Knowing the Scriptures (2)

Context

Jesus has not yet begun his ministry. Before the Sermon on the Mount which we have been studying over the past several weeks. Jesus has just been baptized by John. God the Father pronounced, “This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.” The Holy Spirit descended upon him like a dove.

Matthew writes...

Text

Matthew 4:1–11 “Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. He fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was famished. The tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” But he answered, “It is written, ‘One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’ ” Then the devil took him to the holy city and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, saying to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down; for it is written, ‘He will command his angels concerning you,’ and ‘On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.’ ” Jesus said to him, “Again it is written, ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’ ” Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor; and he said to him, “All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.” Jesus said to him, “Away with you, Satan! for it is written, ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.’ ” Then the devil left him, and suddenly angels came and waited on him.”

Introduction

In the Bible “wilderness” is the place of testing. Prophets would go into the desert to face their demons.

Before Jesus can begin his ministry, he has to face his test.

The Spirit of God leads him into the wilderness where he is tempted by the Devil.

Satan’s goal is to derail Jesus’ ministry before it can even start.

Throughout the encounter, Jesus appeals to the Scriptures. He knows them deeply, broadly, firmly.

His reliance on the Scriptures give him the spiritual victory the enabled him to move forward into ministry.

Lent is a season for spiritual growth. A kind of wilderness time.

If we want to grow spiritually, if we want to overcome the challenges that will come, we must lean into the Scriptures like Jesus did.

Exegesis 1: Jesus appeals to Scripture

The Spirit of God led Jesus out to the wilderness to be tempted.

For forty days Jesus fasts and prays in the desert, to open himself fully to God and ready himself for his ministry.

At the end of 40 days. Jesus was famished.

Understatement. 40 days of fasting is a severe fast.

Medical community says that such a long fast is “technically” possible — and indeed there are people who on record have completed such fasts — but such a fast demands strict medical supervision, is very risky and for some can lead to organ failure and death.

Physically weak; near exhaustion.

The Devil appears to offer his test.

The first temptations unfolds. “If you are the Son of God, — and you are — turn these stones to bread.”

To a man on the edge of death, this was an invitation for Jesus to save himself.

…you have the power and the prerogative…enough is enough. Turn the stones to bread. Eat.

Satan appeals to Jesus’ felt needs.

Jesus does not deny his hunger, he doesn’t say he can go a few more days. He doesn’t deny that he could even die.

He cites Scripture.

Deuteronomy 8:3 “….,man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.”

Jesus recalls when the Israelites had to trust in God’s care to cross the desert. They had nothing. They were afraid they were going to die in the wilderness. God provided them with manna, miraculous bread from heaven, every day.

Moses explained to the Israelite: “The Lord...fed you on manna, day by day, ...to teach you that man cannot live on bread alone but lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.” (Deut. 8:3)

In essence, Jesus says to Satan, The fast is not over until God says it is over.

Satan appeals to Jesus’ senses. Jesus appeals to Scripture.

Application 1: We know what the Bible Says

Lent is a season for us to reinvigorate our engagement with God.

we want to be prayerful, we want to worship, to give, to serve, to fast, to pray.

Satan wants nothing more than to keep that from happening.

His #1 Goal: do not let people draw near to God. Anything but that.

When Satan comes against us the the first thing he is going to do is point out all the seemingly sensible reasons why we should abandon our efforts:

Fast is too hard…just eat.

Praying is boring…do something else.

Serving at church is frustrating…do something more gratifying.

Giving is a waste of money….save it for yourself.

Satan is not wrong per se. Fasting is hard, praying can be challenging, serving others can be thankless, and giving does cost us…

If we rely only upon our immediate senses, the Devil’s temptation will seem like the reasonable choice to make.

So God has given us the Scriptures to help us stay stay connected to our higher calling.

If we are going to appeal to Scripture we need to know them.

By know them, I mean DEEPLY. they are in here (in our heads and hearts). Not on our phone or formulated by AI.

Jesus did not pull out a phone and say, “Hey Siri…” He knew the Scriptures by heart.

Temptation is not going to wait for us to look up an answer.

Lent is a time to get that Scripture in our hearts so that it is a ready defense.

When temptation comes, we appeal immediately to Scripture.

Don’t pray… 1 Thessalonians 5:17 “pray without ceasing,”

Don’t be generous…. 2 Corinthians 9:7 “Each of you must give as you have made up your mind, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.”

It’s too hard to fast… Matthew 4:4 “Jesus answered, “It is written, ‘One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’

Skip out on church… Psalm 95:6 “O come, let us worship and bow down, let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker!”

Know Deeply.

Exegesis 2: Jesus Understood the Scriptures

Jesus cites the Scripture. But the contest is not over.

Satan says: two can play that game.

In the second temptation Satan takes Jesus to the pinnacle of the temple of Jerusalem.

Matthew 4:5–6 “…saying to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down; …… Glide down into the courtyard, hand delivered by angels.

With such a display everyone would rally to you!

Satan quotes Psalm 91:11–12 “For God will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways. On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.”

Jesus wants nothing more than for everyone to know him as the Son of God and Savior…

Yet he knows that no amount of power tricks are going to lead people to real faith in God.

So he quotes Moses who said to the Israelites, Deuteronomy 6:16 “Do not put the Lord your God to the test, ….”

Moses said this while scolding the Israelites. No matter how many signs God provided, they were still hard of heart.

Moses said, stop asking for proof after proof, have faith!

Jesus uses Scripture combat the misuse of Scripture by the Devil.

Satan tried to mislead Jesus with a piece of Scripture.

But Jesus knew the larger story of the Bible. He knew the scripture Broadly. He knew the guiding themes of the Scriptures…one of which is of course, have faith in the God you cannot see!

Where did Jesus get deep sense of the Scriptures?

He had been learning and arguing the Scriptures since he was a child.

Jesus, when he was 12, in the temple with the elders. (Luke 2)

Discerning the deeper messages of the Bible was not new to him.

This long and thorough acquaintance with the Bible came to his aid when he needed it.

And we notice that God did send angels to Jesus at the end of the temptation, but not because Christ orchestrated it, but because God is faithful to those who trust in him…another core message of the Bible.

Application 2: We develop a Biblical sense

As we seek to engage with God, we are greatly aided knowing the sweeping story of the Bible and the core truths that God reveals.

In our current wilderness we are bombarded by spurious uses of the Bible.

People, books, social media post all kinds of things from the Bible. Make all kinds of claims.

The Bible says,…God helps those who help themselves!.hit agree!

How do you know which ones are legit? By knowing your Bible well.

Not in Bible. Broadly message. God helps those who distrust themselves, and trust in God,

The best way to gain that vision is through long-term, exposure to the Bible.

The more we marinate in the Bible, the more develop a “biblical” sense. A Biblical “lie-detector.”

Bible is a book for life. Life time investment pays dividends.

From childhood - excellent.

Teenage: One Year Bible. Once a year, not I read it once!

Now: Bible Study

Sermons on the lectionary, like right now.

As we steer into the right messages,

God will make it all work out in the end. Not because manufacture, but because he is faithful.

Know Broadly.

Exegesis 3: Jesus chooses the God of the Bible

Satan is not done with our Lord. Jesus will not be swayed by self-preservation; will not grasp after proofs; how about a bid for power.

Matthew 4:8–9 “Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor; ….

Great Wall of China

The pyramid of Giza and the palace of Pharaoh

All the beachfront property of Australia.

The glories of earthly powers are paraded before Jesus’ eyes.

All of them better than the wilderness he is in.

Satan says, they have been given to me. I will give them to you, if you will worship me.

This temptation comes too close to the fire of Jesus’ heart. And Satan gets burned.

Jesus made all the world. John 1. Of course, Jesus wants to reconcile all the world to himself, include it all in the Kingdom of God. But not apart from God!

Jesus will never offer worship to Satan or condone anyone giving any worship to anyone but God the Father.

Jesus, reacts with the first note of hostility in their exchange, finally naming his opponent:

‘Be gone!” Satan.

Jesus banishes him with a FOUNDATIONAL word of Scripture:

He quotes the FIRST commandment of the 10 GREAT COMMANDMENTS, “Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.”

Utterly defeated, no more: rebuked! Satan departed.

Why not another temptation? The firm belief of Jesus is revealed. There are no more layers. This is the FIRM foundation.

Jesus absolutely committed to the God of the Bible.

Application 3: We are committed to the Bible

We all need a firm foundation for life.

That foundation is the Word of God.

The word of God like a rock basis.

Jesus an example for us. To have a foundation of truth in our life. Bottom line.

Later he would apply this to his own teachings for us.

Matthew 7. Act on my teachings, building his house on a rock.

Do we have to have such a foundation. No? Not until the storm comes where do you go for decision making.

2 Timothy 3:16–17 “All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that everyone who belongs to God may be proficient, equipped for every good work.”

When the chips go down. Need the Word of God.

We know the Scriptures FIRMLY.

Conclusion

When he was in the wilderness Jesus relied on the Scriptures.

he knew them deeply.

he knew them broadly.

He knew them firmly.

During this time of Lenten wilderness, let us also know the Scriptures, deeply, broadly, and firmly, so that we can fully engage with God.