STANDING STRONG IN THE BATTLE FOR TRUTH “Truth is relative. There are no absolutes. Truth is what you make it.”

VBS: Day 5

Lesson Focus Take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

A little Bit About the Middle Ages ( ) The Kingdom Chronicles: Saints, Relics, & Teachings of the Church

Saints St. Nicholas: The Patron Saint of Children, was originally from Turkey. The Virgin Mary: The mother of Jesus was the most popular and most highly regarded of the saints.

Relics Relics were objects such as bones of saints or objects connected with saints which were considered worthy of worship because they provided a link between the earthly world and God. It was believed they could produce miracles. Many people would make pilgrimages to visit relics because it was believed they could heal or grant forgiveness from sin.

Religious Teachings The church had many ways to teach its followers Miracle and Passion plays would act out stories from the Bible. Frequently these plays would involve an entire community. Each guild or organization would perform one story from the Bible.

Stained Glass The stained glass windows of churches were also used to teach stories from the Bible to a mostly illiterate population.

Speak Truth: The Sword of the Spirit

Ephesians 6:10-11; “ 10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; 18 praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit”

-At the age of 7, they were considered Pages -At the age of 14, they became Squires -At the age of 21, they were Knights

Medieval knights always took their swords into battle. A knight’s sword was so heavy that he needed to use it with both hands.

To effectively use the sword, we must regard it as the word of God. If we are not confident in the inspiration of Scripture, that the sword really came from the Spirit, then we will not use it effectively at all.

Not only did the Spirit give us the Scriptures, but also He makes them alive to us, and equips us with the right thrust of the sword at the right time.

The Main Idea: If we are ignorant of God’s truth, we are poorly armed in the fight against temptation.

The great example of this was Jesus combating the temptation of Satan in the wilderness.

The King of Kings Jesus

1 John 2:16 “For all that is in the world--the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life--is not of the Father but is of the world.”

1. The first temptation: an appeal to the lust of the flesh and the lost of identity

Matthew 4:3-4 “ 3 Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, "If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread." 4 But He answered and said, "It is written, 'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.'”

The tempter came In our lives, it is not a question of if the tempter will come, but when he will come. We will face temptation until we go to glory.

Since you are the Son of God Satan was not questioning Jesus’ identity and deity.

Command that these stones become bread This was a temptation to use God’s gifts for selfish purposes. Satan suggested that Jesus use His miraculous powers to provide food for Himself.

But He answered Jesus didn’t silently disagree with Satan, and He answered him from the Word of God.

It is written Jesus used Scripture to battle Satan’s temptation, not some elaborate spiritual power inaccessible to us.

2. The second temptation: an appeal to the pride of life.

Matthew 4:5-7 “ 5 Then the devil took Him up into the holy city, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, 6 and said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down. For it is written: 'He shall give His angels charge over you,' and, 'In their hands they shall bear you up, Lest you dash your foot against a stone.' " 7 Jesus said to him, "It is written again, 'You shall not tempt the Lord your God.‘”

Throw Yourself down Satan is tempting Jesus to “force” the Father into a supernatural event. Satan appeals to the desire within every man to sense approval from God and to have that approval publicly demonstrated.

For it is written The devil quotes Scripture, and we can trust that the devil has memorized the Bible himself, and is an expert at quoting it out of its context to confuse and defeat those he tempts.

The Devil is the Father of Lies: -He denied the truth that Jesus is God (3) -He wrongly quotes scripture to serve his own purposes (6) -He lies about his power and authority (9)

It is written “You shall not tempt the Lord your God.” Jesus replied with Scripture, but applied correctly.

3. The third temptation: an appeal to the lust of the eyes.

Matthew 4:8-10 “ 8 Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. 9 And he said to Him, "All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me." 10 Then Jesus said to him, "Away with you, Satan! For it is written, 'You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.‘”

All these things I will give You Essentially, this vision invited Jesus to take a shortcut around the cross. Jesus came to win all the kingdoms of the world and their glory back from Satan’s domain, and Satan offers them to Jesus, if He will only fall down and worship him.

Away with you, Satan! For it is written Jesus replied with Scripture again, and commanded the devil to leave. In the same way we can resist the devil and he will flee from you (James 4:7). It worked for Jesus and it will work for us.

Conclusion: Matthew 22:29 “Jesus answered and said to them, “You are mistaken, not knowing the Scriptures nor the power of God.”

“But about the resurrection of the dead--have you not read what God said to you” Matthew 22:31“"Do you hear what these children are saying?" they asked him. "Yes," replied Jesus, "have you never read, " 'From the lips of children and infants you have ordained praise' ?"” Matthew 21:16“Now about the dead rising--have you not read in the book of Moses, in the account of the bush, how God said to him, 'I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob?” Mark 12:26“Jesus said to them, "Have you never read in the Scriptures: " 'The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone; the Lord has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes' ? Matthew 21:42“"Haven't you read," he replied, "that at the beginning...” Matthew 19:4“He answered, "Haven't you read what David did when...” Matthew 12:3“Or haven't you read in the Law that on the Sabbath the priests in the temple desecrate the day and yet are innocent?” Matthew 12:5“Haven't you read this passage of Scripture: "'The stone...” Mark 12:10“And he answered and said to them, Have you not read...” Matthew 19:4“Jesus answered them, "Have you never read what David did when he and his companions were hungry?” Luke 6:3