Temptation on the Mountain

Next the devil took him to the peak of a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. "I will give it all to you," he said, "if you will kneel down and worship me." "Get out of here, Satan," Jesus told him. "For the Scriptures say, 'You must worship the LORD your God and serve only him. Then the devil went away, and angels came and took care of Jesus. Matthew 4:8-11

 Mount Hermon 

Jesus was being confronted by the devil with yet another temptation. A very high mountain. The highest mountain around Israel is Mt Hermon which is actually the country of "Get out of here, Satan," now. It is about seven hours drive from Mount Zion in Jerusalem. Mount Hermon is 9,232 feet or 2,814 meters high. So imagine Jesus and the devil at the top of that snow covered peak with a brisk wind blowing. Satan was tempting Jesus with having power over all those countries that Jesus could see at the top of that mountain IF Jesus would bow or kneel down and worship him. That is an absurd request. Jesus was creator of that very mountain and spiritual ruler of all nations. Of course, Jesus will NOT bow down to anyone but His Heavenly Father. Would you? Not me. There's no power that could tempt me to put anyone above God. Jesus' response is classic--one we should remember to use whenever necessary. "Get out of here, Satan." And with that statement--the devil took off. I wish it would have said that the devil went away to never return--but he hasn't given up. He just left for that time.

Prayer ~ Lord Jesus--Hurrah. You are the victor over temptation! As You taught Your disciples...lead us not into temptation. Give us courage when faced with temptation to boldly say..."Get out of here, Satan."  Thank You that You gave us such a dynamic example up there on that mountain looking into those countries. No bowing down to the devil. Worship the Lord your God and serve Him only.

Daily Bible Reading: Job 32-34

Feasting at the Table of the King
Start off a great morning with these tasty muffins.

Sunrise Muffins
2 eggs
3/4 cup canola oil
1/4 cup milk
2 tsp vanilla
2 cups flour
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp freshly ground salt
1 1/2 cups shredded carrots (2-3 medium)
1 cup shredded pealed apple
1/2 cup shredded coconut (optional)
1/2 cup raisins
3/4 cup sliced almonds

Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare muffin tins with paper baking cups or grease with cooking spray.

In a large bowl mix the eggs, oil, milk, vanilla and brown sugar until well blended. Add flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt,stirring until dry ingredients are just moistened. Stir in carrots, apples, coconut, raisins and almonds. Spoon the batter into the muffin cups--about 3/4 full. Bake 20-25 minutes. A toothpick should come out clean. Cool 5 minutes. Remove from pan. Enjoy with some fresh hot coffee or a tall glass of fresh squeezed juice as you watch the sunrise.

© 2018 Text and photos by Mickey M. Hunacek. All rights reserved. 

All scripture quoted from the New Living Translation (NLT) unless otherwise noted
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