By: Hanny Lynn Stearns
Fish N
Loaves Ministries, Inc.
“Multiplying
God’s Word Around The Globe”
August 23, 2016
Man
Does Not Live On Bread Alone
Luke
4:4
But Jesus answered him, saying,
“It is written, ‘Man shall not
live by bread alone, but by every word of God.’”
Did you know that as a
Christian, God’s word is your daily bread? Without a balanced meal every day,
we would starve to death in the physical realm. The same is true spiritually.
Kids do not grow up to be healthy well balanced adults without proper training,
instruction, correction and nutrition. And we as children of God cannot grow up
without those same things – all of which we can partake of in God’s precious and
powerful word.
We know that when people
are turning to things like drugs, alcohol, sex, food and so many other addictions
like gambling, shopping, etc., it is because they are not feeding on the rich
meat of the word of God. Jesus said it Himself in the verse noted above. If we
try to live on the things of this world without feeding on His word, we will
starve. We will be malnourished, sickly, broken down and remain broken hearted.
There is no food that this world can offer anywhere at any time that can take
the place of the word of God in our lives.
Let’s look at a few
verses the Lord showed me today and see where He takes us…
Galatians 6:8
For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he
who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life.
What this verse is telling
us is that if we invest in the things that our flesh desires, such as the things
we just named above, like food, alcohol, etc., then what those things produce
is the results we will get – hangovers, overweight and sickly bodies, etc. We
can’t pour a coke into the gas tank of a car and expect to have a good running
car. We can’t put alcohol, drugs or unhealthy food into our bodies and expect
to have a strong healthy body. How we invest into our time, our money, and our
bodies is what we will get in return.
When we invest in
spiritual things, like feeding daily on the rich word of God, then we walk
according to spiritual things. We think differently, we respond to life’s
pressures differently. Turning to worldly means to get our needs met never brings
the results we need. We will always get back what we put into anything. It
applies to friendships, marriages, family relationships, work relationships,
work performance, and on we could go. We will never be able to withdraw something
we did not put in. It’s just like our bank accounts. If we only tossed in two
cents now and then, we can’t expect to go pull out hundreds of thousands of
dollars.
Galatians 5:16
I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of
the flesh.
When we live by the
Spirit of God, we are not looking to satisfy the sinful lusts (passionate
desires) of our flesh. We can have a passionate desire for anything. An
alcoholic has a passionate desire for that next bottle of booze when they are
allowing their flesh to lead them. The food addict goes for all the food they
can stuff in their mouth – anything that sounds good when they are allowing
their flesh to lead them. But if we are following the leading of Holy Spirit and
being sensitive and attentive to His leading, then we will bypass those desires
of the flesh and seek the Lord instead. That will always produce positive
results.
Galatians 5:24
And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh
with its passions and desires.
If a person truly belongs to Jesus, then they
will desire to crucify, (kill, annihilate) the desires of the flesh. It may
hurt and the flesh may scream a bit, but a truly godly person will have the
strong desire to lay those things aside and honor God with their hearts, their
minds and their bodies. They will be dead to those destructive things and alive
to the will of God. With God living in us, we have everything we need to do
this successfully. Believe it!
Galatians 5:1
Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and
do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage.
Friends, when we are paying attention to the
words of the Lord every day, we will be reminded, (and we need it!) to walk
away from the bondage mindset. We will no longer be living like we are a slave
in our own minds and bodies. I will give you an example. This weekend I posted
a blog about some personal revelation I was getting from the Lord at church and
in my time alone with Him. He was showing me that I could go out to eat and handle
it properly, and I would not have to give these things another thought. He was
showing me that I can have self-control and not go overboard when I order food at
a restaurant. I can eat sensibly and enjoy my food without feeling like I am a constant
prisoner where food is concerned.
The enemy wants us all to stay in a place of
bondage in our minds. He wants us to think that we have to live like prisoners
chained to the addictions all of our lives. But he is a liar. We can choose to
live as slaves or to live free in Christ Jesus because…
John 8:36
Therefore
if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.
John 8:32
And
you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”
Friends, if you are born
again, you have already been set free. The only one who is making you a
prisoner is you. Why? Because you are allowing yourself to listen to the lies
of the enemy more than you are listening to the word of God. Ask me how I know
this. Been there far too long and done it far too much! So how do we work the
word of God in our lives? By picking it up and speaking it out loud over
ourselves. We work it by having faith that God’s promises will come to pass in
our lives. We are the “just” of the Lord, and this is how we are to live…
Galatians 3:11B
for “the just
shall live by faith.”
Knowing the truth sets
us free. Having faith brings God’s promises to pass in our lives. Working God’s
word in our lives each day works 100% of the time when we work it by faith. His
word will never fail. We do not have to live as slaves any longer – we are
free! Hallelujah! Be encouraged today to walk as the new born again spirit man
that you are. Let’s purpose to grow up in Christ by meditating on and working
God’s word every day. We will be blessed and become a blessing to others.
Praise His name forever!
Galatians 2:20
I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but
Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live
by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.
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