Jump Start # 424 

Matthew 4:5-7 “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.’”

  We continue our look at the temptation of Jesus as recorded in Matthew. The gospel lists three different temptations. The first, dealt with human nature and the desire to survive—hunger.

  The temptation today, the second one, is about trusting God and more so, God’s word. There are some things to note from our verses today.

  First, like the temptation yesterday, Satan challenges Jesus to “prove” that He is the son of God. The expression, “if you are the Son of God,” was not uncertainty on Satan’s part. He knew. We remember that the book of James tells us that the demons believe. On many occasions the demons would declare that Jesus was the Son of God. A better translation of this expression would be, “Since you are the Son of God…” You can do it and since you are this way, just do it.

  Second, this temptation causes the most difficulty to figure it out. When all of this started, Jesus was alone, fasting in the desert. Did Satan take him actually to Jerusalem? How was it that no one saw them? How did they get to the top of the temple? Did this really happen? Was this a dream? Those are some real questions that I’m not sure I know the answer. I tend to think that it really happened. A dream is not the same as a real temptation in the body. Nothing is said about Jesus “falling asleep” or “waking up”. When this temptation was over, how did they get back to the desert?

Third, Satan knows the Bible. He first quoted God to Eve in the garden and added a word to change the meaning of what God said. Here He quotes the passage correctly. However, the passage is not talking about jumping off buildings, nor standing on a freeway or any thing like that. Using the Bible out of context or inaccurately is useless and unproductive. Many do the same as Satan today. They will claim, ‘The Bible says…’ but they do not look at the context of the passage to understand who God is speaking to.

Fourth, Jesus replied, once again, with a passage from Deuteronomy. Now we have the Bible pitted against the Bible. The difference is that Satan misused the Bible and Jesus was quoting it accurately.

  Trusting what God says is a matter of faith, not challenges or putting God to the test. Thomas fell into this after the resurrection when he said, ‘unless I see the nail prints, I will not believe.’ He had to have personal proof. The woman had reported seeing the resurrected Christ. The two men on the road to Emmaus had reported seeing the resurrected Jesus. The rest of the apostles saw the resurrected Jesus. Thomas would not believe. Are we that way sometimes? Do we expect God to do something to us personally to win our confidence in Him?

  The apostle Paul said we walk by faith and not by sight. Our faith is built upon trusting the word of God. To trust it, we must use it properly. Understand who is being talked to. Understand the circumstances. Do some digging. Figure things out by looking, reading and thinking.

  Satan pulled out a passage from Psalms. Great verse. Nothing to do with jumping off buildings. Misused it. Misapplied it. Thought he had Jesus. He didn’t. Jesus is the word. He knows the word. It is His word. Misquoting someone or taking things out of context seems to be the norm for many politicians. Some do that when they feel the heat of getting caught. Some do it to tear down others. This is a ploy of Satan.

  Knowing the word of God, really knowing it and understanding when others are misusing it is valuable. It helps in times of trials, troubles and even temptations.

Roger

Jump Start # 423

Matthew 4:2-4 “And after He had fasted forty days and forty nights, He then became hungry. And the tempter came and said to Him, ‘If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.’ But He answered and said, ‘It is written, ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.’ 

  We begin a look at the temptations of Jesus. The book of Hebrews tells us that Jesus was tempted in all points like we are, yet without sin. That “yet” part is the key. Jesus never sinned. These temptations reveal many interesting lessons for us.

  The tempter, who is Satan, tempted Jesus, the best. He will tempt you. Temptation is not sin. It’s Satan knocking on the front door of your heart. What you do with that temptation makes all the difference. Jesus refused to let Satan in. Too often, we open the door and let him in, just for a while, and what a mess he makes for us. Temptation can be resisted. James tells us to “resist the devil and he will flee from you.” Timothy was told to “flee youthful lusts.” The Corinthians were told, “flee fornication.” Saying, “I couldn’t help it,” just doesn’t fly. You can. You must.

  The tempter is a master of timing. He waited. He waited until Jesus was hungry. Tempting Jesus with a full belly to make bread out of rocks isn’t a temptation. He also knew that Jesus is alone. No one witnessed what took place here other than, Jesus, Satan and God. This story is left so we know. Satan knows when you are tired. Satan knows when you’ve had a bad day. He knows when you are grouchy. He knows when you are alone. Like that lion hiding in the tall grass, he waits. He watches. He’s patient. At the right moment, he springs upon us quickly.

  Of the three temptations recorded in Matthew, this one, turning rocks into bread, seems most innocent. A person has to eat. No one is around. No one is going to get hurt by this. What’s the big deal? Those are the thoughts Satan was hoping Jesus would have. Those are the thoughts we have, and that’s why we get into trouble.

  Turning stones into bread required a miracle—there is no other way. Satan knew that. He knew that Jesus had that power. He wouldn’t tempt me that way because he knows I can’t do that—I’d probably try to chew the rock. The miracles of Jesus were done to prove that He is the God on earth (Acts 2:22). Jesus did miracles before people—it was the first step in opening their eyes to who He really was. The miracles of Jesus were never done for selfish reasons. But more than that, if Jesus would turn to a miracle when He was hungry, what would He do if He was angry, or lonely, or as it came about, was hurting? While dying on the cross, one of on lookers cried out to Jesus and said, “save yourself and come down off the cross.” That’s this same temptation wrapped in a different package. Use your powers for yourself! Save yourself. Feed yourself. Be selfish. You’ve got the power!

  Jesus wouldn’t do it. He refused. He quoted from the book of Deuteronomy. Satan hates the Bible. He hates it more when we know the Bible. The Bible is always right, always. The Bible points man to God. The Bible leads us to the best way that God designed us for. Food without the Bible is existence. The word of God is life. Man shall live on every word…

  Jesus refused to make bread from rocks.

  A question is often debated, “Could Jesus have really sinned?” Remember, He was both God and man. You can’t kill God, but you can kill man. Jesus died on the cross. Yes, Jesus could have sinned. If it was impossible, then this isn’t much of a temptation. Could Jesus have come down from the cross before He died? Yes. He didn’t. Anything less than this makes these verses worthless to help us. Jesus could have sinned but He didn’t. And the way He rejected Satan was with the very tools that I have, the word of God. He didn’t use a miracle to get out of the temptation, He used the Bible. Jesus knew the Bible. It helps us to know it, to use it, to live by it, and when Satan comes around, to remember it.

  Satan is bad, always. Jesus is true to His purpose, always. We learn from this. We all can be stronger. We all can resist more. We all can know the Bible better. Jesus knows what you go through. He’s been there. He wants to help.

Roger