Following the Lord Jesus Christ: #8 In the Wilderness

Immediately after the exhilarating experience of baptism, the heavenly anointing with holy spirit, and a sacred affirmation from the Father in the words, “this is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased,” Jesus was led by the Spirit out into the wilderness. On our trek, we seek him there.

Mark 1:12,13:
And immediately the Spirit driveth him [sent him forth] into the wilderness.
And he was there in the wilderness forty days, tempted of Satan; and was with the wild beasts….

During his forty days in the wilderness, Jesus was indirectly tempted of Satan. He ate no food; was with the wild beasts; endured the burning heat of the day and the howling, cold winds at night; and felt the utter aloneness of the Judean desert. At this time, Jesus drew upon the Word of God that he had learned from his childhood. And having received the holy spirit at the Jordan River, he had his Father’s direct help to build a deep understanding of the scriptures regarding his life and calling.

 First Temptation: Not Trusting God
[Matthew 4:1-4; Luke 4:1-4]

Matthew picks up the account after the forty days and nights when the Devil began to tempt Jesus directly.

Matthew 4:1,2:
Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.
And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungred.

Today “intermittent fasting” and even long-term fasting have become popular. People see the benefits in concentration and mental sharpness when the body is not digesting food. Eastern mystics have done this for centuries. Ascetics fast for even longer than 40 days to get their brain to a place to receive “spiritual insight.” But this can be a two-edged sword. If inhibitions are broken down, this could also be a means for the Devil to attack a person’s mind.

Matthew 4:3:
And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.

The first attack was basic—to not trust God, but rather to trust ourselves. Proverbs 3:5 says, “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.” Jesus was hungry and the Devil tempted Jesus to fix the problem himself, without going to God.

The Devil said to Jesus, “If thou be the Son of God.” He was trying to get Jesus Christ to doubt who he was as the Messiah, God’s Son. So he appealed to Jesus’ new-found power, since Jesus now had holy spirit in all its fulness upon him. He could use this power to provide for himself what he very desperately needed to continue on in his mission—food!

But Jesus Christ remembered the great lesson of Moses and the children of Israel.

Matthew 4:4:
But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.

Jesus Christ took on the adversary’s attacks on his mind, and always answered with “It is written.” The scriptures were his lifeblood and answer to every attack. There were many scriptures showing what he would do as the Messiah. In this case, it was from Deuteronomy, written by Moses, that he drew great strength and inspiration. And Jesus was to be a prophet “like unto” Moses (Deuteronomy 18:15,18; Acts 3:22; 7:37).

Deuteronomy 8:1-6:
All the commandments which I [Moses] command thee [the children of Israel] this day shall ye observe to do, that ye may live, and multiply, and go in and possess the land which the Lord sware unto your fathers.
And thou shalt remember all the way which the Lord thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep his commandments, or no.
And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the Lord doth man live.
Thy raiment waxed not old upon thee, neither did thy foot swell, these forty years.
Thou shalt also consider in thine heart, that, as a man chasteneth [instructs] his son, so the Lord thy God chasteneth thee.
Therefore thou shalt keep the commandments of the Lord thy God, to walk in his ways, and to fear [respect] him.

In like manner as Moses had been in the wilderness for forty years, Jesus Christ had been in the wilderness for forty days and nights. Moses did not turn stones into bread, and neither would Jesus Christ. Like Moses, he would do it God’s way—for it isn’t the physical food, but God’s Word in the heart that makes all the difference.

 Second Temptation: Thinking You Are Greater than God
[Matthew 4:5-7; Luke 4:9-12]

Once again the Devil tried to get Jesus Christ to doubt who he was. On the first attempt, he had appealed to Jesus to trust in himself as his own sufficiency rather than in the Father’s provision. This time, the adversary tried to entice Jesus to tempt God Himself.

Matthew 4:5,6:
Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple,
And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.

Here the Devil quotes a scripture at Jesus from Psalm 91. This is a Psalm that has direct reference to the Messiah, God’s Son.

Psalms 91:7-16:
A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee.
Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked.
Because thou hast made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation;
There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling.
For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.
They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone.
Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder: the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet.
Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name.
He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him.
With long life will I satisfy him, and shew him my salvation.

Jesus Christ knew these scriptures and that it would be foolhardy to jump off the pinnacle. He also knew that God would help him tread on the adversary and trample him under foot. Included in this Psalm is the great hope that God would raise Jesus from the dead, set him on high, and give him long life. Jesus Christ had no doubt that his Father would raise him from the dead, seat him at God’s right hand, and give him eternal life.

So Jesus again went to Deuteronomy for the proper response to this attack.

Matthew 4:7:
Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.

Deuteronomy 6:13-19:
Thou shalt fear [respect] the Lord thy God, and serve him, and shalt swear by his name.
Ye shall not go after other gods, of the gods of the people which are round about you;
(For the Lord thy God is a jealous God among you) lest the anger of the Lord thy God be kindled against thee, and destroy thee from off the face of the earth.
Ye shall not tempt the Lord your God, as ye tempted him in Massah.
Ye shall diligently keep the commandments of the Lord your God, and his testimonies, and his statutes, which he hath commanded thee.
And thou shalt do that which is right and good in the sight of the Lord: that it may be well with thee, and that thou mayest go in and possess the good land which the Lord sware unto thy fathers,
To cast out all thine enemies from before thee, as the Lord hath spoken.

The Devil tried to get Jesus to think he was greater than God: to go against the laws of gravity and nature that God had set up, and “force God’s hand” to raise him up. Jesus later did walk on water and defy gravity, but that was because God told him he could, not to respond to the Devil’s dare.

So Jesus quoted Deuteronomy 6 and refused to have any other God ahead of his Father. Jesus knew that he was not greater than his Father. That was Lucifer’s down-fall—he thought he was greater than God. Jesus knew that if he did not tempt God, then God would cast out his enemies, including his adversary the Devil.

 Third Temptation: Worshipping the Adversary in Place of God
[Matthew 4:8-10; Luke 4:5-8]

The Devil could not get Jesus Christ to trust himself rather than God. He could not get Jesus to think he was greater than God. Now Satan showed his true colors in this final attempt—to get Jesus to worship him.

Matthew 4:8,9:
Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them;
And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.

As the Messiah, Jesus Christ had the authority of God. He did not need to get worldly acclaim or approval from the Devil. Jesus went right back to Deuteronomy 6 and beat the Devil with the truth.

Matthew 4:10:
Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.

 Deuteronomy 6:4-13:
Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord:
And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.
And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart:
And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.
And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes.
And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates.
And it shall be, when the Lord thy God shall have brought thee into the land which he sware unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give thee great and goodly cities, which thou buildedst not,
And houses full of all good things, which thou filledst not, and wells digged, which thou diggedst not, vineyards and olive trees, which thou plantedst not; when thou shalt have eaten and be full;
Then beware lest thou forget the Lord, which brought thee forth out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage.
Thou shalt fear [respect] the Lord thy God, and serve him, and shalt swear by his name.

Jesus Christ knew the “greatest commandment” was to love and worship the one true God. Jesus kept God’s Word in his heart so that he did not forget the Lord. He had the greatest respect for his Father and served him with all his heart. That is what was behind the scripture he quoted at the Devil.

Not Falling for the Same Tricks Today

Matthew 4:11:
Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him.

Jesus was able to speak God’s Word and send the Devil packing. Jesus refused to be tricked by the great deceiver. But people today often fall into these traps. First, they are tempted to trust in their own abilities rather than going to God for help. Secondly, they begin to think they are greater than God and can break all the laws of decency and kindness that would allow them to be blessed. Finally, they worship themselves or money or some other idol. In the least common denominator, they are worshipping Satan.

We can do just the opposite of what the Devil tempts us to do. Rather than trust in our own abilities—we trust in God our Father. Rather than tempt God and violate His laws—we obey His Word and honor Him. Rather than worshipping the things of this world (and the god of this world)—we keep God first in our hearts and love him with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. He is the only God that we worship.

Let’s learn from Jesus Christ’s great example. We too can hide God’s Word in our hearts and say “It is written” whenever the adversary attacks our minds with his lies.

NEXT:  Following the Lord Jesus Christ: #9 In the Land Beyond Jordan

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