(Note: When I teach, I learn more than my students. This is the last of three Thursday posts about some things my boys and I learned as we studied Jesus' temptation.)
Matthew, Mark and Luke all relate the account of Jesus' temptation in the wilderness. While I love the affirmation that we have a Great High Priest who was tempted like we are (Hebrews 4:15) as I studied, I flipped this around.
Am I ever tempted like Jesus? Are there patterns or similarities I can draw from? So far I touched on the timing and substance of the temptations. Today we'll look at the response.
Matthew 4:1 says He was led into the wilderness by the Spirit. God was sovereignly in control of the situation. He wasn't about to let Jesus die of hunger. And Jesus knew this.
Jesus withstood the temptations because of His sustaining trust in God. He surrendered Himself fully to His Father, assured that God was good and would do good.
He trusted God's sovereignty.
Jesus responds to the first temptation by quoting a verse from Deuteronomy. "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God." It's a subtle but powerfully humble statement of dependence on God. I can eat a perfect diet, but it is God and His purposes for me that determine whether I live or not.
He trusted God's character.
From Jesus' reply "You shall not tempt the Lord your God," we see He was affirming that God didn't need to prove Himself or give Him any special treatment. God would be faithful. He would honor the promises He'd made.
He trusted in God's holiness.
Jesus sent Satan away with the final assertion that God alone deserved worship.
Always before, I've looked at this story (and taught it) as an admonition or encouragement to know Scripture. "See, Jesus withstood those temptations because He quoted Scripture He had hidden in His heart." Familiarity and memorizing Scripture are great things. But His response was even bigger.
God was all sufficient. Jesus didn't need anything else in that moment or any other moment because of His rock-solid resting trust in His Father.
My best response in the face of temptation is to remove focus from myself and what I think I lack, and hold onto Almighty God with full trust in His sovereignty, His character and His holiness. That's how I can respond to temptation like Jesus.