Today marks another milestone in the “To God be the glory” daily devotional, as fractionally speaking, eight-ninths of the devotionals have been written, heading toward the one-year goal. Numerically, there are 40 devotionals left, including this one.
In the Bible, numbers are significant. This should not be surprising as with all the advancements that have occurred in the field of mathematics, God invented math! Additionally, every word, space and stroke of the pen is significant in the Bible:
For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled.
Matthew 5:18
“Jot” is the smallest letter of the alphabet, which is iota in Greek, while the “tittle” is the diacritic. In the English language, that would be the dot on the “i” or “j.” God tells us the importance of even the smallest part of the Bible through the above verse. In regard to numbers, “40” occurs frequently in the Bible. Scholars believe that “40” stands for a test, trial, period of probation or period of chastisement. That all began in Genesis 7:4 when God caused it to rain for 40 days and 40 nights. Interestingly, “40” is the product of 5 and 8, with 5 reflective of grace and 8 standing for new beginnings or renewal. Numerologists often can belabor the point when dealing with numbers. But God certainly demonstrated to the 8 people not destroyed in the Great Flood that they had endured a test, when given the new beginning of the world at the peak of Mount Ararat!
Moses lived to be 120 years old, and his life reflected three distinctly-different, 40-year periods. He lived in Pharaoh’s court for the first 40 years of his life, then after murdering an Egyptian who was beating a Hebrew slave, fled to Midian for the next 40 years. At the age of 80, God called Moses to lead the Hebrew nation, and continued on a 40-year trial in the wilderness, a journey that would have taken 11 days if they traveled in a straight line! Additionally, when Moses went to the top of Mount Sinai to receive the Law, he remained there with the Lord fasting for 40 days. After coming down the mountain and finding the Jewish people worshipping a golden calf, Moses broke the two tablets of commandments, and then went back up Mount Sinai again. This time, Moses fasted and prayed for the lives of his friends and brother for another 40 days. Through this trial, Moses revealed his love for God’s people!
When the Lord sent Jonah to preach to the people of Nineveh, Jonah disobeyed God and went in the opposite direction. Yet God caused the people aboard Jonah’s ship to toss him into the waves, in an attempt to stop the storm. A big fish swallowed Jonah and he remained in the belly of the fish for three days and three nights. After being spit onto the shores, Jonah decided to heed the words of God, and went to Nineveh, though he did not want God to save the Ninevites.
3 So Jonah arose and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the LORD. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly great city, a three-day journey in extent. 4 And Jonah began to enter the city on the first day’s walk. Then he cried out and said, “Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!”
Jonah 3:3-4
God gave the people of Nineveh 40 days to change their ways, and amazingly, every single person in Nineveh began to believe and follow the Lord, beginning with fasting and mourning! In this 40-day test, Jonah demonstrated disdain for the people, as they were his enemies. Jonah did not want to share his God with those he hated. In some ways, Jonah passed his test, as he heeded the words of the Lord, yet in other ways, his actions did not reveal the love of the Lord.
There are many other 40-day or 40-year periods described in the Bible, including 40 years of rest when Othniel was judge (Judges 3:9), another 40-year rest of the land under Barak (Judges 5:31), and yet another quiet period for the country under Gideon (Judges 8:28). But the most significant was a 40-day period when Jesus was tempted by Satan in the wilderness, beginning our Lord’s ministry. Immediately after John baptized Jesus in the Jordan River, an event well-attended by Father, Son and Holy Spirit, the Messiah endured a 40-day fast. Satan came at Jesus with guns blazing, attempting to lure Jesus away from the Father through the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life. It is impossible for us to grasp that Jesus was 100% man at the same time He was 100% God, yet Satan pulled out the stoppers to get Jesus to sin. If Jesus had fallen, even once, He would have lost the ability to be the sacrifice for our sins and all would have perished. When we feed the flesh, the flesh increases and when we feed the Spirit, the Spirit increases, so it is not coincidence that Jesus entered this battle without food or water.
Then Jesus, being filled with the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, 2 being tempted for forty days by the devil. And in those days He ate nothing, and afterward, when they had ended, He was hungry.
3 And the devil said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.”
4 But Jesus answered him, saying, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.’ ”
5 Then the devil, taking Him up on a high mountain, showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. 6 And the devil said to Him, “All this authority I will give You, and their glory; for this has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I wish. 7 Therefore, if You will worship before me, all will be Yours.”
8 And Jesus answered and said to him, “Get behind Me, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.’ ”
9 Then he brought Him to Jerusalem, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down from here. 10 For it is written:
‘He shall give His angels charge over you,
To keep you,’
11 and,
‘In their hands they shall bear you up,
Lest you dash your foot against a stone.’ ”
12 And Jesus answered and said to him, “It has been said, ‘You shall not tempt the LORD your God.’ ”
13 Now when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from Him until an opportune time.
Luke 4:1-13
With 40 days remaining in the “journey of the blog,” it could be a difficult test or trial to complete. Yet God has revealed His hand in each of our lives, reminding us that we can stand on the promises of His Word. A wise man once said that if we are not being attacked by Satan and his demons, we are not accomplishing anything for the Lord. Satan hates those who do the Lord’s bidding. If the attacks are coming, know that you must be doing something right!
12 Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; 13 but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ’s sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy.
1 Peter 4:12-13
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