Luke, Part 14: Jesus’ Temptation in the Wilderness

Text: Luke 4:1-13

Jesus continues in His work as a  representation of man in this section.  Christ, in His humanity is again shown representing transgressors.  He is going out to the battle against temptation that Adam lost, but unlike Adam, Christ (the New Adam) will be victorious.

When Adam was tempted, he was with his wife, in a perfect place with all his needs supplied.  Christ, on the other hand, was in the desert and alone and suffering greatly from hunger.

In this passage, Christ is shown as our example, as well as our representative.  Through His responses, we can gain insight into foiling Satan’s attempts to tempt us.

In Satan’s first attack (v.3), he begins by saying, “If you are the Son of God turn these stones into bread.”  Jesus knew He was the Son of God; He had just been told by the Father that He was the Father’s “beloved Son”.  As with Adam, Satan’s first attack is on the accuracy of God’s Word.  We see Satan attacking God’s Word in the world all around us, from secular humanists trying to cast doubts on the veracity of the Word, to charismatic churches casting aside the Bible for so-called special revelation.  Jesus is not swayed; He responds directly with the Word.  He tells Satan that His life is not about material things such as food, but that His true life is His relationship with the Father.

In the second attack (v.5-7), Satan takes Christ to all the kingdoms of the world and offers to give them to Him in exchange for worship.  Christ was sent to the world to be a King of a new heavenly kingdom.  Here Satan is giving Christ an opportunity to rule without enduring the suffering He was sent for.  As always, he is trying to made something sinful look good (wouldn’t it be good for Christ to be king over the whole world?)   He is offering the crown without the cross.  Jesus responds to worship God only.  Jesus was familiar with Scripture and knew how to use the written Word against Satan.  We should try to be likewise skilled and to, like Christ, do what God calls us to do in God’s way.

In the final attack, Satan brings Jesus up to the pinnacle of the temple.  Note how he misuses the Bible in order to get Jesus to sin.  The actual passage (Psalm 91:11-12) says, “For He will give His angels charge concerning you,  To guard you in all your ways.”, implying that God will keep the one who walks in righteous ways.  But to assume that God will keep you when you are going into sin is presumption.

Presumption is not faith; the Devil wanted Jesus to substitute presumption for faith.  We can be presumptuous when, for example, we pray for good health but do not take care of our bodies.  A similar presumption is praying for salvation, but not seeking God through prayer and Bible reading.

Jesus rejected this temptation, again quoting Scripture.

From Jesus’ example in the wilderness, we should see that trials and temptations are all part of God’s refining us, and we should not seek to short-circuit the work of God, to avoid His baptism of fire.  We should be wise and recognize the difference between acting in faith and acting with presumption, and, finally, we should study God’s Word to be equipped to defend ourselves against all temptations.

Here He goes out to the wilderness, where He is tempted by Satan.  He is going out to the battle that Adam lost, but unlike Adam, Christ (the New Adam) will be victorious.

First, in this passage, we see Christ in His humanity representing transgressors.