The Temptation of Christ

Q: What does the Bible say about the temptation of Christ?

The Bible details the temptation of Christ in Matthew 4:1-11, showcasing His victory over Satan's trials. The temptation of Christ, as recorded in Matthew 4:1-11, serves as a profound demonstration of His obedience and faithfulness to God. After being baptized and affirmed by God, Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. This wilderness experience is significant because it highlights Christ's role as our representative and captain of salvation. Contrary to Adam, who succumbed to temptation, Christ did not falter. Each of His responses to Satan was rooted in Scripture, illustrating that it is by faith in God's Word that we withstand temptation. Moreover, through His victory over these temptations, Jesus models how to confront our own struggles with sin. He faced challenges regarding the lust of the flesh, pride of life, and desire for worldly power, yet He remained steadfast. This not only showcases His divine nature but also offers assurance to believers that, through Christ, we can overcome similar temptations. He triumphantly declared, 'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God,' affirming the need for faith in God's provision in our weakest moments.

Q: How do we know Christ's temptations are significant?

Christ's temptations are significant because they demonstrate His perfect obedience and serve as an example for us in spiritual warfare. The significance of Christ's temptations lies in their demonstration of His obedience and His role as our representative before God. His victory over Satan not only affirms His sinlessness but also underscores the depth of His condescension to partake in our human experience. Unlike Adam, who yielded to temptation and brought sin into the world, Jesus succeeded where Adam failed, showcasing perfect fidelity to God's will. This pivotal moment reveals that He was not just enduring these trials for Himself, but for every believer he represents. Additionally, Christ’s temptation highlights the reality of spiritual warfare that all believers face. The accounts of His responses—each rooted in the authority of Scripture—serve as a guide for us on how to combat temptation in our own lives. They assure us that we can bring our struggles to Him, knowing He empathizes with our weaknesses (Hebrews 2:17-18). Thus, the significance of Christ's temptations is manifold, demonstrating both His unyielding obedience and providing us with a blueprint for faith in facing our own trials.

Q: Why is Christ's victory over temptation important for Christians?

Christ's victory over temptation is crucial as it assures believers of their salvation and provides a model for overcoming sin. Christ's victory over temptation is integral to the Christian faith because it ensures that His righteousness is imputed to believers, affirming their status as justified before God. Through His success against the devil's trials, Christ not only demonstrated His divine authority but also acted as our perfect substitute. This victory means that He bore the weight of our sin and won the battle that we could not. Consequently, believers find hope and confidence in their salvation, as the risen Lord has defeated sin, death, and Satan on their behalf. Moreover, His triumph serves as a powerful example for Christians in their daily struggles against sin. In moments of temptation, looking to Christ provides strength and encouragement since He understands our weaknesses. The Scriptures remind us that we should never face these battles in isolation; rather, we can rely on the same faith that Christ exhibited during His temptations. This reliance empowers us to resist sin, reaffirming our identity as children of God who are called to live in accordance with His will.

Q: How can Christians resist temptation according to the Bible?

Christians can resist temptation by relying on faith in God's Word and the example set by Jesus during His temptations. The Bible teaches that Christians can resist temptation by anchoring themselves in the truth of God's Word, just as Jesus did in His encounters with Satan. In Matthew 4:1-11, each time He was tempted, Christ responded with Scripture, emphasizing the power and authority of God's Word in spiritual warfare. This serves as a vital lesson for believers, highlighting that understanding and applying Scripture is essential for resisting the allure of sin and the lies of the enemy. In addition to Scripture, relying on faith is crucial. Jesus Himself demonstrated that even in times of weakness, trust in God’s character and provision is paramount. The promises of God's faithfulness provide believers with assurance that they are not alone in their battles. Furthermore, active reliance on prayer and the support of fellow believers fortifies one's defense against temptation, creating a community that encourages spiritual growth and accountability. Ultimately, by looking to Christ as the model and source of strength, believers can navigate temptations in confidence, knowing they have a faithful Savior who enables their resistance.

how I loved that hymn. We couldn't
sing anything but that hymn, could we, after reading that. Brother, especially when I think
about what the Lord did at the time of Martin Luther to cause
him to write that hymn. That is commonly referred to
as the anthem of the Reformation. It's a German national hymn,
I believe what it is. But Martin Luther, who certainly
fought for evil forces, studied voraciously God's Word. God used him to copy the Word,
to translate the Word so that we might have a copy of it. And
the forces of evil, the adversary, were certainly stacked against
him. But God was with him. He used him
mightily. Go back now to Matthew 4. Matthew chapter 4. The Lord once said to his disciples
that he had much to say to them, but they could not We're not
able to bear it at that time, and so it is with us. We cannot
fully understand what we're looking at here. We cannot fully appreciate
this great confrontation between our Lord and Satan. No one can. We preach in part. We know in
part. And the half has not been told. I do hope, though, that
we will see something of the glory of our Lord and look to
Him as the captain of our salvation. That's what this is about, our
Lord facing our adversary for us, of which Martin Luther just
wrote. And I hope we'll learn something
from Him. in order to deal with the temptations
that we face. So in looking at this, I hope
we'll look to Christ, who is our salvation, and learn from
Christ in dealing with our temptation. Verse 1 says, Then was Jesus
led up of the spirit into the wilderness. This is another one
of those unfortunate chapter divisions. Chapters and verses
are good to a point, There shouldn't have been one here. It says then,
that is, after our Lord first appeared, He was baptized. You remember, we looked at that
two weeks ago. His first appearance as a man, as an adult, thirty
years old, He came to be baptized of John, and in doing so, He
was showing forth His very first appearance. He was showing everyone,
this is why I came. For this cause came I into the
world. Baptism is a picture of the Lord's
death, burial, and resurrection. So He came to be baptized. And
then the Holy Spirit, you remember, descended on Him and bore witness
of Him. This is He. This is the cry. And then the Father spoke from
heaven. A voice from heaven. And the Father said, this is
my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased. So he was declared to
be the Son of God. Then he was led of the Spirit
to be tempted. After that, that's significant,
he was led of the Spirit. The first thing he did was face
our foe for us. He faced our foe. Now, the devil,
and I did not approach this lightly because of who we're dealing
with. This is not a game, though the
world mocks and scoffs at any mention of the devil and Satan,
yet those who deny him are actually captives of him. We do not speak
evil or lightly of dignities. That's what foolish men do, Jude
said. We're dealing with someone much
more powerful than us. But he's very real. The devil,
Satan. Martin Luther, the story has
it that there's an ink stain on his wall in his study where
he was. that in wrestling with Satan
himself and his study, that he picked up his inkwell and threw
it and hit the wall. We have a real adversary. We're
not wrestling with flesh and blood. Scriptures calls him the
prince of the power of the air. Our Lord did. Scriptures calls
him the ruler of the darkness of this world. Spiritual wickedness
in high places. This is no game. What our Lord
was doing here, He was doing on our behalf. Facing someone
that we are absolutely no match for. And He must win the battle,
like Martin Luther wrote. The Lord said to Peter, He said,
Satan hath desired thee to sift you like wheat, and you can do
so. Anybody. They can do it to Peter. He can easily do it to us, can't
he? And our Lord said this. I love what the Lord said to
him. But I have prayed for you, Peter, that your faith fail not. Peter failed. When Satan tempted
him, he failed. But his faith didn't. What's
Peter's faith? It's not a what. It's a who. His faith failed not. Then Peter
later on wrote, He said to us, your adversary, the devil, as
a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour, whom
resists, steadfast in the faith. This is why we're looking to
end the faith. What is the faith? It's looking to Christ. He must
win the battle. He is the object of our faith.
Listen to this. In Adam all die. You know these
scriptures. In Adam all die. The first Adam, our father was
tempted and he failed in it. And he plunged us all into sin
and captives to Satan at his will. The second Adam comes. In Christ, they're all going
to be made alive. Quickened together with Christ.
He has come and he is tempted. And he shall not fail. The scripture
says he shall not fail when he comes. Do you remember the story
of David coming to his brethren who were facing that great foe,
the giant, Goliath? Do you remember that story? No.
David came to his brethren who were facing that giant who was
mocking God. He was mocking God and he was
taunting the children of Israel, wasn't he? Do you remember what
David said? Do you remember what David said?
That young, ruddy youth? He came out and he said, Is there
not a cause? That was the cause for which
God sent David. The stakes were high. Whoever
won, the other would be captives of them. Who won? Now, the stakes were much higher
when our Lord came, weren't they? Much higher. For this cause,
He said, came I into this world. He must win the battle. Listen to this again. Listen
to Hebrews. Oh, my. We read these over and
over again. It was Robert Murray McShane,
a young preacher that died at 29 years old, said this one time. He was a Scottish preacher. He
said, I fear sometimes we are like horses who have too much
hay, and we pull it down around our feet and trample on it. That's true. We have so much
truth, so much Scripture. But listen to this again, okay?
Listen to it again. I read it again, and it gave
me great hope. It became Him, Christ, for whom
are all things and by whom are all things in bringing many sons
unto glory. He's the one that's going to
have to do it. To make the captain of their salvation perfect through
suffering. Went on to say, as much as the
children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise
took part of the same. That through death he might destroy
him that had the power of death, that is the devil, and deliver
them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject
to bondage. And in all things it behooved him to be made like
unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high
priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for
the sins of the people, and in that he himself hath suffered
being tempted." He is able to succor or help them that are
tempted. Hebrews 2. But before we look
at these temptations, and we will look at them, though not
very, very closely, there's too much there, I want us first to
look at and consider the facts of our Lord's great condescension
and humiliation to be tempted by this fellow. Now, just our Lord coming to
this earth, was humiliating. This evil world, the Scriptures
call it. His birth was humiliating, like
a common animal. Submission to sinful parents. He had to submit to time, a creature
of time. He had to wait on the Lord. He had to submit to all the injustices
that he saw all around him. not do anything about it. He
could have. He had to learn patience. He had to earn his bread by the
sweat of his brow. He who made the earth, who gave
us bread from heaven. He had to endure poverty. He who was rich. He had to endure
hardships. He had to endure hunger and thirst
and fatigue. He who is the son of the highest
was made lower than an angel, his very servant. And then he
was tempted and taunted by this devil like a barking dog would
bark at you. That was what it was like for
him. And that's a poor description of it because we can't understand
what it was like. He submitted himself. Are you
with me here? The fact that he submitted himself
to be tempted by the devil. And then later he stood before
a judgment seat, a kangaroo court, pilots who said, don't you know
I have power over you? How long could you stand that
if you didn't have to? He did. He did. Mocked, ridiculed, beaten, stripped,
hung on a tree, a thousand gaits at his naked body,
jeered and laughed at his pain and suffering. Why oh why would
He endure this for us? He did it to show forth His
glory. Only God can endure what He endured. Only God could do what He did. Only the Lord could suffer and
suffer long what he suffered. And he did it to show his infinite
love, mercy and grace and compassion to sinners. He didn't die for
good people. He didn't die for righteous people.
But he committed his love toward us and why we will get sinner.
Dying for the very ones who spit in his face. My, my, what a man. What a Lord. I wanted us to first
marvel at the fact that he submitted to be attempted by Ms. Doe. We had no choice. In fact, we
deserve much of the taunts, don't we? I wanted us to first marvel
at the fact that our Lord submitted to do this, willingly. But he
did it as our representative. He did it as our captain, the
captain of our salvation. He did it as our covenant head.
One of the old writers said this, this is a great instance of the
Lord's condescension. It is a great instance of Satan's
confusion. This dog ran off when it was
all over. He ran. Get. When it was all over, he
said, get. and is a great instance of the
saints' comfort, because the Lord did this for us. Stay with
me. Verse 2, it says, now, when he
had fasted 40 days and 49, he was afterward unhungered. There's
so, so much here. You remember when Moses went
up to receive the law? What did he do? He fasted 40
days and 49. And Moses said, there will come
one like unto me, a prophet. And the Lord fulfilled that title. He who was the lawgiver came,
fasted forty days and nights, and he was hungered. What mercy
that our Lord willingly knew hunger. What mercy that our Lord
willingly knew pain and suffering. Why did He do that? Because we
do. He was tempted, tested in all points, like as we are. But
he did this to show many things. First of all, he did this to
show his powerful faith, which is trust in God. He was hungry. He could have made these stones
into bread. We can't. Can we? He could have, couldn't he? Yes,
he could. But he didn't. Why? He's our representative. He's got to live by faith. Perfect faith. The just shall
live by his faith. We are to be justified by the
faith of Christ, the Scriptures say. He has to live by faith
as a man. He's our representative. We fail
miserably, don't we? We hardly trust God at all. He
perfectly. The Lord said one time of Caleb,
Caleb will get all of this that I promised him because he had
followed me faithfully." What a picture that is of the Lord
Jesus Christ. His powerful faith. He was weak. He was at his weakest point,
wasn't he? But he's strong in faith. Strong in faith. And he tells us through Paul,
he said, when we are weak, we're strong. Why? How's that? Not
in ourselves. His strength is made perfect
in our weakness. Actually, we'll never really
trust the Lord and look to the Lord until we're weak, until
we're at our lowest point. That's a fact. We'll never really,
completely, totally look to the Lord until we're at our lowest
point. So he was strong in faith, but
weak in the flesh. And he showed us his perfect
life in this. He was tempted in all points,
yet without sin for his people. And he's going to do this for
his people. Now, the three things. 1 John.
Go over to 1 John 2 with me. You know these verses, but I
want you to look at them again. 1 John 2. It says in 1 John 2, verses 15 and 16, It tells us, love not the world,
neither the things that are in the world. If any man loved the
world, the love of the Father is not in him. All that is in
the world, now here it is, this sums up everything in the world,
everything that tempts us. Three things. The lust of the
flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. It's not
of the Father, it's of the world. The world passeth away, and the
lust thereof, but he that doeth the will of God abideth forever."
Now, this is what God said. Christ came to resist and overcome
the world. The lust of the flesh, the lust
of the eyes, and the pride of life. Didn't He say that? He said, Be of good cheer, I
have overcome the world. Why? for us. We often are overcome by these
things, or feel that we are anyway, greatly tempted and fall to them.
But our Lord didn't. How did our Lord overcome these
things? How did He resist these temptations? Every single time,
it was one way. By faith. God's Word. God's Word. So that's why he
came. That's what he did. Alright,
hunger. Verses 2 and 3. He was hungered.
And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the
Son of God, command that these stones be made bread. Hunger
is a fleshly appetite. We're all prone to it. There's
nothing wrong with hunger. It's lawful. It's what we're
liable to, and it's no sin to be hungry. We're all liable to
it. But now, when that hunger completely
overcomes us, that is, when our fleshly appetites completely
consume us, then they become lusts, that is, longings and
unfulfilled passions. And you know, until we are regenerated,
our God is our belly. The people of this world, their
God is their belly. Man lives like a beast. This
is what Scripture says over and over again. It says man being
an honor that understandeth not, he's like a beast that perish. Psalm 49. And man lives to satisfy
his base lust, doesn't it? Whether it be food or drink or
sex. Like a beast, isn't it? That's
what this world... Look around you, you'll see.
That's what this world... Not the Son of God. Not the Son
of God. More than just showing us His
mastery over His flesh. He says in verse 4, He answered
the tempter and the temptation. When hungry, he said, it is written,
man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeded
out of the mouth of God. His meat, he said, my meat and
my drink is to do the will of God. That's what he said. I live
for that. We get hungry and we just really
need something to eat. He said, my meat, what I hunger
to do, what I thirst to do, is the will of God. I live for it.
Now, who can say that? He did. God is well pleased for
His righteousness sake. His meat and His drink. And He
did it for us. You see, He did that for us.
That's why Adam and Eve didn't live for food when they were
creating the garden. They didn't live for food. Food
was a luxury. They lived for God. They walked
with God. Food wasn't their life. Eat and drink and clothing? They
didn't have any. That wasn't their life. God was
their life. So it was with the second Adam.
Until Adam and Eve fell then. Then we become a slave to these
things and totally dependent on them. And our Lord, to show
his complete faith in God to provide for him. He could have
provided for himself. He was hungry. He could have
provided for himself. But that wouldn't have been trusting
God, would it? We're tempted. Go after that. You need it. To go after that
fully, you've got to forsake something else, don't you? And
you know what it is generally, don't you? And our Lord, to show His complete
faith in His Father, Jehovah Jireh, the Lord will provide. And He did. Command these stones
to be made into bread. He could have, but He didn't.
I can't. So He couldn't. I can't. And he's me, so he can't either. He's got to depend on the Father.
Also, to show us that even at his weakest point, Satan is no match for him. At
his very weakest, he's stronger than our foe. He's stronger than
our foe. And notice this. Consider this
with me. What were Adam and Eve first
tempted by? What did Satan tempt the first
man and woman with? Eat. This will taste good. It may
have tasted good, but it sure put bitterness in their belly
then. And the bitterness of sin from then on. Look at the next
thing. Verse 5 and 6. The next temptation. Then the
devil taketh him up into the holy city, setteth him on a pinnacle
of the temple. And saith unto him, If thou be
the Son of God, cast thyself down, for it is written, He shall
give his angels charge concerning thee, and in their hands they
shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against
a stone." He was taken to a high and lofty place on the temple
that evening. And he said, cast yourself down.
I noticed several things here. He said, cast yourself down.
Why didn't Satan push him? He wants nothing more than to
destroy the Son of God. He wants nothing more than to
destroy you. Why didn't they just push him? He can't. He can't touch him. And he can't
touch you. He can't. So, what he's got to
do? is try to tempt him into doing
that. Satan can't touch us any more than he could touch our
Lord. Don't lay your hand. Touch not mine anointed, he said,
God said in prophecy. He can't. Satan couldn't touch
Job, could he? Take everything he's got. Don't
touch his person. Isn't that comforting? But he
said, cast yourself down. What he's saying here, I believe,
this is the pride of life. What the Lord dealt with there
before was the lust of the flesh. The all-consuming lust of the
flesh. Here is the pride of life. He
said, show a great display of your power. Show everybody that
if you're a son of God, that's what he's doing. A great
sign or a miracle or wonder, show them that you're a superman. Jesus Christ superstar. That's
who's behind that. Show them. Show them who you
are. Show them. That's not faith,
is it? A show? And our Lord say of the
Pharisees, all they do for show, to be seen. You know, he's dealing
with the pride of life here. Pride of life. Pride takes many
forms. I heard my pastor say this years
ago, and I think he got it from somebody else. Everything we
say is stolen from somebody. And whoever got it, got it from
the Scripture. But pride takes many forms. Pride
of race. Pride of being a Jew. Pride of
being a Gentile. Pride of being a white man. Pride
of being a black man. All the same. There's no difference.
Pride of face. Look at me. Aren't I something?
Beauty, glory, honor. But the worst pride of all is
pride of grace. That's religious pride. Proud of what God hath done,
but you take credit for it. Self-righteousness. The Lord
is significant that Satan took or was allowed to take him up
into the holy city and sit him on the pinnacle of the temple. Would that tempt the Lord to
get him in the highest place of religion? That's why I know he's not going
to sit on some throne in Israel. It would be a great condescension.
He's not going to do that again. He's not going to be humiliated
again. Why would He want to sit on that throne when He's sitting
on the right hand of the Majesty on high? He's not going to do
that. But Satan brought Him up to the pinnacle of the temple.
And Satan is behind all religious pride, all religious boasting. Satan is behind it all. How men
and women love to boast of their faith. One of these, who is it? She's
on Good Morning America or something like that. Robin's her name.
Robin something. There's an article about her in Good Housekeeping.
I just read it. And on the cover is a picture
of her and a quote by her that says, My faith is my rock. And that's exactly what she means.
She's proud of, she's boasting of her faith. And I read the
whole article, and she never mentioned Jesus Christ one time.
And she only mentioned God to take His name in vain. To say,
oh my God. But in fact, she said, I'm a
Christian. And that's common. That's the
rule. That's not the exception. That's
the rule. How about men and women that boast of their faith? their
pretended power, their free will. This is the most wicked thing
of all. Paul said, whose glory is in
their shame. They ought to be ashamed of what
they glory in, glory in the glorious gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ,
His sovereign grace. And to do so, though, to glory
in what we are, what we do, rather than what Christ is, and what
Christ did, is to tempt God. To tempt God. It's to boast against
God. To boast in the presence of God.
You know, it's certain that all these death-defying acts, you
know, we're living in a day when men are just given, young people
given to death-defying acts, aren't they? They call them daredevil.
They're not daring the devil. Tempting God. It only lasts so long. It only lasts so long. But our
Lord didn't. He didn't show off. He didn't
lift up His voice in the streets. He didn't sound the trumpet before
Him. He didn't say, look at me, did He? That's not faith. That's not faith at all. Faith believes God. Faith trusts God's Word. Faith doesn't boast of itself,
it boasts in its God. Faith doesn't look to itself,
faith looks to its Lord. That's what he did. Verse 7,
again. He said unto him, it is written, again. You see who he
is exalting? God. God's Word. Thou shalt not
tempt the Lord thy God. And notice this. I've got to
hurry. Satan brings us high to cast us down. God brings us low
to bring us high. That's the way up is down. And
also Satan is able to exalt someone to the pinnacle of religion. He's able to exalt to the pinnacle
of religion, but God's not in it. That's the seed of Satan. All right, look at verses 8 and
10. He saves his worst temptation for last. Lust of the eyes, which
is idolatry. Verses 8 through 10. Again, the
devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain and showeth him
all the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them. And saith
unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall
down and worship me. Then saith Jesus unto him, Get
thee hence, Satan, for it is written, Thou shalt worship the
Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou worship." Lust of the eyes,
kingdom, he spoke of kingdoms of power and glory, didn't he?
Things, riches, the treasures of Egypt. Moses, remember, the
Lord gave him faith to overcome, to esteem the reproach of Christ
greater than the riches and treasures of Egypt. But our Lord persisted
these things, which is nothing more than covetousness, isn't
it? What does the Scripture say covetousness is? What does it
say? Covetousness is idolatry. which is the worst thing of all.
And that's why our Lord said, worship God, not things. Apparently, Satan has some power
given to him, delegated to him to make people rich and famous. Apparently, he has some power.
But it's not his power to give any kingdom to anybody. You see,
Satan is a liar. He's the father of it. He's a
misquoter of Scripture. He's a missupplier of Scripture.
He misquoted that passage to the Lord. He left something out.
That's what he did. We're going to look at Adam and
Eve in the very next chapter of Genesis. But it's not his
to give the kingdom to man, but he promises it, doesn't it? He
can't fulfill that. I'll tell you who owns the kingdom,
the one he was tempting. Scripture says that you'll know,
he said this to Nebuchadnezzar, you'll know that the Most High
ruleth in the kingdoms of men and giveth it to whomsoever he
will. But yet Satan is a liar and a deceiver and this is what
he tempts men with, power, fame, fortune, all these things, these
are the works of the devil. Flesh, religion, things of the
world. And the Scripture says, for this
purpose the Son of God was manifest, that He might destroy the works
of the devil. Now, we're no match for these
temptations. Christ was. And He did it for
us. He did it, and what He did, God
imputed to our account. All that He did, God was well
pleased. He lived by faith perfectly. He worshipped God, loved God,
lived for God with all his mind, heart, soul, and strength. Why
did he do that? For me. And God said, I'm well
pleased, for he is righteous and sane, and in mercy and grace. Charge that to my account. He
said, Get that best robe and put it on this naked sinner.
That's why he was made naked to clothe us. He was made sin
that we might be made pious. You see why he did that? This
is our covenant head. When Adam all died, that was
imputed to us and imparted to us. But when Christ died, his
righteousness was imputed to us and imparted to us. Now, let me show you a few things
in closing, okay? A few more minutes for our learning.
For our learning. First of all, after his baptism,
after the Holy Spirit bore witness with his spirit, after God spoke
to him, then he was tempted. And so it is with us. Our greatest
temptations will be after. Our highest glory. That is. When we hear the Gospel,
when the Spirit of God bears witness with our spirit, when
God speaks to us through His Word, through the Gospel, watch
out. Because the next day. Watch out for tomorrow morning.
Tonight. Tonight. It's no accident, is
it, that husbands and wives often bicker on Wednesday night or Saturday night? We're not
wrestling with flesh and blood, but with principalities, with
powers. Is it so with you? Watch out. It says he was led
of the Spirit. He was sent by the Holy Spirit
to be tempted. Now, God doesn't tempt us. God
does not tempt us. He tells us, pray this way, lead
us not into temptation. But the fact is, God allows us
to be tempted. And it's for our good somehow.
Some way, it's for our good. And I've thought of so many instances,
too many to name, but had not Adam and Eve fallen, we wouldn't
see Christ's greatest glory, wouldn't we? God's greatest glory. On and on it goes. There are
many things. David, had he not fallen, we
wouldn't have Solomon. We wouldn't have Psalm 51. We wouldn't have Psalm 38, would
we? We wouldn't have passages that are our greatest comfort.
Peter, had Peter not fallen, oh my, we wouldn't have the first
chapter of 1 Peter that says we're kept by the power of God. My, my. You see, the wrath of
man shall praise him, but the remainder of wrath he will restrain.
The Lord uses everything according to his purpose, and he allows
us to be tempted for our good and for his glory. We get the
blame when we fall for it. He gets the credit when he raises
us up from it. The next thing, the devil tempted
him twice with this thought, if you'd be the Son of God. Now that was no concern to the
Lord, was it? If you be the Son of God, he
knew who he was. That wasn't trouble. That didn't
trouble him. He had no doubt who he was. In
fact, he said, no one knows me but me. Didn't he? He said, nobody knows me. I know who I am. I know where
I'm from. Satan said, if you be the Son of God, if you be
the Son of God. Why did he tempt him with that? Because that is our greatest
concern and worry, isn't it? This is what gives us such concern
all the time. This is what Satan, our adversary,
is constantly throwing at us. You call yourself a son of God? Listen to John Newton. "'Tis
a point I long to know. Often it causes anxious thought.
Do I love the Lord or no? Am I His or am I not?' You can
enter into that, can't you? He says, when I turn my eyes
within, all is dark and vain and wild, I'm filled with unbelief
and sin. Can I deem myself a child, a
son of God? This is what Satan says to me.
Look at you. And he tempts me, tempts us with
all these temptations, and we fail. We fail miserably, don't
we? Blessed are the flesh, blessed
are the eyes, the pride of life. We fail, we fall to all of them.
Then he says, look at you. Are you a son of God? How are
we going to answer him? How are we going to answer him? The same way our Lord is. It is written. This is a faithful saying, and
worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world
to save sinners, of whom I am the chief. Brother Scott used
to say, if he accuses you of being a sinner, he has given
you your only right to Christ. Who is he that condemneth? Christ
died. Answer him that way. Thus it
is written, who shall lay anything the charge of God's elect? Yes,
everything you say to me is true. But the Lord will be saved. It's
the only way. Brother Mack, it's the only way.
Our Lord, we learn from our Lord. His answer is our answer. Our
Lord said, he that believeth, not he that worketh. He said,
he that keepeth Israel, not he that keepeth himself. You that
keep yourself. Not he that worketh, not he that
doeth, not he that does great acts of faith, but he that believeth. Let's trust in him. That's it. And then Satan, in closing, says
to us, as he said to our Lord, look at the world. Tempts us
with the world. You want that, don't you? And
there's not a human being in here who is not tempted by the
things of this world. How do we overcome that? One
way. One way. Only when we look into
God's Word and see what He says about the things of this world.
He said, thus it is written, vanity of vanities, all flesh
is vanity. I won't see that. I won't know
that. I won't believe that except by His Word. Faith cometh by
hearing, hearing by the Word of God. And only by looking to
Christ, only when we see the unsearchable riches of Christ
will we see that everything in this world is nothing, is dumb. Only when we see Christ as the
great pearl of great price will we see that this world, who would
want this when I have Him? Huh? That's the only way. Thus
it is written. Thus it is written. Thou shalt
worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve." I
love the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. They said to them,
we're going to throw you in the furnace if you don't worship
this image. They said, and this is where the term, by God, came
from. They said, by God, by Jehovah, we won't do it. They cast us
in there. And by God's grace, we won't
either. if we look to him. And then notice
this in closing. It says the angels, in verse
11, the angels came and ministered unto him. Listen to this. This
will be a blessed word. The angels came after his temptation,
and he was succored by them, helped by them. And he's promised
us the same. I read it to you in Hebrews 2.
He's able to succor them that are tempted. That there is a
devil and demons and a world full of temptations and lusts, that's true. It's full. But it's equally true that there
are ministering spirits sent for us. And if the Lord would only open
our eyes like He did Elisha's servant, we would see. That they
that be for us are more than they that be with them. I often
doubt the Lord when He said, sin shall not have dominion over
you. How shall it not when I'm faced with so many foes, with
such a great adversary? How shall it not? Well, if God be for us. Who can say
against it, huh? And that's why Christ came. If
God be for it. We're more than conquerors through
Him that loved us. Listen to this. In all these
things, we're more than conquerors through Him that loved us. I'm
persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities,
nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height,
nor depth, nor any other creature shall be able to separate us
from the love of God. Where is it? It's in Jesus Christ. So you look to Him. That's why
I came. For this cause, I came. We look
to Him for our salvation, the captain of our salvation. We
learn from Him how to resist. And not without Him, but how
to resist is by faith. The same faith that He did. Alright,
stand with me.

The Temptation of Christ

What does the Bible say about the temptation of Christ?

How do we know Christ's temptations are significant?

Why is Christ's victory over temptation important for Christians?

How can Christians resist temptation according to the Bible?

Sermon Transcript

About Paul Mahan

Comments

Joshua

Articles

Featured Authors

Podcast

Sermons

Featured Preachers

Books

Browse by Format

Music

Recent Comments

About

Legal

Subscribe

Account

Articles

Featured Authors

Podcast

Recent Comments

Sermons

Featured Preachers

Books

Browse by Format

Collections

Music

About

Legal

Subscribe

The Temptation of Christ

What does the Bible say about the temptation of Christ?

How do we know Christ's temptations are significant?

Why is Christ's victory over temptation important for Christians?

How can Christians resist temptation according to the Bible?

Sermon Transcript

About Paul Mahan

Comments

More from Paul Mahan

Related Sermons

Same Scripture

Articles by Paul Mahan

Joshua

Where this book stands in the tradition

Plato

Augustine

The Western Christian Tradition

This Book