It Is Also Written!

Matthew 4 starts with the devil tempting Jesus in the wilderness, which consisted of three temptations, each having their own distinctive angles. In the second temptation he takes Jesus up to Jerusalem and sets him on a pinnacle of the temple, saying that if he is the Son of God, that he should be perfectly safe, even if he jumps off the top of the temple. He quotes a scripture from Psalm 91, saying, "for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone." This type of temptation I like to call a spiritual temptation, where the devil uses spiritual things to trip up people as they attempt to be spiritual. The means of the success of this type of temptation in a person is normally the pursuit of pride ("Man, people would really think I was something great if they saw the angels come and rescue me from hitting the earth!"). However, another means of success for this type of temptation in an individual is often a lack of knowledge about the things of God. It causes people to plunge to their own demise.

The response Jesus gave him in verse 7 is amazing. He said, "It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God." In the past I've thought he used the word "again" here because this was the second time the devil was tempting him, and so this was the second time Jesus was quoting a scripture to him. But when I read it today, I felt a more acute inspiration. Jesus is using the word "again" as he quotes a scripture... in response to the devil quoting a scripture to him! The phrase, "It is written again," seems in that light as though it could mean, "It is also written." It's like he's saying, "Yeah, devil, I know the Bible says that, but it also says this..." That's an amazing understanding! As if he's saying, yes devil, it's written that the angels will protect us, BUT IT IS ALSO WRITTEN that we should do what we can to protect ourselves (in so many words). I looked up the word "again" in the lexicon, and the Greek word used here is the word "palin." This word means, "on the other hand," "further," or "also." So, yes, on one hand, we know the angels will protect us, but on the other hand, we can't just go doing stupid things and expect God to always support our ignorance. So, yes, that is written, but it is further written, or it is also written! On one hand, it says this; but on the other hand, it says that, and so we use them both to give us a balanced understanding of God's oracles.

That is a huge concept for looking at the Bible as a whole. The devil is a master of using the Bible to give people a false sense of security, isolating and perverting the interpretation of scriptures to cause us to do ourselves deathly spiritual damage. He preys on people's ignorance of the things of God, causing them to be lost, all while they are trusting that they are in the angels' hands. These spiritual temptations work on some because of their pride, and it works on some others because of laziness. Isaiah 28:10 says, "For precept must be upon precept..." We cannot take one scripture and feel that all pertinent understanding is contained solely within it. The beauty of the scriptures is that they work together to bring a message. And the same is a must when dealing with doctrinal points.

People often use John 3:16 to say that all we need to do to be saved is believe in Jesus, because it tells us in that verse that whosoever believes in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. And the Bible does say that if we believe in him that we should be saved. But...

IT IS ALSO WRITTEN!

{Read the earlier verses in that chapter}

Romans 10:13 says that whosoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. This verse is often used to say that anyone who believes in Jesus enough to repeat the sinner's prayer and accept him as their personal savior is automatically saved. And, yes, it is true that God is willing save anyone that believes enough to call on his name (regardless of whether they're a Jew or a Gentile, bond or free, male or female, young or old, as we look at the original phrase in its original context in Joel 2). But...

IT IS ALSO WRITTEN!

{Read the next 4 verses in that chapter}

In Acts 16, Paul told the jailor to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and he would be saved. This has been used to say that all we need to do to be saved is believe on the Lord Jesus, in an uninvolved way, in the same way you'd believe that any other historical figure existed, in a way that calls for no repentance, no experience, no doctrine. It's like saying you believe in Elvis Presley, or Genghis Khan. And please understand, it is true that for the biblical definition of what it means to "believe" (which is to obey, or to follow), one will be saved if they believe on the Lord Jesus. But...

IT IS ALSO WRITTEN!

{Read the next verse in that chapter}

The word "believe" is one that begs for instruction. This is why the new believers in Acts 2:37 asked Peter the question, once they began to believe, "...What shall we do?" And Peter didn't say, "Nothin' boys, that's it! Y'all can all continue to live the way you're living." But rather he said in Acts 2:38, "...Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost." Faith takes the shape of the word of God, which is why Romans 10:17 says (which is after Romans 10:13 referenced above, proving that there is more to that verse), "So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." Faith is not without demonstration, it's not without process, it's not without truth! At least, not if it's to be pertinent. Someone could tell you that a certain car costs $25K, and that you can get it for a down payment of $4K, making payments of a certain amount every month. You believing that it requires a $4K down payment means nothing if you do not wish to get that car. In that case, your faith is void and irrelevant. But if you want to get that car, a salesperson gives you a chance to believe by listing out detailed instructions and process for purchasing that vehicle. And then, if you believe that it is not a hoax, you may surrender the down payment, sign the paperwork, and they'll give you the keys. If you believe you can have the car, that is the link that enables you to do what it takes to get the car. Hopefully the reader will pardon the purchase analogy when talking about salvation. Yes, eternal life is a free gift, as we know from Romans 6:23, BUT IT IS ALSO WRITTEN in Acts 2:40 to save yourselves! We cannot earn salvation, no matter what works we do, but works are still required, since faith is not faith without them. We could not put a price on God manifesting himself in the flesh and shedding his blood on the cross, but if we believe that it was for our sins, the least we could do is repent, get baptized in Jesus's name, and let him fill us with his Spirit so we can go the right direction. We could not earn the way of salvation being made available to us, but now that it is available, we must walk in it!

Yes, John 3:16, says to believe, but Mark 16:16 says to believe and be baptized. Yes, Romans 10:13 says to call on the name of the Lord, but John 3:3-5 says that if we're not born again, of water and of the Spirit, that we will not enter into the kingdom of God. Yes, the apostle Paul told the jailor to believe on the Lord Jesus, but then it says in verse 32 of Acts 16 that he continued to speak the word of the Lord to him - so that way he would have something to believe about the Lord Jesus! If all that was necessary for us to be saved was for us to believe that Jesus existed and refrain from killing people, the Bible would be a pamphlet, comprised mostly of illustrations, to fill up the empty space. But it is not so; we have a faith, comparing scripture with scripture, so that we have a balanced, holistic, intricate guide that helps us traverse the windy roads of life. The Bible goes on, even after the initial experience of rebirth covered in the book of Acts, to talk in the epistles about how we live, how we dress, how we treat each other, and so on. If we take one scripture, and try to live on it, it's like jumping off the temple and hoping for the angels.

Before you jump, just remember, IT IS ALSO WRITTEN...