THE CONTRADICTION OF THE CROSS

Jann Martin February 13, 2005

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Matthew 4:1-11

Gospel Lesson: The Devil tempts Jesus

¹Then Jesus was led out into the wilderness by the Holy Spirit to be tempted there by the Devil. ² For forty days and forty nights he ate nothing and became very hungry. ³ Then the Devil came and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, change these stones into loaves of bread." ⁴ But Jesus told him, "No! The Scriptures say, 'People need more than bread for their life; they must feed on every word of God.' "

⁵ Then the Devil took him to Jerusalem, to the highest point of the Temple, ⁶ and said, "If you are the Son of God, jump off! For the Scriptures say, 'He orders his angels to protect you. And they will hold you with their hands to keep you from striking your foot on a stone.' " ⁷ Jesus responded, "The Scriptures also say, 'Do not test the Lord your God.' "

⁸ Next, the Devil took him to the peak of a very high mountain and showed him the nations of the world and all their glory. ⁹ "I will give it all to you," he said, "if you will only kneel down and worship me." ¹⁰ "Get out of here, Satan," Jesus told him. "For the Scriptures say, 'You must worship the Lord your God; serve only him.' " ¹¹ Then the Devil went away, and angels came and cared for Jesus.

This is the Gospel of the Lord
Praise to you, O Christ

Can you imagine going through the testing Jesus did in the wilderness? Going through this testing Jesus shows His true obedience to God because He was able to resist the temptations. We are all tested in one-way or another. Going through the temptations shows us that Jesus was human, but resisting the temptations shows us that He is God's Son. His temptation gives us an example and the inspiration to follow in our own lives.

Remember that Jesus wasn't tempted in the temple or at His baptism. He was tempted after of 40 days and nights of fasting when He was exhausted and vulnerable. Fasting is a powerful spiritual discipline. The Holy Spirit can transform our lives through fasting and prayer. This time of fasting was at the beginning of Jesus public ministry. I imagine the 40 days was a time to center Himself and prepare to begin His preaching to the people.

Have you ever noticed that when you are at a low time that is when the devil seems to attach you more? About seven years ago our oldest daughter and her then fiancé were in Kississimee, Fla. visiting some of his family during spring break when many tornados hit the area. It was all over the news all morning. I was not able to get in touch with them right away. My fears were taking over and the devil was pushing all of my buttons. I was scared and crying after seeing all of the devastation that had taken place in Kississimee. Once I finally got some control, I began praying that April and Jason and Jason's family were all safe. I told the devil to go away and just kept praying for them and kept trying to get through on the phone. When I finally got through, I found out that the tornado in their area had jumped up the block before their house and came back down the block after their house. With tears of relief, I thanked God for watching out for my loved ones. The devil was having fun making me miserable but God's love can come through and give us the strength we need to make it through those tough times.

In the first temptation, the Devil came and said to Jesus, "If you are the Son of God, change these stones into loaves of bread." ⁴ But Jesus told him, "No! The Scriptures say, 'People need more than bread for their life; they must feed on every word of God.' " In this first portion of the scripture we see the devil trying to tempt Jesus in relation to His physical needs and desires. When Jesus chose to go into the wilderness to fast and pray, he easily could have used His divine powers to have any food he wanted, so the devil took the opportunity to appeal to Jesus' human side and tried to get Him to change stones into bread. We also can be tempted to satisfy our physical needs in the wrong way, such as stealing money to buy food. God wants us to get the food we need but in honest ways. If we don't have the means to buy our food, then we should turn to a food pantry or a soup kitchen to get a meal. To be able to resist the devil as Jesus did, we need to know the Bible and obey the directions God gives us. Remember, the devil also knows the Bible but he chose to go his own way and not follow God. An acronym for Bible is Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth.

⁵ Then the Devil took him to Jerusalem, to the highest point of the Temple, ⁶ and said, "If you are the Son of God, jump off! For the Scriptures say, 'He orders his angels to protect you. And they will hold you with their hands to keep you from striking your foot on a stone.' " ⁷ Jesus responded, "The Scriptures also say, 'Do not test the Lord your God.' "

The devil took Jesus to the temple that Herod the Great had renovated in hopes of gaining the confidence of the Jewish people. This was where the Jews thought the Messiah would arrive when He came to be their leader. The top of the temple would have allowed Him to see all of Jerusalem and the countryside as well. Imagine standing at the top of the Empire State building and being told to jump, but don't worry the angels will not let you be hurt. That's what the devil wanted Jesus to do, jump then have the angels come save Him. This would have been using the powers of God in a magical way. Jesus refused to use the powers He had in such a magical way. Like Jesus, we too are not to put God to the test by asking Him to do magic to help us in a troubling situation or to prove He is there for us. Those around us may try to tempt us to do something that is wrong and quote a Bible verse to try to persuade us that it is OK to test God in this way. Be careful however, the Bible can be used to make a point by using a verse out of context. It is important to read the verses surrounding the verse quoted to make sure it is interpreted correctly.

As we continue, verse 8 says: ⁸ the Devil took him to the peak of a very high mountain and showed him the nations of the world and all their glory. ⁹ "I will give it all to you," he said, "if you will only kneel down and worship me." ¹⁰ "Get out of here, Satan," Jesus told him. "For the Scriptures say, 'You must worship the Lord your God; serve only him.' " Can you picture the devil taking Jesus to the top of Mt. McKinley and seeing the vast amount of land in front of them. What a rush it would be to be told you could rule over that entire area. However, the only ruling that the devil could have given Jesus was the political rule of the world. Jesus as the creator already had the power over all of creation. The devil wanted to see if the human pride in Jesus would take over and want to be the figurehead ruler. If the devil could get Jesus to do this, then Jesus would not die for our sins and do as God had planned. The devil tempts us with materialism and power as well. Through prayer we too can resist the devil and do as God would have us do. Have you been offered a position or something you knew just wasn't right for you? I was offered a supervisor position that would have meant a nice raise and prestige in the company where I was working. I would have liked to have taken this position but I knew this wasn't what God would want me to do. It wasn't the right fit for me and my abilities, the devil kept trying to tell me that the money would make it right, and I could learn what I needed on the job. I prayed more about it and refused the promotion. More money and power isn't always the best answer to what we should do. When we face situations like this, we need to turn it over to God in prayer and wait for His reply and serve only Him and not the devil.

Finally, after his attempts failed our last verse in this morning's lesson says, "¹¹ Then the Devil went away, and angels came and cared for Jesus." Once the devil gave up trying to tempt Jesus, the angels were free to come and take care of Him. They had been there with Mary when she heard she was going to give birth to Jesus, and the angels were also there to reassure Joseph and to guide him as to safe places to take his family. The angels announced the birth of Jesus to the shepherds and were there for Him many other times. I believe there are still angels that come into our lives to help us in trying times. They can come to us in many different forms. Animals have saved peoples lives by alerting them of danger or a medical problem. I have heard of dogs getting help for someone who has collapsed. Or, a friend has called just when you needed to hear a comforting voice.

In the end the devil did not have any power over Jesus, but Jesus made the command for the devil to leave and he obeyed. The devil will come back and try to get his way through us. The only way we can stay true to God is to follow His word and directions in our life.

Please keep your thoughts and prayers open to God, you never know when He may use you as an angel in someone's life.

Amen.

©Jann Martin 2005