Tempted and Triumphant

Matthew 4:1-11

February 17, 2002

 

With the first sign of Messianic triumph in the Spirit's descent and the Divine Voice announcing Jesus Christ's sonship at His baptism, the same Spirit immediately leads Him into the wilderness of temptation. No sooner had He been endued with the Spirit than He faced the need to rely upon the Spirit to resist temptation. Here we find the Son of God as truly man as anyone of us, buffeted by temptation but conquering at every turn. John Broadus' comments prove helpful:

Familiar as we have grown with the simple narrative, it presents one of the most wonderful, mysterious, awful scenes of the world's history. O dark and dreadful enemy, ever plotting our ruin and exulting in our woe, here thou wast completely conquered on earth, conquered by a man, and in the strength of that Spirit whose help is offered to us all [Selected Works, vol. III, 62].


The temptation to sin haunts each of us. Not a day passes without the fiery darts of the enemy assaulting us in a variety of ways. The soul of the believer anguishes at the impulse of temptation, knowing that to carry it out into sin grieves the Holy Spirit who has sealed us to the day of redemption and hinders the sweetness of our fellowship with Christ. Is there any hope for us to be delivered from temptation's snare? Our hope is found in Jesus Christ! Having suffered temptation in greater fashion than we can imagine, "He is able to come to the aid of those who are tempted" (Heb 2:18). He knows our weaknesses; He understands the pull of human desires and the fierceness of the Adversary's attacks. So Christ sympathizes with us in our weaknesses, having "been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin" (Heb 4:15). Now He comes to our aid. He has given us the Holy Spirit to strengthen us, and the Word of God to apply as the sword of the Spirit. And He has shown us how to battle temptation in the power of the Spirit by the Word of God. In the faithfulness of God, He provides "the way of escape" so that we might bear up under temptation and be delivered from its snare (I Cor 10:13).

 

So in the temptation of Christ we see the reality of temptation, the triumph of Christ, the defeat of the Adversary, and the example for all who follow Christ in times of temptation. Our Lord's temptation is both triumphant and instructive, and remains an assurance that the Lord knows how to deliver the godly from temptation (II Pet 2:9). How do we apply Christ's temptation to our own lives? I believe that we can see this as we study the temptation of Jesus Christ.

 

I. Considerations in Christ's temptation

 

What was happening in the temptation? This is one of the most amazing scenes we find in the Gospels. Matthew and Luke give details on it, while Mark mentions it right after describing Christ's baptism. The Gospel writers do this so that we might understand the humanity of Jesus Christ. "God cannot be tempted by evil" (Jas 1:13). Yet the God-Man, Jesus Christ was tempted. Paul explains that Christ "emptied Himself" or as J. B. Phillips translates it, Jesus "did not cling to his prerogatives as God's equal, but stripped himself of all privilege by consenting to be a slave by nature and being born as mortal man" (The New Testament in Modern English, Phil 2:6-7). And so as mortal man He faced temptation. The human nature is subject to being tempted-a reality that goes part and parcel with human personality. Broadus explains, "It gave proof of his true humanity, proof that he possessed a real human soul" [62]. As we look at the temptation of Christ we discover three considerations.

 

1. Temptation is real

 

We must not think that Jesus was insulated from temptation as though He did not feel its effects. He did! And it was heightened by His physical weakness through His 40-day fast. "Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And after He had fasted forty days and forty nights, He then became hungry." Matthew's record seems to imply that the temptation began after the fast, while Luke and Mark both imply that the whole period of fasting was also a time of temptation. I think that we can distinguish the difference in terms of the intensity displayed in the three temptations recorded for us. These temptations came after the fast, perhaps preceded with a variety of other temptations (Mark 1:13; Luke 4:2).

 

The devil is called "the tempter," for such a term describes his constant activity. The word "tempted" can be translated as "tempt" or as "test." The first is an enticement to evil, while the second serves to reveal contents of character. I do not think that we must ply these differences too strongly when looking at the temptation of our Lord. The devil's intent was to entice Jesus Christ to evil. He wanted the Incarnate Son to fall prey to sin, to be conquered by sin. So he tempted the Lord with all the force and wit he could muster. But we must not think that the temptation of Christ had no divine purpose, for we are told, "Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil." The Holy Spirit directed the Man-Christ Jesus. It was God's plan that this happen so that He might reveal to His Son the deeper dimensions of His Sonship and His Messianic purpose. Christ's public acceptance of His divine sonship at His baptism did not mean that life would be easy. The temptation showed that there would be a heavy price to pay to redeem God's people from their sins, and to conquer the power of the devil. The first Adam failed at exposure to temptation. The Second Adam triumphed! Just as temptation was real for Adam, it was real for Jesus Christ.

 

2. Satan is shrewd

 

We are reminded of the devil's shrewdness in temptation as we consider this narrative from the life of Christ. The devil came with flattery not blazing guns. His methodology comes by way of trickery, deceit, and often stealth. Just as Absalom stole away the hearts of the men of Israel to usurp David's kingdom, so the devil steals away our affections through his sophistry. Notice that in the first two temptations, both begin with a similar phrase before he casts off his restraints in the third temptation: "If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.... If you are the Son of God, throw Yourself down." The "if" reveals that these are conditional sentences. Most scholars believe that the "if" is more of an affirmation than a question, translating it, "Since You are the Son of God, command these stones become bread." In other words, the temptation runs something like this. Since You are God's Son, then You have certain rights that You ought to claim. Here are some stones, turn them into bread. You have the power to do it as God, and You have the right since You are hungry.

 

The shrewdness is seen in appealing to Christ at the point of a great need. Christ needed bread. He had been forty days without food and was hungry. But the devil's appeal was not, "Our Father who art in heaven, ...give us this day our daily bread." Rather, it was to take matters into His own hands apart from dependence upon and obedience to the Father. It was the subtlety of lunging to meet a pressing need without a dependence upon the Father.

 

The same shrewdness came in the second temptation for Christ to prove Himself to the people awaiting the Messiah. God is going to take care of You, the devil pressed by even quoting from Psalm 91. You will not fall out of the Father's care; You are privileged and can count on heaven's help.

 

The third temptation called for a pragmatic seizure of all the world's kingdoms. They belonged to Christ by Messianic promise, so why not go ahead and take the shortcut to success? It was the ultimate example of pragmatism, the end justifying the means. As long as Christ arrives as King over the world's kingdoms, what does it matter how He got there?

 

Here is the Adversary's shrewdness displayed even toward us. (1) Satisfy your needs and desires; you have the right and the freedom as a Christian, so grab what you desire. (2) God is going to take care of you; you believe 'once saved always saved', so prove it by living the way you want to live; do what you want to do without fear since God is there for you. (3) There are different roads to success; as long as you achieve what you want it does not matter how you get it. We must beware the Adversary's shrewdness.

 

3. Triumph is exemplified

 

The Gospel's emphasis is upon Christ facing this time of temptation as a man. Humanity confronted the Adversary in all his shrewdness and conquered. Adam did not do it but Jesus Christ did! That is why the Lord could demand of Satan, "Go, Satan!" or 'be gone, Satan!'

 

Not only did Jesus Christ triumph over the devil's temptations, but also because He triumphed-and ultimately conquered him at the cross-we can triumph when facing temptation. That is the underlying message that shouts from this text. It does emphasize the sinlessness of Christ, His real humanity, His human soul that felt the effects of temptation, but it also proves Christ to be the example for us in time of temptation. He has given to us the same resources He utilized in dealing with temptation: dependence upon the Holy Spirit and the everlasting authority of the Word of God. But let us consider this in more detail by seeing the extent of Christ's temptation.

 

II. Extent of Christ's temptation

 

We must not forget that Jesus Christ learned through suffering temptation. He was a man-a real human being. He learned, grew, and developed just as we do. His messianic role was sharpened by temptation as He relied upon the Spirit's power and applied faithfully the Word of God to the needs He faced. So what happened in His temptations?

 

1. Test rights of sonship

 

The first temptation appealed to Jesus to secure His rights. "And the tempter came and said to Him, 'If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread'." Hungry and in need of food would seem to legitimize any action to provide that needed bread. And since Jesus is the Son of God, then not only did He have the right to whatever He needed but He also had the power to provide it! That was the Adversary's temptation: use Your power of sonship to supply Your need.

 

Four important issues surface in Christ's response: "But He answered and said, 'It is written, 'Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God'." First, the hunger came at the pleasure of the Father. Jesus was abiding in the will of the Father, and obedience to the Father took precedence over supplying a physical need. Second, physical (or emotional) needs must never dominate our lives. We are spiritual beings foremost. The hedonistic mindset of our day ignores the spiritual in favor of the physical. Jesus did not ignore the physical. It was very real to Him. He needed bread (or food) but it could not satisfy Him in an ultimate sense. Satan's temptation is to ignore or neglect that which is most important to satisfy one's temporal desires. Third, Jesus refused to use His miraculous power in a self-serving way. He could have turned the stones into bread just as God could turn stones around the Jordan River into children (3:9), but that would have been using His "sonship in a way inconsistent with his God-ordained mission" [D. A. Carson, EBC: Matthew, vol. I, 113]. Fourth, Jesus testifies to the preeminence of the Word of God. "It is written," translates a perfect passive verb meaning, 'It stands written'. It points to the unchanging, eternal nature of the Word of God. Needs and wants and desires come and go, but the Word of God remains the same for it is breathed out by God (II Tim 3:16-17). The deepest, most abiding satisfaction for the soul of man is found in the "living, abiding" Word of God (Heb 4:12-13).

 

2. Test privileges of sonship

 

The second test is again affirming sonship and seeking to tempt Christ to act within the scope of His power but in a way not prescribed by God. The devil resorts to using Scripture! And he even affirms its inviolability, "for it is written," or 'it stands written and it will not change'. "Then the devil took Him into the holy city and had Him stand on the pinnacle of the temple, and said 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 strike Your foot against a stone'." He appeals to the special privilege of Sonship, that Christ was special to God and that all of heaven willingly waits upon Him. And what a grand display of divinity by jumping from the pinnacle of the temple and cruising down for a soft landing on angels' wings! See, the devil even uses Scripture to prove his point! Quoting from Psalm 91, a psalm of great comfort to God's people, the devil carefully excises it from its context to comfort the believer, to present it as a legitimate ground for testing God's faithfulness toward Christ the Son. Jesus would be able to hasten Jerusalem's response toward Him if they saw Him jump from the pinnacle of the temple.

 

Jesus' response gives us several critical insights on dealing with temptation and walking with God. "Jesus said to him, 'On the other hand, it is written, "You shall not put the Lord Your God to the test"'." Again, Jesus affirms the eternal trustworthiness of Scripture by His response to the devil. This time there is a different verb and tense for "said" (Greek ephe-an imperfect tense, showing continuous action in the past tense). It suggests that Jesus not only said this to the devil once, but maybe did it repeatedly. What do we discover in this statement?

 

First, Scripture will not contradict Scripture. So any interpretation that puts the Word of God at odds with itself is an illegitimate interpretation. There is a clear rule of interpretation: interpret Scripture by Scripture. The 1689 London Baptist Confession explains it like this:

It is an infallible rule that Scripture it to be interpreted by Scripture, that is to say, one part by another. Hence any dispute as to the true, full and evident meaning of a particular passage must be determined in the light of clearer, comparable passages (Acts 15:15, 16; 2 Pet 1:20-21) [chap. 1, no. 9].


The devil did not mind in the least picking out a great text and giving it an improper meaning, so our Lord demonstrated for us the proper use of Scripture. We cannot give it a meaning outside that which God intended without abusing the Word. Second, God must not be presumed upon for to do so demonstrates an attempt at manipulating God. To jump from the pinnacle of the temple in anticipation of an angelic rescue, based upon an out-of-context promise would be manipulative! God did not command such a test of His care. Neither does He respond to the "name-it-claim-it" method of Scripture abuse. God will not be manipulated by our feigned spirituality! Third, Jesus took the road to obedience, not the spectacular road of signs and wonders. I am all for our abandoning ourselves to God, and living in dependence upon Him. But if we take presumptuous action as though we are legitimizing God's existence or proving God's special favor of us, then we are falling prey to the second temptation. God does not need to prove His care of us by our doing something foolish to see if God will come through; He has already stated His care in His Word.

 

3. Test purpose of sonship

 

The next test demonstrates that the devil had some grasp of Christ's ultimate purpose. He had read the second Psalm concerning the reign of Christ over the kingdoms of the world. But his application of this was to the neglect of the other messianic texts that speak of the Christ's sufferings in order to reign (e.g., Isa 53, Psa 22). "Again, the devil took Him to a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory." What mountain this was, we are not told. It was likely a high peak that was expanded in a visionary way to see the world's kingdoms. "And he said to Him, 'All these things I will give You, if You will fall down and worship me'." Now the devil exposed his real desire: the worship of the Son! He goes about it by pointing out the legitimate reign of the Messiah as promised in Psalm 2. 'Why endure needs like the rest of humanity? Why go through suffering when You can reach Your goal quickly by worshiping me?'

 

Was it within the scope of the devil to give the kingdoms of the world to Christ? I do not think so, since "the earth is the Lord's, and all it contains, the world, and those who dwell in it" (Ps 24:1). But that is almost beside the point to the devil. He is not dealing in truth or legitimacy-and we must get that clearly in our minds. "He is a liar and the father of lies," Jesus tells us (John 8:44). He gladly exaggerates his power and authority in order to achieve his goal-the subjection of anyone in worshiping him and rejecting the rule of God over their lives.

 

But Jesus Christ refuses to achieve the right goal through the wrong means. The end does not justify the means. Jesus Christ was not a pragmatist who simply wanted to do what worked to achieve His goals. He was faithful as a Son over the household of God, doing all that the Father demanded. His response makes this clear. "Then Jesus said to him, 'Go, Satan! For it is written, "You shall worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only"'." Notice (1) to worship anyone or anything other than God is idolatry. Our chief reason for existence is to worship and serve the Lord, and Him alone. We can gauge whether or not an issue is a temptation by whether it concords with the worship and service of God, or whether it is self-serving. (2) There is no shortcut to the divine will, no expedience in the messianic mission. Justification does not jump to glorification. Sanctification lies between the beginning and the end. The pathway of sanctification involves trials, suffering, chastening, reproof, discipline, and obedience. The devil ever tempts us to shortcut the way of sanctification for an easier road. (Think of the vivid imagery John Bunyan uses in Pilgrim's Progress to describe this!) (3) The devil's way avoids the cross. Anything that avoids the necessity of the cross of Christ or the application of the cross in death to self, is surely a temptation and snare of the devil, and must be avoided. But how did Christ deal with these temptations?

 

III. Pattern in Christ's temptation

 

Here is where the temptation of Jesus Christ becomes the pattern for every believer.

 

1. Pathway of desire

 

The first thing we notice is that temptations normally come along the pathway of normal desires. God has given us desires for food, shelter, affection, and relationships. There's nothing wrong with desires. The problem is fulfilling desires in ways God forbids. Jesus was hungry and desired food. Jesus was on a mission and desired to be received by Israel. Jesus had a goal and wanted to reign over the world as God promised. Every temptation was an attack on obedience and faithfulness. Our desires are not the ultimate arbiter of God's will. Instead, we find Jesus resorting to the Word of God, quoting from Deuteronomy 6-8, to demonstrate that what God has commanded takes precedence over any desire or goal we might have. We can recognize temptations by their attempt to elevate one's desires above what God has commanded.

 

This means that when God has spoken on an issue, you do not need to pray about whether or not to do it! God has spoken! It is final, and never up for grabs. I am amazed at how often people excuse gross disobedience by saying, "Well, I prayed about this and I believe this is what God wants me to do," even though it is directly contrary to the teaching of Scripture. God never approves disobedience to His Word.

 

2. Dependence on the Spirit

 

Our Lord learned to depend upon the Holy Spirit in the face of temptation. He was able to defy temptations, knowing that having been "led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil," He would be sustained and enabled by the same Holy Spirit in the process. This is no less true for us. The Spirit comes to our aid to "put to death the deeds of the body," to lead us in the ways of God, and to testify to our sonship so that we might be strengthened against the enemy (Rom 8:12-17). Moreover, He enables us to wield the Word of God as a sword against the Adversary's attacks (Eph 6:17).

 

3. Application of the Word

 

The most notable element of our Lord's response to temptation is His use of the Word of God. Several things are clear. First, He used the Word of God legitimately. He did not take it out of context or use as a mere proof-text. The passages quoted from Deuteronomy 6-8 have as their background the temptations of Israel in the wilderness. They were passages that fit the situation perfectly. Second, Jesus Christ believed in the infallibility and inerrancy of Holy Scripture. The formula He used, "it is written," utilizes a perfect passive verb, showing that the truth of God's Word has been written and it stands forever. If you do not believe that what God has spoken stands forever, then you dare not attempt to wield it against the Adversary in time of temptation. Third, Jesus Christ knew the Word of God. He had studied it, learned its context, memorized it, and applied it to His own life. The Son of God did this! How much more so should we devote ourselves to the Word of God! You will not be able to use the truth of the Word that you do not know. Get it in your heart and mind. Read it daily. Study the Word. Meditate upon the Word. Memorize it. And apply it constantly in your life. The devil cannot stand up to the eternal Word of God applied correctly. The Spirit will readily enable you to use the Sword of the Spirit-the Word of God.

 

Conclusion

 

When you next face temptations, remember that Jesus Christ was also tempted. He firmly resolved to obey the Father. He depended upon the Holy Spirit for strength to face temptation. And He carefully applied the Word of God to the tempter's challenge. That is our pattern. Let us go forth and do likewise in following our Lord.

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