Tempted As We Are

Luke 4:3-13

And the devil said unto him, If thou be the Son of God, command this stone that it be made bread. And Jesus answered him, saying, It is written, That man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God. And the devil, taking him up into an high mountain, shewed unto him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. And the devil said unto him, All this power will I give thee, and the glory of them: for that is delivered unto me; and to whomsoever I will I give it. If thou therefore wilt worship me, all shall be thine. And Jesus answered and said unto him, Get thee behind me, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve. And he brought him to Jerusalem, and set him on a pinnacle of the temple, and said unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down from hence: For it is written, He shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee: And in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone. And Jesus answering said unto him, It is said, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God. And when the devil had ended all the temptation, he departed from him for a season.

The writer of Hebrews tells us that Jesus was tempted at all points as we are, yet without sin.

Hebrews 4:13: For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.

First, He identified with us in His baptism, now He is identifying with our ongoing struggle with sin.

Again, the book of Hebrews gives us insight into this application in our lives:

Hebrews 12:4 - Ye have not yet resisted unto blood, striving against sin.

So, as Jesus emerged from 40 days of fasting, hungry and weary, weak, and desperate for food, starving, hanging between death and life, He was going before us that He might come alongside of us when we are tempted.

Satan, the accusing adversary, is ready to pounce on Jesus and the pattern laid out here alerts us to areas where we are vulnerable as well. There were three great temptations that Jesus' faced and they prepared Him for every other temptation as well as for the cross. They revolve around three areas of active concern in our lives as well: significance, surrender, and success.

• Significance - The evil one challenged Jesus about His own purpose and identity when he said, "If thou be the Son of God " Of course He was the Son of God and He knew it, but He had been beaten down by the fast and depleted of all but Holy Spirit strength. He had emptied Himself of all divine shortcuts. The attack came at the core of His being.

• It was a personal attack. It was a "double-dog dare" because it challenged His nature, His power, His resolve, His purpose, and His essential calling. Everything was at stake and a lesser man or woman might have confused Satan's challenge as a call to arms, an occasion to prove oneself.

• Here's a hint: Whenever you feel the need to prove yourself, resist it. It is most likely not coming from God. Your significance in Him is secure. He knows who you are and your value to Him. There is nothing to prove.

• It was a primary attack. It was based upon a real and genuine need. Jesus was now actively dying, starving to death. "command this stone that it be made bread." He really needed that bread - just like you really need some of the things that are just out of your reach right now. It is likely that the devil will show up in some form or another - recognizable or not - with an idea that will tempt you to sacrifice your significance and compromise your purpose to get what you really need. All of the martyrs could have saved their own lives simply by recanting their faith. You can very often get real needs met by sacrificing what really counts.

• Here is another hint: When someone says, "but you have to live," respond with, "No I don't. I have to be faithful to my calling. For me to live is Christ and to die is gain." (Philippians 1:21). That's was like Jesus' response - Real life isn't about getting bread when you need it. Real food is God's Word. Hanging your life on the Word of God is no milk toast Christianity. It is gut-level, life or death, ready to lay it all down significance of the highest order. It doesn't matter how desperate you are for what you "really need," there is always something MORE important and it is wrapped up in God's truth and that is where we get our significance.

• Surrender - Satan took Jesus to a high place. From that vantage, he could show Jesus the kingdoms of the world and try to tempt Him with them. High places had been temptations for the children of Israel for centuries. Leviticus 26:30 alerts us to the attitude that God had toward such places as they became substitutes for true worship of the true God:

And I will destroy your high places, and cut down your images, and cast your carcases upon the carcases of your idols, and my soul shall abhor you.

This temptation was about to surrender to God's purposes and God's ways.

• Jesus knew what the high places represented. He knew that when the children of Israel had grown impatient with God, they turned to the false gods worshipped there. Throughout the times of the kings, the altars there had remained and even the kings and prophets had, from time to time, returned there. Perhaps Satan thought that he could lure the weakened, weary Jesus into something less than the best. After all, what he was offering looked like God's purposes. But approximation is not authentication. God's purposes are authentic and unique and the authority and splendor that the world, the flesh, and the devil offer are poor substitutes for the real thing.

• Hint Time: Just because something has the trappings of the worship of God, the language of spirituality, or the look and feel of authentic Christianity, does not make it real. God's purposes are discovered in knowing and doing His will - nothing less. The authority of this world may be appealing and you may be attracted to earthly power, but there is something greater. Splendor is compelling, but there is something that eye has not seen, ear heard, or the heart considered that God has prepared for them that love Him.

• God's ways are very specific and refined. They never involve surrender to anything or anyone but Him. They do not allow for compromise in the areas of holiness and wholehearted devotion to the God of the universe. Even depleted of all strength and resources but the Holy Spirit, Jesus knew this. He had already laid aside all of the glory, authority, power, and splendor of eternity to empty Himself and become a man. Perhaps the memory was not vivid at the moment, just as our vision of what lays in store for us may be dim. But the devil offered bug spit compared to the glory to come. Jesus answered with the Word of God yet again: Worship only God. Serve only Him. Those are His ways and nothing else will do.

• Another Hint: When you are tempted to shift your loyalties for something that looks attractive in the here and now, remember two thigs: (1) There is always free cheese in a mousetrap, (2) The one offering you these things doesn't have the clout to give them. All he has is a cheap substitute. Only God deserves your service and worship. The way to victory is through surrender. If Jesus had to surrender to the will of God to complete His mission, how much more must we?

• Success - God cheers for our success, but He insists on defining it and timing it. We live in an age of instant everything and we want instant success as well. We fall for get rich quick schemes, get burned, heal, and fall again. The less work, sacrifice, and discomfort - the better. Satan tried to pull the wool over Jesus' eyes one more time. This time, He was using all the tactics the Master had resisted before and adding one more. Don't think that Satan will not attack you with the same temptations again once you have overcome. He will try all the angles. He pulled out the significance card (If you are ...), upped the ante on high places and took Him to the highest place, and through in a deal breaker: scripture with a does of frivilous faith. "God won't let anything bad happen to you. Let's get this thing over with. Put on a good show. Then everyone will believe and we can get back to normal." And what he wasn't saying - which was most important - "We can avoid the nastiness of that cross you have in mind."

• Beware of shortcuts. They abound - short definitions of suucess, abbeviated definitions of success, superficial assessments of success - shortcuts. They will appeal to your sense of significance and even mimic surrender to God, but they are sinister. What was at stake here anyway? It was not Jesus' soul. His soul was secure. He would not and could not be lost. It was His mission. And you better be grateful He wasn't willing to lay it aside or we would be lost without hope. His mission was to seek and to save that which was lost and there would be no easy road to that end, no shortcuts, no avoiding the cross. And there are no shortcuts in your road to spiritual success either. God defines it; God decrees it; God directs it; and God drives it.

• Let's Try Another Hint: If it looks too good to be true; it probably isn't true. If it seems too easy, there is probably little value in it. All success is costly, even spiritual success. There are no shortcuts, but if we will apply God's truth to our quest for success, we can find it. The Master refused the shortcuts and calls to us, "Follow me."

• Beware of Sensationalism - cheap substitutes for real faith, trust, and commitment. Don't tempt God! That was Jesus short quote for Stan's long quote. Both quoted scripture. The devil might have sounded spiritual, but he wasn't advocating anything but cheap shot sensationalism. "Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God. " He is not playing games and He has not called us to play games. This is serious business. This is about redemption. This is not just about life and death; it is about eternal life and eternal death. The stakes are high and everyone is playing for keeps.

• One More Hint: All that glitters is not gold. Just because something is flashy or someone can perform tricks and impress people, it doesn't mean that such a person or thing is from God. God can do the miraculous. Jesus, in His life would perform many miracles and would declare that we would do even greater works - but not to be sensational. God will never resort to trickery to be successful or to make us successful. He is the real thing and He calls us to be real.

• How About One More: In ministry we do not have to manipulate people into belief or surrender to the will of God. The same Holy Spirit who gave Jesus the strength, wisdom, and power to resist the devil will bring that same Word of God to the forefront of our lives to convict the world of sin, and righteousness, and judgment as He speaks through our faithful witness and consistent lifestyle. Never use manipulative methods and never fall for them.

A final word: the devil left Jesus after those three temptations - but only until an opportune time. We never know when it will be opportune for him again, so we need to be ready as Jesus was: filled with the Spirit and led by the Spirit. Then we can resist and overcome. Then, we will see our true significance affirmed, real surrender activated, and genuine success attained.

He was tempted as we are and He is with us in every temptation. Through His overcoming Spirit, we too can overcome.

Amen.

The Forty Factor

Luke 4:1-2

And Jesus being full of the Holy Ghost returned from Jordan, and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, Being forty days tempted of the devil. And in those days he did eat nothing: and when they were ended, he afterward hungered.

The Bible is full of "40"s.

There were 40 years in the wilderness for the children of Israel, 40 years reign of Saul, David and Solomon, 40 days and nights flood, and, of course 40 days fasting by Jesus in the wilderness. Forty seems to be the length of a biblical generation and a time of completeness.

For me, the age of 40 seemed to usher in middle age.

Back to the Bible:

The spies were in Canaan for 40 days.

Elijah fasted 40 days.

40 days were given to Nineveh to repent.

It seemed to take 40 days or 40 years to get much of what God purposed done in the lives of people. Today, we have Rick Warren's "40 Days of Purpose" as a propellant to spiritual growth.

After His resurrection, Jesus was with the disciples for 49 days, instructing them and fellowshipping with them in preparation for their lives of ministry and evangelism.

So, what is it about this 4o day period in Jesus' life?

1. For one thing, He deprived Himself. He set aside the natural desire and need for food to sustain His body and during that time He was tempted.

But the temptation of that time was not recorded. We already know what it was. He went into the wilderness strong and at a high spiritual moment in His life. During that time, He chose not to eat. He deprived Himself of food. We can all imagine that sort of temptation. It is the temptation to break the commitment, break the fast, rationalize it away.

After all, it is a rather extraordinary thing to do. Surely this is not required. We need food.

You can come up with your own responses. For the first two-three days, the body will inform the mind of many. It is in those days of a fast that the stomach is still used to food; it growls with discomfort and cries out to be fed.

But those were not the days of deepest temptation. He was still strong. He was still nourished. He has enough nutrients stored up to sustain Him and the voices were controllable. He could ignore the pangs. His temptation at that time was to avoid the greater temptation.

After a few days, the pangs ceased. He was still actually doing something good for His body. Periodic fasts are healthy and promote cleansing. Beyond a few days, we enter into a weakened condition. Extended fasts are not for everyone physically, but Jesus was up to the challenge. The hunger pangs ceased. He may even have felt some euphoria, even times of heightened spiritual awareness. The afterglow of His baptism must have warmed His heart. His Father was very near and He knew it. As long as He did not engage is intense physical exertion, He was OK.

Note: For more information on therapeutic fasting see Dr. Saul's web page: Doctor Yourself.

Concerning this period of deprivation, it is important to note two factors:

• He was full of the Holy Spirit. At His baptism, the Spirit of the Lord had come upon Him in an extraordinary way. He had always been the Incarnate One, but here He was walking the path of an obedient believer. In order to live and we are called to live, He had to draw from the same well that is offered us. Jesus lived the Spirit-filled life that we are called to live. The power that flowed through Him is the power that He offers us. Do not wander off into the wilderness of fasting or temptation on your own. Go in the power of the Holy Spirit.

• He was led by the Holy Spirit. He did not move on His own intuition as holy and in-tune as that was. He did not go on a whim or a challenge. He was led. You may be thinking even now about how inadequate you are compared to spiritual giants you admire. You may be convinced that the secret of their power is found in some spiritual methodology or practice. Indeed, God may use those practices in our lives, but they alone are not the secret of power. The secret is to be led by the same Spirit who fills us. His is perfect timing and perfect methodology and it is customized to individuals and groups of believers such as churches for particular times and needs. God may call you or your church to a concentrated period of fasting, spiritual seeking, or even testing for particular need or opportunity. As the Spirit leads, heed, but don't go off on your own.

The time of temptation is most often associated with the time of spiritual intensity. It is not to be taken lightly. Nor is it to be accomplished in our own strength. The forty factor here is the perfect timing of God for our deprivation and deepening. He must be in charge.

2. He was depleted. There was nothing left to give. He demanded more of Himself than would be expected. At the end of 40 days, He was hungry. The human body can generally go 30 days without food, after which the hunger returns and the body begins to feed on itself. That is starvation.

Jesus went further with this discipline. He completely emptied Himself. There were no resources left. See Philippians 2 to understand how deep was His emptying. This was beyond deprivation. Jesus was now starving.

But it was the purpose of God that he be tempted. That is why He went into the wilderness in the first place.

Otherwise, He might not have fulfilled Isaiah 53:4-6:

Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.

He faced the worst so that we can face whatever we must. Hebrews 4:10 puts it this way:

For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.

This temptation was severe because of two factors:

• His weakened condition. The hardest part was yet to come and three great temptations lay ahead of Jesus in His weakened state. They would go to the heart of His self-understanding and deepest commitments. They would appeal to His lofty goals and essential goodness. Often, temptation does not come to us wrapped in obvious garments of greed, hatred, and envy. Satan appeals to something good inside of us - Good, but not God. Jesus' condition was weakened so that it was more difficult to be wary of Satan's wiles. You may be there right now - weakened by whatever has come your way. Your only strength is God, but that is enough.

• His weary consecration. For 40 days He had prayed and fasted. There was no more spiritual high to sustain Him, no emotional charge to spring Him forward, and no physical power to hold Him upright. He was weary. All He had was His Father's Word and the Spirit's presence. Yes, that Holy Spirit who had filled Him and led Him into the wilderness was still with Him. He does not abandon us when we are weary. He is no less present when we are less enthused. Our consecration may be weary, but in such moments, it is very real as we are upheld by the power of God and nothing else. You may be depleted in Spirit, feeling that the best moments of opportunity have passed. A few days or weeks ago, you feel you could have faced this trial, but now, there is nothing left. Don't be discouraged. Everything that counts is left.

Jesus gave His best resistance to temptation when He was at His weakest and weariness. Having deprived Himself, He was now depleted. It was then that the Word and the Spirit upheld Him and we have those same resources in our lives.

3. He was done. The 4o days were ended and it was time to eat. No question about it, food was necessary. Without food, He would now die. Some of us would be desparate, He was simply done. It was at this point where the choices He would make would be matters of life and death.

Are you desperate or are you just done?

If you are desperate, you are susceptible to the devil's shortcuts and tricks. If you are merely done, you have already made a choice: Live or die, it's God all the way!

Jesus made that choice. Nothing would short circuit His mission. Nothing would compromise His commitment. Nothing would keep Him from doing what He came to do.

But He could have died.

He came to die. This was not the way He had seen it, but He was ready. It was in God's hands. So are our lives. Two things come to mind:

• The test is real. Our needs are not imaginary. Our hunger is not all in our heads. Our desperation is based upon reality. We really are done. We could die, or go bankrupt, or be crippled, or be hurt in some way. And Satan will most likely show us a way out and it will not be God's way. We need to be ready for that, make a prior decision, and be filled with the Spirit in a way that transcends good feelings. We are in for a test. Some time or another, there will be a big test in our lives, perhaps more than one. We need to be prepared. Jesus has gone before us and He has showed the way.

• The trust is even more real. Jesus entered the wilderness trusting the Father and we can trust Jesus who has gone before us. Job said, "Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him." We can trust Him to save us or take us home. He will bring us through or carry us over. Andre Crouch said it this way:

Through it all, through it all;
I've learned to trust in Jesus;
I've learned to trust in God ...

I've learned to depend upon His Word.

That is what He leaves us with, a lesson and example of absolute trust. Jesus did not know how His next meal would come, but He knew that He was in the Father's care. And so are we. So are you.

Be not dismayed.
The Father knows your needs.
Be not swayed.
It is His hand that feeds you.
When come the tests of time
And all your strength is past,
You've only begun to climb,
This is God's chosen fast.
(c) 2006, Tom Sims