God’s guidance?

 

 

  1. God who blocks and opens

God blocks the way we want to go and opens the way God wants us to go (Acts 16:6-10).

 

  1. God who leads around

God doesn’t lead us to the shortcut but to the way around by the desert road (Exod. 13:17-18).  The purpose is not only to let us experience God’s glory (chs. 14-15) but also to humble us and teach us that we don’t live by bread alone but by everything that proceeds out of the mouth of the Lord (Deut. 8:2-3).

 

  1. God who leads ahead and stays

God leads us ahead and eventually leads us to stay before Jesus (Mt. 2:9).  God guides us to the Lord and makes us to sit down before Him and listen to Him like Mary when we are busy working for Him like Martha (Lk. 10:39-40).

 

  1. God who leads us to the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.

God never tempt us (Jam. 1:13).  But God tests us (Ex. Gen. 22). 

The Holy Spirit leads us to the wilderness and let us be tempted by the devil (God's permissive will) (Mt. 4:1).  That doesn’t mean that God tempts us through the devil [we are tempted when we are carried away and enticed by our own lust (Jam. 1:14)]. 

It means that in God’s sovereignty God allows the devil to tempt us [as if God allowed Satan to strike Job and his children and his possessions (Job 1:12, 2:6)]. 

The purpose is to teach us that we can overcome the devil’s temptation only by the word of God (Mt. 4:4, 7, 10; Cf. Deut. 8:3)].