June 19 - Righteousness

Overview of: Matthew

Today's Reading:
Matthew 3:1 – 4:25
"Jesus' Ministry Begins"

Focus Verses: Matthew 3:15 & 4:10
3:15 Jesus replied, "Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness."

4:10 Jesus said to him, "Away from me, Satan! For it is written: 'Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.'

Insight:
Jesus' baptism was an act of submission to God. It was an act of witness declaring Jesus' full surrender to God the Father. His submission to God was how righteousness would be fulfilled in his life.

Jesus' victory over temptation in the wilderness was an act of resistance. In every case, Jesus saw that giving in to temptation would be a failure to submit to God. He resisted and renounced every temptation, recognizing them for the satanic snares they were.

Response and Action:
Jesus' submission to God and his resistance in the face of temptation remind me of the words of James 4:7 -- "Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you." Like Jesus, I want to live a righteous life that honors God. I will submit myself to God (a pledge I made when I was baptized), pursue righteousness, and hide God's word in my heart. I will guard against temptation, recognize it for what it is, and resist it.

O God, I desire to honor you this day in thought, word, and deed. Help to turn away from what is wrong and do what is right. Help me to love you with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength. Lead me away from temptation, and deliver me from evil. By the power and grace of your Holy Spirit, lead, teach, transform, shape, and strengthen me, that I might delight in your will and walk in your ways to the glory of your name. I pray in the name of Jesus, my Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

Old Testament for Today: Deuteronomy 6:13-15
13 Fear the LORD your God, serve him only and take your oaths in his name. 14 Do not follow other gods, the gods of the peoples around you; 15 for the LORD your God, who is among you, is a jealous God and his anger will burn against you, and he will destroy you from the face of the land.
In Context: Deut. 6:4-19

Proverb for Today: Prov. 19:8
"He who gets wisdom loves his own soul; he who cherishes understanding prospers."

Recommended Reading:
Renovation of the Heart
by Dallas Willard