Chapter 4 in the book of Matthew refers to the 3x the devil tempted Jesus. The Holy Spirit guided Jesus into the forest, which he stayed for 40 days and 40 nights. The first temptation, Satan asked “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become loaves of bread.” But Jesus responded, “No! The scriptures say, ‘People do not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.” This tells me how important the word of God is. Jesus survived without food for so long, because He was surviving on God’s word. Alone.
The second temptation, Satan took Jesus to the holy city, Jerusalem, to the top 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.” Although, what the devil said was true, the intention was not. The devil twisted these words to get Jesus to fail His earthly assignment. But, Jesus responded “The Scriptures also say, ‘You must not test the Lord your God.” I remember the times “I tested God.” It always ended in disappointment. “God if you’re real than you would do this, or do that.” It wasn’t until I read this verse, that I understood. Jesus didn’t need to prove who He was, because they both knew the assignment Jesus was sent to do. Jesus came into the world not to condemn it, but to save everyone from their sins. He was the Ultimate Sacrifice. The greatest of all Loves is the one who lays down His life for another, this is how we know Jesus loves us. Could you imagine if Jesus actually jumped off the temple? There would be no hope in this world.
The third temptation, the devil took Him to the peak of a very high mountain and showed him all of the kingdoms of the world and their glory. He said to Jesus “I will give it all to you, if you will kneel down and worship me.” Jesus answered, “Get out of here Satan. For the Scriptures say, ‘You must worship the Lord your God and serve only him” Wow! Jesus was nice with the comebacks lol Since, Jesus knew the word of God, he was not fooled by Satan’s twisted words. Sometimes, this can happen to us. If we are not careful, we can fall into Satan’s traps. It is up to us to learn God’s word so that we are better prepared to fight off the many obstacles Satan throws our way. God’s word is the only thing that can defeat Satan and his tricks.
Throughout His journey through the wilderness, Jesus remained strong. Every time he fought off Satan, His faith grew. When our faith grows we get mentally, emotionally and spiritually stronger. God is able to use us in new ways because we have reached new levels of Faith. Could you imagine, living in the jungle with no food for 40 days? alone! That is a scary feeling. Anything can happen, especially late at night when it it pitch black. But, Jesus wasn’t afraid. He knew what He had to do, and the Holy Spirit gave Him the strength to finish without falling into temptation. The purpose of Jesus going into the wilderness was to be tempted. He passed the test.
Jesus’s love for God is shown time after time. When we go through test in life, we have to pass. We can’t expect to pass a test without studying, so how can we expect to pass in life? The only way to overcome Satan’s temptations, if the Word of God. The devil is tricky and can turn any truth into lies. Study, come prepared and be ready to Ace the test.