
90: Life of Jesus
Week Two - “It’s So Tempting”
Luke 4:1-13, Matthew 4:1-11, Mark 1:12-13
Jesus is
Matthew 4
Context - Immediately after his baptism and identification as “the Lamb of God” and “the Chosen One of God,” Jesus is led into the wilderness where his humanity is on full display as he confronts temptation.
Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. —Matthew 4:1
Being hungry makes us
3 The tempter came to him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.”
4 Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”
5 Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. 6 “If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down. For it is written:
“ ‘He will command his angels concerning you, and they will lift you up in their hands,
so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’”
7 Jesus answered him, “It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’”
8 Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. 9 “All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.”
10 Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’”
11 Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him.
Temptations:
Desire/Immediacy
a. Letting go of what we want
b. Fasting is all about this practice of actively rejecting ourPride/Power
a. That which is possible isn’t always what is best
b. “Just because you can, doesn’t mean you should.”Ease/Comfort
a. No sacrifice necessary
*At the heart of every temptation was the question of
The key to withstanding temptation is knowing
Jesus said, “I am…”
He also said, “You are…friends, heirs, sons and daughters.”
Hunger makes us
Identity makes us