The Big Story: Jesus Is Tempted


Following his baptism, the Holy Spirit fell on Jesus, giving him the power to fulfill the mission God gave him.  In the power of the Spirit, Jesus went into the desert, where he defined the kind of Messiah he would be.  This definition came through the devil's temptations.

Luke's account of these temptations are in 4:1-13.  In the first, the devil said to Jesus, "If you are the Son of God, turn these stones into bread."  Jesus was starving, so this temptation had to be particularly compelling!  

Jesus responded by quoting Deuteronomy 8:3.  People don't live by bread alone, but by God's words!  
Here, Satan was tempting Jesus to be a material Messiah.  This is the kind of Messiah people want!  John 6:14-15 records that following the feeding of the 5000, the crowd wanted to make Jesus king by force.  And why not?  If he could produce food like that, they would never again need to struggle to get food!

We like material Messiahs today.  Many people follow preachers of the prosperity gospel, which says God wants us to be materially rich here and now!  But Jesus didn't come to be that kind of Messiah because material things don't meet our deepest needs.

After this, Satan took Jesus on a high mountain.  He showed him all the kingdoms of the earth, and all their splendor.  The devil said he would give it all to Jesus if he would only worship him.  

Jesus refused, quoting scripture again.  This time, it was Deuteronomy 6:13.  God alone was to be worshipped.  Not Satan!

Here, Satan was tempting Jesus to be a political Messiah.  This is the kind of Messiah people want!  Luke 23:13-19 says that when the crowd had the choice between Jesus and Barabbas, they chose Barabbas. Why?  Because Barabbas represented a political kingdom established by force, not a spiritual kingdom established by self-sacrificial love!

We like political Messiahs today.  Many evangelicals are engaging politically in an effort to legislate God's kingdom on earth.  Tragically, today many are aligning themselves with political leaders whose values are contrary to Christ.  They're doing great harm to the movement of Christ by putting their hopes in people without character or even common decency.

Finally, the devil took Jesus to a high point of the temple.  He challenged Jesus to jump off.  Then the devil quoted scripture!  Psalm 91:11-12.  Of course, he distorted its meaning.

Jesus refused, quoting Deuteronomy 6:16.  Doing such a stunt would put God to a foolish test.

Here, the devil was tempting Jesus to be a magical Messiah.  Jesus performed remarkable miracles, but not on the scale of parting a sea or making the sun stand still.  When leaders demanded that he perform such a sign, Jesus told them that the only one they would receive would be the sign of Jonah.  He would rise from the dead.

We like magical Messiahs today.  Showy faith-healing ministries that pack stadiums and auditoriums are ample proof of that!

Jesus came not to be a material Messiah, or political Messiah, or magical Messiah.  Instead, he would be a suffering servant Messiah, who would save the world by self-sacrificial love.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

God's Dynamite: The Battle Within

Image
"It was on fire when I lay down on it."  Robert Fulghum wrote about reading this statement in a small town newspaper.   Smoke was billowing from a second story window.  The Fire Department arrived, broke down the front door, ran up a set of stairs, and pulled a man off a burning bed.  Later, when they asked him how he got in that predicament, he said, "It was on fire when I lay down on it." Why on earth did he do that?  We don't know, but his story reveals a human truth.  We often do self-destructive things.  We testify, "People told me not to do it, but I did it anyway."  "I knew it was wrong, but I did it." The apostle Paul wrote about our human propensity to sin and self-destructive behavior in Romans 7:14-25.  Verse 15 sums up his point, "I do not understand what I do.  For what I want to do I do not do and what I hate I do."   He describes an intense inner battle.  On one side is the "flesh," his
Read more

God's Dynamite: More than Conquerors

Image
One person goes through a terrible experience and emerges from it stronger, more mature, and more loving.  Another goes through a similar experience and emerges from it weaker, less mature, and bitter.   What's the difference? I think it has to do with what's in the person's heart.  It has to do with his or her faith and perspective of life.   In Romans 8:35-39, the apostle Paul asked, "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?''  Is there any person or place or experience that can remove us from Christ's loving presence?  Trouble? Hardship? Danger?  Sword? Paul could answer this question because he experienced all the above and more.  He said, "No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us."  We conquer all these things through Christ's love for us. To be sure, we can have times when Christ's love seems far away from us. In the depths of suffering in times like these, we can won
Read more

God's Dynamite: Resurrection Transformation

Image
Easter is about more than you going to heaven.  That's part of it, but not near all!  It's about your death and resurrection. In Romans 6, Paul was answering opponents.  Those opponents said that if salvation is by God's grace through faith, then you have no motivation for righteous living and good works.  Why not sin more to get more grace? Paul answered by using the image of baptism.  He said when the pastor plunged you under water, he symbolized your death in Christ.  Through faith you died on the cross with Jesus.  Your old self was a slave to sin and rebellion against God.   Paul said when the pastor raised you up from the water, he symbolized your resurrection in Christ.  Not just in the future but in the present.  In faith, you identify with Jesus' death and his resurrection.  You're raised to a new life, free from slavery to sin. So Easter is about more than personal salvation.  It's about transformation: dying to an old life and ris
Read more