Post by M.R. Hagerty on Feb 23, 2023 12:24:40 GMT -7
Matthew 4:2-3
2 And after He had fasted forty days and forty nights, He then became hungry.
Experiences with fasting tell us that the first week is plagued by feelings of hunger, but after five or six days, these pangs go away and we feel comfortable and rather normal. But at or approaching the forty day mark, we begin severe hunger pangs once again, and this is the sign that we are actually beginning to starve to death.
So with Jesus now at this forty day mark, the statement “He was hungry” would be an understatement. The temptation from Satan to eat is now much more than satisfying a raging hunger. It is the key to staving off an imminent death.
3 And the tempter came and said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.”
This has the ring of kids at play who invent all kinds of scenarios for super heroes who use their powers to make things happen. Whenever you propose a supernatural personage you open the door in purely human terms to magical characterizations.
But in Satan’s case, this is absolutely real stuff. He is well acquainted with divine abilities. This is not a temptation to prove Jesus is really the Son ”If you’re the Son of God you should be able to do such and such,” but more the case of tempting Jesus to use His abilities to satisfy His personal needs, since they are far away from natural means. That He is the Son of God is not being tested. Availing Himself of His powers at the behest of Satan is.
You will note that in all three of these temptations Jesus does not get into philosophical or theological arguments with Satan. He engages in no personal attacks against him. He uses the effective weapon of Scripture, something which Satan cannot deal with. In many ways, this emphasizes the ”living” aspect of the Word. It actually has functional power against Satan’s words compared to mere academic argumentation.
For us, the message is clear. Develop a healthy respect for the power of God’s Word and use it.
Matthew 4:4
4 . . “MAN SHALL NOT LIVE ON BREAD ALONE, BUT ON EVERY WORD THAT PROCEEDS OUT OF THE MOUTH OF GOD.”
That this Scripture (Deut 8:3) was chosen is certainly spiritually applicable, but for us as limited human beings, we halt a bit in knowing to what degree this can apply in our own lives. Certainly for Jesus, food was secondary to the words of His Father. And in His case, it is clear that every step He took was governed by that intimate communication.
But for us, we see the real need to be concerned about bread and the other necessities of life such that we cannot strike out on a life where physical sustenance will come purely from a spiritual concentration upon God. But there are reasons why this is not what is meant.
Jesus Himself is not adopting a life that excludes any care for the physical needs of His body. He took meals and required sleep like anyone else. Therefore the application of this quoted verse is meant to apply to a situation and situations like it, not as a perpetual thing that forsakes natural sustenance altogether.
It is an emphasis about priorities. We should not let worries about the amenities of life distract us from our dependence on God in every aspect of life. We are to realize that we are made for Him and as such, everything we are and will do is bound up in Him and His Word.
It is by His Word that we even have the food about which we worry and fret. He commanded that nature provide it, so even in this we cannot claim we did it ourselves by planting and harvesting ourselves.
Where the thrust of this verse comes into our lives is in the ease with which we “manage” many aspects of our lives without appeal to God. We leave Him out where it seems to us more practical. Yet He is there nonetheless with a Word for us in every situation, would that we listen and hear it.
Matthew 4:5-7
5 Then the devil took Him into the holy city . . on the pinnacle of the temple . . . "If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down; for it is written . .”
The pinnacle of the Temple can be misunderstood as meaning any precipitous point as in a corner junction of the Temple edifice overlooking the platform and courts below, etc. But “the pinnacle” was a sort of idiomatic term for a particular place in the Temple compound, well-known to local inhabitants. It is still seen today on the SE corner of the wall surrounding the Temple area. It is the sheerest point even today, despite the fact that the wall is Byzantine and doesn’t approach the height of the original construction of Herod.
We should be clear also that Satan is not misquoting Scripture. He is quoting Psalms 91:11-12 correctly. But he is misapplying the verse to the situation he has created. He is deceived in thinking that the verse obligates God to invoke this promise in virtually any situation, including contrived ones that purpose to test if this is true.
Now we should be clear about the nature of the temptation. The first was to use power to satisfy urgent physical needs. The second is to use power to attract public attention by employing a trick that would win widespread notoriety, hence gain Him a following much faster than ministering one on one or in smaller crowds.
This is very close to the carnal attitudes we encounter today with respect to the supernatural (which tells us where they came from.) “Do a trick” is a frequent human request. We also see this actually being requested by people later on as Jesus condemns all those who seek signs.
7 On the other hand, it is written, `YOU SHALL NOT PUT THE LORD YOUR GOD TO THE TEST.'
Of interest are Jesus’ words, “On the other hand.” It is like saying to Satan, “You are quoting Scripture correctly, but you have ignored other verses that comment on its application.” He thus quotes Deut 6:16.
Doctrines are not to be built on single quotes. There is a principle that the context of any verse is the entire Bible. That’s a tall order, but it is a valid point - that we should take into account all those things Scripture teaches which might have import to what we’re reading or teaching. It is part of the exhortation to ”study and show thyself approved.”
In this case, Satan ignored the teaching that the promises of God are not to be used in situations that merely test of the Lord’s faithfulness, even if there is a perceived benefit in doing so (the winning of so many souls in such a magnificent display.)
Jesus was adept at putting his finger on what was really happening in Satan’s mind. The temptation to win souls took second place to avoiding the repugnance of testing the faithfulness of God.
Luke 4:5-7
5 And he led Him up and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. . . . Therefore if You worship before me, it shall all be Yours.
Here we see the incredible power Satan in fact possesses. It is popular in some circles to promote the idea that Satan is a sort of benign nemesis who blusters and makes a lot of hay but is easily put back in his place by the authority of the believer. While it is true that we have that authority, we need to be cautious about dumbing down the power he wields.
This is almost a scene from a movie. The kingdoms are “shown,” yet this is before the age of the movie screen and projector, before the arrival of the “holodeck.” We are not told how Satan made these things visible, but the Scripture states that he did do so and ”in a moment of time”. There was no “Just let me set this up and plug a few things in.”
The temptation here is absolutely direct as to intent. It involves the intermediate temptation of winning all the world for Christ and it implies that Satan had the power over such kingdoms in order to offer them. But the chief aim is that Jesus submit and worship him. This was his aim all along. All the temptations had this ring – that complying with Satan’s suggestions was tantamount to coming over to his camp.
But Jesus answers this theme directly, side-stepping any discussion about worlds and kingdoms . .
Matthew 4:10
10 "Go, Satan! For it is written, `YOU SHALL WORSHIP THE LORD YOUR GOD, AND SERVE HIM ONLY.' "
This is a quote from Deut 6:13, 10:20. And it reiterates a principle we sometimes forget – Satan is a created being, and as such has all along had the obligation to serve his Creator in obedience and worship. He is not as some propose a dualistic, self-existent, alternate power to God.
So there is just the command to “Go” followed by the reason the conversation is at an end. Very effective and exactly what we would expect from the One who has the upper hand and is ultimately in complete control.
Luke 4:13, Matthew 4:11
13 . . he left Him until an opportune time . . . 11 and behold, angels came and began to minister to Him.
We see here the deep seated self-deception of Satan himself. The contest is considered by no means over between the two. Satan, surprisingly, is not phased by the corrections Jesus makes and the power of the Word against his designs. We say surprisingly because again he knows the end of the story and if he has forgotten, this encounter with Jesus should have been a reminder that he is fighting a losing battle. Yet we see him going off to find a ”more opportune time.” There is only one accounting for this. Utter and total self-deception.
Again we see the angels ministering to him, and in this case this must have included food. And if so, we have to marvel at the wondrous interface these beings have with the temporal world that they can be the conveyors of physical things despite being spirits.