#083 "Not By Bread Alone: Jesus Answers the First Wilderness Lie" (Matthew 4:4)

"But he answered, 'It is written, "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God."'" (Matthew 4:4)

What if one of the most powerful things you could do in spiritual battle is simply have an answer ready?

In this episode of The Abidible Podcast, host Kate is in Matthew 4:4 to watch Jesus do something striking in the wilderness: answer Satan. Not with spectacle. Not with force. But with Scripture.

Kate traces this moment back through the entire Bible, showing that God has never ignored the enemy—He has always answered him with truth, limits, rebuke, intercession, and ultimate victory. From the garden to Job, from Peter to the cross, Scripture reveals a consistent pattern: when Satan speaks, God always responds.

Along the way, this episode gently but boldly exposes a common struggle many believers share—being aware of spiritual danger, but not knowing how to respond. Kate unpacks the difference between demonic possession and oppression, helps listeners recognize subtle tactics the enemy uses in everyday life, and explains why awareness alone is not enough. We must be alert and ready for action.

You’ll walk away with clarity about spiritual warfare, confidence in your identity in Christ, and a renewed understanding of why God’s Word is not optional—it is life itself. If you’ve ever felt overwhelmed, distracted, dull, or unsure how to stand firm against temptation and accusation, this episode will equip you to respond with truth, courage, and hope.

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Transcript

Framing The Fight: Answer With Scripture

Kate 0:00

Hey guys, this is Kate from Abidible.com, and you're listening to the Abidible Podcast. I'm just a regular wife and mom who's had my life transformed by learning to study the Bible on my own. If I can, you can. On this show, I help you know and love God more by abiding in Him through His Word yourself. What if every time Satan asked us a question, we had an answer for him from Scripture? It struck me this week as I was writing down the definition for answer, and Jesus answered him. Satan indirectly posed a question to Jesus. Turn some stones into loaves of bread. And Jesus answered him. He didn't ignore him, he didn't pretend that he didn't exist. He didn't acknowledge his existence yet do nothing in response. He answered him with scripture. We were talking about all of this in our women's Facebook Abidible Plus group this past week, and I was realizing that for me personally, when it comes to the devil, I think I've lived in this perpetual state of awareness, but not alertness. And I'll explain what I mean by that in a bit. I know that he's real, but I don't really know what to do about it. So I default to weird stuff. And I mean, it is weird because Satan hates me and he wants to devour me. He's waiting at my door each morning, ready to kick it down and take me out. So it's weird that I'd be indifferent toward someone like that, as if pretending he wasn't there does anything at all, as if wishful thinking that if I don't engage with him, he'll go away, as if doing nothing is actually something. Jesus answered him. It's a verb. It means to give an answer to a question that's proposed. Jesus responded. But he answered, It is written, man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God. Now we'd be missing a lot if we wrongly read this part of the wilderness story and thought that here we have our first instance of God answering Satan. No, God has been answering Satan since the garden. Let's clarify. God does not answer to Satan. What God does do is never let Satan's words or actions go unanswered. Do you see the difference? This Greek verb to answer, apakrinomae, means to give a response to something said or done that has preceded the response. Something is said or done, and an answer is given. We ought to be on our faces in gratitude that God has always given an answer to the things Satan has said and done. Not once ever has he ignored him, let it slide, or pretended that he didn't exist. Let's take a look at some examples to set the stage. Again, Jesus' response here in Matthew 4:4 is not the first time God has given Satan an answer. But first, real quick, want to be a part of what God is doing here at Abidible? For just a few dollars a month, you can support our mission to help people know and love God more by abiding in Him through His Word. Check out the link in the show description to learn more. So if Jesus' answer in Matthew 4, 4 isn't the first time God has answered Satan, where has God answered him before? Let's look at just a few examples, five clear, solid moments where Satan spoke, acted, accused, tempted, or schemed, and God answered. Number one, you probably guessed it. Satan questioned God's word in the garden. And God answered with judgment and promise. Satan's first recorded words in Genesis 3 are actually a question. Think about that. He said, Did God actually say? He first questioned God's truth, God's goodness, and God's authority all in one breath. And God answered, didn't he? Not by debating, not by negotiating, not by pretending Satan wasn't there. God answered with consequence for the devil and with hope for humanity. God pronounced judgment on the serpent, and then astonishingly, he made a promise to Satan about Satan. He, referring to Jesus, shall bruise your, referring to Satan, your head, and you, Satan, shall bruise his heel. This is a promise that Jesus would overcome for all humanity. Satan spoke deception, God answered with prophecy, which is promise. Right there in the garden, God responded and declared, This will not end in your victory. Example number two, Satan accused Job, and God answered this attack with limits. In Job chapters one and two, Satan comes before God and accuses Job by asking a question. Does Job fear God for no reason? Here Satan is implying that God's people only love him for what they get from him. And God answers, not by silencing Satan, but by setting boundaries. Satan accuses with malice, God answers with authority. The devil can go only as far as God allows and not one inch farther. Example number three. Satan opposes God's plans, God answers with rebuke. In Zechariah three, verses one and two, we see Satan standing to accuse Joshua the high priest, in an attempt to oppose God's purposes. Satan insinuates that Joshua has filthy garments, is unworthy, and stands condemned by God. And God does not remain silent. He answers. Notice something important here. God does not argue Joshua's innocence, he asserts his choice. This is gospel logic before the gospel. God is saying, I have chosen him, that settles it. Accusation is answered by election. Condemnation is answered by grace. Example number four, Satan demanded Peter in order to destroy him. Jesus answered with intercession. In Luke 22, 31 to 32, Jesus tells Peter something chilling. Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has demanded to have you that he might sift you like wheat. But then comes Jesus' answer, but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. Satan demanded destruction. Jesus answered with prayer. And notice Jesus didn't say Peter wouldn't fall. In fact, he knew he would. Jesus said Peter wouldn't fail and be lost. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers. God's answer doesn't always remove the trial, but it always secures the outcome for those who love him. Attack and trial always end in good for his children and glory for himself. And example five, Satan thought he won at the cross, God answered with resurrection. The cross looked like Satan's triumph, death, shame, and silence. But God answered. Colossians 2 15 says he disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame by triumphing over them in him. The cross was not Satan's victory, it was God's response, and the resurrection was the final word. And now here we are back in the wilderness. Satan's got a question, and as always, Jesus has an answer. When Satan asks Jesus if you are the Son of God, Jesus does what God has always done. He answers, not with spectacle, not with power plays, not with proof on Satan's terms, but with scripture. It is written. Don't you see how this isn't new? How Jesus' response is consistent with God's character since the beginning? God has always answered Satan with truth, with limits, with rebuke, with intercession, with victory. And now in the wilderness, the Son does what the Father has always done, which means the question for us isn't whether Satan will speak. He will. The question is, will we recognize his voice and have an answer ready? God answers Satan, so should we. But we've got a few problems. Problem number one, we haven't built up enough practice in discerning when Satan is attacking us. As I said, in our Women's Abidible Plus Facebook group this week, we had a discussion about all of this. One of the members shared that she has a lot of questions about the access Satan and his demons have to us and how to know if something is of the devil or spiritual warfare versus circumstances that we face as a result of personal choices that we've made, like sin or just the fall in general. These are great ponderings, right? I'm sure you can identify with the confusion she was describing. I know I can. So how are we to know who is talking to or influencing us? And how much are they able to influence us? The devil and his demons don't introduce themselves before they attempt to introduce temptation or explain what they're up to. So what gives? I don't want to just be aware that they exist. I want to be alert so I can see the attack coming and do something about it. And I bet you do too. First of all, before you or I get freaked out, let's go back to what we just saw about God to comfort us as we deal with this topic. We saw that God always answers Satan, including when Satan comes for his kids. God also speaks truth over lies, rebukes when necessary, intercedes, sets limits, and secures the ultimate victory. So we are protected. But it's good to ask these questions. How much access do demonic forces have to Christians? We want to know this so we can discern when it's happening, right? Satan came to Jesus and said, If you are who you say you are, do this thing. It was pretty obvious that Jesus was being tempted in that moment, but it's not going to be like that for us. So let's first define two terms here: demonic possession and demonic oppression. God questions says that demonic possession is the state of being indwelt by a demon who has direct control over the thoughts and or actions of a person. We see examples of demon possession in scripture in places like Matthew 17, verses 14 through 18, with the demon-possessed son who would throw himself into the fire, as well as in Luke chapter 4, verses 33 to 35, with the demon-possessed man who mocked Jesus in the synagogue, and also in Luke 8, 27 to 33, with the legion of demons, legion of demons, plural, possessed man in the wilderness, who would break his chains and cut himself and go be naked in the wilderness. What a scary thing to be under the authority of the prince of this world instead of under the protection of God. Now God questions also defines demonic oppression as a demonic attack on a person from without, not within, that results in spiritual and or physical trouble and strong temptation to sin. Job was oppressed by Satan. Next question: Can we be possessed or indwelt by demons as Christians? No. Can we be demonically oppressed? Yes. Why can't a follower of Christ be possessed by demonic forces? What would you say? A Christian is chosen by God, born again as a new creation, bought with the blood of Christ, indwelt and sealed by the Holy Spirit and adopted into the family of God. A Christian is considered a chosen race, a royal priesthood, and a holy nation. He or she belongs to God and Jesus is their shepherd. The Holy Spirit who lives in a believer will not share space with the devil. He is wicked. Satan is strong, yes, but Jesus is the one who binds the strong man and takes possession of his house when a person is born again. The devil is weak in the presence of Jesus. Just think about our wilderness story, right? Jesus is weak and fasting in the desert, but even the evil one can't make Jesus weaker. Jesus makes the devil weaker. So once we are born again and sealed by God as believers, we never again have to fear demonic possession. If we see someone who claims to be a follower of Jesus, think Judas Iscariot, demonstrating the behavior of demonic possession, then what we ought not do is question God. Instead, led by Scripture, we should question whether that person was ever God's in the first place. We later learn that despite being a physical follower of Jesus, Judas had been indwelt by Satan. We see the evidence of that in the wicked fruit he produces when he betrays Jesus with a kiss. Side note, have you ever noticed that at the last supper, all of the disciples say, Is it I, Lord? about the betrayal, except for one? Judas says, Is it I rabbi? Judas had never made Jesus his Lord. Jesus was only his teacher. That's why Jesus says that Judas was of the devil. So Christians cannot be demonically possessed, but they can be demonically oppressed. Again, demonic oppression means that we can experience attack from outside, from without, not within. And we can have spiritual or physical trouble andor strong temptations to sin. Again, Job was demonically oppressed. How are we to discern if what we are facing is demonic oppression? What if it's just life circumstances? What if what I'm experiencing is a direct result or consequence of my choices, especially if my choices were sinful? Well, I'm going to give you a little bit of a guide here. This is an eye-opening experience. If you've never read it, especially, I recommend reading it. This is an incredible piece of Christian literary art. You maybe know what I'm going to say. C.S. Lewis's screw tape letters. I'm going to link it for you in this episode's description. This book, you guys, is basically a field manual on how demons think. And what's so shocking about it is how they work evil into the practical, everyday ordinary. His big premise is that demons rarely attack Christians with obvious evil, preferring instead to use subtle misdirection, slow erosion, and normal life to dull our alertness. There's that word again. Lewis posits that hell's strategy is boring, patient, and manipulative rather than dramatic or overt. Demons want to separate believers from God without them ever noticing that it's happening. So here are some of the primary ways that you and I might be targeted, as I've taken like a summary from this book. This will help increase our alertness and our discernment. Since this is what we discussed wanting to be able to do, you might want to write these down. So look for demonic oppression in the form of distraction over destruction. Demons prefer to keep believers busy, tired, and preoccupied, not openly rebellious. Life circumstances that are used here are busyness, extra responsibility, overstimulation, and even productivity. Examples of this might be filling life with harmless noise, like news, trivial arguments, endless scrolling, or keeping prayer postponed, rushed, or for later, and encouraging a sense of I'll take my faith seriously once life settles down. And he says the safest road to hell is the gradual one with a gentle slope and soft underfoot. Oppression might also look like trying to use mood swings and emotions as spiritual interpreters. Demons encourage believers to trust feelings over truth. You don't feel close to God, so he must be distant. This is where spiritual dryness is equated with spiritual failure, and believers are convinced that emotional highs equal God's presence and lows equal God's absence. This temptation is most effective when the believer is fatigued, stressed, depressed, lonely, or, ladies, hormonal. See? You always knew your hormones were demonic. It can also look like exploiting familiarity with holy things. Over time, demons try to make spiritual practices feel ordinary, dull, or automatic, like making Bible reading become mechanical, church attendance become routine instead of reverent, or prayers that are just rehearsed words with no attention or affection. Demons love when Christians treat eternal things as common. This is especially tricky for Christians who have been a part of the church for a long time, and things start to feel just like repeated routine. Demons are content if a believer attends church, avoids major scandal, and slowly loses affection for God. No crisis required. Here's another one to be alert against turning small irritations into relational divisions. Demons specialize in tiny offenses, not major betrayals within relationships like marriages, parents and children, church communities, and close friendships. Demons do this by tricking. Believers to hyperfixate on tone, phrasing, or perceived slights. This is where quiet resentment that feels justified builds and builds, and conversations are rehearsed internally instead of addressing issues humbly and working toward reconciliation. Screw tape says the goal here is to turn the daily rubs into spiritual poison. You'll resonate with this next tactic as well. Using suffering to distort God's character. Lewis is clear. Suffering doesn't automatically produce spiritual growth. In fact, it's a battlefield where the believer is tempted to interpret pain as abandonment, conclude that God is cruel, careless, or absent, and slide their thoughts from not just why is this happening, but to God cannot be trusted. This is most present when the believer is facing loss, illness, unanswered prayer, or prolonged hardship. Next, these are so good to unmask, aren't they? Okay, and this one, notice how oppression happens by encouraging comparison and spiritual pride. Demons love both pride and self-contempt. Either will do. Let me read that again. Either pride or self-contempt will do. Demons love them both. This can happen in church culture, via social media, and even in ministry. For example, in church, believers might compare their spiritual maturity with others, feel superior to less serious Christians, or believe that they're disqualified because others seem more faithful. Ultimately, in whatever this temptation looks like, the focus moves off God and onto self. How about this one? Keeping believers focused on the past or the future, but never the present. Demons want believers anywhere but here where obedience actually happens. Because the present is where humans encounter God, demons work hard to steal it. This might look like guilt-soaked fixation on past sins, anxiety-ridden obsession with future outcomes, and avoidance of present faithfulness or trust. This is where demons thrive by keeping believers in a perpetual state of regret, fear, planning, nostalgia, or trauma. Now, if this list is getting overwhelming, good. I'm not done yet. And I'm trying to overwhelm you and me on purpose. Here's another way demonic oppression might surface. By using pleasure without gratitude. You know, demons don't hate pleasure. They hate thankful enjoyment that leads to God. So instead of thanking the giver for the good gifts, they work over time to cause the believer to worship gifts like food, sex, rest, and entertainment as ends in and of themselves. Have the pleasure terminate there, in fact, even indulge a bit. Just don't worship God as the giver of these good gifts. Replace worship with comfort in settings of leisure, success, and abundance, and the believer can be entrenched in oppression while having fun doing it. Oppression might also look like minimizing sin by making it normal. Pay attention here. Demons rarely push believers toward shocking evil. Instead, they push, quote, cultural norms, peer behavior, and moral fatigue until the believer normalizes sin by saying everyone struggles with this, or it's not hurting anyone, or at least I'm not as bad as the trap is set and the hook goes right through the cheek using the bait of normalization. How about this one? Isolating believers. For sure, we know this to be true, but even internally, and even while they're surrounded by people, Lewis shows that demons love private inner worlds filled with secrecy. Want some examples of how this happens? By getting believers to confess sins only in vague terms and also by avoiding any real spiritual accountability. This oppression thrives in social environments, especially church ones, where there is no deep connection and people feel unknown, unseen, or misunderstood. Here's the last one. Demonic oppression might come by making spiritual warfare either ridiculous or obsessive. These two extremes serve the same goal. And this is what we were talking about before. On one extreme, the believer might treat Satan and his demons as imaginary or symbolic, and on the other, equally destructive end, he or she might become fixated on demons instead of Christ. This happens when there is theological imbalance, fear, or ignorance. And again, Lewis warns both error and obsession are victories for hell. Now, I hope you're completely overwhelmed. You should be. I am too. Because if I summarize all of that, here's where we land. Demonic oppression happens always, in all ways. That is completely overwhelming. But thank God it's not the end of the story. But we have another problem, don't we? Not only do we need to be able to discern when we are facing demonic oppression, but we need to know what to do when it's happening. For sure, we have to be aware when it's happening, but awareness gets us nowhere. We need to be alert so we can take action. Alertness carries with it the idea of this awareness that's ready for action. We need to know what to do to combat demonic oppression and influence as it's happening. We must know how to make it stop. We've seen that God is always aware of what Satan is doing. And in that awareness, he's always also alert and ready for action in the form of answering Satan. If he's alert and ready for action, we should be too. So let me ask you directly: even if you learn to discern that a demonic attack is happening, do you know how to respond? What to do? Do you feel prepared to face that? Friend, what do you do if you realize that you are under a demonic oppressive attack? Well, what we're learning so far is that you at least need to respond. What you don't do is ignore it, allow it, or pretend it isn't happening. You also don't fear it because greater is he who is in you than he who is in this world. You have authority and power to overcome because through Jesus you are a conqueror. So you respond, okay? Don't do nothing. Respond. One of the women in our Abidible Plus group used our Abidible Bible study skills this week to look up what the word resist means in resist the devil and he will flee from you. That's James 4 7. And this is a genius idea, right? If you want the devil to flee from you, we do, then let's do this resist thing, yeah? She learned that it means to set oneself against, to withstand, or oppose. Set yourself against the devil. Those are fighting words. This is a fighting stance. But do we stand a chance? We'll be right back after this message. If you've been listening along and quietly thinking, I don't want to wrestle through this alone, that thought isn't random and it's also not weakness. It's hunger and it's wisdom. Being alone is exactly where the enemy loves to attack us. When we are alone with our questions, our weariness, our subtle doubts that creep in when life is loud or heavy. That's why Abidible Plus exists. It's a small, sacred space for women who love Jesus but know they need community to stay rooted. Women who want to recognize the enemy's schemes, answer lies with truth, and learn how to stand firm together. We talk through Scripture honestly, we name the spiritual battles we're facing, and we pray for one another in real time. We love to remind each other again and again that we are not powerless and we are not alone. If your heart is stirring right now, don't ignore it. This might be the Lord inviting you into deeper abiding with others beside you. We would love to battle, grow, and cling to the word together. You can learn more at the link in this episode's description. And now back to the show. If you've made it this far, you're probably asking, can we skip to the bread part? I thought this verse for today was about man not living by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God. Instead, I've pretty much been talking about being aware and alert and about demonic possession and oppression and standing against the devil by resisting him. As I said, my goal was to make you feel overwhelmed because what Jesus is talking about in this verse is life and death. Man doesn't live because he eats food. Man lives by the word of God. Food with no word of God equals death. We cannot live, truly live, without God's word. Now, as we're going to see in Jesus' three responses to these three temptations, he is quoting the book of Deuteronomy each time. This is the fifth book of the Pentateuch, or the book of Moses. And that book, Deuteronomy, ends with this warning about the Word of God. Moses says, It is no empty word for you, but your very life. And by this word you shall live long in the land you are going over the Jordan to possess. That's one of my favorite verses. You guys hear me quoting it all the time. Now, here in the wilderness, Jesus is echoing that same sentiment while he's under this demonic attack from Satan. Turn stones into bread, take matters into your own hands, eat food and live. Deuteronomy 8 is the verse that Jesus is pulling this, our verse from, where he says, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God. And we see in that verse that Israel is being tested in the wilderness, and we're told that God is testing them to see what was in their heart when they hungered. Would they continue to choose God? So Jesus is reenacting, and we've talked about this already, he's reenacting what was happening to the Israelites. And so now Satan comes and says, Turn these stones into bread, take matters into your own hands, disobey God, take care of number one, eat food and live. And as God always does, Jesus answers Satan. He says it's not physical bread that brings life. Every word that comes from the mouth of God, that's what brings life. The bread of life, Jesus, will lay down his life. He is the one who is the way and the truth and the life. And he brings us everlasting resurrection life. He tells us, he tells us, he tells us that life is found in the Word of God. The entire Word of God points to the literal Word of God, Jesus, who came in the flesh, defeated the flesh, and laid down his flesh in death so that his resurrected flesh could become eternal flesh and that we would never taste death again. It's mind-blowing. And he did all of that by submitting to the Father, by fasting from food to show that food and all things are secondary to the Father. The Spirit enabled Jesus to obey in the form of submission out of love, out of a clear picture of identity and who God said he was, and out of a solid command of the words that come from the mouth of God. How do you resist the devil? Love God, know your identity is secure in God, and have a command of God's word. In essence, submit all of your life to God. Jesus is doing exactly that. And submitting to God is the first part of James 4.7 that I intentionally didn't read to you. How does James, the brother of Jesus, say that the devil will flee from you? Yeah, he does say resist him, but the most important part comes before that. Submit yourselves, therefore, to God. Then it says, resist the devil and he will flee from you. Submission to God is what causes the devil to flee. He has no choice. When you are submitting to God, no ground is up for grabs. No corner of your heart is available to entice, and no desire of your will is available for the taking. You belong to God, and therefore the devil has no leverage over you. As I summarized earlier, demonic oppression happens always and in always. It's continuous. And apart from God, that is a completely overwhelming reality. But we are not in the battle alone. Recognizing Satan's voice and having an answer ready won't come from instinct alone or sheer willpower. Having a victory over demonic oppression is not about vague spiritual awareness. It's about love for God, secure identity in God, and a spirit-led command of Scripture. When we love God, walk securely in who He says we are, and abide in His Word, we actually realize that it is God who fights the battle for us. If we live by God's word as Jesus says we ought, then what does that word say about the battles we face? There's a lot about it in the Bible. The whole Bible is essentially evidence and encouragement that God fights the battle for us. But here's one of my favorites. When the Israelites looked back and saw Pharaoh's army marching down on them and looked forward and saw only the vast sea, they were outnumbered and rightly terrified. Immediately they longed for the safety and security of their oppression back in Egypt. They wanted to go back. The familiar suddenly felt much more appealing than any future deliverance. Moses encouraged them and said, Fear not, stand firm and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again. The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent. No wonder Jesus loved, quoting Moses. And what does God tell Moses next? Tell the people of Israel to go forward. Friend, I don't know what oppression you might be under right now. It might be so familiar you don't even realize its hold on you. Maybe you do realize how enslaved you are to it, but you've given up believing that God could ever deliver you from it. The idea of never seeing these Egyptians ever again, meaning your oppressors, is so foreign and so impossible. You've given up on the idea or the hope that God can deliver you. Maybe you're walking out your freedom, but it still feels like you're hemmed in on every side because walking by faith is hard. So sometimes you look back and you long for the days that surrender to Satan felt so much easier. Surrendering to the bread because it's easy or because it's a shortcut is not only not easier, it brings death. Death of the freedom Christ died to give you. Death of your intimacy in relationship with him as sin drives a wedge between you. Death of hope of ever being truly free. Death of any desire to fight by abiding in his word or communing with his church. The easy shortcut brings death, not life. Go forward and stop looking back. You've got too much staying alert to do. Looking back serves no purpose. There's nothing for you there. Move forward. Submit to God by loving him, standing in your God-given identity, and wielding the word of God. You are in a fight. Be alert. But also know that you're not ever going to fight alone. If you would just be still, you'd see that God is fighting for you. If you'd just be silent, you'd hear the words of life he speaks over you. If you just stop looking back, you'd be filled with hope for the freedom-filled future he fought for you to have. Here's the big idea. Eat bread and die. Abide and live. When we slow down and look at it, Jesus shows us that it's actually not that hard. It goes back to the most well-known verse from Deuteronomy, doesn't it? Love God with all your heart, soul, and might. Out of that love comes submission and obedience and a desire for His word more than bread, more than anything this world has to offer. When we submit to God because we love Him, resisting the devil becomes easier and easier, and He just ends up having to flee. Now, by the end of this series, we're going to have three strong rebukes for the devil directly from Scripture. You'll have them at the ready. So when you identify something that's coming at you in the form of demonic oppression, you can pull one of these right from memory. We even have a crew neck for you guys. It says it is written on the front and it has all three of these verses lettered on the sleeve. Store up today's in your heart. Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God. When can you use this verse? When the devil is tempting you to reach for comfort instead of God, by scrolling, snacking, shopping, numbing, whispering, hey, just take the edge off. You deserve relief. Your answer can be man does not live by bread alone. My soul needs God more than quick comfort. Or when he's tempting you to believe that your physical or emotional needs excuse disobedience. Of course I'm short tempered, anxious, or checked out. I'm exhausted, I'm hungry, I'm hormonal, I'm overwhelmed. Your answer can be my circumstances don't define my obedience. God's Word does. Or when He tempts you to treat Scripture as optional when life feels pressing. I'll get back to the Word when things calm down. Right now I just need to survive. Instead, your answer can be, I don't survive apart from God's word. I survive by God's word. Or when he tempts you to make good things, ultimate things like productivity, health, routines, family, even ministry, subtly replacing dependence on God with self-reliance. This verse can help you answer by saying, These things don't sustain me. Every breath I take comes from God. Or when he tempts you to assume that meeting your immediate needs matters more than faithfulness. Just fix it, just make it easier, just make it stop. Your answer could be God's word, God's will. All of it is better than immediate relief. When he tempts you to believe that the lie, that hunger means lack, that your longing season or waiting season or wanting season must mean that God is withholding from you, you can answer by saying hunger doesn't mean abandonment. It means invitation. I will live by God's word. And when he tempts you to choose shortcuts over trust by bending your convictions, softening truth, rationalizing compromise, all because it would make life easier, your answer can be, I don't live on what's easiest. I live on what God has spoken. Now, just for fun, because I want you to be uber equipped and more equipped week by week in this series. I'm going to skip ahead to verse 10 to give you one bonus rebuke. It's just three words, so you're never going to forget it. And Jesus uses it with authority. Be gone, Satan. If nothing else, you have the authority to stand against Satan with that. Jesus, our wilderness warrior, very familiar with creeping desert things, says in Luke 10 19, Behold, which means listen up, pay attention. This is big and important. He says, Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you. Be gone, Satan, and nothing shall hurt you. And that's it for this episode. If you know someone who would be blessed by what you just heard, please share the Abidible Podcast with them. Keep spreading the word so we can make much of the word. Drop us a review, tell us what you love and what you're learning. Check out the link to learn more about partnering with us by buying us a coffee one time, by joining our Abidible Plus women's membership community for $10 a month, or by becoming a monthly supporter. For those of you following along in the workbook, go ahead and begin working on our next two verses in this series, Matthew 4, 5, and 6 on pages 28 to 31 and 32 to 35 in your study workbook. Give yourself some extra time to do these two verses. Ideally, you would have both of these sections done before you listen to the next episode number 84. I've put both of these verses together because verse 5 stops awkwardly right in the middle of the next temptation from Satan. So together these two verses say, Then the devil took him to the holy city and set him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to him, If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written, He will command his angels concerning you, and on their hands they will bear you up lest you strike your foot against a stone. Next week we will step into this second temptation and explore why Satan brings Jesus to the temple and why Satan uses scripture. Did you catch that? And we'll also highlight the subtle difference between faith and foolishness, trust and testing. We're going to see how scripture can be misused when it is detached from God's heart. I'll pray for us and then close us out with our memory work for verse four. Father God, we come to you aware not just that the enemy exists, but that you reign. Thank you that you have never once let Satan's words, schemes, or accusations go unanswered. Thank you that you answered him in the garden, you answered him at the cross, and you answer him in this wilderness through your son. Lord, teach us to love you more than bread, more than relief, more than shortcuts, more than anything that promises life but cannot give it. Make us a people who are not merely aware but alert. Give us discernment to recognize the enemy's voice, courage to resist him, and wisdom to answer lies with truth. Train our reflexes to run to Scripture. Root our identity so deeply in who you say we are that accusation finds no place to land. We submit ourselves to you, God, every appetite, every desire, every fear, and every longing. And as we submit to you, we stand firm against the enemy, resisting him and trusting your promise that he must flee. Thank you, Jesus, our wilderness warrior, our bread of life, our victory. We choose to abide. We choose life. In the strong and victorious name of Jesus we pray. Amen. Let's close by doing our memory work together. I'm going to repeat Matthew 4-4 five times. Say it out loud with me or quietly to yourself. But he answered, It is written. Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God. But he answered, It is written. Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God. But he answered, It is written. Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God. But he answered, It is written. Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God. But he answered, It is written. Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God. Matthew 4 4. Remember, you are able to abide in the Bible. We'll see you next time. Until then, let's abide.