Jesus
answered, “It is written:
‘Worship the Lord your God and serve Him only.’”
- Luke 4:8
In June
2011, a man found a bag of money with a Chase Bank logo on it at a Walgreen’s
drugstore in Chicago
But when he
turned it in at a Chase Bank, he was a little concerned about how he’d explain
those 45 minutes. So, he lied and said he found it at the local mall. The story
made the news, and he was hailed around the world as a hero. But the
authorities weren’t so sure. The police and FBI investigated the incident and
discovered the truth. As a result, the man was fined $500 for filing a false
police report, and he went from hero to zero in one news cycle.
Well, Jesus
was tempted too. And before we assume that any temptation would be a slam-dunk
for the Son of God, the Book of Luke reminds us that Jesus was also the son of
Adam. Luke spends the last half of chapter 3 tracing Jesus’ family tree to the
first man ever created: Adam. He wanted us to know that as the Son of God,
Jesus was 100 percent God. But as the son of Adam, Jesus was also 100 percent
man. Jesus could get hungry like Adam got hungry. He could get tired and
discouraged, just as Adam could get tired and discouraged. And Jesus could be
tempted, just as Adam was tempted.
In Luke 4:1,
we’re told that after his baptism Jesus was “full of the Holy Spirit,” and that
he was “led by the Holy Spirit into the desert.” He fasted in the Judean desert
for 40 days and 40 nights. At the end of 40 days, Satan knew full well that
Jesus was hungry—REALLY hungry. So he tried to persuade Jesus to turn one of
the limestone rocks around him into a loaf of bread. But the Father had
something much more important than bread for Jesus to feast on, and Jesus knew
that. So in response, Jesus quoted Deuteronomy 8:3: “It is written, man does
not live on bread alone.” One temptation down, two to go.
In the following
verses Satan tempted Jesus two more times, and each temptation was
strategically chosen by Satan to capitalize on one of Jesus’ weaknesses (as if
he had any). The second temptation—offering Jesus authority over all the
kingdoms of the world—was intended to get Jesus to compromise his integrity in
order to avoid the pain and suffering of the cross. And Satan’s third
temptation—for Jesus to throw himself from the temple to be rescued by angels—was
designed to get Jesus to upstage God, making himself the center of attention
instead of God the Father. In both cases, Jesus overcame the temptation by
unleashing the sword of the Spirit: the word of God.
Over the
years many Christians have wondered why Jesus was tempted. Perhaps it was
because Jesus wanted a showdown or because Satan thought that he could best
Jesus. Maybe. But I tend to think Jesus suffered through that temptation for
you and me. He allowed himself to be tempted because he knew that you and I
would be tempted. And his victory over his three temptations provides a
picture-perfect “how-to” guide for how we can do the same.
The truth
is, as long as you and I are still living here on earth, we’re going to be
tempted. Sometimes the devil is the one tempting us. Sometimes people around us
are tempting us. Sometimes our old sinful nature tempts us. We have these three
great enemies that constantly fight against our souls. And we are told in God’s
word to resist temptation. It’s not a sin to be tempted. It’s only a sin to
give in to that temptation. So, how do we resist temptation? We do it the same
way Jesus did. First of all, we
pray. Second, we lean on the Holy Spirit.
Third—and
this one is a biggy—we stand firm on God’s word. Did you notice Jesus’ response
to Satan? They’re the first words quoted from Jesus in the Bible after his
baptism: “It is written.” These words mark the beginning of his ministry on
earth. Do you think, perhaps, there’s a message for us in there? I think so. As
long as we are living here on earth, Satan will nip at our heels just as he
nipped at Jesus’ heels. But just like Jesus, in the power of the Holy Spirit,
we can prayerfully use the word of God to crush Satan’s head.
When we lift
God’s word in prayer, it is our strongest weapon against temptation. Jesus
responded to every one of Satan’s temptation with the powerful, unchanging word
of God. Back in 2011, if the man at Walgreen’s had followed these three
steps—if he had prayed, leaned on the Holy Spirit and stood firm on God’s
word—it would have saved him a lot of embarrassment and heartache. It also
would have saved him 500 bucks. I can’t guarantee you that following these three
steps will save you money, but following them will save you a lot of heartache,
and God will be very, very pleased with you.
Dane Davis is the Lead
Pastor of First Christian Church in Victorville. For more information,
visit www.YourVictorvilleChurch.com and join us for church Sundays at 10 a.m.
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