“Weighed & Measured” is the title that came to mind for my first painting in my recent series. There will be more in this style, and they will evolve as time goes on. This painting has been on my mind for some time now and I wanted to do it justice. This is based on scripture from Matthew 4:1-11. There is so much much going on this scene.

Matthew 4:1-11

Jesus Is Tested in the Wilderness

4 Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. ² After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. ³ The tempter came to him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.”

⁴ Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.”

⁵ Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. ⁶ “If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down. For it is written:

“‘He will command his angels concerning you,
 and they will lift you up in their hands,
 so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.”

⁷ Jesus answered him, “It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.”

⁸ Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. ⁹ “All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.”

¹⁰ Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve him only.”

¹¹ Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him.

I painted this with the intention of giving the viewer a sense of spiritual battles and how they convey themselves to us. We tend to think of Satan as being scary with horns or a pitchfork. Basically, something that we recognize as bad, scary or evil, but what if that is not how the spiritual realm operates at all? This passage is giving a glimpse into the nature of Satan and how that realm operates. What if actually the things we see or experience as “good” or safe with a catch are the actual evil things? Satan in this passage is trying to steer Jesus away from his ultimate purpose and there is nothing in this interaction that jumps out at you as being nefarious until you know who is talking. By saying the name Satan immediately your hackles are up, and you are aware of the intentions but look at what is said and how it is said. He offers him the things we all find ourselves reaching for if we are not careful. Power, Money, Prestige but the fact is we know who is promising these things cannot provide them, but how different would we view our interactions on a daily basis if we knew what was at stake? You see the greatest stunt the devil ever pulled is making you think he doesn’t exist. We are unaware of how much the spiritual realm is operating in our lives daily to see who is willing and able. Hence the title “Weighed & Measured” the continued sentence after that would be found “wanting” (taking the bait").

I have always viewed Satan in the spiritual sense as an inverted version of ourselves and why I depicted him as coming to Christ in an inverted version of himself. Whatever God does Satan counterfeits or inverts. He comes to us in a way of testing and poking and prodding. Just as in the fall. “Is that actually what God said"? when tempting Eve. These are just a series of questions, but it is weighing your own soul and questioning your intentions.

_{1 Peter 5:8}

“Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.”

We can learn a great deal in how Jesus approaches this and keeps his sights on the purpose that God has for him. Think to our interactions that we have on a daily basis and how that realm is operating. This could be a family member or a friend or someone close to you that offers false flattery or trickery and most times unbeknownst to themselves, but there is a weighing and measuring going on in the unseen to see if you start to drift or take the bait. I have always said and felt personally that I have a really hard time with flattery, and I honestly don’t think there is anything more dangerous. This is my battle and something I have to be sober minded about as things can get out of hand quickly. Never get too high or too low. This is why prayer is so important to center back with God and stay grounded.

We can learn a great deal from this passage in how to be aware of these tactics.

Announcement

In saying these things, I am reminded of this and how I want to continue to have a Servant mindset. I have complete understanding that the only reason that I get to paint every day is because of God and the people supporting this. In saying that I have taken all the conversations and questions into consideration moving forward and I have listened to you all. I will be offering smaller sizes of my prints at a very affordable price point for those that just really want to have a piece. I will have these smaller sizes available next week.

These will be in sizes ranging from 8 × 10 -11 × 14. Just so you can have an opportunity to own my work. You see I am sharing my personal thoughts here, but I absolutely hate feeling like I am selling to you all. This is not something that comes natural to me, but I just want to give you a great experience and inspire. This is part of it, and I understand that. Most of all thank you and I appreciate all of you more than you will ever know!

Please engage in the poll below as your input helps greatly moving forward.

Have a great weekend and stay tuned for more work!

Thank you!

1 Peter 5:8

 ^“Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.”