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"Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word
that proceeds out of the mouth of God"
When our Lord was led by the Spirit into the wilderness
to be tempted by Satan, after his baptism: a striking lesson was given to all whom he had come to save from their sin; the
elect of God. Our Lord, whose concern is always to his people, and in everything has an eye to our instruction, immediately
reveals to us the mighty sword of the Lord, the word of God: with which we are to fight all of our spiritual battles here
on earth, in our pilgrimage to our heavenly rest.
The passage of scripture from which he quotes, to rebuff
Satan's attempt at our Lord's (and in consequence, our) fall, is from the 8th chapter of Deuteronomy. In this passage, God,
by Moses, instructs his people, saying; that they must keep his commands, to gain their promised rest in the good land, promised
to their fathers: and yet, he further explains that the wilderness wanderings were for to try and humble their hearts, to
know what was in them (for they themselves to know, for God already knew).
During the wanderings God, had provided food, water, clothing
that never wore out, and protection for them: all temporal needs were taken care of for them, by God; but these are not to
be what his people are to stake their reliance upon while seeking their rest, but by "every word which proceed out of the
mouth of the Lord" are they to live. Through to verse 10 is a wonderful type of the Christians earthly pilgrimage, full of
trials and temptations, to humble and prove us, before God, brings us to our home in heaven.
Our Lord shows us these things in this temptation and his
rebuttal to Satan. For as we are creatures of the dust and are tempted from every side to make provision for the flesh and
the lusts thereof, the Lord, with one swipe of his "two-edged sword" separates temporal and spiritual to reveal, as it were,
the path his chosen ones are to take, seeking our spiritual nourishment from the word of God, while, on the other hand- knowing
this from the context from which this passage is taken, and many other places in scripture- that he who provided for those
desert wanderers, those things which pertain to the physical, will also do the same for us (Matt.6:25-34).
"Every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God", Sola
Scriptura; wrapped up in the authoritative proclamation of our Lord, against Satan, and all of his devices. Anything that
comes against us, from our own lusts within, or Satan's arrows without, can be repelled by the word of God.
"All scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable
for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness; that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly
furnished unto all good works (2 Tim.3:16,17). It is our spiritual food (Jer.15:16; Ps.119:103), a light that shines to show
us our way in this dark world (2 Pet.1:19: Ps.119:105), and lead us to life everlasting (1 Jn.5:13); it is the hammer God
used to crush our stony heart (Jer.23:29), and replace it with a heart of flesh (Ez.36:26); hence, they are our comfort (Rom.15:4),
our hope (Ps.119:81,114), and our joy (Ps.119:97).
So where is there room for the tradition or additions of
man, in all of this? The short answer must be, there is no room. If indeed we have, in the scriptures, all that is needful
pertaining to the knowledge of God, and of ourselves, in relation to him; and the reconciling of us, to him, by the blood
of his Son, and our life in him; then anyone who attempts to bring anything from outside of the scriptures, or pervert the
truths therein, must first be corrected, and if this fails, to be rejected. "If they speak not according to this word, there
is no light in them"(Is.8:20). This has been the root cause of all problems in the church, and of the pure worship of God.
Corrupt man subverting the word of God with the inventions of his own mind, leading to Roman Catholicism, Mormonism and the
Jehovah's Witness, and many more heresies; the erosion into idolatry and the eventual removing of the golden candlestick (if
indeed, it ever was there).
In Amos chapter 8, verses 11 and 12 we read of a famine-
a spiritual famine- of the hearing of the word of the Lord; people would seek it, but not find. This is the sad state of the
greater part of evangelicalism today, and is directly linked to the tossing aside of the pure word of God (and the dearth
of Spirit filled expositors), in exchange for ear-tickling man pleasers, who feed the flesh while leaving the souls of their
flocks groping at noon-day for that living water, that only can satisfy, and is only to be found in the scriptures. For without
the scriptures there is no Spirit, and without the Holy Spirit, there is no revelation of Christ to the heart, and without
both of these, you have not the Father; the Trinity is lost to you; you have not God; you worship "you know not what" for
God "will be worshipped in Spirit and in truth", and truth is only to be found in the Bible.
On a brighter note, with the scriptures is the revelation
of God, which can be known, and when opened to us by his Spirit, his attributes shine forth, as it were, like the sun arising,
and chasing away the darkness of night. His knowledge, wisdom, power, mercy, goodness, righteousness, holiness, justice and
love, run through the Bible, dropping upon every page, like the anointing oil which ran down from Aaron's head, upon his beard
and onto his garments (Ps.133:2), all culminating in the cross, in the person of the Son of God, our Savior, Jesus Christ.
Only in the scriptures do we find this, only in its pages is this revealed.
Oh Christian, when you pick up your Bible, understand what
you cradle in your hands, and remember this passage, "Thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name" (Ps.138:2), then bless
God for this wonderful book, praise him for the freedom to read his words and to feast on it's wonderful delicacies, and humble
yourself before him, who has chosen you to partake of these wonders; who has chosen you before the foundation of the world
to be his child, by Jesus Christ (Eph.1:4,5) by the effectual calling of his Spirit, through the word of truth.
It is said of the Reverend John Bradford (martyred in 1555, in England), that he never came to the study of the scriptures, except on his knees. When John Wycliff was translating
the New Testament, writing out the pages by hand, people would pay upwards of one month’s wages, for one page- to rent!
The martyrs went to the flame with Bible in hand, upon their lips, and in their hearts. What reverence for the word of God
this was!! Do we have this same mind, or has the freedom that God has blessed us with turned to our detriment, in that we
don't prize what is so easily obtained by us? A question for another time, perhaps.
Let us then reverence and love the word of God, and not
take lightly the defilement of them, by the corruptions of others, or even of our own minds, but submit to them prayerfully
and by the guidance of the Holy Spirit; let us "live by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God" and by faith know
that the promises of rest, in a good land, to the children of Israel long ago, are ours in the Lord Jesus Christ, eternally
in heaven, as revealed only in the scriptures, then we too "when we have eaten and are full shall bless the Lord our God for
the good land which he has given us" (Deut.8:10).
Sola Scriptura!
© 2004 Kevin Rolfe
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