BEING SPIRITUALLY READ

Yoda: Luke you must complete the training!!

Luke: I can’t get the vision out of my head, they’re my friends. I’ve got to help them!

Yoda: You must not go!

Luke: But Han and Leia will die if I don’t!

Obi-Wan: You don’t know that, even Yoda cannot see their fate

Luke: But I can help them! I feel the force!

Obi-Wan: But you cannot control it, this is a dangerous time for you when you will be tempted by the darkside of the force. 

Yoda: Yes, Yes, to Obi-Wan you listen, the cave, remember your failure at the cave!

Luke: But I’ve learned so much since then, Master Yoda, I promise to return and finish what I’ve begun you have my word.

Obi-Wan: It is you and your abilities the Emperor wants, that is why your friends are made to suffer.

Luke: That’s why I have to go!

Obi-Wan: Luke I don’t want to lose you to the Emperor the way I lost Vader. 

Luke: You won’t

Yoda: Only a fully trained Jedi Knight with the force as his ally will conquer Vader, and his Emperor. If you end your training now, if you choose the quick and easy path as Vader once did. You will become an agent of evil!

Obi-Wan: Patience!

Luke: and sacrifice Han and Leia!

Yoda: If you honor what they fight for, yes!

This scene from The Empire Strikes Back gets me everytime! Yoda and Obi-Wan couldn’t be more right! 

 How many times have we rushed into battle before we are spiritually ready to handle it? So often we see problems happening in the world and we want to go fight, and destroy the evil that is happening! But there is a right and wrong way to do this. Do you take food out of the oven without oven mitts? Do you go out in the snow without putting on a coat? Or do you take a test without studying? 

Luke clearly wasn’t ready to handle everything that was thrown at him for the entire third act of the film. The second he sees Vader he instantly pulls out his lightsaber. Vader didn’t even pick the fight, Luke started it by drawing his sword first, only proving Vader’s point that he is not a Jedi yet, he’s too emotional and sees Vader as the man who killed Obi-Wan, killed his father, and gave into that anger. Not to mention he was completely outmatched by Vader and the only reason he did not die was because the Emperor wanted Luke alive, and uh, also Luke is Vader’s son!!! Spoilers!!!!!!!! 

Later in Return of the Jedi Luke goes back to Dagobah and has one last meeting with Yoda. 

Luke: Yoda is Darth Vader my father? 

Yoda: Rest yes Rest

Luke: Yoda I must know!

Yoda: Darth Vader, your father is, told you did he?

Luke: Yes

Yoda: Unfortunate 

Luke: Unfortunate that I know the truth?

Yoda: No unfortunate that you rushed to face him, without being complete with your training!! Not ready for the burden were you!!

I love this scene because it’s so real! There are so many times in my life where I want to move on, I’m tired of training, I want my problems fixed now!!! But if you do it before you’re ready, you could end up creating even bigger problems for yourself. Which is exactly what happened to Luke. 

Another example of this is in the TV show Avatar The Last Airbender. At the end of season two Aang, like Luke, is faced with a similar situation. Either finish his Avatar state training, or go save Katara. Aang decides to go save Katara and things only get worse from there. Aang gets electrocuted by Princess Azula in the final fight and dies! Not only killing the current Avatar but destroying the Avatar cycle as a whole. All because he had to solve the problem right then instead of waiting until he was ready. 

I love how both Avatar and Star Wars choose to handle the endings to these conflicts. Luke was so adamant that he had to save his friends, but in the end it was his friends who came and saved him.

Likewise Aang rushed to save Katara, but in the end it was Katara who brought Aang back to life with the spirit water. 

Luke and Aang both had good intentions, but by choosing to go before they were ready, it resulted in both of them getting scars they never would have gotten, had they taken the necessary time they needed to be ready! Aang spends the first part of the next season healing from the lightning strike, and Luke gets a robotic hand. 

 Ephesians 6 10-18 NKJV  10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.

This passage says it all, before you even step out on the battlefield you need to be ready! You don’t go into a fire fight without protective gear! And you cannot fight Satan and his lies without wearing the full armor of God! Otherwise you will fall right into his trap! 

When Jesus was tempted by Satan he was ready to handle all the lies and temptation that was thrown at him. 

Luke 4 1-13 NKJV Then Jesus, being filled with the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit [a]into the wilderness, 2 being [b]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, [c]but by every word of God.’ ”

5 [d]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, [e]“Get behind Me, Satan! [f]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 [g]tempt the Lord your God.’ ”

13 Now when the devil had ended every [h]temptation, he departed from Him until an opportune time.

Really take a look at the first part of verse one in chapter four, 

“Then Jesus being filled with The Holy Spirit!!!” 

Before Jesus is even tempted by Satan it mentions him being filled with the Holy spirit. Jesus didn’t just go into the wilderness without a game plan. He was filled with the Spirit and was able to challenge literally EVERYTHING Satan threw at him. Because Jesus was filled with the Holy Spirit and challenged every lie, Satan never stood a chance!! And in verse thirteen it says. 

“Now when the devil had ended every [h]temptation, he departed from Him until an opportune time”

This is what it looks like to be ready!! Satan is going to come, he will always come and try to fill you with lies. But if you are filled with the Spirit! And challenge every lie thrown at you. He will flee. 

James 4:7 NKJV Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.

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