Sometimes I think I’m just casually going to scan through a portion of Scripture in a couple of minutes, and instead the message contained therein comes alive, and I’m making all kinds of discoveries about it, even though I’ve read it countless times before. The Word of God is truly alive. It has unfathomable depth and significance. It’s no creation of man.
Here then are some notes I took, as I took them, from my reading of the temptation of Jesus Christ, as recorded in Luke’s gospel.
Jesus didn’t want to do anything the devil told him to do.
Jesus was seeking the Divine, and Satan wanted him to think in worldly, temporal terms.
Jesus was seeking the spiritual, and Satan wanted him to concentrate on the physical.
Satan wanted Jesus to use divine power, but Jesus wanted to live as a man: the second Adam.
Satan wanted Jesus to think of himself and not of the Father or of his mission.
Jesus, had he done what Satan wanted, would have been subordinating himself to Satan, especially in the temptation concerning the kingdoms of the world.
Satan was trying to diminish Jesus’ views and desires to the physical, the worldly.
Satan was trying to get Jesus to put the Father to the test. Jesus walked into this situation being full of the Holy Spirit, but Satan wanted Jesus to quench the Spirit.
Satan tested Jesus when he had already been fasting for forty days, and so was weak physically.
Satan knew Scripture and tried to confuse and tempt Jesus by misquoting it.
Jesus gave lots of time-forty days and nights-to seeking the Father, but Satan offered Jesus a quick fix.
Jesus’ guide was the Word of God. EVERY answer Jesus gave was from Scripture.
Jesus revered the Old Testament, including the Law, as the Word of God.
Jesus was humbling himself, but Satan was trying to arouse pride in him (Deuteronomy 8:3; Psalm 91:11 and 12).
Satan controls the earthly kingdoms. This explains what we see going on in Washington DC and other capitals.
Satan wanted to be worshipped.
Satan wanted to hijack the plan of God.
Satan offered worldly power in return for worship.
If Jesus did throw himself down from the temple, would he have died without going to the cross? Was that Satan’s plan?
Satan wanted Jesus to think of himself and not seek God and his will.
Satan wanted to trivialize Jesus’ view of himself and the Word of God (esp. v9).
The kingdoms of the world are not Satan’s for long-he was lying to Jesus.
God sent Jesus to be tempted/tested by Satan (verse 1). This is an event of colossal significance and interest to all of the spirit world and to all of creation. It was the initial proving of Jesus as the faithful Son of God, for all of creation to see.
Jesus succeeded where Adam had failed.
Jesus Christ is no ordinary man.
God and seeking the will of God is far more important than food or any kind of self-gratification.
THANKS FOR READING! You are welcome to add your own thoughts in the comments section below.
Fuel for Faith 