Tuesday, 16 June 2020 Luke 4:1-15
Jesus answered, "It is written:…” -Luke 4:4
Temptations are faced by every believer while on this earth. When facing temptations, we should look to Christ Jesus- He is our Example on how we can overcome! By all manner, He was tempted but He came forth victorious. In our reading today, we see Jesus being tempted by the devil for 40 days. There were 3 areas the devil tempted Him and each time Jesus resisted the temptation saying, “It is written…/it has been said,”- quoting the Scripture.
Let us look at how He was tempted and how He overcame:
Son of God (Luke 4:3-4)
The devil asks Jesus to turn the stones to bread to prove He is the Son of God. Jesus quotes from Scripture, Deuteronomy 8:3 “….that man does not live by bread only, but man lives by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of the Lord.” In replying so, Jesus affirms that He has a Father in heaven who knows Him and His every need. Thus Jesus overcome this temptation. Later Jesus declares in John 6:35 [AMP] “.. I am the Bread of Life. He who comes to Me will never be hungry, and he who believes in and cleaves to and trusts in and relies on Me will never thirst any more (at any time).” He became the Bread of Life and fulfilled His Father’s will for His life- though the devil had come against it, He overcame!
Worship the Creator (Luke 4:5-8)
The devil here asks Jesus to worship him. Worship means “to give honor, homage, reverence, respect, adoration, praise, or glory to a superior being.” The devil was insisting to subdue the Creator for created things in the world. Again Jesus answers from Scripture “You shall [reverently] fear the Lord your God and serve Him and swear by His name [and presence]. (Deut.6:13) God deserves worship because He and He alone is worthy of it. He is the only being that truly deserves worship. He desires that we acknowledge His greatness, His power and His glory!
Honor GOD (Luke 4:9-12)
The third time the devil quotes from Scripture and tells Jesus to “prove” God’s Word was true. In this one, He was to put Himself in a perilous situation and force God’s hand to save Him. Jesus refused to test God in such a way. We are to accept God’s Word by faith. God’s promises are always available for us for every situation; but to manipulate situations in such a way as to coerce God into fulfilling His promises, is evil. All through, we see the devil trying to question Jesus’ identity: “…if you are the Son of God.” But Jesus answered, “It is written…”- which means GOD has already said it! We too need to firmly believe and stand on God’s Word when we are led to doubt God or His promises.
We become sons of God through Jesus Christ- "Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God—children born not of natural descent,…but born of God." (John 1:12-13). Today, if we believe in Him and receive Him, we will become His children. And in every struggle, test, temptation of our life, Jesus is our help: “Because He Himself [in His humanity] has suffered in being tempted, He is able to help and provide immediate assistance to those who are being tempted and exposed to suffering.” (Hebrews 2:18 AMP). We can be overcomers through Him and His Word!
PRAYER: “LORD Jesus, help me hold on to Your Word and lean on to You to overcome every temptation that comes my way. Amen.”