Day 248 – Jesus’ Temptation

• When we commit ourselves to God – such as in an occasion as baptism – the devil hates it. As your relationship with Jesus deepens, you will come under attack in a variety of ways, such as doubt, mockery or temptation. Such it was with Jesus too. Following directly from the start of his public ministry and his baptism in the Holy Spirit, the devil was instantly on the attack. Maybe that’s because he knew exactly who Jesus was!
• Jesus was led by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness, where He spent 40 days fasting. What does the number 40 remind you of? The passage in Deuteronomy gives one connection. What purpose did Jesus have for putting Himself through this extended period of fasting (not eating)? What is He showing that He could do that the people of Israel could not?
• While He was there, and at His physically weakest moment, the devil arrived to tempt Him. Remember that in the book of Daniel we learnt that the devil “roamed the world”. Note that God allowed Jesus to be tested by the devil, but God will never tempt us to do evil. Only the devil does this.
• What was the first thing the devil tempted Jesus with, in Matthew 4:3? How did Jesus respond? Jesus powerfully used Scripture – God’s Word – to stand firm, as you would have read in the words from Deuteronomy 8:1-3. Have you ever stood firm in a difficult time by reading your Bible?
• The devil then quoted the Bible to Jesus in verse 6. It’s a quote from Psalm 91, and an indication of how dangerous it can be to misuse biblical words out of context. That’s why it’s important not just to learn verses from the Bible, but to understand their context and meaning in the bigger picture. How does the devil misuse Scripture for his wrong purposes in this specific example?
• Imagine Jesus had thrown Himself off the high place, and angels had indeed rescued Him. It might have given Him celebrity status for a while, but would it have been properly in line with His Father’s plan for His life as a suffering servant, come to redeem the world? What would be have gained by doing what the devil suggested? What would have been lost?
• The final temptation came in Matthew 4:8-9. The devil tempted Jesus with quick success and power, instead of going through the painful job of going to the cross. The devil could not, of course, give Jesus anything He didn’t already have, but Jesus “the man” would have surely been tempted to get out of the pain of temptation and hunger that he would have been feeling at the time. How hard do you think it would have been for Jesus to stay strong? What did Jesus come back to every time He was tempted?
• What practical words of advise are given in the two verses in read in 1 John?

By going through pain, temptation and torment, Jesus experienced life like we do.

How amazing is it that we worship a God who made Himself like us, taking our nature and feeling our pain? Doesn’t that comfort you so much?

Of course we can also glorify Jesus too – because we know that he didn’t give in to temptation in the way that we repeatedly do. It was only because He lived a perfect, sinless life that He was able to be the perfect sacrifice – the spotless Lamb – on the cross. Only then could He be the substitute for us – and for that we should never stop praising His name.