Answers Bible Curriculum Year 3 Quarter 1 Lesson 11 Part 2
This week in Sunday school, we look again at the final events of Jesus’ preparation for ministry, this time focusing on Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness. What is so significant about Jesus being tempted there — enough that three Gospel writers mention it at the beginning of their Gospels? Was Jesus really tempted like we are? If so, how? And can we learn anything from Jesus’ approach to such testing? We’ll consider these questions and more.
Our main text will be Matthew 4:1-11.
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well good morning Calvary welcome to Sunday school uh it’s kind of amazing that i’m talking to you today because of what happened yesterday and actually in our area the local power plant exploded literally exploded and there was a fire a whole our whole uh neighborhood is without power but the Lord provided a friend who was able to accommodate me here at six o’clock in the morning so that I can use his internet and I can teach you so I’m in a slightly different location but still able to teach you and praise the Lord for that uh we’re doing part two of last week’s lesson today technically this is still lesson 11 in our answers Bible curriculum but we’re going to treat it as lesson 12.
we’re talking today about Jesus Temptation in the wilderness recall that last week we talked about the ministry of John the Baptist and we talked about the baptism of Jesus I’m saying that God sent John according to the scriptures as a new Elijah to prepare the way for God’s Messiah King John’s message was one of sober repentance God’s promised Kingdom this is what John said God’s promised kingdom is about to come with both judgment and reward so Israel and us today we must turn to our King now while we can do not trust in your religious Heritage or do not trust in mere religious ceremony only true repentance will protect a person will protect you from being cut down and thrown into the fire John the Baptist very clearly taught that the one bringing the kingdom with all its cleansing judgment and reward would be the Messiah himself it would be Jesus and this Messiah was the one who appeared Jesus came to John he was baptized not because Jesus needed to repent of sin or show he needed to be cleansed but in order to fulfill all righteousness and we explain that in his baptism Jesus identified himself with the sinful people that he came to save and he pictured before them his being set apart as a cleansing sacrifice for their sins in Jesus baptism we also saw the whole godhead affirming Jesus as Messiah and Son of God and testifying of his perfect and righteous life now immediately after Jesus baptism he goes into the Wilderness to experience a time of testing why was this temptation necessary what do these Temptations show us about Jesus was Jesus really tempted in all the ways that we are and should we follow Jesus’s approach to dealing with temptation those are some of the questions we want to look at today our lesson is going to once again be our following our answers I’m sorry I inductive Bible study method we’re going to read the passage we’re going to make some simple observations on it try to answer more advanced questions more advanced interpretation questions and then consider what is the application what does God’s spirit want us to know and to do in our lives today let’s pray before we continue Our God I thank you for your provision this morning when you’re in control of all things yeah you’re in control of electricity I thank you how you provided that I I can still teach and that Calvary can still hear pray that she had helped me gone as I teach to speak as I ought speak accurately speak passionately and I pray that your word would grip us as it was meant to and that we would be changed by it in Jesus name amen right so open your Bibles please to Matthew chapter 4.
Matthew chapter four this is Page 959 if you’re using the few Bible Matthew Chapter 4 verses 1 to 11 is our text is where we see Matthew’s entire account of Jesus’s temptation so let’s read from Matthew 4 verse 1.
then Jesus was led up by the spirit Into the Wilderness to be tempted by the devil and after he had fasted 40 days and 40 nights he then became hungry an attemptor came and said to him if you are the son of God commanded these Stones become bread but he answered and said it is written men shall not live on bread alone but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God then the devil took him into the holy city and had him stand on the Pinnacle of the Temple and said to him if you are the Son of God throw yourself down for it is written he will command his angels concerning you and on their hands they will bear you up so that you will not strike your foot against a stone Jesus said to him on the other hand it is written you shall not put the Lord your God to the test again the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory and he said to him all these things I will give you if you fall down and worship me then Jesus said to him go Satan for what is written you shall Worship the Lord your God and serve him only then the devil left him and behold Angels Came and began to minister to him okay now that we’ve read our passage let’s make some simple observations notice that Jesus does not wander off aimlessly Into the Wilderness rather it’s the Holy Spirit the one that just came down upon him in his baptism as a as a dove the Holy Spirit leads him into the Wilderness and why the universe one specifically says to be tempted by the devil now remember what we mean by Wilderness we’re not talking about going to some idyllic natural space this is a bubbling brook with four shade songbirds chirping away merrily I’m not what we’re talking about we’re talking about a remote and Barren place we’re talking about man versus wild type area the Wilderness is typically a frightening place and which it is difficult to survive and especially if you are alone the word Wilderness could also be translated desert there’s probably no food there little shade little water if any there are no people around but there are wild beasts deadly wild beasts it may also be either very hot or very cold depending on the time of the day by the way who else in the Bible was led by God through into and through a dangerous Wilderness near Palestine say that again the people of Israel they were LED Into the Wilderness and how long was Israel in the wilderness 40 years now this is also where Jesus goes Jesus goes into the Wilderness and what does Jesus do there he fasts for 40 days and 40 nights notice 40 appearing here now about this fast what exactly did this fast consist of did Jesus totally abstain from food we’re not told it could be that he did not eat at all or that if he did he ate very little why though do people typically fast in the Bible what’s one reason that someone fast in the Bible yeah to pray to focus on prayer to be especially committed to prayer what else yeah wrong exactly it’s also an expression of sorrow and trouble it’s not even so much as a thing you choose to do it’s something that you feel compelled to do when people are so distraught they don’t even feel like eating and so they fast and they often pray but those are the two main reasons we see that in the Bible to pray to focus on prayer and also to express sorrow or some kind of trouble now Jesus does this for 40 days our culture has mostly given up the custom of fasting so we don’t really understand the impact of fasting for this long but I think you can guess that fasting 40 days from food if Jesus really ate nothing at all that is very intense even life-threatening apparently if you fast for a long time after the first few days you get over your severe hunger pains nevertheless you weaken Yourself by fasting people have died by totally abstaining from food for a long period of time even just 21 days some people even in the modern day have died due to starvation heart failure over being overcome by sickness because your body is so weak it is possible though to survive even a 40-day fast and people even in modern times have done that so if Jesus really ate nothing at all which is the normal sense of the word fast then Jesus time the Wilderness was doubly dangerous at least from a human perspective to his life is in a very harsh environment and he’s very harshly treating his body this leads us to one of the great understatements of scripture that you go back into I think it’s a verse two the end of verse two after these 40 days Jesus then became hungry okay yeah I think so that makes sense before we move on we should also note who else in the Old Testament fasted for 40 days and 40 nights Moses Moses did he actually did it twice the first time he received the tablets from God on the map on Mount Sinai he fasted but also after Israel sinned with a golden calf he fasted again I’ll actually read to you where we hear about that Deuteronomy 9 9. actually it’s mentioned a number of times by Moses but he reminds the people of Israel in Deuteronomy Deuteronomy 9 9 Moses says when I went up to the mountain to receive the tablets of stone the tablets of the Covenant which Yahweh had made with you then I remained on the mountain 40 days and nights I’m neither ate bread nor drink water yeah he says something again a couple verses later Deuteronomy 9 18 Moses says I fell down before Yahweh as at the first this is the second time he fasted 40 days and nights I neither ate bread nor drank water because of all your sin which you had committed and doing what was evil in the side of the side of Yahweh to provoke him to anger now he’s talking about their golden calf incident now notice Moses said he didn’t eat or drink anything for 40 days so how did Moses survive if we go more than three days without water we’re pretty much gonna die so how did Moses survive it had to be a supernatural provision from God but remember what we’ve said previously I think in my sermon a couple weeks ago God is the god of life and when you’re in the presence of God you can’t help but receive life from God that is if you are one of his own so as Moses was with God on the mountain apparently God himself was sustaining Moses rather than normal food and drink but back to our text in Matthew Jesus becomes hungry and notice how this detail sets the stage for what comes next the devil appears and notice in verse 3 he’s called the tempter this is one of many names given to the devil in scripture we see three of them in our passage is called the tempter the one who tempts the devil meaning the slanderer and Satan meaning adversary or enemy so we see these titles for Satan we also have to hear of three specific Temptations Luke in his account of Jesus Temptation the Wilderness He suggests that there are more than these three but both he and Matthew only mentioned these three specific Temptations so they must be important let’s see what they are the first temptation is directly related to hunger he’s going to be tempted to create his own food notice the temperature says if you are the son of God now the sense of this statement is not one of Uncertain identity rather of an accepted fact or an assumption setting up a conditional situation others have rendered the phrase since you are the son of God or we could say it this way based on the fact that you are the son of God why don’t you alleviate your hunger use your divine power to command these nearby stones to become loaves of bread that’s what Jesus I mean that’s what Satan says to Jesus now as God does Jesus have the power to turn stones into red he does but notice the contrasting word that appears at the beginning of verse 4.
but she answered and said Jesus answered and said and in his answer he quotes from the Old Testament now I would like you to keep your finger in Matthew but turn back to Deuteronomy well we’re going to actually look at a couple of verses from Deuteronomy Jesus quotes Deuteronomy in response to Satan so Deuteronomy 8 chapter or chapter 8 verse 3.
Deuteronomy I think first three we want to be aware of the original context of what Jesus was quoting so look at verse three Jesus or rather Moses wrote he humbled you and let you be hungry and fed you with Mana which you did not know nor did your fathers know that he might make you understand that man does not live by bread alone but man lives by everything that proceeds out of the mouth of Yahweh by the way when Moses wrote these words to Israel in Deuteronomy what was Israel about to do they’re about to go into Israel they were in the wilderness but they were about to enter Israel and they were going to receive God’s possession remember he had given that land to them and they were going to go conquer it so Jesus says this to Satan and Satan moves on to another temptation notice the devil says he took Jesus to the holy city meaning Jerusalem and to the very Pinnacle or a roof of the Temple now how did that happen how did the devil do that Jesus is in the wilderness and all of a sudden he’s at the top of the temple in Jerusalem well the text didn’t say how that happened but considering the Practical difficulty of transversing that distance and getting to the top of the temple quickly Jesus appears to have been taken there supernaturally but it’s at this second location that we see the second temptation a spectacular Temple Jump Satan says since you’re the son of God why don’t you throw yourself down from this rooftop and then notice Satan quotes the scripture It quotes psalm 91.
and we’ll make you turn there keep your finger Deuteronomy and Matthew but Psalm 91 describes how God protects and vindicates the one who trusts in him even the Messiah so Psalm 91 verses 11 to 14 I’ll give you some context to the original verse Psalm 91 verses 11 to 14 says this for he will give his angels charge concerning you to guard you in all your ways they will bear you up in their hands that you do not strike your foot against a stone you will tread upon the lion and Cobra the Young Lion and the serpent you will trample down because he has loved me therefore I will deliver him I will set him securely on high because he is known my name so Satan quotes some of these verses to Jesus but back in Matthew notice Jesus’s response he says on the other hand so in this phrase Jesus indicates that he affirms the words of Psalm 91 he’s not saying that’s wrong he’s he acknowledges Psalm 91 but he indicates that there is something else that must be remembered there are other scripture that must be remembered too and Jesus again quotes a scripture himself and again it’s from Deuteronomy so if you’re still in Deuteronomy just turn two chapters earlier to Deuteronomy 6.
Deuteronomy 6 16 is what Jesus quotes where Moses wrote Deuteronomy 6 16.
you shall not put Yahweh your God to the test as you tested him at Massa okay does anyone remember what happened at massive so whenever you hear the term master or when you hear the term meribah think about Israel complaining about lack of water that’s what they did at mass and meribah they said there’s not enough water we’re all gonna die of thirst Moses you did this God you did this actually we hear the account describe for us in Exodus 17. and yeah I guess you can turn there turn x to the 17.
Exodus 17 verses 1 to 7.
this is where we hear what happened at Masa and you’ll notice that the word test comes up Exodus 17.
then all the congregation is the sons of Israel journeyed by stages from the Wilderness of sin according to the command of Yahweh camped at rapidim and there’s no water for the people to drink therefore the people are quarreled with Moses and said give us water that we may drink and Moses said to them why do you call with me why do you test Yahweh but the people thirsted there for water and they grumbled against Moses and said why now have you brought us up from Egypt to kill us and our children and our livestock with thirst so Moses cried out to Yahweh saying what shall I do to this people a little more and they will Stone me then Yahweh said to Moses pass before the people take with you some of the Elders of Israel and take in your hand your staff with which you struck the Nile and go behold I will stand before you there at the rock of Horeb and you shall strike the Rock and water will come out of it that the people may drink and Moses did so on the side of the elders he named the place in Massa and meribah because of the quarrel of the sons of Israel because they tested Yahweh saying is Yahweh among us or not the terms Massa and meriba by the way refer to quarterly they mean contention so we see at Massa the Israelites tested God by complaining and by asking God to prove that he was really among them and cared for them before they would trust him Moses tells the new generation of Israel back in Deuteronomy 6 16 do not test Yahweh as you did or as your forefathers did at Massa and it’s this verse that Jesus quotes disabled so Satan moves on doesn’t pursue that line of temptation but there is a third it says again we have a third temptation but this one’s a little different you’ll notice so back in Matthew the devil takes Jesus to a very high mountain and he shows him all the kingdoms of the world in their Glory Luke and his account he says he showed him all the kingdoms in a moment of time so we should understand this again be something Supernatural happening here it’s not possible to go to a high mountain and see all the kingdoms of the world in the same moment and to be able to see their Glory but Satan somehow is able to do that he shows Jesus all the kingdoms of the world he passes by Jesus’s eyes passes before Jesus’s eyes everything that is glorious on Earth and imagine what this consisted of what is glorious about the world’s kingdoms well they’re the great buildings there are the armies in their splendid armor and martial array there’s great Arts music literature theater Law Courts markets ships machines festivals parades beautiful ladies beautiful men palaces Thrones temples sacrifices Goods of every kind everything that was thought to be beautiful or valuable in the world this is what Satan passes before Jesus’s eyes and Satan says to Jesus and notice there is no if you are the Son of God here Satan says all these things I will give you if you fall down and worship me and notice that Satan claims ownership of the kingdoms of the world and the New Testament actually affirms that idea at least in one sense John 12 in John 12 31 Jesus says now judgment is upon this world now the ruler of this world will be cast out who’s he talking about he must be talking about Satan the ruler of this world and then second Corinthians 4 4 Paul says second Corinthians 4 4 the God of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the Gospel of the glory of Christ so Paul refers to Satan as the God of this world of course we know in another sense Satan’s not the God of this world there’s only one God it’s God the true owner of the world and all the world kingdoms is God and he will directly rule the world one day through his son he will give the kingdom to his son Revelation 11 15 says this is Revelation 11 15. the kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ and he will reign forever and ever so even though in one sense Satan is the ruler of the kingdoms of the world and another sense it’s God and God will directly rule the world kingdoms one day but Satan says to Jesus you can have total rule of all the world kingdoms now if you worship me now notice the unique response of Jesus here he says something different than he did before he says go Satan get out of here Satan get away and why Jesus again quotes the scripture each response you’ll see you notice has been from scripture and again he’s quoting Deuteronomy Jesus says you shall Worship the Lord your God and serve him only now whether the specific verse of Jesus quotes is not entirely clear he may be paraphrasing one verse or two verses look at Deuteronomy uh 6 verses 13 and 15.
so back Deuteronomy 6.
Deuteronomy 6 13 maybe the verse that Jesus has in mind but I want you to see some of the context of the statement Deuteronomy 6 13 down to 15.
Moses writes you shall fear only Yahweh your God and you shall worship Him and swear by his name you shall not follow other gods any of the Gods of the people peoples who surround you for Yahweh your God in the midst of you is a jealous God so you notice how similar that sounds to what Jesus quotes there’s another verse that’s like it just a few chapters later look at Deuteronomy 10. verse 20.
Deuteronomy 10 20. now again we’ll look at a little bit of the context let’s look down one more verses so look at Deuteronomy 10 verse 20 to 21.
Moses again writes you shall fear Yahweh your God you shall serve him and cling to him and you shall swear by his name he is your praise and he is your god who has done these great and awesome things for you which your eyes have seen so notice those two different verses they emphasize two aspects of God’s character in chapter six he says God is a jealous God but in chapter 10 he says God is your praise he does so look at all the good things he’s done for you therefore fear God worship him alone serve him alone so Jesus either paraphrasing or quoting these verses or these two verses it gives this answer and it causes Satan to leave now Luke says in his account lucra also records about the Temptations Luke chapter 4 verse 13 when the devil had finished every temptation he left him until an opportune time that statement is significant because it suggests there were more Temptations than these three and that Temptations continued after this time but the devil leaves for now back in Matthew the last thing we want to see you can actually leave Deuteronomy now back in verse 11.
you notice the word behold in the middle of the verse the the hold draws our attention to the action that follows and what is the action Angels Angels come and minister to Jesus they serve Jesus angels from the father come at the end of this time of Temptation to minister to the Sun Okay so we’ve made our observations let’s now use our observations to answer interpretation questions we’ve got a number of them first why did Jesus fast while he was in the wilderness we mentioned why people normally fast but then let’s also think about what what is happening to Jesus and what is about to happen to Jesus Denny about time before that exactly yeah I think that’s definitely part of the answer he’s about to experience or is experiencing Temptation so if he he needs to go to the father he wants to depend on the father via prayer via fasting but that’s not the only thing what else is about to happen yeah Rob OT by the word of God hmm that’s interesting I’m I’m not sure we will talk about the connection with Israel a little bit later was fasting specifically done so that he could literally fulfill man shall not live by bread alone I’m not sure certainly it is consistent with what we just said about Jesus depending on the father especially through time of testing which Israel did not do they were not depending on the time of Earth that not depending on the father through testing but I’m not sure if I would say that Jesus did that specifically to literally fulfill that word about not depending on bread the other thing I was going to mention though is that beside besides Temptation Jesus is about to begin his ministry and that would be another reason to spend time with the father to fast to depend to pray to focus and so those probably all play into Jesus decision to fast while he’s there another question speaking of fasting why would it have been wrong for Jesus to turn the stones into bread in the back yes I think Roy therefore I’m going to go ahead and do this you know something right okay those are some good answers Roy yeah certainly there’s the if Satan suggests it could it be good you know are you listening to Satan’s Council isn’t that a form of affirmation of him perhaps there’s some element of that but I think you’re totally right to say that it would not it is not the father’s will for Jesus to create bread out of stones and so if he were to do so he would be doing his own will and not the father’s will he would not be fulfilling all righteousness because we must understand it’s not wrong necessarily for Jesus to eat and if God so willed it it wouldn’t be wrong for Jesus to turn stones into bread but the father had apparently not given Jesus permission to do that we see throughout his ministry Jesus as the god-man was intensely dependent on the father looking to do the father’s will in the father’s way in every instance and we hear this directly in the Book of John John Chapter 5 Verse 30 Jesus says John 5 verse 30 I can do nothing on my own initiative as I hear I judge and my judgment is just because I do not seek my own will but the will of him who sent me Jesus says just a few verses later in John 5 36 John 5 36 for The Works which the father has given me to accomplish the very works that I do testify about me that the father has sent me so Jesus was looking only to do the father’s will and that included when and how he did miracles the father had not given Jesus permission to turn stones into bread for himself so if Jesus did so he would have been seeking his own will and not the fathers he would have been going outside God’s plan unless the one say wait Jesus was hungry and in great need surely the father would permit a little Supernatural bread making surely a tiny compromise would be okay for the sake of protecting himself from starvation but this is why Jesus quotes Deuteronomy 8 3.
Jesus affirms that he needs and depends on something much greater than bread or any kind of physical provision Jesus needs and depends on God and depends on God’s word after all God controls all things God provides all food therefore Jesus can confidently serve God and wait on the father to provide Jesus food in God’s way and in God’s timing Jesus doesn’t have to violate the father’s will for the God for God to provide and isn’t this exactly what Jesus says later in Matthew 6. you’re familiar with that passage Matthew 6 verses 31 to 33 Jesus says do not worry then saying what will we eat or what will we drink or what will we wear for clothing for the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things for your heavenly father knows that you need all these things but seek first his kingdom and his righteousness and all these things will be added to you oh yeah Roy at least first one that’s recorded there’s something that first you commented that was not in the father’s timing in Christ at the time that Satan said make the bread but the idea that Christ is doing something shouldn’t have eaten that God had already provided yeah it’s a great observation right thank you for that and we do see a connection between Adam and Eve’s failure when they did eat and Jesus’s success when he does not eat that’s a great that’s a great point and some for this temptation Jesus chose to trust the perfect provision of his father rather than go outside the father’s will to miraculously provide for himself and by the way how did God vindicate Jesus’s trust regarding bread how’s the passage gem with angels coming to minister to Christ and I imagine though it’s not it’s not explicitly stated they gave him food the Lord did provide or if they didn’t give him food they they ministered to his needs in some way so he was provided for the father knew what he was doing and the son trusted and the father Vindicated now the second Temptation why would it have been wrong for Jesus to throw himself off of the Temple we know the answer is in some way having to do with testing I would characterize it in this way it is wrong to test God’s promises with sin or unbelief it is wrong to test God’s promises with sin or unbelief as the Messiah Jesus could have expected God’s provision and protection until Jesus accomplished his Earthly Mission even if Jesus were to do something dangerous which he does throughout actually his ministry by just preaching the word he is putting his life at risk but that is the Father’s will and if service to the father requires danger then so be it but if something is dangerous that is not part of the father’s will then the wise and righteous person will avoid that Danger such a man should not say to himself well God promised to protect me so I don’t have to be careful no this is what it means to put the Lord to the test to use the promises of God as an excuse to disobey God or act foolishly to make this idea clearer imagine a Christian student who has an exam coming up he does not feel like studying so he says to himself well God’s word says that God will provide for all my needs and I should not idolize Graves therefore I’ll just trust God to provide and I won’t steady well this is foolishness and sin using God’s promises to disobey him and to not work hard for his sake such a student will likely be rudely awakened by God’s good discipline via poor grades but another way excuse me another way to test the Lord is to refuse to obey God until he proves himself this would be like Jesus saying I’m not really sure if God will protect me so let me do something crazy to find out to return to my analogy of a Christian Student this would be like that student is saying I’m not really sure if God will take care of my grades so until I see that provision I’m not going to let go of my anxiety and I’m certainly not going to give up any of my time to serve others I need to study such thinking this kind of I won’t believe it until God proves himself and may even masquerade as piety I want to believe the Lord so I’m giving him the opportunity to make me believe to prove himself but no matter how you look at it this is still sinful and foolish God has already done more than enough to cause us to believe his word is sure and does not need testing now true it is encouraging and faith-building to see God keep his promises and in a sense God does ask us to test him with belief believe me and see if I will not keep my promises but notice the difference the starting stance must be belief not unbelief when it comes to assessing God’s promises let God vindicate your faith not shame your faithlessness certainly Jesus would not have been righteous to express unbelief in his father’s provision as if the Father’s Promise of protection needed testing therefore in some when tempted in this way Jesus chose not to let the promises of God become excuses for Jesus to be unfaithful to God’s will or to test God’s promises via unbelief now the third temptation is the most explicit in our passage there’s no greater Rebellion against God than to directly worship Satan the enemy and Satan offers Jesus all the kingdoms of the world but remember the father has made a similar promise to the son the father will one day give all rule on earth to the sun even the Old Testament Prophet said that but what does the messiah’s receiving the Kingdom from the father require that receiving kingdoms from Satan does not obedience to what extent all the way to death on the cross to receive the Kingdom from the father Jesus must first go to the cross Satan doesn’t require that but the father does as other preachers have noted about this third Temptation Satan offers Jesus exaltation without humiliation power without suffering the passion and the kingdom without the cross but in Jesus final response to Satan Jesus affirms that God Alone is worthy of all worship and service even the worship of obedience to death humiliating death on a cross God is worthy of all that Satan is not like Deuteronomy 6 and 10 say God is a jealous fearsome God but also a generous God full of love therefore to such a worthy God Jesus Will cling but not a deceiver and slanderer like Satan so when tempted to this third and final way Jesus chose chose to trust his Gods his great God’s perfect way of reward and exaltation rather than to look for Indulgence or reward outside of God’s way now think about these three Temptations what do they all have in common or what’s basically at the root of each right it’s about trust or doubt will will the Messiah believe God will he trust God will he trust his promises will he trust his word and of course Jesus Does all of these basically most basically are tests of whether the sun believes the father now related to this Hebrews 4 15 says that Jesus has been tempted in every way that we are yet without sin but if you think about these Temptations none of them sound all that similar to our own at least on the surface I mean when’s the last time you were tempted to turn stones into bread with divine power or to jump off the temple and be caught by angels or to worship Satan and receive all the world kingdoms we’re not tempted that way and where are The Temptations that we do experience for instance there’s no mention anywhere here or in any part of the gospels of Jesus being tempted towards sexual sin but that’s a Temptation that many Christians face every day so how can the words of Hebrews 4 15 be true when his Temptations look so different from ours yeah really yeah seeking his own Glory the temple to show that he is the son of God the same thing with respect to Fame all of those we’re tempted in those kinds of ways every day yeah yeah you hit it exactly Roy the essence of The Temptations Jesus experienced is the same as the Temptations that we all experience all sins are basically various versions of Do You Believe God or not do you believe in worship God or not so even if we’re not tempted exactly as Jesus was or even if he is not tested tempted exactly as we are he was tempted in the same kind of way and this is also why the way First Corinthians 10 13 is true you probably know that verse First Corinthians 10 13 no temptation has overtaken you but that which is common to man but we want to say in response to that verse but you don’t know what it’s like my temptation is unique it’s especially strong I can’t deal with it like any regular sin well it’s true that we are tempted in various ways and we are prone to more sin than others based on uh various factors but God’s spirit reveals that every Temptation we experience is common to all men all sins are basically different versions of the same unbelief and idolatry therefore the righteous alternative is essentially the same to believe in the worth of God and to trust his word to illustrate this why shouldn’t you sin sexually because God is worthy of your Purity and you can believe his word both from the blessedness of his pure way and the curse of immorality why shouldn’t you sin through anger because God is worthy of your trust so that the loss of any good any worldly good should not enrage you or make you bitter moreover you can trust in God’s ultimate Justice his perfect Vengeance will prevail in his own timing these same Concepts apply to Jesus’s Temptations and The Temptations of all men but Jesus would not deviate from God’s will because Jesus believed that God is worthy of total worship and that God’s way is trustworthy to underscore this point and Roy I think maybe you’re alluding to this some have noted that Jesus’s three Temptations seem to parallel what John says in first John 2 16. first John 2 16 says for all that is in the world the lust of the Flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life is not from the father but is from the world true there does seem to be a kind of parallel between these three types of things in the world and what Jesus experienced though I think maybe different theologians line it up differently in my view the lust of the flesh corresponds to Jesus Temptation toward hunger and fulfilling that hunger outside of God’s will the lust of the eyes to Jesus sight of all World kingdoms and the Lewisville pride of life to Jesus temptation to test God by jumping off the temple for multiple reasons then we can’t affirm the words of Hebrews 4 15. Jesus was tempted in every way that we are but that means we can claim the comfort of that verse as well as the following verse verse 16 together the two verses say and now I’m quoting directly for we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses but one who has been tempted in all things as we are yet without sin therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace so that we may receive mercy and find Grace to help in time of need Jesus understands not simply as an omniscient God but as one who is experienced temptation we noticed that Jesus responded to each Temptation by quoting scripture this does not mean understand that the words of scripture themselves have a special power against temptation as if you could chant them to yourself and suddenly all the Temptations would cease yet clearly scripture is important for dealing with temptation how is scripture important yes Dwayne right it does uh show us the way of Escape can we explain what that way is or would be in each situation I mean the essence for every temptation is going to be the same what is the way to escape the temptation it is going to be by the power of the Holy Spirit but it starts with believe God but how are you going to believe God well you have to believe what he said how are you going to believe what he said well you have to know what he said you see it’s not that the words of scripture in their utterance is powerful that the the literal sounds of the the words Even in our translations are powerful is that the truth of scripture as expressed in the words and in their context is powerful because when we bring back to mind the truths of scripture and when we believe them and when we take action consistent with that belief we will escape Temptation we will successfully stand the word reminds us of the truth we can believe and stand on that truth and then do what that truth tells us to do for example if you attempted toward anxiety do not merely recite to yourselves again and again versus about anxiety as if that will deliver you rather recall the scriptures in their context ask yourself whether you believe them and why you should the scripture lays out arguments and then as you will allow yourself to be persuaded by the scripture reminded of what reminded of the truth of it then take action based on that belief and when it comes to anxiety such action will include refusing to keep thinking about those negative things those potential negative outcomes to an upcoming event isn’t that what Jesus said take no thought for your life in the sense don’t keep thinking about those things that will worry you rather leave it with God now all this means as you can gather something basic about the Bible if you’re going to follow Jesus example when it comes to temptation that is if you’re going to recall the scripture affirm your belief in it and act accordingly what do you first need to do you’ve got to read it you’ve got to learn it you got to make sure you understand it if you don’t know the scripture you’re like a soldier unfamiliar with his battle equipment or even totally lacking it how well can you expect a fair in the battle and don’t think that after reading something once in the Bible you don’t need to read it again we are forgetful people and our old nature our old sinful nature works against us we must constantly be renewing our minds in the word we must keep our proficiency at a high level so that we can stand against our Wily opponent and remember Satan can even twist scripture to encourage sin that’s what he did with Jesus and he he and his evil ones and even our own flesh they will twist scripture in order to affirm sin all of them were reasoned for us to know the word better so we can spot teaching and thinking that abuses God’s truth and leads us into sin so we need to know the word we do want to take the approach that Jesus did but we now come to our final set of interpretation questions why is all this important Matthew Mark and Luke all report about Jesus’s Temptation in the wilderness but why why did the spirit take Jesus to be tempted in the wilderness in the first place and why did it take place when it did right before Jesus official Ministry begins clearly this event is important but why well I believe the reason is because of what this event shows us about Jesus yes there is something to be said about following Jesus’s example but that’s not the main point it’s about showing showing us who Jesus is consider Jesus experienced temptation just like all men what does this affirm about Jesus’s nature he is a man he truly is a man and we need that if we’re going to have a sympathetic high priest however unlike man and especially unlike the first man as Roy was saying when Jesus is tempted he does not sin but he perfectly trusts God every time every Temptation he succeeds what does this show us about Jesus’s nature he’s Divine he’s not like a normal man so the first part that he experiences Temptation we say oh he’s a man just like us but then we look at the second part that he succeeds in Temptation we say he’s not a man like us he’s God these two facts emphasize how fitting Jesus is as the savior he is a man like us yet he’s a man who is not like us he is truly righteous and he perfectly trusts God only such a one could be God’s Redeemer and perfect sacrifice for sin only such a one could function as the new and Perfect Adam to redeem Believers as a new head and representative moreover consider the many Connections In this passage between Jesus experience in the wilderness and Israel’s just as Israel was tested for 40 years in the wilderness before entering God’s land so was Jesus tested 40 days in the same Wilderness before returning to Israel but as we’ve already noted what is the main difference between Israel’s testing and Jesus’s testing exactly Jesus succeeds where Israel fails read the Torah and again and again you’ll see Israel failing to trust God even when a new generation Rises up to enter the land Moses tells them you are yet uncircumcised in your heart and you will later rebel against God which of course they do and we saw that contrast this with Jesus who not only perfectly obeys God when tempted but even quotes the scriptures that were given to Israel while in the wilderness he did he heeded the word that they would not he treasured it though Israel did not so Matthew shows us that Jesus is the righteous Messiah that Israel has been waiting for the one who will do all of the Lord’s will who will establish justice who will perfectly trust in his God Jesus is Israel’s fitting representative whose righteous life will provide the once for all sacrifice to rescue his people from sin Jesus is everything God always expected Israel to be the one who will actually make the redeemed remnant of Israel acceptable to God and uniting these two things then we know Jesus’s work wasn’t just for Israel but for all who might be grafted in to the tree of faith of Abraham so to sum up this last section what we see here at the beginning of Jesus ministry right before it begins is a clear testimony of Jesus’s appropriateness as God’s savior and Messiah Jesus succeeds where Israel and ultimately all mankind fails and he is able to offer himself as an acceptable representative and sacrifice for all who believe in him was this the end of Jesus’s Temptations surely not as Luke indicates but this specific period of Temptation in the wilderness sets the tone for Jesus’s whole Ministry Jesus went to spiritual battle with the devil in the desert and it came out the unquestioned victor just as he would do through his whole Ministry and as he would do at the cross truly we should do even though the choice was given to Jesus to sin he could never have actually sinned he’s God after all it is not in God’s nature to do anything less than to be 100 holy and perfect so though the Temptation was presented to him he was not swayed even for a moment to sin against the father to sin against himself how good it is that God appointed such a perfect one to be our Advocate to be a representative and to be our high priest we’re basically out of time if you have any questions or comments please email me I want to leave you with just a few thoughts of application already in this lesson you should have noted several Avenues of application but let me just mention a few things how can we apply today’s lesson well first we need to learn from Jesus’s responses to temptation did we affirm what Jesus affirmed that we need God more than any temporal need or desire to be fulfilled that we’re willing to wait until God fulfills it we’re not going to go outside his will do we test god with unbelief using his promises as an excuse to sin against him or to be negligent for instance does God’s sovereignty and salvation lead us not to evangelize that’s testing the Lord God’s promise is meant to encourage us to be obedient not excuse our disobedience do we look forward to God’s reward at the end of all our labor and suffering do we believe that God is worthy of worship worthy of enduring any kind of suffering or do we want to take the rewards without suffering the or suffering and being obedient when encountering temptation or even when thinking about where Temptation might appear do we go to the word do we stand on the truth of the word or do we stand on something less stable Christian tradition man’s Wisdom our own feelings and Impressions do we know God’s word do we regularly expose ourselves to it do we study it and when tempted do we recite the scripture like an incantation or do we actually believe it and allow it to inform how we should act do we see the Temptations we experience as common to man even common to what our savior experienced do we therefore take hold of the resources the common resources God has given to his people to overcome Temptation the word prayer the people of God do we go to Jesus as a sympathetic high priest or do we shut out all help even from the Savior savior insisting no one else can know what it’s like so we have to learn from Jesus’s responses to temptation but we also I need to trust in Christ as our perfect representative Jesus succeeds or all of us have failed have we recognize that have we repented before God then trusting in Christ to be our righteousness and the only sacrifice that can satisfy God’s Wrath and reconcile us to God do we live a life of repentance marked by increased progress and sanctification as evidence we have believed Jesus that’s it for this week next week Jesus ministry officially begins and we see the calling of Jesus first disciples let’s go some prayer gotta thank you for this word it is a great word thank you thank you Lord Jesus for being the Victor succeeding where all of us have failed becoming a new head and representative for your people an acceptable sacrifice when Jesus we love you thank you for being so great help us in our weakness you understand but you also provide the promises and the way of Escape the Lord God let us escape to you let us trust your word Spirit work in US in Jesus name amen you’re welcome see you next week