Three
BIG Temptations
Temptation# 1. The Temptation Of Legitimate
Needs
How does temptation come? Sometimes, with
lots of warning and time to think, we may succumb or resist after much
deliberation. At other times, temptation presents itself in a few moments, and
we react, making a quick decision to follow or flee from wrong desires.
Sudden temptation was what one man
experienced when he walked into a suburban Chicago Walgreens in June of 2011.
According to the Chicago Tribune, a security video shows him walking up to
an ATM in the store, setting his drink down, and doing his banking. He then
leaned over and picked up his drink and did a double-take at what he saw on the
floor. There was a bag with a Chase Bank logo, filled with cash and checks.
According to the Tribune, the security video shows that "he pauses
for a moment, his eyes riveted to the floor. Then he takes a long look around,
picks something up, and slips out the door."
The man got in his car with the money and
drove away. The bag contained over $17,000. By the time he had driven to his
home suburb, some 45 minutes away, he had time to weigh his decision further,
and, realizing he had probably been captured on video, he decided to turn the
money in to the bank, according to the Tribune. Unfortunately, he also
decided to lie about where he found the money. He walked into a Chase bank in
Rolling Meadows and said he had found the money at a mall in Rolling Meadows.
The story hit the newspapers. Writer Burt
Constable says that the man was featured in newspapers around the world, gave
interviews to radio and TV stations, was hailed as a hero on websites, received
a gift basket and small gifts from strangers, was the object of romantic
inquiries, was repeatedly asked about a reward, and even drew high praise from
a nun for being so honest.
The Rolling Meadows police weren't so sure.
It didn't take long to learn where the money had actually come from, and the
FBI was brought in to aid in the investigation. A few weeks later, the police
confronted the man with the truth, and he confessed to what had happened. He
was fined $500 for filing a false police report. Far worse, no doubt, was the
embarrassment he suffered as the real story also hit the newspapers.
After the truth came out, he admitted in an
interview, "I did have that thought in my mind (upon finding the
money): Yes, I could do a lot with that. I considered that to be the
human reaction to seeing a large sum of money in front of me."[1]
Free money can be very tempting to anyone. If
someone offers you one million dollars for an exchange of your integrity and
good reputation, what would you choose? We are all given the power to make the right
choices. How are we using it? We are continuing our study of the Gospel of
Matthew. We will explore the three BIG Temptations that Jesus faced in the
desert before beginning His ministry and how He overcame them. Matthew 4:1-11.
I. The difference between Testing &
Temptation and their Origin.
Biblically, there is a fundamental difference
between testing and temptation. Testing is a process used to prove someone's
progress. In contrast, temptation is an
enticement, an inner pull, an entanglement, or an invitation to sin and disobey
God's will. God tests us to find out what is in our hearts, whereas Satan
tempts us to sin against God, ourselves, and others.
Where do most temptations come from? There
are two avenues by which we are tempted: One from Satan, who is also known as
the tempter, and our sinful self. Paul calls Satan the god of this world. II
Cor 4:4, "The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so
that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ,
who is the image of God."
Jesus described Satan's true nature
and intentions. John 8:44, "You belong to your Father, the devil, and you
want to carry out your Father's desires. He was a murderer from the beginning,
not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks
his native language, for he is a liar and the Father of lies. If someone is a
perpetual liar, you can easily tell who is influencing them. By nature, Satan
is evil; so all evil originates from him.
There is another avenue we are tempted
by: our own selfish desires. James 1:13-15, "When tempted, no one should
say, 'God is tempting me." For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he
tempt anyone; but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their
own evil desire and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth
to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death." We sin because
of our selfish desires and lack of self-control.
Temptation in itself is not sin, but
yielding to it is. The enemy may tempt you, but cannot force or make you sin. Heb
4:15, "For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with
our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we
are—yet he did not sin." Let's see
which weapon Jesus used to overcome the devil's temptations.
II. The Temptation of the Lust Of the Flesh
(Matthew 4:1-4)
Matthew 4:1-4, "Then Jesus was led by
the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. After fasting forty
days and forty nights, he was hungry. The tempter came to him and said,
"If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread." Jesus
answered, "It is written: 'Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every
word that comes from the mouth of God."
If you are a serious Bible student, you may wonder
why Jesus needed to be led by the Holy Spirit into the desert to be tempted by
the devil. Is this how God always orchestrates temptations, or was Jesus'
situation exceptional? God allows His followers to be tested, as He did with
Job in the OT, for a good purpose. Jesus was led into the desert by the Spirit
to be tempted to demonstrate how we can resist the temptation to sin, and how we,
too, can overcome
Many Bible scholars suggest that the specific
temptations Jesus faced in the wilderness represent three main categories of
all human temptation. The apostle John labeled these as "the lust of the
flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life" (1 John 2:16). The
first temptation is the lust of the flesh; the devil tempted Jesus by appealing
to His legitimate need for food. The tempter, another name of Satan, challenged
Jesus's Sonship and suggested that he would turn the desert rocks into bread
and satisfy his hunger. What is wrong with that challenge and suggestion?
III. Jesus' Sonship was being Challenged!
The premise of Satan saying, "If you are
the Son of God was faulty. Satan knows that Jesus indeed is the Son of God. By
challenging his identity, Satan was trying to make Jesus doubt who he really
is. But Jesus was secure in his identity. God the Father affirmed him at the
baptism, saying, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased."
Mat 3:17. What a powerful affirmation of love and acceptance from God the Father
to Jesus, which came before Jesus did any ministry, facing the devil
face-to-face or the crucifixion.
Similarly, the devil could make us doubt
whether God truly loves us and that we are His sons and daughters. The truth of
the matter is that God loves us regardless of whether we have done anything for
Him. He gives us the right to become his sons and daughters because we believe
in His Son. If the devil tells us anything different, it is a lie, and we must
reject it.
IV. The devil can tempt us through our
legitimate needs.
Have you ever fasted a full day without food?
How hungry would you be by the end of the day? Now imagine Jesus fasting for
forty days and nights, how ravenously hungry He must have been? Jesus was legitimately
hungry, and the devil suggested an illegitimate way to satisfy that need by
turning the stones into bread. How often have we turned stones into bread to
satisfy hunger? That doesn't work that way, right? Jesus knew who He must
listen to and follow!
So, He rejected Satan's appeal by speaking
the truth from the Scriptures. Jesus answered the devil, saying, "It is written
Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth
of God." Satan pursued Jesus to listen to him, but Jesus was determined to
do His Father's will alone. The truth of this scripture is that the survival of
humanity depends on physical bread and also God's Word. No doubt that God would
have us work hard for our bread and butter, but we must never forget God, who
is the true source of our strength and wisdom.
Whoever you are, we all have legitimate needs
for food, sleep, sex, clothing, and shelter. God would have us meet those needs
in the right way. They can be hard, but in the end, they are good for us. On
the other hand, the devil could offer many illegitimate ways to meet those needs,
such as stealing, corruption, gambling, selling drugs, human trafficking, cheating,
etc.
They may be easy and appealing ways to make
money, but in the end, they affect relationships, rob us of joy and health, and
damage our reputation. So, who and what is our defense against the devil's evil
schemes? It is God and the Sword of the Spirit, His Word!
[1] "Video
Doesn't Lie," Chicago Tribune (7-1-11); Burt Constable, "Arlington
Hts. man hailed for honesty charged with lying to cops," Daily Herald
(6-30-11)
