Martin Luther once said: “You can’t keep the birds from flying over your head; but you can keep them from building a nest in your hair!”
Luther was talking about the fact that we are all tempted from time to time. It is no sin to be tempted. As we will be reminded in our Gospel reading for today, even Jesus was tempted by the devil. What is important is how we handle temptation. The Lord can help us keep the birds from building nests in our hair.
So, let us read together the story of Jesus’ temptation and see what we can learn in order to handle temptation more effectively in our own lives. Listen for God’s word for you from Matthew 4:1-11,
Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. He fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was famished. The tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” But he answered, “It is written,
‘One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”
Then the devil took him to the holy city and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, saying 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 dash your foot against a stone.’”
so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.’”
Jesus said to him, “Again it is written, ‘Do 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 splendor; and he said to him, “All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.” Jesus said to him, “Away with you, Satan! for it is written,
‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.’”
Then the devil left him, and suddenly angels came and waited on him.
What can we learn from the experience of Jesus about how to handle temptation appropriately?
First of all, we need to recognize that we WILL face temptation as Christians. And that is true for at least two reasons. First, we read that Jesus was led by the SPIRIT into the desert to be tempted. Why would the Holy Spirit do something like that? We need to understand that the word for “tempted” in this passage can also mean “tested”.
God never tempts anyone. James 1:13 says, “When tempted, no one should say, ‘God is tempting me.’ For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone.”
God never tempts us. But he does test us. “But why does God have to test us,” you might ask, “if he already knows what we are going to do?” I think the testing is for our benefit not for God’s. I believe God already knows how we are going to respond to every test. But we don’t know how we are going to respond. God’s tests are always designed to strengthen us and draw us closer to him.
Think about it this way… how would a plant that was always kept in a greenhouse respond if it was suddenly transplanted to a windswept hillside? That plant probably would not do so well. I believe God wants us to be, not like hothouse plants, but like plants that can handle the winds and storms of life. And for that, we need testing from time to time.
So that is the first reason why we can be sure that we will have to face temptation as Christians. The second reason, presented by Matthew in this story, is that we will be tempted because there is a very real, personal devil who wants to draw us away from God to himself. The devil, or Satan, the adversary or accuser, is only mentioned a handful of times in the Hebrew Scriptures. At times this figure appears to be part of Yahweh’s heavenly council, as in the book of Job, and he has a special role as “director of prosecutions” in the book of Zechariah. Isaiah 14 and Revelation 12 talk about a fall of Satan from heaven along with all of his angels. So, from this we gather that Satan is a fallen angel who fell from heaven because he tried to make himself equal with God. By Jesus’ time there were various words used to denote Satan. He is called Beelzebub which means “Lord of the flies” and he is called, more simply, “the evil one”. The good news of the New Testament is that Jesus has defeated Satan through his own struggles and temptation, through the exorcism of demons, and ultimately through his death, resurrection and ascension. So, we are assured of the final victory over Satan, though we too can face fierce struggles against him in this life just as Jesus did.
I remember a young man coming to me many years ago; he was very worried because of some of the temptations and sins he was struggling with. He had just recently committed his life to follow Christ and so he was surprised that he could still mess up so badly and give into temptation. I think at the time I gave him a Bible verse that has greatly helped me. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 10:13,
No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.
So, we should not be surprised by temptation. Jesus faced it and so will we.
Secondly, we need to recognize that Satan will tempt us at our low points. When did the tempter come to Jesus? When he was hungry. And why was Jesus hungry? Because he had been fasting for forty days and forty nights. Jesus had gone the utmost length of time that anyone can go without food before the body starts to break down. Why was he fasting? He was seeking his Father’s face, seeking his Father’s plan for his ministry.
Satan hit Jesus at his low point, and he will do the same with us. Charles Stanley has said that we should never allow ourselves to get too hungry, too angry, too lonely or too tired.
Fasting can be a wonderful spiritual discipline used in moderation. But we do not have to try to imitate Jesus. Jesus was doing something unique for us, something that perhaps only he could fully accomplish as the Son of God.
I think Charles Stanley is right, whenever we get too Hungry, or too Angry, or too Lonely or too Tired, we should call a HALT, because it is in those times that we may be most likely to give into Satan’s schemes.
Remember the story of Elijah in 1 Kings. Elijah was hungry, angry, lonely and tired all at the same time because of his battle with the prophets of Baal on Mount Carmel. What was God’s solution? God had Elijah take some time out. God sent an angel to encourage Elijah to eat, rest, get his situation in perspective and realize that he was not alone. We all would do well to do the same thing whenever we get too hungry, too angry, too lonely or too tired.
Thirdly, we need to recognize that Satan will tempt us in one of three basic ways. 1 John 2:15-17 says,
Do not love the world or the things in the world. The love of the Father is not in those who love the world; for all that is in the world—the desire of the flesh, the desire of the eyes, the pride in riches—comes not from the Father but from the world. And the world and its desire are passing away, but those who do the will of God live forever.
These three forms of temptation are traditionally referred to as: the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life. The temptations Jesus faced from the devil in the wilderness fell into these three categories. And the first temptation Jesus faced was to give in to the lust of the flesh. “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.”
Satan tempted Jesus to doubt the word he had just received at his baptism: “You are my beloved son; with you I am well pleased.” Satan tempted Jesus to doubt the Father’s love and provision for him. Would not the Father provide for his Son without the Son having to resort to extraordinary means? Satan was tempting Jesus to use his supernatural power selfishly.
What would have been wrong with Jesus using his miraculous power to turn stones into bread? There is nothing wrong with eating is there? No, there is nothing wrong with eating . . . at the appropriate time. However, when eating takes priority over spiritual food, over our relationship with God, then we are in trouble.
The lust of the flesh can take many different forms. But the bottom line is this: If Jesus needed to arm himself against the lust of the flesh, how much more do we?
The second temptation Jesus faced was to the pride of life, or power. Satan tempted Jesus to throw himself off the pinnacle of the Temple in Jerusalem and thus force the Father to rescue him. If Jesus had given in to that temptation, he would have been using his relationship with the Father in the wrong way. We tempt God when we needlessly put ourselves in situations which demand of God a miracle. We put God to the test when we pray for health but ignore the rules of a healthy lifestyle. We put God to the test when we pray for salvation but ignore the means of grace God has given. We put God to the test when we pray for the physical and spiritual welfare of our children but fail to bring them up in the right way.
The third temptation Jesus faced had to do with the lust of the eyes. Satan took Jesus, apparently in a vision, as in the second temptation, to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world. Satan promised to give Jesus all of those kingdoms and their splendor if Jesus would simply bow down and worship him. In this third temptation Satan offered to Jesus a path to kingship that avoided the cross. He promised all the glory with no sacrifice. The price tag was worshiping Satan. We need to beware of any theology, any religion, any television preacher who offers the gain without the pain. The Bible teaches us over and over again that there is no crown without the cross.
These are the three areas in which Satan will tempt us. But how are we to respond to that temptation? We need to follow Jesus’ example and resist the devil by soaking ourselves in Scripture.
I often tell people that I try to read the Bible the same way I drink tea. When I make myself a cup of tea, I put the hot water in the mug, then I put the tea bag in, and I leave the tea bag there to continue to let it steep in the hot water the whole time I am drinking it.
I believe we need to let our souls steep in Scripture, or you might say, let the Scripture steep in us. We need to soak ourselves in the overall message of Scripture, not just a verse here or there.
Notice, Jesus did not use any special power as the Son of God to thwart Satan’s temptations. Jesus used the same spiritual resources available to you and me—the Scriptures and the Spirit.
It is interesting to note that in each instance where Jesus answered Satan he quoted from the book of Deuteronomy, chapters 6 and 8. Jesus had obviously soaked himself in the entire book of Deuteronomy. He refers to it over and over again.
In Deuteronomy 6 and 8 we have a description of the lessons which the Lord put before Israel in the wilderness. In Deuteronomy 8:2 we read that the Lord tested Israel in the wilderness. Just as we saw Jesus recapitulating Israel’s journey through the Red Sea in his baptism, so now we see him recapitulating Israel’s wilderness wanderings. The difference is, Jesus resisted giving into temptation at every point. Jesus accomplished obedience for us where we so often fail.
And the really good news is that if we invite Jesus to live in our hearts by his Spirit then he can help us to overcome the power of the enemy just as he did in the desert. Hebrews 2:18 says, “Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.”
There is one final thing I want to point out from this story. We need to realize God will give us better than what Satan offers every time. By resisting Satan, Jesus got all that Satan was offering anyway, and he got it in better form. Jesus received from the Father: strength to endure physically; he received the ministry of the angels promised in Psalm 91; he received authority over the kingdoms of this world. At the end of Matthew’s Gospel Jesus says: “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” (Matthew 28:18)
During the Second World War, C. S. Lewis wrote fictional letters from a senior devil named Screwtape to a junior tempter named Wormwood about how to tempt his human patient. In The Screwtape Letters everything is, in a way, upside-down. Screwtape calls Satan “Our Father Below” and he calls God “The Enemy”. In one of his letters to Wormwood, Screwtape says…
Never forget that when we are dealing with any pleasure in its healthy and normal and satisfying form, we are, in a sense, on the Enemy’s ground. I know we have won many a soul through pleasure. All the same, it is His invention, not ours. He made the pleasures: all our research so far has not enabled us to produce one. All we can do is to encourage the humans to take the pleasures which our Enemy has produced, at times, or in ways, or in degrees, which he has forbidden. Hence we always try to work away from the natural condition of any pleasure to that in which it is least natural, least redolent of its Maker, and least pleasurable. An ever increasing craving for an ever diminishing pleasure is the formula. It is more certain; and it is better style. To get the man’s soul and give him nothing in return—that is what really gladdens Our Father’s heart.
If we are going to resist temptation, then we need to realize the Lord will give us better than Satan offers every time. And why trust Satan to give us what he offers anyway? He is the father of all lies. But God’s promises we can go to the bank on. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 2:9…
No eye has seen,
no ear has heard,
no mind has conceived
what God has prepared for those who love him.
All God’s promises are “yes” and “amen” in Jesus who has already faced and conquered every temptation for us. As we trust in him, he will help us to face and conquer temptation too.
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