This morning - and for the next two Sundays -  we’re going to be focusing on temptation and truth.

We get temptation.  Right?  (photo)  “Sometimes I eat things just to avoid the temptation of eating them later.”

We’re going to be looking at three temptations that we all struggle with.  Temptations that are self-destructive.  That can get us thinking about ourselves - and acting - in ways that are not who we are in Jesus.  Not what God intends for us all.

And we’re looking at three truths.  Meaning that - as we struggle with these temptations - we don’t have to go there.  God gives us His truth.  So we can see the temptations for the lies that they are.  So we can choose to stay faithful to God and what God has for us in Jesus that’s infinitely better than lies we’re being tempted with.

We’re going to be focusing on Matthew 4:1-11 which is the account of the temptation of Jesus.  Jesus faced three temptations.  Jesus responded with three truths.  Hugely helpful to us with what we struggle with. 

This is a familiar account.  Yes?  So to help us stay out of auto-sermon mode - and miss what God has for us this morning - we’re going to read this out loud together.

This section here is going to read what Satan says - the temptation part.  This section here is going to read what Jesus says - the truth part.  And this section over here and over here is going to read the narration part - everything else that’s not in quotations.  We’re together?  Okay.  Take a deep breath.  And we’ll begin:

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.

Let’s go back and do some unpacking.  Verse 1 begins, “Then Jesus…”  When we see a “then” in Scripture we need to ask “when?”  A “then” is Scripture’s way of connecting events together in sequence.  “Then” connects back to the “when” of chapter 3 - to what just took place - which was the baptism of Jesus.

John the Baptist was... baptizing.  Probably about 20 or so miles east of Jerusalem - just east across the Jordan River.  John’s baptism was about what?  John is calling God’s people to repent of their sin - to get their hearts right before God.  Because God is at work.  The Messiah is coming.

Point being:  John’s ministry points to... Jesus.

Jesus comes to be baptized by John.  Which seems strange.  Doesn’t it?  It seemed strange to John.  John told Jesus that Jesus ought to be baptizing John not John baptizing Jesus.  But - grab this - the baptism of Jesus - in part - is about inauguration - the launching of Jesus’ ministry. 

Jesus’ baptism identifies Jesus with the ministry of John.  Repentance and the working of God.  All pointing to Jesus Who’s coming.  Now Jesus is here.  John baptizing Jesus shows that Jesus is the One that John has been preparing people for - the Lamb of God - Who will save God’s people through His work on the cross.

Hold onto this:  The baptism of Jesus is in part about inauguration -   Jesus’ ministry - what Jesus does - here in the flesh of humanity.

Second:  The baptism of Jesus is about declaration - who Jesus is.

Coming up out of the water - 3:16 - as Jesus comes up out of the water the heavens open - God the Holy Spirit descends in the form of a dove and rests on Jesus.  The Holy Spirit resting on Jesus - declaring that Jesus is the one anointed - uniquely set apart by God - the Messiah - the Christ.

Then God the Father speaks from heaven - a hugely significant declaration of God:  “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”  The voice of God declaring that Jesus is God’s Son - meaning deity in the flesh of humanity.  Jesus is fully God and fully man.

We’re glimpsing the working of the Trinity - the Triune Godhead - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  What is a study for a different time.

But grab this:  In His humanity - the ministry of the Son - everything that God the Son - Jesus - does He does according to the will of the Father by the enabling and guiding of the Holy Spirit.  At this moment of inauguration what Jesus is set apart - anointed to do - in the flesh of humanity - is the redeeming work of the eternal Triune God.

Notice that Jesus is beloved.  God is pleased in Him.  Meaning that while Jesus has yet to perform a miracle - yet to do any of that Spirit empowered and guided - according to the will of the Father - inaugurated ministry - or even hang on the cross - Jesus is beloved.  God is pleased.  Jesus is deeply loved and affirmed by God - solely because of Who Jesus is - the beloved Son.

That’s huge.  Isn’t it?  What Jesus does.  Who Jesus is.  What Jesus - God - has entered into humanity to do.  The love and pleasure of the Father.  All that is going on at Jesus’ baptism.

Then - 4:1 - then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 

Just east of where John is baptizing is a whole lot of wilderness.  A geologist’s playground.  Not much scenery unless you like rocks and sand.

The Spirit leads Jesus - meaning that God has a purpose in this.  What’s about to happen is a God moment tied to the inauguration and declaration of Who Jesus is.

To be tempted - the word in Greek has the idea of a test - like at school or work.  Spiritually - when we’re tempted - when our faith - our trust and relationship with God - when we get tested it reveals more of what’s going on in our relationship with God.  When resisted - when we choose to stay faithful - obedient to God - we grow stronger in our faith - more prepared for service - and God is glorified.  God’s purposes are accomplished.  (James 1:13)

The Spirit leads Jesus into the wilderness to be tempted by the Devil.  Definite article - “the” Devil - meaning Satan Himself.  Our adversary.

Let’s be careful.  Scripture tells us that God tempts no one.  But God allows us to go through temptation.  Its not like God has no clue when we’re being tempted.  He gets it.  What’s going on with us.  But God allows us to be tempted - to be tested - for His purposes.  To grow us.  To bring glory to Himself. 

Point being that the Spirit is purposefully bringing Jesus to be tempted by Satan in order to reveal what’s really going on in Jesus - the beloved Son - God in the flesh of humanity - what’s going on in Jesus’ relationship with the Father.  Its a test of obedience and loyalty - of trust - of faith in the Father - in preparation - at the inauguration of Jesus’ Messianic work.

Bottom line:  Will Jesus trust God or not?

Verse 2:  And after fasting forty days and forty nights, He was hungry.

Sounds like an understatement. Doesn’t it?  He was hungry.  Duh.

Forty days and nights is about the max a person can go without food.  Water about 3 days.  Food about 40 days.  After that bad things start happening to the body.  It wouldn’t be hard to imagine that after forty days and nights of fasting - ravenous is probably a better translation. 

What did Jesus do for forty days and nights?  He wasn’t eating.  No internet.  No 4G network to connect with. 

Forty is a number that gets used in Scripture to signify preparation or a trial or a testing of one’s faith.  Spiritual preparation.

Fasting - whatever the method - fasting is about focusing.  About taking our eyes off of the things of this world - and ourselves - and focusing on God.  God’s will.  God’s purposes.  Who God is.  Going deeper in our devotion and commitment and obedience.

Jesus had forty days to go deep with God - probably by prayer and meditation - communion with the Father.  Forty days to prepare Himself - - for what’s coming.  The work that the Father had given Him to do.

Grab this:  God strengthening Jesus - priming Him - for His messianic role.  There’s a huge opportunity here for Jesus to step forward into His inaugurated ministry - by faith living out what it means to be the incarnate Son of God doing the work of the Father by the enabling and guiding of the Spirit.

And yet - Satan is working here to subvert God’s plan - where God has been going from day one of creation and the fall of Adam.  This is Satan’s golden opportunity to trip up Jesus.  To cause Jesus - in His humanity - to fall into sin and disobedience.  Bye Bye Jesus as our Savior. 

Which is true of us.  Isn’t it?  In our humanity.  Most of us being human.  We’re constantly being bombarded by Satan with lies - temptations - tests - in the wilderness of where we do life - in our weakness - at the worst possible times - sucker punches of temptation.

We are uniquely created with God given purpose - unique in who we are as God’s kids.  And every day who we are in Christ is put to the test.   Will we choose to trust God - what God says about us - or to settle for stumbling around in a lie that’s way less than what God has created and called us to.

Will we trust God or not?

Jesus faced three of these temptations and responded with God’s truth.  We’re going to take these one at a time - each Sunday.

Temptation number one comes in verse 3 - the temptation of Performance.  The temptation to think that we are what we do.  Who we are - our identity is based on what we do - what we achieve in life.

Verse 3:  And the tempter came and said to Him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.”

Tempting if you’re ravenous.

“If you are the Son of God” reads more like “Since you are the Son of God.”  Its not a question of whether or not Jesus is the Son of God.  That’s not a test question.  It’s a reality.  Jesus knows it.  Satan knows it.  Creation knows it.  God declared it at Jesus’ baptism.  The issue here is performance.  Trusting God or not. 

“Let’s explore what it means that you’re the Son of God.” 

“Eve, let’s explore what God may have meant when He said not to eat that fruit.  Let’s take a second look at the fruit.  Shall we?”  “Adam, look Eve isn’t dead.  Let’s explore what God may have meant by ‘You will surely die.’”  Coming to Jesus - same question.  Even involves food. 

“If you are the Son of God - and we all know that you are - then this should be a no brainer.  Let’s just explore that a bit here.  Some real time application.  Why don’t you use your divine power and just tell the stones to become nice warm - fresh from the oven - loaves of bread.  The forty days are up.  You can satisfy your hunger.”

God tells Adam:  “It’s all yours.  Just not the fruit from that tree.  Because if you eat fruit from that tree.  You’ll die.  I’ve provided and will continue to provide everything you need.  Just trust Me.”

But Eve ate the fruit and she didn’t die.  Can God’s word be trusted?  If God was wrong about the dying part then maybe God won’t provide for our needs. 

We know - because we’ve read forward through history - that what God was talking about was spiritual death.  But Adam wasn’t processing that.  He’s looking at the physical.  Which Satan knew. 

Satan’s temptation of Adam was to doubt what God had said - to doubt God’s provision for everything that Adam needed - and for Adam to choose to trust himself not God.  To take matters into his own hands [literally] and eat the fruit.

We all know that Adam - representing all of us - Adam failed the test.  And we’re all born deserving to be eternal toast because of it.  Here’s Jesus - the second Adam - inaugurated and declared - as our representative and Savior - Jesus needs to triumph or we’re all still toast.

Is Jesus really beloved and is God really pleased?  Is this ministry really about the Son doing the will of the Father - or is all that subject to exploration - to interpretation?

The temptation is to doubt what God has said - to destroy the Son’s confidence in His Father’s will and power to provide for Him.  For Jesus to take matters into His own hands and act independent of the will of the Father.

Put slightly different.  For 30 years what had Jesus done?  Apparently nothing.  He hasn’t begun His ministry.  Nobody’s believed in Him.  What contribution has He made to the world?  How is He advancing the Kingdom of God?  He’s hanging out in the wilderness - hungry - ravenous.  According to the standards of the world He’s a loser.  If you are the Son of God what are you waiting for?  Do something.  Perform.

Ben Franklin summarized the temptation:  “God helps those who help themselves.”

We live our lives on overdrive.  Constant demands from work and family and school and church and community.  Our lives are lived someplace between full and overflowing.  We multitask so much so that we don’t even notice that we’re doing 3 or 4 things simultaneously.  Our role models are people who are accomplishing an amazing amount of things with few resources and not a whole of time. 

We’re over-scheduled, tense, addicted to rushing around - to pressure.  We’re frantic, preoccupied, fatigued, starved for quality time - whatever that is.  Free time is only more time to get more things done.  We’re exhausted at the end of the day and tired when we wake up in the morning - providing we’ve slept at all.

We’re cramming our lives into our iphones and ipods and planners and pilots.  Trying to squeeze as much productivity as we can into every second of our lives.   We’ve got all these devices to help us be more productive.  And yet we wonder if all our over productivity has really become counter-productive. 

And if something major comes up - an illness - or something unexpected that we haven’t tapped into our calendar - we’re in serious trouble.  And we wonder why so many of us are stretched, strained, and stressed. 

Someone sent me an email with this warning:  “If all your experiences are virtual you experience virtually nothing.”  We’re so busy accomplishing the stuff of life that we wonder if we’re really accomplishing what matters in life.

Can anyone else relate to this?

Someplace in all of that is this question:  Where’s God?  Is this really what God has created me for?  Is this God’s plan for my life?

We’ve heard sermons about slowing down.  We’ve read books or articles about slowing down.  We get the idea that we need to... slow down and rest and recharge.  But we can’t stop.  If we aren’t busy we feel guilty.  We stress thinking that we’re wasting time and we’re not being productive.  Its like who we are is based on what we do.  What we’re producing with our lives.  Performance.

“Jesus, turn the rocks into bread.”

Jesus’ answer comes in verse 4.  “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”

Jesus’ quote is from Deuteronomy 8.  After 40 years of wandering God’s people are about to enter the Promised Land.  Moses is warning God’s people. 

“The whole commandment that I command you today you shall be careful to do, that you may live and multiply, and go in and possess the land that the Lord swore to give to your fathers.

The reason the Promised Land is called the Promised Land is because… God “swore” promised to give the land to His people.

Remember the first time God’s people came to the land?  “There’s giants!  We can’t win.”  Do you hear trusting self in that?  Not God?  God promises the land to us but we need to be the one’s who accomplish the conquest.  Instant stress.  But if God promises them land God will deliver on His promise.  Won’t He?   Yeah but we need to…  Do what?

Moses goes on:  And you shall remember the whole way that the Lord your God has led you these forty years in the wilderness

That 40 years in the wilderness connection is intentional.  Preparation.  Testing. 

Why the forty years in the wilderness?  that He might humble you, testing you to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not.

Did God know what was in the hearts of His people?  Of course.  God knows everything.  He’s God.  But this is entrance to the land part two.  Post preparation - an examination - a revealing of whether or not God’s people are prepared - at the heart level - to keep God’s commands when God gives them the land.  

The test question is, “Have you learned to trust God?  Or, like your fathers are you still thinking that all that multiplying and possessing has to do with you and not the God who promised all that to you?” 

And He - God - humbled you - How?  He - let you hunger and fed you with manna, which you did not know, nor did your fathers know.

We remember how that went.  Right?  5 days gather only enough manna for just that day.  On day 6 gather manna for days six and seven.  Disobeying God stinks.  Literally.  The point was a lesson in learning to trust God.  God said He would provide for your daily needs.  Trust Him.  Not your own efforts at providing yourselves.

Pride is us doing stuff for ourselves.  Performance.  Humility is about faith.  Trusting God.  Obeying God.

Point being:  that He might make you know that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.”  (Deuteronomy 8:1-3) 

Meaning:  Man does not live by what we accomplish but by what God promises.  God’s provision not our performance.  Do we really trust that God will take care of us?

Disaster if we don’t.

Scripture records that God called Abraham out of Ur - raised up a nation - incubating it in Egypt - delivering it - giving His people the Promised Land.  Then God’s people turned away from God - trusted in Baal and other false gods - foreign armies - weapons of war - themselves.

After all the battles and strivings and judges and kings.  The building of the cities and the Temple.  After all the vineyards are planted and crops harvested - flocks herded.  After all the homes that were built and families raised - generations of celebrations of birthdays and weddings.  The loved ones that have been buried.  The achievements - the productivity - the dreams and hopes that are the stuff of our lives.

After all that, God’s people are conquered - led into exile.  The end result of all of what God’s people achieved by their own whit, wisdom, and working is nothing - emptiness.

Our culture is asking the question, “What have you achieved?  How have you demonstrated your usefulness - your competency?”  How often when we meet someone the question gets asked, “What do you do?” 

We consider ourselves worthwhile when we’ve scored sufficient successes - at work or school or church or wherever…  We get depressed if we haven’t.  We try harder.  We blame others for our inadequacies.  We get angry at people who stand in our way.

So many people today come to their end of their lives and see that they’ve only occupied space.  They really haven’t lived.  They’re only legacy is emptiness.

My grandmother used to have this plaque on her front door.  “Only one life twill soon be passed.  Only what’s done for Christ will last.”  Have you heard that?  It sticks.  Because its true.

Man does not live by what we accomplish but by what God promises.  Not even what we accomplish by our own efforts at trying to live pleasing to God.  But only by totally trusting in Him.

Everything that God the Son - Jesus - does He does according to the will of the Father by the enabling and guiding of the Holy Spirit.

How do we stop buying into this lie that who we are is based on what we do?  What we achieve by our own efforts?  In the day to day of our lives how can we stay focused on God and trust Him for what we need for life?  What can that look like for us?

Maybe some of you have experienced this.  White out conditions.  Picture a farm in the Midwest - or someplace in Canada - and a rope tied from the barn to the house.  The rope is there because blizzards come up quickly. 

When the full force of the blizzard is blowing a farmer can’t see the end of his or her hand.  Let alone make it from the barn to the house without wandering off - getting disorientated - getting lost in their own fields and dying.  Some farmers freeze within a few feet of their own homes.

To avoid getting lost in the blinding snow means hanging on to the rope.  Follow the rope and you’ll make it home safely.

We’re together?  Our culture is like a blizzard.  God is offering us a rope to keep us from getting lost - from perishing in the blizzard.

Jesus quotes Moses giving commands to God’s people and talking about bread - manna.  That’s not a coincidence.  That manna is gathered 6 out of 7 days - day seven being the Sabbath - is intentional.  Entering the land, God commanded His people to remember the Sabbath - which they did not.  God’s people being taken into exile for the number of years that corresponded to the number of years they had not kept the Sabbath - is God making a point.

The word in Hebrew for “cease” as in “stop working” - in Hebrew is the word “shabbath” - which more English sounding is the word... “Sabbath.”  That is hugely instructive for us.  That is a rope we need to grab on to.  Sabbath provides us the opportunity to refocus our lives on God.

Let’s be careful.  The Sabbath - as a command of God - being the only one of the 10 Commandments that’s tied to Jewish Ceremonial Law and not binding on the Church - all that is a study for a different time.  And let’s not get lost in legalism.  What about people who have to work on Sundays?  Not helpful for us this morning.

Here’s the rope.  Pulling together the different parts of the Sabbath from the Old Testament - and processing that for us today - there are three core elements of the Sabbath that we need to grab on to.  What it means for us to keep the Sabbath - not because we have to - commandments and legalism.  But because, in the blizzard, we need to be surrendered to God in trust - living by faith in Him.

Number one is to Stop.

God set up one day out of seven and He told His people to stop - cease - stop working.

To do that we need to set aside a regular time - which involves planning.  Because if we don’t plan to stop, we won’t

I try to have a regular Sabbath every day.  Called devotions.  The way I keep at that is to get up early enough to have that time with God - which means going to bed early enough and setting the alarm to get up.  Once a month I try to take a DAWG day.  Day Alone With God.  The way that happens is months in advance it gets put on my calendar.

Being here Sunday morning before the service starts means planning ahead.  Sunday morning begins with what we do Saturday night.

To have a Sabbath means planning.

And it means protecting that time.  Guaranteed stuff will come up.  But we can’t fudge on this if its going to happen.

Right now someone is thinking, “Not with my schedule.”  And that’s the point.  Stopping means trusting that God is on His throne.  That God can run His world without me.  He rules.  I don’t.  He’s indispensable.  I’m not.

God invites us to chill and enjoy the reality that we’re not in charge of His world.  If I die this afternoon - unless Jesus comes back - if I die this afternoon the universe will go on just fine without me.  The world will not fall apart if we cease working.

That may be humbling to think about.  But that’s the point.  The core issue behind stopping - ceasing - is trust.  Will God take care of us if we obey Him by stopping to keep the Sabbath?

Core element number two is to Rest.

God instructed His people to remember the Sabbath - which was one 24 hour period once a week when nothing related to work was done.  The Sabbath was to be holy - meaning separate - different than the other 6 days of the week.  God worked.  We work.  God rested.  We are to rest. 

Taking a Sabbath doesn’t mean that now we have time to do all the other stuff we couldn’t get to the other six days of the week.  Or resting so we can be more productive later.

Turn off the phone - the internet - the TV - the computer.  Go for a walk.  Read a book.  Take a nap.  Take a bike ride.  Swim laps.  Eat mounds of pasta.  Do what renews - replenishes - reinvigorates - refreshes you.  What helps you to let go of all the stuff of the world that’s pulling you down.

Bottom line:  If it works, do it.  If it doesn’t work, don’t do it.  But rest.  Renew.  Recharge.   

Third core element of the Sabbath is to Focus on God.  The Sabbath was a time of re-commitment to God.  Focusing on Who God is - worthy of our full devotion and trust.

In Psalm 46:10 God instructs us:  “Be still and know that I am God.”  The word for “be still” in Hebrew is the word “Shabbath.”  To be still means… to be still.  Cease your activity - all that you are striving to achieve - and refocus your life on God.

Being still first off means eliminating distractions.  We live in a world of noise and distractions.  Everything around us makes noise.  Even our phones talk back to us - with attitude.  To be still is counter culture.

Being still means quieting every outer and inner voice to attend to God.  Which is hard.  Being still usually means we start focusing on stuff we’ve got to do or things that are stressing us out.  But be still is to stop worrying about tomorrow.  Am I really trusting God?  Or not?

Being still means turning from noise to focusing on God.  That means doing things like prayer.  Reading and memorizing and meditation on Scripture.  Worship.  Fasting.  Take time to look at God’s creation and be reminded of what an awesome God He is.  To delight in what He’s created and blessed you with.  Praising Him for Who He is.  Our Creator.  Our sustainer. 

Bottom line.  Hear this.  We are uniquely created with God given purpose - unique in who we are as God’s kids.  And every day who we are in Christ is put to the test.  Will we choose to trust God - what God says about us - what God promises us - or we will settle for stumbling around in a lie that’s way less than what God has created and called us to.  Will we trust God or not?

_________________________

General reference for this series:  “Emotionally Healthy Spirituality - Unleash a Revolution in Your Life in Christ” by Peter Scazzero,  Thomas Nelson, Nashville, Tennessee, 2006.