Imagine if God gave us a special tool to help us solve the problems of life… Actually, He has! God's word helps us tremendously, but we have to understand how it works. 2 Timothy 3:16-17, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”
The Torah (law) guides us beautifully in helping us understand the essence of God’s will. In fact, Psalm 119 is a Hebrew acrostic (alphabetical poem) that is believed to have been used as a teaching tool and a praise for God’s law.
Jesus, or the word that became flesh, is also a tool to help us know the will of God, and the right thing to do. He gave us plenty of teachings that clarified the purpose of the law, and He did plenty of acts that proved He had the authority to interpret it the way He did.
Ultimately, His laws keep us safe from the temptations of Satan, just like He modeled in Luke 4. Paul explains in 1 Corinthians 10:13 how His laws and His words will give you what you need so that nothing will tempt you beyond the example of Christ, so that "He will also provide a way out so that you can endure [the temptation]" Just like Jesus did!
His example also becomes compelling evidence that Jesus is the Messiah, the one that promised to be the deliverer of all deliverers. We see how Jesus does things that echo the same things that Israel's most prized deliverer (Moses) did. In Luke 10, Jesus sends out 70 disciples to basically encourage people to live right, which is good. But we read in Numbers 11 where Moses sends out 70 as well. And with a little investigative work, it seems fairly clear why Moses sent them, and that helps us understand why Jesus sent those he sent.
As you dive into the Scriptures, you can be reminded of the lengths God has gone to for us to be equipped to “know” what’s right and avoid sinning. Romans 12:21, “Do not be overcome with evil, but overcome evil with good.”
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