“Then the devil took him to the holy city and set him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written, “ ‘He will command his angels concerning you,’ and “ ‘On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.’ ”” (Matthew 4:5–6, ESV)

The devil spoke the words of God, to God, in order to manipulate the situation. I found this idea intriguing and have been meditating on this for days. I am not unaware that false teachers manipulate God’s Word. I am not so naïve that I believe every time you here a Bible verse you should trust the speaker. But I realized that the devil has manipulated me, and it has worked.

I had been manipulated by God’s Word. Someone close to me used it to control me. They knew my passion for Jesus, and they carefully interspersed discussions and arguments with partial truth. It thoroughly confused me. The verses seemed to fit the context of our situation. They were actually from the Bible. But deep down I felt that they were wrong, but I was not able to pinpoint the discrepancies.

I called a trusted friend on one occasion, and she helped me see the fallibility of the arguments. She used God’s Word in context. She pointed out Scriptural truths and patterns that debunked the strange ideology that was being used to control me. I realized then that the way to combat the lies was to stand firm in the truth. This is what Jesus did.

He did not dispute or argue about the Scripture that the devil had recited. Jesus didn’t disagree with the Word of God. Rather, Jesus knew God’s Word so well that he was able to apply it accurately and appropriately to the circumstances at hand. Jesus’ technique stopped the devil in his tracks. Jesus knew that if you “resist the devil, he will flee from you” (James 4:7). Jesus resisted by abiding in the truth.

If I am to stand firm in the truth and not be swayed by those that would manipulate, then I must know the truth. I need to read and study the Word of God. I need to be wise in the ways of the Lord. I must combat the misrepresentation of God’s will and plan with truth and wisdom. I can only do this if I am in on the plan. Thankfully the plan is laid out for me in the Bible.

I know from this passage that the Word of God (and the wisdom found in it) is the key to defeating the enemy. We do not have to be caught unaware. We can study specific passages to combat our weaknesses. We can get prepared for the enemy’s taunts by memorization. We can face the manipulative attacks with power, the power of the Truth of God.

I want to stand firm like Jesus, so I will hold fast to the Word of Truth. That is where I will find the power I need. “For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God” (1 Corinthians 1:18).