Lesson 4 Satan The Tempter
MS Word Document
Timeline
Year of Obscurity Year of Popularity Year of Opposition ____________________|________________________________|____________________________
(1),(2)AD25 (3) (4) Apr AD26 (5) AD 26 (6) Mar AD27 (7) Apr AD 27
1. John The Baptist preaches as forerunner Mark 1:1-8
2. Jesus is Baptized by John, Matthew 3:13-17,
3. Jesus in the wilderness tempted by Satan, Matt 4:1-11
John Arrested and Jesus calls disciple and begins public ministry.
4. Temple Cleansing, 1st Passover John 2:13, meets with Nicodemus John 3:1
5. John cast in prison Luke 3:19-20, End of Year of Obscurity
6. John beheaded by Herod for his wife Mark 6:17-29
7. Second Passover John 5:1
Map of Lesson
Parallel Passages
Jesus Tempted in the Wilderness
Matt 4:1-11; Mark 1:12,13; Luke 4:1-13
Lesson Read Matthew 4:1-11
1 Then
was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil. 2 And
when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungred. 3 And
when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that
these stones be made bread. 4 But he answered and said, It is written,
Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the
mouth of God. 5 Then
the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of
the temple, 6 And
saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is
written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in
their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot
against a stone. 7
Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy
God. 8
Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him
all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; 9 And
saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall
down and
worship me. 10 Then
saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt
worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve. 11 Then
the devil leaveth him, and,
behold, angels came and ministered unto him.
Background:
Origin of Satan
The Bible gives us only a few clues as to the origin and fall of Satan. We cannot be dogmatic on theories, since God chose to reveal them in an indirect way. Nevertheless, most conservative Bible students interpret the following passages as revealing Satan's beginnings.
Ezekiel 28:11-19 Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Son of man, take up a lamentation upon the king of Tyrus, and say unto him, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Thou sealest up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty. Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God; every precious stone was thy covering, the sardius, topaz, and the diamond, the beryl, the onyx, and the jasper, the sapphire, the emerald, and the carbuncle, and gold: the workmanship of thy tabrets and of thy pipes was prepared in thee in the day that thou wast created. Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire. Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee. By the multitude of thy merchandise they have filled the midst of thee with violence, and thou hast sinned: therefore I will cast thee as profane out of the mountain of God: and I will destroy thee, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire. Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty, thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness: I will cast thee to the ground, I will lay thee before kings, that they may behold thee. Thou hast defiled thy sanctuaries by the multitude of thine iniquities, by the iniquity of thy traffick; therefore will I bring forth a fire from the midst of thee, it shall devour thee, and I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all them that behold thee. All they that know thee among the people shall be astonished at thee: thou shalt be a terror, and never shalt thou be any more.
How do we know that God is looking beyond the King of Tyrus to the Power behind the King?
The person in the passage was in Eden, he is called the anointed cherub that covers, and was in the Holy mountain of God.
How did God describe Satan?
He seals up the sum (a term for compete perfection), full of wisdom, perfect in beauty, and covered in precious stones.
What was Satan’s purpose before he fell?
The anointed (chosen) cherub (angel) that covers (the throne of God.) Satan was one of only two archangels, who stood beside the throne of God.
Isaiah 14:12-15 How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north:
I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High. Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit.
What does the name Lucifer mean?
Light bearer, Morning Star
What caused the downfall of Lucifer?
He was cast out due to pride. Notice the I wills.
I will ascend into heaven,
I will exalt my throne above the stars,
I will sit upon the mount,
I will ascend above the heights,
I will be like the most High.
Job 38:4-7 Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding. Who hath laid the measures thereof, if thou knowest? or who hath stretched the line upon it? Whereupon are the foundations thereof fastened? or who laid the corner stone thereof; When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?
Who are the sons of God in this passage?
Could only be the angels.
Did the angels precede the creation of the earth?
It would seem so, according to this passage.
Immediately after being baptized by John, Jesus is "driven" into the wilderness by the Holy Spirit. There he fasts for 40 days and then, at his physically weakest, he faces the most powerful created being in all the universe. Lucifer, who is now called Satan and the Devil, once attended the throne of Jesus in heaven, but then desired to place himself upon that throne. Now the One who cast him down to earth must be overcome Satan’s power in his kingdom. The Son of God has come into this world in human flesh, and now will be severely tried and tested as the redeemer of mankind.
The Judean wilderness Jesus went into was a vast, empty, land. There is little vegetation and the low hills are covered with rocks and scarred by wind and water erosion. The valleys between the hills are just dry washes, where the water runs during the very short rainy season. The land is blasted by heat searing from the sky and rising from the ground. The landscape is a mixture of rock and sand, blinding light and shrinking shadows. At night there are few clouds to hold in the heat and the temperature can drop 20 to 30 degrees. Into this barren wild land Jesus walked without food for 40 days, until the former archangel and now archtempter, Satan came to Him to try and destroy the work of God, by turning Jesus.
The Temptation of Jesus
1. Both Satan and Christ use the same weapon as they speak. One uses it offensively to attack the other uses it defensively. One uses it incorrectly and out of context, and one uses it as it was written and meant to be understood. What is the weapon?
The weapon was the word of God, the scriptures of the Old Testament. Both Satan and Jesus quote from the Bible, but Satan purposely takes scripture and twists it to mislead and corrupt. While Christ uses it to clarify and reprove.
1st Temptation: Stones into Bread
2. Matthew 4:3–4 And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread. But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.
Satan did not tempt Christ with a "great" sin like murder or adultery. In fact, stones being made into bread was not much different from the multiplying of the loaves and fish. First why was this a very personal temptation and why would it have been wrong for Jesus to make stones into bread to prove he was God?
The temptation was targeted to the fast, it was perfectly on target.
Jesus was led of the Spirit to the wilderness. He was there fasting by God's will. To have broken that fast at the urging of Satan would have been to disobey God and obey Satan. Disobedience to God at any level is sin.
2nd Temptation: Cast Yourself to the Angels
3. Matthew 4:5–7 Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple, And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone. Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.
How is this temptation directed at the very core of who Jesus is and his mission on earth?
His dare to prove "thou art the son of God" is made in the very place where the nation of Israel would have expected to see their Messiah come down from the heavens in the arms of angels.
The quotation Jesus uses to correct Satan's misuse is from Deut 6:16 and refers to the children of Israel complaining to Moses at Massah before he struck the rock and brought forth water. In what way was Satan's temptation like the children of Israel at Massah? What does it mean then to "tempt" the Lord?
Tempting God is a sin of presumption, of making demands upon God, who is our creator. We can make no demands upon the Sovereign, Almighty God. He makes His demands upon me. Tempting God in this manner is trying to make God our servant rather than being His servant. It is to try and supplant the Creator in favor of the creature, the same thing Satan was cast out of heaven for.
3rd Temptation – The Kingdoms of the World
The last temptation in Matthew's account sees Jesus and Satan on a very high mountain. Satan is able to show Jesus all the kingdoms of the world with all their glory. He then offers these to Jesus in exchange for worshipping him.
Luke 4:5–7 And the devil, taking him up into an high mountain, shewed unto him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. And the devil said unto him, All this power will I give thee, and the glory of them: for that is delivered unto me; and to whomsoever I will I give it. If thou therefore wilt worship me, all shall be thine.
Did Satan have the right to offer "all the kingdoms of the world?"
Jesus does not correct Satan’s claim, elsewhere in scripture Satan is called Prince of the Power of the Air, (Eph 2:2) and the Ruler of this world. (Jo 12:31,14:30,16:1) terms which mean he was given charge of the earth. Some believe Michael was given charge of the heavens.
How did Jesus' reaction to this Temptation show who He truly was and who was ultimately in control?
Jesus dismisses Satan, "get the hence!" And Satan, still bound by the power of his Creator, leaves on command.
Same Temptation Tactics
Compare Eve’s, Christ's and our temptations.
Genesis 3:6 And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did at, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.
1 John 2:15-16 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.
|
Genesis 3:6 |
Matthew 4 |
1 John 2:16 |
|
Physical -Good for food |
Stones into bread |
Lust of the flesh |
|
Visual - Pleasant to the eyes |
All the cities of the world |
Lust of the eyes |
|
Egotistical - Desired to make wise |
Let the angels catch you |
Pride of life |
Application
1. In what way is Satan still using the same weapon in the same way today as he did with Jesus?
2. If Satan could so tailor his temptation to the character of Christ, what must I be aware of when I am tempted?
Satan always uses your favorite bait in the trap. What catches you will be something you like.
3. Are there places or time in my life when I might be guilty of tempting God? What is the difference between tempting God and standing on His promises?
One has me waiting on God the other has God waiting on me.
4. How does my understand of Jesus defeating Satan and his temptations affect my own battles with temptation?
Two things can be seen. First, Jesus had an internal supply of God's word. He was able to draw upon this whenever He needed an answer or strength. How much more than should I have a working knowledge of God’s word "rightly divided." Second, Only Jesus was successful in overcoming Satan, sin and temptation in all it's power. If I am to win over my own temptations, it must be in His strength, not mine. I cannot outwit or out will Satan, but Jesus already has, therefore I must not try in my own strength but turn to and rely on Jesus Christ.
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