Temptation

Well, good morning everyone and let me add my welcome to Graham's. My name is Alistair.

I have the privilege of being the Assistant Pastor of Brunsfield Evangelical Church

and the privilege of walking us through a wonderful passage of Scripture this morning.

But before we turn to God's Word, let's bow our heads and pray together.

Heavenly Father, we thank you for the age in which we live where you've given us the technology

to make this service possible, where we can get the Word of God into people's houses

despite social isolation and despite distancing.

Father, we pray that as we turn to your Word this morning, that you would still our hearts.

And Father, we pray that the words of my mouth and the meditations of all of our hearts

would be pleasing to you, our Rock and our Redeemer.

In Jesus' name, we pray these things. Amen.

How do you respond to temptation?

I recently saw a social experiment video where children were in a room

and on a table in front of them was a bar of chocolate.

And they were instructed not to touch the bar of chocolate just for 10 more minutes.

And if they did, they would receive an additional bar of chocolate to eat.

10 minutes of restraint.

10 minutes of minor temptation.

11 minutes of vacation.

12 minutes of invitation.

14 minutes of abortion.

14 minutes of temptation.

15 minutes of meditation.

16 minutes of meditation.

16 minutes of temptation.

But the majority of children didn't last and just died straight in to the chocolate bar.

Now, why?

Well, because we can't last long in our own strength in the face of temptation.

now it's all good and well to watch those funny videos and laugh but

on a more serious note every single one of us faces temptation every single day don't we

it could be that we're tempted during this time of uncertainty surrounding the coronavirus

to get caught up in the the gossip and the bad news and to spiral into a pit of despair

instead of focusing on our great God who is unchanging who is faithful and who is loving

or maybe we're tempted to ignore everything the government and medical experts are telling us

and instead we start speaking badly and thinking badly of those God has put over us

at our own risk and to the risk of others or maybe it's once you've reached day three of your isolation

you might be tempted to lose your temper your fuse gets just that little bit shorter

you lash out at the children because they aren't listening or if you're a child maybe you're tempted

to annoy your parents a little bit more just for some fun we are surrounded by temptation day to day

and it isn't always the most obvious things in the world either it could be that hidden sin that no one

knows about but that eats you up from the inside out every single time and you just can't stop

temptation is all around and we fight it every single day and the passage we're going to look at this

morning is all about temptation but it's not about our temptation it's about the temptation of our Lord

Jesus Christ and the reality is that the opposite of temptation for the Christian is obedience to God

so if you're obeying God in a specific with a specific thing or in a specific area

you can't then be tempted at the same time with that thing obedience is key to temptation

temptation this morning we will see how Jesus too faced the most severe temptations

but most importantly we will see how Jesus stood firm in his perfect obedience to the will of his father

temptation is all around us and we so easily succumb to it

this is part of our fallen nature part of the sin that has dwelt in the hearts of mankind since

Genesis 3 but this morning we're going to see why it is so important that Jesus was tempted

how his temptation can help us and most importantly why it is so important that though he was tempted

he remained sinless so turn with me if you will to Luke chapter 4 and we'll start reading

Luke 4 · chapter mention

at verse 1 through to verse 13 Luke chapter 4 verse 1 says this

Luke 4:1

Jesus full of the Holy Spirit left the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness

where for 40 days he was tempted by the devil he ate nothing during those days and at the end

of them he was hungry the devil said to him if you were the son of God

tell this stone to become bread

Jesus answered it is written man shall not live on bread alone

the devil led him up to a high place and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world

and he said to him I will give you all their authority and splendor it has been given to me

and I can give it to anyone I want to if you worship me it will all be yours

Jesus answered it is written worship the Lord your God and serve him only

the devil led him to Jerusalem and had him stand on the highest point of the temple

if you are the son of God he said throw yourself down from here

for it is written he will command his angels concerning you to guard you carefully

they will lift you up in their hands so that you will not strike your foot against a stone

Jesus answered it is said do not put the Lord your God to the test

when the devil had finished all this tempting he left him until an opportune time

that is the Lord's word

now there are two things that we need to be sure of as we come to a passage like this

we need to see that this temptation is ordained by God

but it is not God who tempts Jesus

so look with me at verse 1

it says Jesus full of the Holy Spirit left the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness

Satan is the one trying to entice Jesus to sin

Satan is the voice trying to sow doubt and disobedience in Jesus' mind

God is not doing the tempting but God has taken Jesus to the place where he will be tempted

remember how in the book of Genesis that we've been studying together

we were thinking about how Adam was tempted and yet he failed

well Jesus in the New Testament is described as the second Adam

therefore the temptation of Jesus is important because all of it is God's will

God's will was for Jesus to be tempted

but not be overcome by it

he is the second Adam who came to save us from the sin

which originated with Adam and Eve in Genesis chapter 3

Genesis 3 · chapter mention

and the second thing that we need to remember is that Jesus is both fully God and fully man

this passage is not here so that we can know how to face our temptations today

but this passage is here to show us the perfect obedience of the Son of God

in this passage Jesus God in the flesh is tempted

and his allegiance to God the Father

and his obedience to the will of the Father is put to the test

but he did what we never could

he remained obedient

this is an important message

because if Jesus did not stand firm

in his obedience to the will of the Father

then forgiveness through the death of Jesus

would not be possible for anyone today

if Jesus would have sinned

then he could not be our great high priest

or the sacrificial lamb

who takes away the sins of the world

so please keep Luke chapter 4 open in front of you

Luke 4 · chapter mention

and follow along with me in the passage

as we see Jesus' perfect obedience to the Father

so the first temptation that we see is in verse 3

Jesus has just been baptized in the river Jordan

in that wonderful scene

where he identifies with mankind

and God identifies Jesus as his Son

so if you look over the page with me

to Luke chapter 3 verse 22

Luke 3:22

God speaks and says about Jesus

you are my Son

with whom I love

with you I am well pleased

and it's from there

that Jesus was led by the Spirit of God

into the wilderness

where he fasted for 40 days

can you imagine

how hungry

and weak Jesus was at this point

we have no idea

the kind of hunger that Jesus must have felt

he hasn't just

skipped breakfast

or skipped lunch

so that his tummy would be rumbling a little bit

he would be absolutely starving

because no food has passed his lips

for just under six weeks

and so Satan takes the opportunity

and comes in in verse 3

and tempts Jesus by saying

if you are the Son of God

tell this stone to become bread

if you're anything like me

then you're already hungry after a few hours

never mind 40 days

and if I was in Jesus' position

I wouldn't be tempted

to turn a few stones into bread

I'd be tempted to turn them

into a whole bakery

at first glance

verse of verse 3

we can think that Satan

is trying to sow doubt

in Jesus' mind

of his identity

it seems that Satan

is contradicting

what God has just said

in chapter 3

Satan says

if you are the Son of God

but a more accurate translation

of the word if

would actually be since

and so the verse reads

since you are the Son of God

Satan is saying

Jesus you are the Son of God

you have rights

you don't need to go hungry

you have every right

to change these stones into bread

and look after yourself

so if temptation

is the appeal to do something

that's morally wrong

what's so wrong

about Jesus

turning rocks into bread

later on in his ministry

he would multiply bread

and feed thousands of people

but it's the heart behind it

that would be wrong

Satan isn't saying this

out of a genuine concern

for Jesus

he is tempting Jesus

with the subtle message

Jesus you can do it yourself

forget about God

for a second

you don't need God the Father

you can do it yourself

now we're not Jesus

and we're not going to be tempted

to turn stones to bread

because that's impossible for us

yet aren't we tempted

to rely on our own strengths

or to think that as Christians

as children of God

that we should be free

from the pains

and struggles

of this life

sin and temptation

are constantly pulling

at our thoughts

constantly trying

to distract us

with the desires

of the flesh

constantly trying

to draw our attention

away from God

from his goodness

from his plan

and instead focus

on ourselves

focus on our own means

we're tempted to think

that we can do it

on our own

to rely on our jobs

our money

our influence

our social standing

we're tempted

to rely on everything else

in this world

but God

but the reality is

that we are called

to live in accordance

with the word of God

to submit to

and obey the Father

so Satan was trying

to trip Jesus up

and get him

to disobey the Father

he wanted Jesus

to take matters

into his own hands

but thankfully

Jesus stood firm

and he responds

to Satan

in verse 4

read with me

it is written

man shall not live

on bread alone

now do you see

how Jesus

doesn't just say

no and walk away

but he resists

the temptation

by quoting

from God's word

and he does the same

in all three temptations

Jesus quotes here

from Deuteronomy 8

Deuteronomy 8:3

verse 3

which recounts

the time

when Israel

was wandering

in the wilderness

for 40 years

Israel's time

of testing

during those years

how did the Israelites

have food

well the Lord

miraculously

and wonderfully

provided for his people

the Israelites

didn't plant crops

they didn't provide

for themselves

they needed to trust

in the Lord God

to trust in his provision

because if God

didn't provide

then

they were doomed

to die

of hunger

in the wilderness

so Jesus here

is saying

God is good

God is faithful

God will provide

history proves it

the Lord continues

to provide

physically

for his people

but he also

provides spiritually

through his word

Satan's goal

is to distract

Jesus

from his God

ordained task

on earth

but Jesus resists

by quoting scripture

and trusting

in God

even when

he is weak

and hungry

now it's important

to note

that even now

in the midst

of this temptation

Jesus is fulfilling

the will of God

remember

verse 1

it was

the spirit of God

who led Jesus

into the wilderness

friends

we need to know

this

we need to know

that we can be

walking in the

perfect will

of God

walking obediently

and trials

and temptations

will still come

our way

even in those

times

we are not

immune to the

attempts of Satan

to draw our

attention away

from God

and the goodness

of the gospel

and yet

we know

that he is a

defeated

foe

and standing

with us

in our deepest

in our darkest

times of temptations

is the Lord

Jesus Christ

who through

his spirit

enables us

to deny

ourselves

and follow

him

obediently

Satan

will try

to sow

seeds

of lies

in your

minds

getting you

to question

God's goodness

God's provision

getting you

to doubt

God's good

will

and getting

you to rely

on your own

means

but they're

all lies

God

from the

very beginning

of time

has proven

himself

to be

faithful

trustworthy

dependable

God

provided

miraculously

for his

rebellious

people

in the

wilderness

for 40

years

and today

we know

that God

provides

because he

has given

us the

greatest

provision

of all

by sending

his son

to deal

with the

effect of

Genesis

Genesis 3 · chapter mention

chapter 3

Satan

said to

Adam and

Eve

take and

eat

and sin

entered the

world

through their

rebellion

Satan

said to

Jesus

take and

eat

and yet

he stood

firm

trusting

in our

heavenly

father

but he

did go

on to

taste

poverty

and death

so that

those words

take and

eat

have now

become

symbols

of our

great

salvation

through

his

death

and

through

his

resurrection

Jesus

is the

second

Adam

who

stood

firm

in the

face

of

temptation

that

is why

the

author

of

Hebrews

can

say

in

Hebrews

Hebrews 4:14–15

chapter

4

verses

14

to

15

forward

Jesus the son of God let us hold fast our confession for we do not have a high priest

who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses but one who is able one who in every respect

has been tempted as we are yet without sin friends when you are tempted take courage in the fact that

your Lord and Savior Jesus Christ knows your struggle he has walked the path before you

and he promises to be with you the second temptation is in verses 5 to 7 it says this

follow along with me the devil led him up to a high place and showed him in an instant all the

kingdoms of the world and he said to him I will give you all their authority and splendor it has

been given to me so I and I can give it to anyone I want to Satan is tempting Jesus with power and

authority and shows him all of the kingdoms of the world and offers all of their power and influence

to him so you can imagine the scene Jesus can see all of the ancient equivalents of Washington DC

New York London Brussels Tokyo Beijing Sydney Paris and all the other influential cities in our world today

laid out before Jesus and Satan stands there with a grin on his face and says it's all yours Jesus

it's all yours for the taking but there's a catch verse 7 Satan says if you worship me

it will all be yours do you see Satan's devious plan he's trying to get the son of God the creator and

sustainer of this world to bow down and worship him a created being Satan the lesser one is wanting

Jesus to bow down to him but is this really something that Satan can offer Jesus has it all really been given

to Satan we're tempted to think that is the case when we read passages like Ephesians chapter 2 verse 2

Ephesians 2:2

where Satan's described as the prince of the power of the air or passages like 1st John 5 19

that the whole world lies in the power of the evil one but the reality is that Satan's at it again

telling half truth sowing deceit and lies because there are plenty of passages in scripture that say that

everything belongs to God he is the one who is in control for example just a few you've got Genesis chapter 3

Genesis 3 · chapter mention

Ephesians 1 Colossians 2 there are plenty plenty more but Psalm 24 summarizes it so wonderfully

the earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof the world and all those who dwell therein for he has

founded it upon the seas and established it upon the rivers Satan is spewing empty promises

he could not follow through on what he's offering and so we might look at this and think well this really

isn't a temptation at all is it Jesus being the son of God knows that everything belongs to God and so

why would he even entertain this idea but this temptation is even greater than the first

because Satan is tempting Jesus to have all the power all the authority that he deserves and is rightfully his

without going to the cross

Satan is saying Jesus you can have it all

everything is at your fingertips without the pain

without the suffering without the rejection and rebellion

you can have it all without dying

if you bow down and worship me

Satan is offering Jesus a way out

a path that doesn't lead to the cross a path

that doesn't lead to him dying as an atoning sacrifice

for the sins of the Lord's people Satan is offering Jesus an easy life

and if we understand that then aren't we even more thankful that Jesus resisted temptation

and didn't succumb to it because of his perfect obedience

not only do we have a high priest who understands our struggles with temptation

but we have a great high priest who deliberately went to the cross

suffered was stricken smitten and afflicted

so the sinful people like you and like me can be saved and brought back to God

so Jesus responds to Satan's attempts in verse 8 read with me

it is written Jesus said worship the Lord your God and serve him only

Jesus is quoting from Deuteronomy chapter 6 verse 13

Deuteronomy 6:13

a passage that speaks about the greatest commandment for the Lord's people to follow

and yet a commandment that we fail to follow every single day

but Jesus in his perfect obedience

is able to resist the temptation to bow down and worship a created being

now we're never going to be in this same position as Jesus

to be tempted to bow down in order to gain power

and authority of the whole world

it's just not going to happen

but aren't we tempted to forsake God

and worship other things all the time

it's so easy for us as Christians to take our eyes off of God

and stop worshipping him and instead turn to material things

lesser things, meaningless things

we turn to money, fame, popularity, relationships, jobs, comfort

good things in and of themselves

but terrible things to worship

John Calvin, a pastor and theologian from many years ago

said that the human heart is an idol factory

and we all know that to be true in our own lives, don't we?

we are just as tempted to take the path that leads to comfort

the path that leads to us being liked by everybody

instead of standing firm in the truth of scripture

and holding fast to our convictions

friends, Jesus has not called you to comfort

but he has called you to pick up your cross

and follow him daily

as Christians we will be mocked

we will be tempted, we will be persecuted

and we will suffer

but let me encourage you that the eternal weight of glory

that awaits those who persevere

far, far outweighs any struggles that we face here on earth

when you're tempted to take the easy way out

remember

that Jesus in perfect obedience

chose the path which led to suffering and pain

but the path that brought about our redemption

the path that meant we went from being in darkness and death

to being alive and in light

therefore

we can stand firm

because he has gone before us

because of the perfect obedience of the son of God

to the will of the father

we have a high priest

who has been tempted in every way we have

and yet is without sin

which means that he is the sacrificial lamb

to take away the sins of the world

Jesus, thank you

the third temptation is in verses 9 to 11

follow along with me

verses 9 to 11

the devil led him to Jerusalem

and had him stand on the highest point of the temple

if you are the son of God

he said

throw yourself down from here

for it is written

he will command his angels concerning you

to guard you carefully

they will lift you up in their hands

so that you will not strike your foot against a stone

again

Satan is appealing to Jesus' identity

and saying

since you are the son of God

he is tempting Jesus to put God to the test

saying

because you are the son of God

surely the father won't let any harm come to you

prove it

throw yourself off this temple

and prove to the whole world

who you are

do you see how devious the devil is?

he quotes from Psalm 91

in an attempt to back up his claim

that God will protect Jesus

but this is why

it is so important

that we don't cherry pick

Bible verses out of context

or base our understanding on one verse

because Satan's understanding

of Psalm 91

is absolutely atrocious

Satan quotes from Psalm 91

which speaks about the Lord's protection

over his people

how the Lord is a fortress

and refuge for those

who trust in him

and in Luke chapter 4

Luke 4:10

verses 10 and 11

Satan is quoting

Psalm 91

Psalms 91:11

verses 11 and 12

however

he conveniently misses out

Psalm 91 verse 13

Psalms 91:13

which says this

you will tread on the lion

and the adder

the young lion

and the serpent

you will trample underfoot

Satan is quoting from a psalm

which tells about

the Lord's strength

for his people

to overcome evil

the devil's trying to distract

Jesus from his mission

to become the suffering servant

and he's trying to get Jesus

to test God's faithfulness

Satan is twisting scripture

and so Jesus responds

with a quote from Deuteronomy 6

Deuteronomy 6:6

verse 6

in verse 12

read with me

Jesus answered

it is said

do not put the Lord

your God

to the test

Satan is telling Jesus

that he doesn't have to suffer

because God will protect him

but Jesus knows

that God's divine rescue

only

can only come through

suffering

and death

but death will not have

the final say

friends

we're never going to be

in this same situation

as Jesus

but aren't we

tempted to test God

maybe it's

that scripture is

crystal clear

on an issue

and yet because

we don't like it

or because society

doesn't

doesn't sit well

with them

we're tempted

to make wrong decisions

we're tempted

to deliberately

go against

God's word

and yeah sure

maybe we do say

to God

God I know

this isn't

perfect

but if you help me

through this

I will give you

all the glory

I promise

but the reality

is that that's

half-hearted obedience

that's us

putting our own

will

above God's

and that's not

us submitting

to him

or maybe you're

not a Christian

and you're listening

in this morning

maybe you've

thought to yourself

God if you give

me a sign

if you just

do this

or that

then I promise

you I'll believe

in you

but friends

the Bible

is enough

no amount

of signs

can make this

any more

true

the Bible

is sufficient

to know

who God

is

and how

to be made

right with

him

that is all

we need

because it

points us

to our

saviour

Jesus

as the

perfect

obedient

one

faced

temptation

that we

couldn't even

begin to

imagine

and yet

every time

he stood

firm

in the face

of it

because he

knew that

God's plan

was good

because

God is

good

he knew

that he

needed to

become

the

suffering

servant

and go

to the

cross

the main

point

of this

passage

is

Jesus

perfect

obedience

it's not

here to

tell us

about how

we should

fight against

temptation

but I

think that

that is a

secondary

application

friends

when we're

faced with

temptation

we need

to remember

that Jesus

was tempted

and yet

in his

obedience

he did

not

crumble

but instead

he used

the word

of God

to defend

himself

one of

the times

we're most

susceptible

to temptation

is when

we're alone

at home

as many

of us

will be

this week

maybe the

coming weeks

let us

dwell in

the word

of the

Lord

so that

we can

stand

firm

as we

face

temptations

and let's

live

obedient

lives

we need

to know

scripture

we need

to have

the word

of God

on our

lips

as our

defense

against

the lies

and

attempts

of Satan

to distract

us from

God

we cannot

do this

by our

own

strength

but we

must rely

on the

power

and presence

of the

spirit

of God

to enable

us

to be

obedient

to the

will

of the

father

friends

as we

draw to

a close

think back

to where

we began

with those

children

and that

chocolate

bar

that just

illustrates

quite funnily

but it just

illustrates

how easy

we are to

crumble

in the face

of temptation

and yet

knowing

that Jesus

went through

temptation

and stood

firm

should give

us the

confidence

to live

obediently

to the

will of

God

friends

we need

to be

equipped

to face

temptation

well

we need

to rely

on Jesus

and we

need to

give thanks

that he

did not

succumb

to temptation

or to

the schemes

of the

devil

but instead

he

obediently

went

the way

of the

cross

knowing

that

should

give us

confidence

for us

to take

up our

cross

and follow

him

daily

let's

pray

together

heavenly

father

we thank

you so

much

for your

goodness

we thank

you for

your

faithfulness

we thank

you for

your love

and your

care

for your

people

father

forgive us

for the

times

when in

temptation

we doubt

you

forgive us

for the

times when

in temptation

we crumble

and we

forget to

live obedient

lives

but succumb

to our

temptations

father

would you

give us

strength

through the

enabling of

your holy

spirit to

stand firm

and jesus

we thank

you

that though

you were

tempted

in unbelievable

ways

you stood

firm

and obediently

went to the

cross which

means that

we can be

forgiven

jesus we

thank you so

much for the

great salvation

that you've

given to us

in jesus name

we pray

amen

and

please

you

your

sorry