I Wish Pearce Had a Fear of Heights

Fear of heights…I wish Pearce had a touch of that fear, just a little. Once when he was a toddler he was outside with his daddy. His daddy took a phone call and was distracted for just a moment, and when I came out at that time I couldn’t find Pearce until I looked up. There was a ten foot ladder leaning against our fence, and Pearce and his chubby little baby self was at the top of said ladder. Yes, I freak, but fortunately, nothing disastrous happened. Erin was not one to explore her environment, but Pearce obviously is and was. He has on occasion gotten on the roof without our permission, obviously. Being up high off of the ground is quite a precarious place to be, don’t you think? My philosophy is Scriptural really…”and LO I am with you always” (MT 28:20).


So we have been studying the time when Jesus was tempted. Last time we discovered that the Spirit had led Jesus into the desert, but it was the devil who led Jesus to places to tempt. Just a point for pondering, I really doubt the devil and Jesus walked to these different locations. Ever find yourself in a place in life and wonder, “How did I get to this point?”

The third temptation shows the devil leading Jesus to another location…the highest point on the temple in Jerusalem. The devil keeps chiseling away at, “IF you are the Son of God.” Did you notice that? It didn’t work the first time, but he just keeps trying in the hopes of wearing Jesus down. Jesus NEVER addressed the IF aspect of the temptation. What is the point in arguing with the devil? Has the devil kept whispering something into your ear, your mind or your heart in the hopes of wearing you down? You aren’t worthy. You are _________. You messed up because you ____________. You aren’t alone.

In this third temptation, the devil wants Jesus to prove that he is the Son of God by throwing himself down off this highest point, and the devil quotes a verse from Psalm 91. Did you catch that? The devil probably knows more Scripture than you do, my friend.

Did Jesus think or trying to reason out the request? NO. He went straight to Scripture. “Do not put the Lord your God to the test” (Deut 6:16). See what you need to know about Psalm 91 is that it’s poetry. The author is painting a picture of God, who He is and what He does. He isn’t speaking literally, but the devil twists it around to make it literal, didn’t he?

This is why it is so important that you know how to dig in the Word, how to study the Word for yourself. Don’t rely on what a teacher, preacher or book is telling you. Do the work yourself. Your relationship with God is personal. It’s personalized. What He speaks to an author, preacher or teacher may not be what he wants to speak into your life.

Another quote from my daddy’s “Nugget for the Noggin” on Facebook: “The Bible is not a newspaper to be skimmed but rather a mine to be quarried.” Get diggin’!