"More Than Just Bread"

Today our "snack" is more like, when you go to a restaurant, and you can't make up your mind which appetizer to get, so, you go for the sampler with a little bit of all your favorites. Today He put together a sampler for us. I hope you'll enjoy the selection!

It started as I was reading in Luke 4:4 "And Jesus answered him, saying, It is written, That man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God." These six words caught my eye and I started to think about them.  Next, I wasn't planning on it as I had asked Him earlier if I could do Old Testament today, He brought me to Hebrews 11 where three other verses others caught my eye.

We will start with Enoch.   We find him in Gen. 5:18-24.  So here is a guy who gets to have all of seven verses. Six of which are mostly talking about the begats of his life, you know, his dad, his son. Only one of the seven verses really gives us any insight as to why he gets to be in the well know, "Hall of Fame" or "Faith" chapter, Hebrews 11.

So other than, his father, his son, and his age, this is what we know about him ... "And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him." vs. 24 

Hebrews 11: 5 gives us a little more insight. It says ... "By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God translated him; for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God."

So now we also know, that he had faith. That he walked with God. That he was not found anymore because God translated him to heaven so that he would not see death.That he had a great testimony.  We also now know that God took him because he was pleased with him.   

I looked up Enoch's name and it simply means; initiated.  God translated or initiated Enoch into heaven because he pleased Him! God enjoyed his company!

The next  verse, Hebrews 11:6 goes on to say, "But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.

Now we know that he pleased God because of his faith. Enoch believed that God would do what he said He would. He trusted God  to be and to do what He said  He would! He had faith and he pleased God because he daily trusted in and lived by every word of God!

In the next verse Noah caught my eye with this ..."By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house... Heb. 11:7

Genesis 6:8,9 says, But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord ... Noah was a just man, perfect in his generations. Noah walked with God."  In 18 we see God telling him He will establish a covenant with him.  In verse 22 it says, "Thus Noah did; according to all God commanded him, so he did."

The thing that jumped out at me were the words, being warned of God.  That means God told him about what he was about to do and Noah believed Him and acted on it even though it scared him and was something he'd never seen before.He believed in the outcome of those words and because of that he saved his family!

Again, we see the phrase, "walked with God." We also see him described as a just man. What that means is it was his daily habit to talk with God, to listen to God, and to obey God. Bible says, "the just shall live by faith,What that means is the just shall live by every word of God!

The last thing he showed me ...By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter; Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt; for he looked to the reward ... for he endured as seeing Him who is invisible. Heb.11:24-27

Moses chose to align himself with God!  He chose to let go of the things of the world believing in the promise of a greater reward!

We too can choose to have faith!

FAITH COMES BY HEARING, HEARING BY THE WORD OF THE LORD! Romans 10:17

Faith is only possible if you first hear His words. There is a reason why Jesus was always saying, "He who has ears to hear let him hear."

Faith means choosing to not just live by bread alone but to live by EVERY Word that God speaks!