENT – An X Amish friend’s brother was in a motorcycle accident. In CRITICAL CONDITION AND COMA. Has 2 BRAIN BLEEDS, BORKEN SPINE, BROKEN COLLAR BONE. Still in a coma. His other siblings . . . are all traveling to get there and asking for traveling mercies.
Praying for a miracle and God’s will be done. MM
—-Please pray for my friend Pam. She has been sick all night and can’t keep anything down. This will probably mess with her blood sugar, making her feel even worse. Also please pray for my mom. She will be having surgery on her eyes the next 2 Mondays. She had her cataracts removed and developed adhesions, but has had to wait until her eyes healed enough from THAT surgery to do this. They say it is a very easy, outpatient procedure. Jennifer
—-Please pray for my sister Nancy as she has an aneurism on a heart vessel and not scheduled for surgery until August. Sheryl
—–Please pray for Carol who has vertigo really bad. Rose
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Dear Friends,
Many years ago, I read a very sad story about a woman who was driving along a narrow, mountain road. Suddenly, a huge logging truck sped around the curve and forced her off the road. Her car plunged down the embankment and into the icy water of the river that ran alongside the road. This woman’s foot was caught because of the impact and although she could see that the car was not that far below the surface of the water, there was no way that she could get out. She must have tried with all of her might to free herself, but soon realized that it was useless. Her thoughts turned toward her baby beside her. She had a choice of continuing to try to free herself or saving her little one. Looking around she realized that if she held her precious baby up by stretching out her arm fully out of the open window, he would be above the water. Picking him up and giving him a kiss, she quickly raised him above the water’s surface. Hours later someone found her in that position. Although she had drowned, she was still in that outstretched position and her precious baby was alive and well.
Just as that mother loved her little child more than life itself, so God loves us more than He loves Himself! Indeed, He “gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.” Titus 2:14 Think of it! He is interested in each one of us as if there were no other person in all the universe. He greatly desires a closeness with us that is “closer than a brother.” (Prov 18:24) Indeed, He longs to fellowship with us every moment to dwell within us and lead and guide us in every aspect of our life.
When our first parents sinned, the Great Creator of the Universe could not be happy until he had provided a way for us to be reconciled to Himself . “God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.” John 3:16,17 What wonderful love He has for us! It is beyond comprehension!
Jesus gave a parable that illustrates our Heavenly Father’s great love and care for us. “A certain man had two sons: And the younger of them said to his father, Father, give me the portion of goods that falleth to me. And he divided unto them his living. And not many days after the younger son gathered all together, and took his journey into a far country, and there wasted his substance with riotous living. And when he had spent all, there arose a mighty famine in that land; and he began to be in want. And he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country; and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. And he would fain have filled his belly with the husks that the swine did eat: and no man gave unto him. And when he came to himself, he said, How many hired servants of my father’s have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger! I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before thee, And am no more worthy to be called thy son: make me as one of thy hired servants.And he arose, and came to his father. But when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him. And the son said unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in thy sight, and am no more worthy to be called thy son. But the father said to his servants, Bring forth the best robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet: And bring hither the fatted calf, and kill it; and let us eat, and be merry: For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found. And they began to be merry.”
How many times are we like that prodigal son. How often we rebel against our loving Heavenly Father. How often we want our own way even though it leads us far from home. We soon find ourselves in the same condition as the prodigal son. Yet, even while we are so far from our Loving Redeemer, He is seeking us. He is watching with longing desire for the first indication that we are sorry and want to come back to Him.
Even while we are still a long way off, He runs to us, embraces us, removes our filthy garments from us, wraps us in the pure spotless robe of His righteousness, and leads us Homeward. Praise God! He develops within us His perfect character, that we may be like Him and show His glory to others.
Our Loving Heavenly Father does not scold us because of all the talents, all the years we have wasted “doing our own thing.” Instead, He rejoices when we come back to Him. He is pleading with us now to open our heart’s door to Him, “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me. To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.” Rev 3:20 May we open the door and let Him come in. May we love Him, Who gave His life for us, with all of our heart, with all of our soul, with all of our strength, and with all of our mind is my prayer.
Rose