Matthew #6

Matthew #6

D. Jesus’ unique baptism– , ,

1. – Jesus came to His cousin John the Baptizer for the purpose of being baptized. He identified with John the Baptist’s message because He was the message!

2. – John humbly stated that he was the one who should be baptized.

a) – John was the first prophet in Israel after 400 silent years.

b) – Jesus sought to be baptized by John, thereby following the pattern of Old Testament kings who were anointed by a prophet in preparation for ruling.

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3. – Jesus’ baptism, which identified Him with the message of the Kingdom of heaven, was part of the Father’s plan.

4. – All three members of the trinity were present at Jesus’ baptism, God the Father as a voice, God the Son as Jesus Christ, and God the Holy Spirit as a dove.

a) – The apostle John referred to this event in .

b) – For the first of three times in Christ’s life, the Father spoke.

c) – With the words in whom I am well-pleased, the Father verified the righteousness of Jesus, His Son.

5. A SHORT DOCTRINE OF JESUS AS PROPHET, PRIEST, AND KING

a) Prophet: Jesus, who revealed the Truth of God (), was the greatest prophet and fulfilled .

b) Priest: Jesus represented man before God. His sacrifice on the cross was sufficient payment for every sin for all mankind.

1) Christ is a Priest after the order of Melchizedek, not Aaron.

2) Christ, the Son of God, qualifies for the office of priest. ,

3) Just as God appointed all Old Testament priests so also He appointed Christ to be priest.

4) Christ’s priesthood is higher than Aaron’s because He didn’t need to offer a sacrifice for Himself because He is sinless. , ,

5) Christ’s priesthood is eternal.

c) King: Christ has authority to reign over all the earth but will not do so until all His enemies are made His footstool.

d) The Lord Jesus Christ occupies these three offices simultaneously, making Him superior to all who have held or will hold any of them. Right now, He functions as our Great High Priest. In eternity, He will be King.

e) In these three offices, Christ revealed aspects of God to us, accomplished reconciliation through the atonement on the cross, and will one day rule over all the earth as the King of kings and Lord of lords.

E. Jesus’ temptation – , ,

1. – Immediately after Jesus’ baptism, God the Holy Spirit led Him into the wilderness to be tested by Satan.

a) –God the Father had just declared Jesus to be His beloved Son and acceptable before Him.

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b) – These satanic temptations tested the legitimacy of God’s claims about His Son.

c) – This special temptation definitely was not the only time Jesus was tested. The temptations no doubt became much worse until Jesus sweated drops of blood in the Garden of Gethsemane. ,

2. – Jesus’ forty-day fast made Satan's first recorded temptation of Him especially difficult.

3. – The Provision Test: Turning stones to bread to ease His hunger

a) – Satan took advantage of Jesus’ weakened physical condition to challenge His divinity. He claimed that if Jesus truly were the Son of God, He had the power to make bread to keep Himself from dying, a true claim but not part of God the Father’s plan.

b) – The temptation was to listen to Satan and solve His hunger problem through His divine power rather than wait for the Father to save Him.

c) – Jesus wielded the sword of the Spirit by quoting , thereby emphasizing the authority of God’s Word over Satan’s word.

4. – The Plan Test: Make a dramatic entrance into the temple

a) – The Kidron Valley was below the pinnacle of the temple.

b) – Satan tempted Jesus to make a miraculous sudden appearance at the temple as Malachi prophesied Messiah would.

c) – Satan misused Scripture by misinterpreting it and omitting a phrase, all in an attempt to cause the Lord to make a mistake.

d) – promised that angels would protect Jesus. He did not need to do anything reckless or senseless to prove the Truth of God’s Word.

e) – Jesus masterfully used to show Satan’s misuse of the psalm.

5. – The Purpose Test: Rule the world

a) – In some supernatural way, Satan showed Jesus every kingdom of the earth.

b) – The Kingdom of man is under Satan’s authority; therefore, his offer to give it to Jesus was legitimate.

c) – Satan tempted Jesus to bypass the cross to get the Kingdom.

d) – Jesus’ biblical answer involved a quote from and a command to Satan to go away.

e) – Satan had to obey Jesus, the Son of God. After Satan left, the Father sent angels to provide for His Son. After this spiritual victory, Jesus continued to pass various tests and temptations throughout His life through the power of God's Word and God the Holy Spirit. ;