The Hunger For Dependence
But answering He said, “It has been written: Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.” Matthew 4:4
Alone – God delivers! But what He delivers is not just bread. Therefore, we must be careful not to insult the Great Provider by focusing our attention on what His earth can give us. Yes, the earth is God’s blessing of provision to all Mankind. Yes, we are grateful for His care. But this provision is only the precursor to something greater, something that must be a priority in the lives of all who acknowledge the gift of bread. It is not bread alone that feeds us.
The Greek word here is monos. You can easily recognize its affiliation with “single”, “alone” and “only.” Yeshua reminds the tempter that God alone is the only authority. God alone is the only source of truth, instruction, direction and goodness. Of course, what God provides reflects His character, but it is not a substitute.
But Yeshua is not speaking Greek. He is quoting Deuteronomy 8:3. The Hebrew word in that text is bad. This word changes meaning according to the attachment of other Hebrew letters. In this case, le is attached to the beginning of the word and the meaning becomes “by itself” or “apart from.” If you read all of Deuteronomy 8:3, you will see the lesson of bread associated with the provision of manna. God gave nourishment in the wilderness not simply to provide physical sustenance but to demonstrate His words are the source of life itself.
The results may appear to be the same, but the thinking behind the results is not. God gives Man the fruit of the earth. Man eats and lives. If we focus on the final product, we become absorbed in what satisfies our hunger now. Then it is easy to forget the Giver among the gifts. When Yeshua refuses to satisfy His hunger, He focuses attention on the Giver, not the gift. He exhibits the willingness to wait – to depend on the Lord’s timing rather than avail Himself of the potential gift before Him. He makes God the priority, even over His own need. As Goppelt says, “He does not point away from physical to spiritual nourishment, but from that which is only of earth to that which comes from God.”[1] The difference is the source, not the end result.
We are not to live with a worldview determined by production alone. We are not to be seduced by the overwhelming abundance of the gift. Nor are we to participate in life as though we are directed by results by themselves. We are to set the course of our lives from the source of our lives and follow that track without distraction. The lesson of bread is found in the Giver. His words provide all we need because they are the reason we have need.
Topical Index: bread, monos, bad, alone, only, Matthew 4:4, Deuteronomy 8:3
[1] TDNT, Vol. 6, p. 19
Good Morning Skip,
Thank you so much for the Word this morning that has kept my heart directed to the heart of the Lord. As I woke a half an hour earlier than usual, the Lord impressed upon my heart to pray for my son according to the prayer that He taught His disciples: “Our Father who art in Heaven, hallowed be Thy Name, Thy Kingdom come, Thy Will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven.” Looking to my Father who is in Heaven, blessing and praising Him for WHO He is, and exclaiming all of His goodness, remembering ALL He is, and how from Heaven He has looked down on mankind to bring us into loving relationship with Him, I have been praying for my 21 year old son, who graduated from college in May and is waiting to hear from a job opportunity TODAY in his particular field. I remind myself that his life is in the Lord’s hands, I thank the Lord for all the years of calling us to Him, and thanking Him for His provision, for His working in our lives, and demonstrating His greatness. I remember the many times He as the Giver, supplied our needs. And I remember how since a little boy, I have always prayed that God would be number one in my son’s life, that no matter what career he would choose, he would be a man of integrity who loved the Lord. I pray this for him right now, that according to His Will the Lord would give him this job and that my son would KNOW that it came from his loving Father in Heaven. More than anything, as my son looks to become more and more dependent on God, (that is, as he learns to live his life In Dependence on God), I pray that everything that we have taught him regarding trusting in God as His Provider will come to fruition as he sees God answer prayer. Above all else, may He learn to live his life in holy dependence on God, knowing that He is the one who provides his daily bread. Help him live a life that demonstrates Your character Lord, in the way that he interacts with the people around him, help him Father to live a life that would honor you. I pray Lord that his life would bring blessing and praise to the name of Yeshua. Bring him into contact with your servants Lord, bring him under the wing of elders who will instruct him even further in Your ways, help him to develop his God given talents in a work atmosphere where he may live a life of faith in such a way that others are drawn to You also Lord. Help him to know that Your Kingdom, Your Power and Your Glory is the most important thing in LIFE!. Help his eyes to ever be on you. Help him to remember Psalms 32:8 “I will instruct thee, and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go, I will guide you with mine eye.” Help his eyes to ever be on God’s! I pray all this in the name of Yeshua our loving God and King. Amen.
In His Forever Love, Linda Morales
(Kelvin and Linda Morales from Puerto Rico)
Thank you for the prayer for my son too. I prayed for my 20 year old son as you were praying for yours. I will remember you son when I pray for mine. What is your son’s name?
Thank you, Yolanda. His name is Jonathan. I would love to do the same for your son. What is his name? In Him, Linda
Johnathan is a nice name. What does it mean? My son’s name is Nathaniel Quinn. It means a gift from God and a wise man. Have you heard back yet about his job?
Jonathan, which also means gift of God, is truly God’s gift to us, as we received him 21 years ago through adoption. He is still waiting to hear from the college about the job, but in the meantime, will work at another job that called him to start on the 20th. Even though it is not the one he had his heart on, we give glory to the faithfulness of God and are very thankful that he can work while waiting for something to appear in his particular field. Thank you for your prayers, Yolanda. I really appreciate them. Nathaniel is a beautiful name! (a gift from God and a wise man). I will begin to pray for him by name; may his life be fortified by the wisdom of the Lord.
Thank you. I will do the same for Jonathan. Your son is truely blessed. My son is currently unemployed and complains of the stress. Unfortunately, he is not as dependent on Yah as he is himself. You would think he would figure out that his strategy is not working. He had started a business but it didn’t work out. He has now joined the Navy and is awaiting his Basic Training. Please pray for his protection daily as this world is heading to war.
Yes, Yolanda, I would love to join you in prayer for Nathaniel, now as he waits to start and as he actually begins Basic Training in the Navy. May the Lord be the one to direct and guide him each step of the way and may he be surrounded daily by the Lord’s protection.
As a preacher I have sure ;missed on this text. The bread is there…good. My miss was to not focus on the provider. It is movement for me to even recognize my miss.
Thank you for the timely reminder to keep eyes on the giver. May I add to give thanks often for all He has given you. Suz