What to Do When You're on Satan's Hit List

Camp Bastion was a major coalition military base in the Helmand Province of Afghanistan. It housed U.S and British forces along with several NATO forces from other countries. In 2012, Camp Bastion was considered a key hub for operations in the region.

At one time, the perimeter defenses were manned by 325 patrolling Marines, but as time went on, a sense of complacency had developed due to the relative stability in the area. The coalition forces had exerted a good control over the area, so the Marine general in charge of the camp's defenses lowered the amount of patrolling Marines from 325 to 100.

Exploiting this complacency, a group of Taliban insurgents managed to breach the base's perimeter in the early hours of September 14, 2012. The attackers took advantage of the base's vulnerability by infiltrating through an unsecured area. Once inside, they launched a well-coordinated assault targeting aircraft hangars, fuel storage, and other key assets.

During this attack, 2 Marines were killed, several aircraft were destroyed or damaged, and multiple structures were set on fire. Though the coalition forces were able to react quickly and repel the attackers, this incident revealed the risks of complacency even within heavily guarded bases. To the U.S. military and the other forces present, it served as a reminder that security measures must be consistently evaluated even in well established military installations.

This morning I would like to preach a moment on the What To Do When You're On Satan's Hit List.

As we continue our series through the life of Christ, The Way, the Truth, and the Life, we remember that last session, which was two weeks ago, we studied about the ministry of John the Baptist and the events of Jesus' baptism.

Let's see how good your memory is!

What happened as Jesus came out of the water after being baptized? The Holy Spirit descended on Jesus as a dove, and the voice of God said, "This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased."

Immediately following this event, "with the glow of the descended Spirit still upon him," as J.W. McGarvey states, Jesus was driven into the wilderness. We can find this in Matthew, Mark, and Luke.

Mark 1:12 And immediately the Spirit driveth him into the wilderness.

Where Mark uses the phrase "the Spirit 'drove'" Jesus into the wilderness, Matthew and Luke state that Jesus was "led by the Spirit." The end result is the same: Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, that means that He was being completely controlled by the influence of the Spirit of God, goes to a wilderness alone.

But what is the purpose of His going to the wilderness?

Matthew 4:1 Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.

Mark tells us of the conditions that Jesus was in: He was with the wild beasts (1:13). The Judean wilderness was home to lions, wolves, leopards, and serpents. It was a dangerous place physically.

I believe Jesus knew why He was there, and what eventually would happen, because we are told as we continue through Matthew 4, that He fasted for 40 days.

Matthew 4:2 And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungred.

Luke chapter 4 makes it very clear how He fasted: He ate nothing. So it wasn't a fast simply from one or two meals, it was a complete fast. The purpose of fasting was to focus one's self on prayer and meditating on God and His word. So Jesus is there, and for 40 days, He is in deep conversation with God the Father. After 40 days of eating nothing, as you can imagine, Jesus was hungry.

It is at this time that Satan makes his entrance.

Matthew 4:3 And when the tempter came to him...

We have looked at the person of Satan as we studied through the book of Genesis, and we reject the notion that references to Satan, the devil, the tempter, the dragon, or any other name given to the fallen angel originally called Lucifer are just personifications of evil.

Satan is a real being who at one time was an angel, that because of his pride and desire to be like the Most High God was cast out of heaven and is doomed to an eternal punishment in the lake of fire along with all the other angels that followed him.

As Jesus is hungry and alone, in swoops the one that Mark names as "Satan", meaning "the adversary"; who Luke calls "the devil", meaning "false accuser" or "slanderer"; and who Matthew calls "the tempter."

THE FIRST TEMPTATION

And what does this tempter say to Jesus?

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.

This may at first glance not seem like a temptation to do anything out of the ordinary, but we will discuss more in-depth why giving in to this suggestion or temptation would have been a sin for Jesus.

Satan's Targets

Satan is attacking, not only Jesus' physical need and desires for food, but also, by using a two-letter word, is attacking Jesus' pride. Notice that the devil says, "IF you are the Son of God..." Forty days ago, the Father had just declared Jesus' sonship, and here Satan is clearly calling the truth that God has declared into question.

Does this remind you of any other temptation in the Bible? One that we may have studied back in September of last year? Satan's temptation of Eve.

But let's look at Jesus' response.

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.

Notice that even though Jesus is God in the flesh, He makes a statement quoting scripture: "man shall not live by bread alone..." found in Deuteronomy 8:4.

Jesus found Himself in a similar situation that the Israelites found themselves when Deuteronomy 8:4 was written: foodless, in the wilderness.

The Israelites were to trust God to provide for them, not their own strength or cunning, but God alone. Jesus was trusting God the Father to provide for Him at the right time.

The Israelites sinned when they found themselves foodless; they complained and doubted God.

Jesus, however, had avoided such a sin. Jesus looked to scripture for His defense. He didn't look for voices, visions, or special revelation for guidance. He used the word of God which, as Psalm 119 tells us, is a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our paths.

Jesus did not even rely on His own divine wisdom in the moment, but the wisdom that God had revealed to Israel through His Word centuries before.

Jesus, God in the flesh, being made a man, fought as a man. He fought using the weapons God had given man: the word of God. Jesus used Scripture as the final, argument-ending authority.

Note that Satan has nothing to say on this subject again, but instead, takes Jesus to Jerusalem for the next temptation.

THE SECOND TEMPTATION

Matthew 4:5-6 Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple, 6 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.

Notice where Satan takes Jesus: the Temple. This holy place did not exclude the tempter. On a very important note, I want you to understand that the church, being in this gathering of people called the church, does not exclude you or me from being tempted.

J.W. McGarvey probably expressed it best when he said, "The church may be the scene of man's sorest trial to resist wrong."

And to this I add a phrase that became popular during the early 1900's, "Ain't that the truth!"

So often, we let our guard down here, among brothers and sisters in Christ, and we end up doing and saying things that ought not be said or done.

Anybody ever wonder why or how you can get so irritated during a church meeting or event like teaching a kid's class, singing in a worship team, or helping out in VBS? It's because Satan comes to these events too! And let me tell you, he and/or his minions are sitting among us right now. So, let's keep our guard up.

Anyway, Satan takes Jesus to a high place at the temple. Once again, we have that little, two-letter word, "IF." "IF you're the Son of God [once again trying to cast doubt], throw yourself down..."

Satan's Targets

The first temptation may be said was to be under-confident in God, tempting Jesus to provide for Himself instead of trusting God the Father to do so. This second temptation is a temptation seeking to cause over-confidence or presumption.

If we again compare this to Eve's temptation, we see that she was curious to see if she was indeed like God. Christ, however, resisted the sin of presumption and pride.

But Satan continues with something more. 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.

Satan has great knowledge about the word of God. Here, Satan is quoting Psalm 91:11-12. By quoting Scripture himself, the devil shows a sense of power, but he is clearly using these verses in a twisted way to cause Jesus to sin presumptuously. Satan will often abuse scripture to trip people up and cause them to fall.

However, Satan's abuse of Scripture did not discourage Jesus' proper use of it.

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

If the Father had commanded Jesus to jump from the temple pinnacle, then the angels would have cared for Jesus, but to jump without the Father’s command would have been

presumption, not faith, and that would be tempting the Father.

Again, Jesus used Scripture as the argument-ender, and Satan does not respond to this.

Instead, Satan takes Jesus one more place.

THE THIRD TEMPTATION

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; 9 And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.

Satan's Targets

Satan takes Jesus to a high mountain and shows Him all the kingdoms of the world. It is said that from any high mountain in Judea it would have been easy for Satan to point out Rome, Greece, Egypt, Persia, and Assyria. I don't know how true that is, perhaps with supernatural sight. But it seems that the devil takes Jesus to this mountain, and on this mountain via supernatural means, either shows Jesus images of the kingdoms of the world, or causes Jesus to envision these in his mind. Either way, it tempted the eye.

Going back to our example of the temptation of Eve, one of the things that the Bible points out was that Eve noticed that the fruit was "pleasant to the eyes."

But it also tempted Jesus to make true the dreams that the entire Jewish nation entertained: for the Messiah to come and join all the earth's kingdoms under His rule. This was the temptation of taking a shortcut, for in the end, Jesus will come and set up His kingdom, and He shall rule the earth. But this shortcut offered a way to have a kingdom that circumvented Jesus suffering and dying. It would keep Jesus from redeeming man by his blood. It was an appeal to obtain power physically than to do so spiritually.

Jesus was born King of the Jews. He confessed Himself King before Pilate. He has all authority and will one day put all kingdoms under His feet. But Satan's way differed from God's way. He could obtain this by doing it Satan's way and becoming a worshipper, or by doing it God's way.

Satan offered a speedier possession, but God's way was mare lasting.

Again, we look at Jesus' response.

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.

Jesus' Response

Satan's last temptation, the sweetest one he could offer (glory, power, authority) was the one most disgusting to Jesus. He responds with passionate indignation, refusing to hear any more from the mouth of this deceiver. "Get thee hence." If Jesus were a Texan, He'd of said, "Get on up outta here!"

And in His indignation, Jesus quoted Scripture once more, again from Deuteronomy: "Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve." By serving God the Father, Jesus obtained, not only, all earthly authority, but heavenly authority as well. Something that Satan was incapable of offering.

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

Satan leaves, but he would come back many times more. For the first time in history, the first being possessing human nature had defeated Satan soundly. This was Satan's first defeat under Jesus' ministry, but he would suffer so many more defeats.

Immediately after Jesus' victorious battle against Satan's temptations, angels come to minister to Him. We the first temptation being fulfilled, but now by God and in His time. Jesus is brought food. He accepts it and does well because it is not His selfishness or pride being fulfilled.

And we see the promise of Psalm 91 being actually fulfilled as the angels are given charge to care for Jesus who is in a dire situation, near starvation.

What an amazing example the Messiah sets for us.

But what does this all mean for us? What can we walk away with this morning? Quite a bit actually. I will ask you to stay during the Life Group time as we look some application points in depth, but I will make some general applications for us briefly before we close this portion of the service.

The message title for this morning is What To Do When You're On Satan's Hit List. We can definitely see that Jesus was on his hit list, so today we take our cues from the Overcoming Messiah.

APPLICATION

First off, let's make something very clear. This was not the only time that Jesus was tempted. This is the only time on record that we see Jesus and Satan have a showdown, but in his ministry Jesus is tempted many times. Too what extent?

Hebrews 4:14-16 Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. 15 For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.

Jesus was tempted in every area. Not only that, but He was victorious in every area.

Let's briefly take a look at how temptation presented itself and how Jesus handled it.

1. He was alone. Isolation from others is no security from temptation. In fact, our passage that we are studying today shows us that being alone is favorable to temptation. Certain orders of catholic monks were hermits. They lived secluded, or cloistered in a monastery. Many of these monks took these specific orders to do this to be able to be outside of the world's influences and temptations, but too common was it found in their writings that loneliness was "the mother of a multitude of evils."

There is some truth to that saying, "There is safety in numbers." When we are all alone, temptation is sure to come in different forms.

So what to do when we are alone? Pray. That is what Jesus did. He went to a place to be alone, but He didn't just sit and hang out; He spent His time praying.

2. He was fasting. Jesus was practicing a spiritual discipline that was designed to help one be more in tune to God, express one's self more fervently to the Lord, and deny one's self in acknowledgement of God's sovereignty. This would be when you think you would be the safest from temptation, but Satan hates a praying Christian. Satan hates a Christian who is looking to walk closer to the Lord, know His plan, and serve Him. So when Jesus was practicing this spiritual discipline, just like you or I might practice fasting, or praying, or studying the Bible, he swoops in and brings the temptations with him.

3. He was hungry. Each of us are made up of a body, a soul, and a spirit. The body is obvious. It is the physical you.

The soul, that is the part that makes you you. It is you mind (not your brain), that is to say, your philosophies, ideas, etc. It is your heart (not the physical pumping heart) or the seat of your emotions. The soul is eternal. It is what lives on after your body dies.

The spirit, in most people is dead. That is the main method of communicating with the spirit world. The Bible tell us that God is a spirit, and those that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth. The spirit part is what died in the Garden of Eden. Adam and Eve were unable to maintain that communion with the Lord after they sinned. And man cannot truly worship effectively with a dead spirit. However, when we get saved, when we put our faith in Jesus as the Son of God who died and rose again to forgive us of our sins and ask Him to save us, our spirit is "quickened", as the Bible says, or made alive. It is made alive by the presence of the Holy Spirit within us. This is why we can do something that the Old Testament people could only dream of, go boldly into God;s throne of grace.

I am not sure exactly how it works and I never will, but somehow our body, soul, and spirit interact with each other on a level that is incredible. You ever feel depressed and angry, and realize you just need a nap and a snack? The spiritual side of you works that way too. We are to take care of our bodies because somehow, that interacts with our spirit and our soul. Jesus was weak physically because of hunger, and Satan knew, if there was any time to attack Jesus with temptations, it was then.

So be aware of these things and don't get complacent when you have been having consistent devotions and good interaction with Jesus. Don't get complacent when your'e tired and hungry. Don't get complacent when your are alone.

So how did Jesus combat the temptations?

1. He did not entertain temptation. He didn't think about it. He didn't weigh the pros and cons. He did not stop to think, "Well, I would never do that, but how nice would it be to have all those kingdoms now... Anyway, get thee hence, Satan." No, He immediately and definitively gave His answer and was done. Does Satan give up easy? No, of course not. So why did he not say to Jesus after the first temptation and rebuttal, "Come on... Just one little piece of bread. You know you want to. Go ahead. Just one, warm slice of pumpernickel. That would really hit the spot right now."

He didn't, because Jesus gave him no room to do so.

2. He countered Satan with Scripture. He used the Bible against the tempter. It wasn't will power that drove Satan away, it was scripture. Ephesians 6 tells us that our offensive weapons of spiritual warfare are the Bible and Prayer. Not willpower. So Jesus used the Bible to fight Satan. Satan cannot stand against the truth. Are you tempted often in an area? Do you foresee temptation coming your way in certain areas of your life? Then start looking up verses that deal with those temptations. Start praying those verses, and start committing them to memory so when the temptation arises, you can cut its ugly head clean off.

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LIFE GROUPS

First temptation:

Perhaps you can see how this would be a great "temptation." But as you analyze this "temptation," does it really seem wrong? At face value, it does not. It seems that if Jesus would make bread out of stones and eat to sate His hunger and that be called wrong, would be the same as us accusing a homeless man that hasn't eaten for a month of sin for digging into a Big Mac someone bought for him.

I don't think that anyone here, seeing the people holding up a sign that says, "Hungry, anything will help," at the entrance to the Sam's Club parking lot, would drive through Taco Bell, purchase a $5 Box Combo, drive by that person and give it to them, only to watch them open up that Chalupa Supreme and take a bite, just to yell at them, "I can't believe you fell for that temptations, Sinner!!!"

Of course not! We would think it absolutely normal for a hungry man to enjoy a Chalupa Supreme. By the way, this message is NOT sponsored by Taco Bell, in case you were wondering...

So why is this called a "temptation" for Jesus?

Well, there are several reasons.

Why was Jesus fasting? What is the purpose of fasting? He was fasting to be in closer fellowship with God the Father. Fasting serves to help us better seek God's face, His directions, His wisdom. By fasting, we are putting God's will far above even our own, most basic needs. We are prioritizing God above survival.

Jesus had gone into the wilderness, and we may presume, correctly I believe, that He went in knowing that He was going to be tempted. So Jesus fasted. I do not believe that Jesus had set 40 days as His fasting goal. I think His goal was to fast until the Father released Him from that fast. So when 40 days came, and Satan comes into the picture with a temptation of giving into His desires for food, then it would have been a sin for Jesus to give in.

It was also a temptation to use His divine power of creation in a selfish manner. All of Jesus' miracles were to prove that he was the Messiah; never did He do anything for personal gain.

Jesus' Response - God can sustain our lives without food if He wills, but we could never life life to the fullest without hanging on every word of God.

Second Temptation

Why is it that with our church or in the middle of our endeavors to pursue God temptations seem to be the strongest?

How does overconfidence and presumption hinder us when we are tempted?

Third Temptation

Notice that Satan not only offered the kingdoms, but also the glory of them all. This is a temptation that is common for us as well.

How are you tempted to pursue glory or accolades or power?

Do you know to which temptations you are most susceptible?

Do you have a plan of defense and attack?