Luke 4:4 - Living The Word!

Luke 4:4; Living The Word!

Luke 4:4 (KJV)  And Jesus answered him, saying, It is written,
That man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.

Jesus was "full of the Holy Spirit" (4:1). That means he was in
full submission to the Spirit. [New Bible Companion]

The Lord acknowledged His dependency on His father, quoting
Deut. 8:3. [Ryrie SB]

With Christ, as with the holy pair in Eden, appetite was the
ground of the first great temptation. Just where the ruin began, the
work of our redemption must begin. As by the indulgence of appetite
Adam fell, so by the denial of appetite Christ must overcome.....
 Christ was not to exercise divine power for His own benefit. He
had come to bear trial as we must do, leaving us an example of faith
and submission. Neither here nor at any subsequent time in His
earthly life did He work a miracle in His own behalf. His wonderful
works were all for the good of others. DA117-123

The first temptation was for Jesus to meet the necessities of
life by His own power. Note two things.
 1. Satan's temptation was for Jesus to misuse His power and His
ability. (See note--Matthew 4:2-4.) Jesus was very hungry. He had the
power to create food and to meet His need, and the tempter tempted Him
to use His power upon Himself.... Never once did He use His power
upon Himself nor for His own ends--not even when He was hanging upon
the cross (cp. Matthew 26:42; Luke 23:35). He always used His power
to help men,...
 If Jesus had used His power upon Himself...
*        He would be trusting Himself and not the Father, acting
completely independent of the Father and the Father's will.
 *        He would be saying that men could use their abilities to
center upon themselves instead of helping a world lost in need.
 *        He would be teaching that men could use their abilities to
build themselves up (pride) instead of honoring God and His will.
 2. Jesus' answer was that something more than physical food was
needed. Man needs to be fed spiritually. He needs his spiritual needs
met. [Preacher's  Outline & Sermon Bible]

A man has needs, the very necessities of life. There are the
necessities of...
*        food
*        clothing
*        shelter
*        friends
*        acceptance
*        recognition
*        self-esteem
*        work
*        rest and recreation

The necessities are legitimate. However, the problem arises when
we are tempted...
 *        to use our ability independent of God, forgetting His will and
doing our own thing.
 *        to focus our ability upon ourselves, getting and banking more
and more instead of meeting the needs of a desperate world.
 *        to use our abilities to build ourselves up instead of
acknowledging God as the Source of our abilities. Too many seek fame, honor,
and praise for selfish ends. Too many want to be recognized as
superior and better, as having more position, authority, clothes, houses,
cars, lands, and looks.
 The great wrong with this is twofold.
1) We misuse our ability. We forget God and His will and focus
upon self.
 2) We live for the physical and not for the spiritual, for
receiving and not for giving. There is a spiritual hunger that just is not
met by bread, that is, the physical and material. (See note--Ephes.
1:3 for detailed discussion.) [Preacher's  Outline & Sermon Bible]

The word of God is our sword, and faith in that word is our
shield.... Let this word dwell richly in us, for it is our life. [Matthew
Henry Commentary]

Live in a dependence upon the divine Providence and promise, and
trust him (Matthew Henry's Commentary)

So long as we are united to Him by faith, sin has no more
dominion over us. DA117-123