The Temptation of Christ...

I want you to take your Bibles this morning and find two passages of Scripture.  The first is Mark 1:12-13, and the second is Matthew 4:1-11.  Our main text is this Mark passage as we continue in our new study that we began last Sunday.  However, we find a fuller version of this experience in Jesus’ life from Matthew’s gospel.  Now, I invite you to stand for the reading of God’s word.

 

 

Exposition

As I mentioned earlier, our original text comes from Mark 1.  However, Mark doesn’t provide as many details for this event or experience as Matthew or Luke does.  Therefore, we will turn to Matthew’s gospel in just a minute. 

 

In Mark’s text, I want you to see three application points from this text for our lives, and here is the first:

 

1. As with Jesus, God allows temptations in our lives to grow us.

 

Notice that verse 12 says that the Holy Spirit drove Jesus into the wilderness.  However, in verse 13, we see that it was Satan who tempted Jesus. 

 

This word for “drove” means that it was “divine necessity.”  In other words, it was part of God’s plan for His Son.  The NASB uses the impelled Jesus to go into the wilderness or the desert.  The KJV says driveth.  The NIV says sent.  The NLT says compelled. 

 

How do we explain this reality that God drove Jesus by divine necessity but it was Satan who did the tempting? The best explanation that I can give you is that when it comes to temptation, God allows Satan to tempt us. 

Satan has limited power and limited control.  The devil only does what he has been given permission to do.  We see this in the book of Job when Satan came to God looking for someone to tempt.  God doesn’t tempt.  Satan tempts.

 

Also, please understand and remember that in the midst of EVERY temptation, there is an opportunity for you to grow and your faith strengthened and an opportunity for you to fail and your faith weakened. 

 

1 Corinthians 10:13, 13 No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.

 

Regardless of what your temptation is, there is always the opportunity to be obedient.  Yours maybe alcohol or food or materialism or pornography or cigarettes or gossip or whatever.  There is ALWAYS an escape.

 

 

2. Satan is a real adversary who is daily opposing every believer.

 

Another truth from this Mark text is that Satan or the devil is a real person.  Unfortunately, there are many professing Christians who don’t believe in a real, literal, personal devil.  If you say you believe the Bible, you must believe in a real devil.  And if you say you’ve never seen Satan, it might be that you are walking the same direction he is.  In Isaiah 14:12-15, we a brief OT commentary on how Satan came to be.

 

Isaiah 14:12-15, 12 “How you are fallen from heaven,

O Lucifer, son of the morning!  How you are cut down to the ground, You who weakened the nations!  13 For you have said in your heart: ‘I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will also sit on the mount of the congregation On the farthest sides of the north; 14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High.’  15 Yet you shall be brought down to Sheol, To the lowest depths of the Pit.

 

Now let’s go the Matthew text.  We see again from Matthew 4:1 that Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness or the desert and was tempted by Satan or the devil. 

 

Matthew 4:1-11, Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry. 3 Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.”  4 But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’”  5 Then the devil took Him up into the holy city, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, 6 and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down. For it is written: ‘He shall give His angels charge over you,’ and, ‘In their hands they shall bear you up, Lest you dash your foot against a stone.’”  7 Jesus said to him, “It is written again, ‘You shall not tempt the Lord your God.’”  8 Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. 9 And he said to Him, “All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me.” 10 Then Jesus said to him, “Away with you, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.’” 11 Then the devil left Him, and behold, angels came and ministered to Him.

 

In verse 2, we see another dynamic to the temptation of Christ.  He fasted for forty days and forty nights.  That is almost incomprehensible, and there is no reason to believe that this was anything other than a complete fast meaning no food and no water.  Therefore, and obviously, Jesus became extremely hungry.

 

In verse 3, Satan entered the picture, and he came to tempt Jesus.  The first temptation that we see is the temptation of provision.  As I said earlier, Jesus was extremely hungry.  Therefore, Satan propositioned Him to turn some stones or rocks into bread and feed Himself.  Jesus refused.  He responded to Satan by quoting Deuteronomy 8:3, Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God. 

 

Has Satan ever presented you with the temptation of provision?  Maybe he did it with food or finances or intimacy with your spouse.  Regardless, has Satan ever tempted you to satisfy your human desires rather than be obedient to God?  I want you to hear me this morning.  God’s way is always better than Satan’s way regardless of how painful it is for you at the time. 

 

God has told us that he will meet all of our needs according to his riches in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:19).  You don’t ever have to give in to the temptation of provision.

 

In verses 5-7, we see the second temptation.  Satan took Jesus from the wilderness into Jerusalem and had Him stand on the pinnacle or top of the temple.  He then presented Him with the temptation of protection.  He, as the Son of God, was to throw Himself down and see if the angels wouldn’t catch and rescue Him just before He hit the ground keeping Him completely safe. 

 

In response, He responded to Satan by quoting from Deuteronomy 6:16, Do not put the Lord your God to the test. 

 

Has Satan ever tempted you with temptation of protection?  Don’t be bold with your faith.  God won’t protect you.  Don’t live according to the Bible.  God won’t protect you.  God has promised never to leave or forsake those that are His.

 

The final temptation that we see is the temptation of prestige.  Satan presented Jesus with the opportunity to have all the kingdoms of the world and their glory, but Jesus said, “Go, Satan.”  He then quoted Deuteronomy 6:13, You shall worship the Lord God, and serve him only.” 

 

Like Jesus, I know Satan has presented many of you with this third temptation as well.  You can have all this money or all this fame or all this fortune or all these luxuries if you will just sell your soul to the devil.  Hear me this morning.  Nothing the devil has to offer is worth the hell that it will cost you. 

 

The Scripture then tells us that the devil left Jesus, and the angels came to minister to him. 

 

 

3. Angels are ministers to the body of Christ.

 

They ministered to Jesus, and they will minister to us perhaps without even us knowing it. 

 

Hebrews 1:14, 14 Are they not all ministering spirits sent forth to minister for those who will inherit salvation?

 

Before I close, I want you to think back just a minute in looking at these temptations in another perspective. 

 

Have you ever noticed the similarities between the temptation in the wilderness and the temptation in the garden?  Satan said to Eve that you may eat of any tree.  He said to Jesus that you may eat by changing stones to bread.  He said to Eve that you will not die.  He said to Jesus that you will not hurt your foot.  He said to Eve that you will be like God.  He said to Jesus that you will have all the world’s kingdoms.  I say all that to say that Satan is usually up to his same old tricks.

 

 

Conclusion

The main point of this text is that Jesus was victorious over temptation, and for those who are in Christ, we can be victorious as well. The keys are God’s presence, God’s Word, and God’s church. 

 

As for God’s presence, the German Reformer, Martin Luther, was asked how to overcome the devil.  “Well, when he comes knocking upon the door of my heart, and asks, ‘Who lives here?’ the dear Lord Jesus goes to the door says, ‘Martin Luther used to live here, but he has moved out. Now I live here.’”  Where God is present, Satan cannot be.

 

Second is God’s Word. On three different occasions, Satan presented Jesus with a temptation, and on three different occasions, Jesus responded by quoting the Word of God from Deuteronomy.  Do you remember what the Psalmist said in Psalm 119:11?  Your word I have hidden in my heart that I might not sin against you. 

 

Know God’s Word and use it when the devil accuses and opposes you.

 

Finally, don’t divorce yourself from God’s Church.  The devil will always try to isolate you, but when you stay connected to God’s Church and your brothers and sisters in God’s Church, it is much harder for him to do.  That is why it is important to surround yourself with God’s people on Sundays and Wednesdays, but also through the week. 

 

My invitation this morning has two parts.  Make sure Jesus is living in your heart by calling on Him to save you and surrendering your life to Him. 

 

Secondly, if you are struggling with nagging sins or habitual sins like cigarettes or alcohol or pornography or cussing or anger.  the power of Jesus Christ is available to you if you know him as Lord and Savior.  My encouragement to you is to start new today.  Go to God confessing any known sin, and then take a long serious look at your life and make sure you are taking in God’s Word and connected to God’s Church.