Bread alone?

“But He answered, “It is written: Man must not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.””Matthew‬ ‭4‬:‭4‬ ‭HCSB‬‬

These are the words of Jesus. He had been fasting for 40 days in the desert and Satan came to test him, suggesting that Jesus change the stones into bread. Jesus replies with a scripture from Deuteronomy 8:3. This particular scripture was one Moses spoke to the children of Israel.

Jesus sought righteousness more than food and obedience more than water (commentary HCSB). He taught His disciples this in Matthew 5:6 in the sermon on the mount. “Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness are blessed, for they will be filled.”

To understand this at a deeper level than superficial we need to stop, look and listen. What is important about righteousness? We know we are made right with God through Jesus but is there more? Yes! To understand righteousness we need to study Jesus. He represented righteousness. In Him is restraint, obedience, solitude and seeking God. He did not need entertainment, yet He enjoyed companionship. However, even in this He was careful to fellowship with those whose hearts belonged to God, or who were seeking Him. He spent a lot of time in prayer with the Father also.

Today’s challenge: to ponder righteousness. Amen!