Jesus And Temptation

One of my intentions with this path I'm on is not to study the gospels per se; i.e., not to simply study the writings themselves. My goal is to "study" Jesus Himself. How did He respond? What did He do when confronted with specific challenges and issues? What did He believe? In short, I want to know Him better, more accurately; to learn of Him (Matt. 11:29).

When Jesus was led into the wilderness (or desert) to be tempted by the devil, it's important to know that He was led there by the Holy Spirit for that purpose. Now, Scripture is clear, God tempts no one (James 1:13). But God will allow us to be tempted for our good. Perhaps, Jesus remembered the intensity of this encounter with the tempter when He taught us to pray, "Lead us not into temptation". The important thing here is that our Father, in His goodness and love for us, will lead us into temptation for good. Perhaps, simply to teach us to find our refuge and defense in Him (Proverbs 18:10).

In verse 3, Satan begins by attacking the announcement of God the Father over Jesus' baptism: "This is My Son, whom I love; with Him I am well pleased" (Matt. 3:17). He says, in so many words, "If you are who He says you are, do something to prove it. If He is so pleased with you, anything you do will certainly be okay with Him. And besides, if you're hungry, He'd surely want you to eat, right?" But Jesus' answer shows us a higher way.

"It is written: 'Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God'" (v.4). Satan pointed to an immediate, legitimate need, and for the most part was saying, "Go ahead; you're hungry. Help yourself." Jesus instead shows us that the need, however legitimate, doesn't give us a "green light" to meet the need. We are to live only by the words that come (past and present) from the Father's mouth. Before I meet any need, I must hear Him on it. And then, do as I am told, even if it means leaving the need unmet. If we live by His words, then we must make hearing Him a priority. We must get His mind on something, on anything, before doing anything.