Temptation of Jesus

At youth camp this summer we had a pretty cool speaker, named Dillon Chase. The whole week he spoke nothing but the truth. He was cool and engaging and could rap and drop bars for days. But there was something that Dillon said to us that I found so true. You can either rake leaves, or you can dig for diamonds. When you rake leaves, you are only moving stuff around on the surface. Barely scratching the surface. And it doesn’t last very long. The leaves always come back. When you dig for diamonds, you have to be intentional, you have to work hard and put in effort. You have to be willing to keep going until you recieve the prize you are searching for, the diamond.

I said last week we are building a foundation. We are going to talk about Jesus, because there is not a more important person or topic in the world. Foundations are important. Screw it up and everything you build on it will fall apart. When you rake leaves you only go surface deep. You’re like the soil Jesus talks about with weeds in it. You hear about Jesus and you get excited in the moment, only to have that excitement choked out by everything and everyone else in your life. It doesn’t last. You end up with a foundation that may look good on the outside. It looks like it might hold up a solid structure, but as you start building your life on it, it begins to crack and crumble and make everything unstable until it crashes down. BUT when you decide to dig for diamonds, when you decide to lean in and begin digging below the surface, deeper and deeper, you begin to see more of who Jesus is, to appreciate more of what He has done for you; you begin creating a solid and sturdy foundation that won’t budge. You get a foundation that will stand the test of time and will support you for the rest of your life. So I want to challenge you to make a choice, rake leaves, or dig for diamonds.

A good way to dig for diamonds is taking notes and staying engaged when we talk here at Midweek, and on Sunday mornings.

Alright, lets start digging!

Mark 1:12–13 ESV

The Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. And he was in the wilderness forty days, being tempted by Satan. And he was with the wild animals, and the angels were ministering to him.

Mark really doesn’t give us a whole lot to go off of here. He doesn’t tell us what happened during the temptations like Matthew and Luke do. Last week I mentioned how Jesus was baptized, not because he needed to turn from the sin in his life. Jesus is sinless. He was baptized as a way to show he was willing to do God’s Will; to go to the cross to save people from their sins and the wrath of God. And here we find Jesus being immediately driven out into the wilderness to go 10 rounds with Satan. In fact Mark says that “the Spirit” drove Jesus out into the wilderness.

In all of Mark’s gospel you are going to see Jesus shown as the Servant-Savior. Servants aren’t let-they are driven or commanded to go. Jesus humbly submitted to the Spirit to endure 40 days of no eating and being tempted by Satan.

Mark doesn’t give us much of a closure to this event, but that’s okay; Jesus spent his entire ministry going toe to toe with Satan, and eventually, through what seemed like a total failure, the cross and his death, Jesus defeated Satan once and for all.

I want us to take a look at the temptations that Jesus faced. Look at Matthew 4:1-11

Matthew 4:1–11 ESV

Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. And 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, “ ‘Man shall 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 set him on the pinnacle of the temple and said 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, lest you strike your foot against a stone.’ ” Jesus said to him, “Again it is written, ‘You shall 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 glory. And he said to him, “All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.” Then Jesus said to him, “Be gone, Satan! For it is written, “ ‘You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.’ ” Then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and were ministering to him.

Jesus was in a very vulnerable place. He was in an unfamiliar place(the wilderness), he was hungry(fasting for 40 days), and the only interaction he had was with Satan(the adversary) who’s entire goal was to get Jesus to turn aside from his appointed path.

All three of these temptations were meant to keep Jesus from being our savior.

1. The first temptation was an attempt to get Jesus to doubt God’s providential care. Jesus has spent 40 days without eating. Of course he’s hungry. So what does Satan do, he tells Jesus that if he really is the Son of God then he should just rely on his own power and make some food for himself. Don’t rely on God, just do it yourself. Jesus didn’t turn the stones into bread. Look at what he said. Jesus quotes the Bible. Jesus is showing us that God’s will is more important than a hamburger or a promotion or getting married or “success.” God’s will is more important than anything you are craving after, or desiring.

2. The second temptation was a little different from the first. Satan heard Jesus quote Scripture, and he knows a bit of that himself. He quotes Psalm 91:11-12. This was his attempt to get Jesus to test God’s promise to protect Jesus from physical harm. Jesus quotes Scripture again, and once again shows us that just because everything in our life looks good, or just because we can do something, doesn’t mean God approves of it. God approves obedience.

3. The third temptation was a huge choice for Jesus. He’s hungry. He’s tired. He’s had to face Satan on his own all this time and now Satan attempts to get Jesus to seize a kingdom and avoid the cross. Jesus could choose to take the long road that led to the agony of the cross, or the road of instant exaltation just by bowing down to Satan. But remember Jesus is the Servant-Savior. He is the servant of God the Father. He humbly submits to the Father’s will, the long road to the cross. Hebrews 4:15

Hebrews 4:15 ESV

For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.

Jesus is relatable. He gets it. He understands that we are easily tempted to sin because sin is in us. He isn’t surprised by all the junk in our lives. Why are we talking about temptation? Because of this, James 1:13-14

James 1:13–14 ESV

Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire.

We all deal with it. So lets get prepared to deal with it. Here’s two important things that help us fight temptation.

You got to be filled with the Holy Spirit. That comes from a relationship with Jesus Christ. Without Jesus you’re just swimming down stream along with everyone else that doesn’t have a relationship with Jesus. You don’t even notice that you don’t have him, but when you begin that relationship with Jesus you immediately begin swimming against the stream. It’s hard. But the Holy Spirit is your guide.

Be filled with God’s Word. Jesus didn’t just make up his answers to Satan. He quoted from Scripture. If you want to actually be able to fight against temptation and follow after Jesus, you have to know what the Bible says.

I wanted to speak on this tonight because it is so important that you understand just who Jesus is. He isn’t a Superman. He also isn’t Mr. Rodgers. Jesus isn’t too big, too small, too busy, or too distant for you and your problems. He understands. “The Lord Jesus has been there before you. He has blazed the trail for you…He knows what you are facing, and you too will receive God’s help so you can stand firm in the trial.”