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With Jesus in the Desert

The temptations of Jesus

Matthew 4

“By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life.”

2 Peter 1:3 NLT

⁶ After his baptism, as Jesus came up out of the water, the heavens were opened and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and settling on him. ¹⁷ And a voice from heaven said, “This is my dearly loved Son, who brings me great joy.”

Matthew 3:16-17 NLT

To be Messiah of God meant that Jesus must also be the Lamb of God.

“He humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross.” Philippians 2:8

Paradise was lost in a garden and now Jesus comes to reclaim it in a desert.

The 3 temptations that Satan presented to Jesus:

1.      The 1^st temptation

“For forty days and forty nights he fasted and became very hungry.  During that time the devil came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become loaves of bread.”

Matthew 4:2-3

Satan was saying: “Seek first the bread and then you will have the strength and the resources to seek God’s kingdom.”

This temptation is so sinister because it questions the love of God and the will of God.

2.  The 2^nd temptation

Then the devil took him to the holy city, Jerusalem, to the highest point of the Temple, and said, “If you are the Son of God, jump off! For the Scriptures say, ‘He will order his angels to protect you.  And they will hold you up with their hands so you won’t even hurt your foot on a stone.’ ”

Matthew 4:5-6

We can prove almost anything by the Bible if we isolate texts from their contexts and turn them into proof texts.

We insult God when we try to force Him to contradict His own Word.

3.  The 3^rd temptation

Next the devil took him to the peak of a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. “I will give it all to you,” he said, “if you will kneel down and worship me.”

Matthew 4:8-9

The devil offers Jesus a shortcut.

Making our convenience and our pleasure the priority is still one of Satan’s favorite and most successful temptations.