The Spirit-Driven Life
Who Wrote It
This article was written by Daniel Monaghan, a member of Trace Crossing and our Leadership Team. Daniel is incredibly gifted as a writer and as a teacher. You'll see what we mean by the time you finish reading this article.
When Was It Written
This article was written in early January 2007 as Trace Crossing went through a 60-day journey called SixtyDays in the Dust.
Why Was It Written
During those 60 days, we read together as a faith family through the gospels just to be reminded of who Jesus was and is, what He did and is doing, and what He has called us to be and do in today's world. On January 4th, we read through Matthew 3 and 4. Daniel read the passage and responded to the story of Jesus' temptation in the desert.
1 Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil. 2 After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. 3 The tempter came to him and said, "If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread." 4 Jesus answered, "It is written: 'Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.' Matthew 4:1-4
The Spirit Driven Life
One of the things that really strikes me when I read the account of Jesus’ temptation – a story very familiar to us all – is that he was being ‘led by the Spirit’. This could be quite easily and legitimately translated driven by the Spirit, in fact that is the way that Mark records it. So Jesus was ‘Spirit-Driven’. Most of us readily recognize this phrase as one of the descriptions we are choosing to use to characterize The Church at Trace Crossing.
We sometimes (or perhaps most often) think that if we are Spirit-Driven then there will be no tests, no trials, no temptations, no problems. Since this is not true for Jesus, and since the Bible makes it clear that the disciples are not greater than the Rabbi, we WILL face tests, trials, temptations, and problems. Our journey WILL be a difficult one even if we are Spirit-Drive, or perhaps BECAUSE we are Spirit-Driven. Oh, the journey WILL be a rewarding one in spite of the difficulties, or perhaps BECAUSE of the difficulties.
We routinely note that Jesus refutes the enemy by quoting God’s Word, but do we notice that it is the Old Testament? In fact, all three quotes are from Deuteronomy. When was the last time I spent my devotional (or study) time in Deuteronomy? I am sure I don't know.
Still, we must prepare, as we are, using the full armor of God. This is one of the reasons for our emphasis on prayer and fasting. Even though prayer is listed last in the list of God’s Armor in Ephesians 6, it is perhaps the most powerful, though sometimes the most neglected weapon. It is the ‘artillery’ of God’s armor. We can ‘blast’ the enemy from long range. Let us not neglect, nor give lip-service to prayer and fasting during this SixtyDays in the Dust. Let us go forward behind a barrage of artillery on the enemy strongholds.
-Daniel Monaghan
January 4, 2007
Want to Let the Writer Know What You Think?
If you would like to respond to this article, feel free to email Daniel at cdmonaghans@bellsouth.net .