“All This I Will Give You”
Matthew 4:1-11
INTRODUCTION
Sun Tzu was a general in China about 500 BC. If we relate this time to other world events, the Jews were in captivity and the prophets Haggai and Zechariah were preaching. About 520, the Jews began to rebuild the temple and Jerusalem and we can read about this in the book of Nehemiah. Why is this man Sun Tzu so important? This man was a general and collected many essays on warfare and dealing with military matters. His collection is called the ’Art of War.’ Many of his ideas spread to Japan and other Asian countries and even spread to France just before the revolution.
The works of Sun Tzu have been widely known in the United States since the mid-1970s. Diplomat Henry
Kissinger has made reference to Sun Tzu and the principles for the conduct of warfare has been the subject of serious study in U.S. military circles for many years. ’The Art of War’ as applied to business, sports, diplomacy and personal lives has been popularized in American business and management texts. Sun Tzu may be the most frequently quoted Chinese personality in the world today.
The ancient Chinese warrior Sun Tzu taught his men to "know your enemy" before going into battle. For if "you know your enemy and know yourself," he wrote, "you need not fear the result of a hundred battles." But, Sun Tzu warned, "If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat."
This man’s ideas about warfare have been applied to many different areas of life by different people. One of the things that he taught, was that you should know your enemy. When you know you enemy, you need not fear the outcome of battles. For Christians, we face spiritual battles each day. We face off against temptation and the lure of the world each and every day. We face off against our adversary, Satan, each and every day of our lives. If we understand him better, we will be empowered by God’s Word to overcome temptation and sin in our lives.
We have seen in Genesis 3 how Satan lies and tells half-lies to tempt us.
We have seen in Job 1 and 2 that Satan uses selfishness to draw us away from God.
Today we will study our adversary again and see another weapon that he uses against us. Satan offers us idols to take the place of God in our lives. He does this on a consistent basis. I would like to look at Matthew chapter 4 today and study the temptation of Jesus that is recorded there. This temptation of Jesus gives us several ways that we can study our adversary and be prepared for him.
READ MATTHEW 4:1-11
As I looked at this passage, I see that Satan is trying to distract Jesus from keeping His focus on the Heavenly Father and wants Him focused elsewhere. Satan wants to entice Jesus away from God. Satan wants to entice us away from God. How does he do that? How did he do it with Jesus? Satan enticed Jesus to first focus on the flesh. Satan also enticed Jesus to focus on false faith. Then, Satan enticed Jesus to focus on false gods.
I. FOCUS ON THE FLESH (4:1-4)
When we begin to look at this passage in Matthew 4, we see that Jesus had preparations for the temptations. We see in chapter 3 that Jesus had just had a mountaintop experience with His baptism. The Holy Spirit leads Jesus into the desert. Hebrews 4:15 says, “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are– yet was without sin.” Matthew 4 records just one of the times that Jesus was tempted.
Jesus fasts for 40 days and 40 nights. I recall recently in a Sunday School class that we looked at this ’40
days’ all throughout Scripture and it indicates a time of renewal or cleansing or a period in which you do something for God.
* God purified the earth with rain for 40 days and 40 nights (Genesis 7)
* Moses received the 10 commandments after being on the mountain for 40 days (Exodus 34)
* The 12 spies went into the land and spied it out for 40 days and nights (Numbers 13)
* Elijah was strengthened by God and traveled for 40 days and nights to reach Horeb (1 Kings 19)
* Jesus remained with the disciples 40 days after His resurrection (Acts 1)
The end of verse 2 makes a statement that shows the humanity of Jesus and perhaps the humor of the Apostle Matthew, “He was hungry.” Jesus, in the flesh, was going to be tested. Jesus was a human being like you and I and He was about to be severely tested. His body was now prepared as was His spirit. Verse 3 tells us that the tempter, Satan, came to Him.
The first temptation that Satan brings to Jesus has to just hit home. Satan half-questions Jesus about His identity and asks Him to prove it. Satan wants Jesus to turn the stones into bread. Could He do that? Did Jesus have the power? Was Jesus hungry enough to want to do what Satan suggested? Absolutely. He could do all of those things. Yet, Jesus realized that Satan was trying to tempt Him only to think about His flesh and to serve its needs and think of nothing else. Our focus needs to be on God, not our flesh.
Satan uses the same temptation for us. Satan wants us to put our physical needs first. He wants us to feed our physical bodies without any thought of God or His provision.
Satan wants to tempt us in the very same ways:
* Instead of praising God for the blessings in our lives, Satan will tempt us to think that we have a job or retirement and we have provided all this for ourselves
* Instead of relying on God to aid us in our problems, Satan will tempt us to think that alcohol or drugs or eating or sex or some other vice that makes the body feel good will take away our problems
* Instead of living our lives pure and waiting for the person God has for us, we take our life and our sexuality in our own hands and live with one another, have sex, and gratify our sexual desires to make us feel good
Do you see how Satan was trying to get Jesus to take His focus off of God and onto His physical self? And He certainly had physical needs— He hadn’t eaten in 40 days! Jesus needed to rely on God for His provision. Satan wanted Jesus to feed His human self with His divine power. Satan wants Jesus to misuse His identity as God’s Son to feed his physical nature. The Bible tells us that Jesus lived life as we do and so He relied on God for His needs and followed God’s Will in His life. This means He had to rely on God and not Himself. Jesus quotes from Deuteronomy 8:3 and tells Satan that it is God who provides for us and that He would not fulfill Satan’s request.
ILLUSTRATION... Arnold Palmer, Carol Mann, The 19th Hole (Longmeadow), quoted in Reader’s Digest
Golf immortal Arnold Palmer recalls a lesson about overconfidence: It was the final hole of the 1961
Masters tournament, and I had a one-stroke lead and had just hit a very satisfying tee shot. I felt I was in pretty good shape. As I approached my ball, I saw an old friend standing at the edge of the gallery. He motioned me over, stuck out his hand and said, “Congratulations.” I took his hand and shook it, but as soon as I did, I knew I had lost my focus.
On my next two shots, I hit the ball into a sand trop, then put it over the edge of the green. I missed a putt and lost the Masters. You don’t forget a mistake like that; you just learn from it and become determined that you will never do that again. I haven’t in the 30 years since.
Satan wanted Jesus to take His focus off of God and onto His flesh. Yet, that was not the last temptation that
Jesus faced. That was only round one. Satan next tempts Jesus to take His focus off of God and onto false faith.
II. FOCUS ON FALSE FAITH (4:5-7)
Verse 5 shows Satan’s second attempt to tempt Jesus to sin. I want you to notice that this second and the third temptation exist. We might think that Jesus having attained victory over Satan once is once and for all– but Jesus was tempted as we are. Jesus shared our human experience and so Satan continues to attack Jesus as he continues to attack us.
Satan takes Jesus to Jerusalem to the highest point of the temple. From the best estimates that I have seen, this was probably about a 100 foot drop. Satan again begins the temptation by questioning Jesus’ identity as the Son of God. “Prove to me,” Satan says, “You are Who You claim to be!” Satan then tells Jesus to throw Himself down the hundred feet to the temple floor because God will save Him. Satan even quotes Psalm 91:11-12 and quotes it word for word. Psalm 91 says that God will send angels to protect... the problem is that this isn’t necessarily a prophecy about Jesus, but Satan sure puts it forth as one.
“Hey Jesus, just step off the ledge, angels will catch you.”
“Hey Jesus, just step in front of a car, angels will help you.”
“Hey Jesus, prove God will do what He says He will do by testing Him.”
“Hey Jesus, if you throw yourself down, God will catch You, and all the people will believe in You.”
Satan is tempting Jesus to create a false faith in His life. Satan is tempting Jesus to create a false faith about Him to all the people that would see Him. Satan tempts us in the same exact ways and sometimes even uses Scripture to do it. Satan knows that Jesus is wondering if the masses will put their faith in Him. If he throws Himself down, the people would see and believe for all time... right? Probably not. By leaping off, Jesus would have been rejecting the cross and would have forced God’s hand into this sensational situation. If would have created false faith about Jesus. Jesus is the Savior of mankind because of the cross. Jesus is the Savior of mankind because He chose to live His life and work miracles and teach in such a way that honored God’s Will.
ILLUSTRATION... The Life and Teaching of Jesus by James S Stewart, Abingdon Press pg 49
“Finally, Jesus would never violate the freedom of men’s wills. And that, too, the leap from the pinnacle would have involved. It would have been overriding their calmer judgment. It would have been forcing a confession of faith. That was one thing that Jesus definitely would not do. If He could not win men into salvation by sheer goodness and love, he was not going to force them into it by miracles and magic.”
True and sincere faith comes by way of the cross. Jesus fulfilled His mission at the cross. No other way would do. All other ways were false. Satan is tempting Jesus to take His focus off of God’s plan and to create His own.
How does this temptation apply to us? How does Satan try to tempt us to false faith? I looked again and what Satan did to tempt Jesus. Satan used the Scripture, but used it in a manner that the meaning was false. Satan wants us to accept a false view of our faith. He wants us to only go half-way in our commitment to God. He wants us to ride the fence on social issues. He wants us to become lax on doctrinal issues. He wants us to live our lives the way we want, and then call it God’s way. Our focus needs to be on God, not false faith.
ILLUSTRATION... Wilbur Rees, $3 Worth of God, When I Relax I Feel
I would like to buy $3 worth of God, please, not enough to explode my soul or disturb my sleep, but just
enough to equal a cup of warm milk or a snooze in the sunshine. I don’t want enough of Him to make me love a black man or pick beets with a migrant. I want ecstasy, not transformation; I want the warmth of the womb, not a new birth. I want a pound of the Eternal in a paper sack. I would like to buy $3 worth of God, please.
Jesus is victorious against Satan twice. Yet, Satan is not finished. He has tempted Jesus to take His focus off of God and onto His flesh. He has tempted Jesus to take His focus off of God and onto false faith. Now, Satan steps forward and makes his boldest move... to make Jesus focus on false gods.
III. FOCUS ON FALSE GODS (4:8-11)
Jesus is victorious and now must deal with Satan again. Verse 8 tell us that Satan took Jesus to a very high mountain and offered Him the world on one condition. Verse 9 shows Satan laying out the small print of the deal the catch to end all catches... Jesus must bow down and worship Satan.
Plain and simple: Satan tempted Jesus with a false god.
ILLUSTRATION... Darla at the Hospital (personal story) + http://www.angel-energy.net/readings.php
One of our members related a story the other day that I would like to share with you. Darla was included in the Nurses’ Day up at Geisinger Medical Center the other week. This day is a day when the nurses are papered and are given opportunities for pedicures and other relaxing exercises. Included in this day was the opportunity to have an ’Angel Reading.’ The nurses could go to this ’Angel Therapist’ and they would talk with your angel and communicate messages to you.
Here is what one Angel Therapist promises:
“An angel reading lifts your spirit, and brings comfort, healing and guidance. Angel messages are always
affirming, positive, loving, and helpful. Our guardian angels have been with us from birth, and they help us get through each stage of life. In an angel reading, I communicate with your guardian angels and four archangels. There is nothing to fear in this process. The guidance you will receive is safe, loving, and nurturing. You always have free will, and have choice in your response to their suggestions. To prepare for an angel reading, make an appointment. Write down the questions you would like to ask. The guidance that comes through will be specific for you and your life. It is helpful for you to be calm, receptive, and relaxed. We will often learn the names of your angels, so that you may call on them by name. The angels often provide teaching on how to communicate with them directly.
Angels are created by God, and are part of God’s will. Angel means messenger of God, so you can be assured you will receive helpful guidance that will enhance your spiritual life. There are more than 200 references to an angel or angels in the Bible. Angels are in art throughout the centuries and are mentioned by religions around the world.”
I hope that you see that this is Satan tempting people away from relying on God’s guidance and submitting to witchcraft and sorcery.
Satan says, do things my way and I will tell you the future!
Satan says, make entertainment and sports the priority and I will give you lasting joy!
Satan says, make money and success the priority and I will give you the wants of your heart!
Satan says, take the drugs and drink the drinks and I will make all your problems vanish!
Satan says, worship me and my ways and I’ll give you the world!
There are so many idols that Satan offers us to draw us away from God. It may not be something as blatant as angel worship, but he offers things that draw us from God. That is what he wanted from Jesus. He wanted Jesus to make Satan number one and not God. Jesus answers this third time as He has before, ’Worship the Lord your God and serve Him only.” Our focus needs to be on God, not on false gods.
CONCLUSION
I hope that by understanding the Adversary and the weapons that he uses that you will be ready for the
battle. We, like Jesus, face temptation after temptation. What do we do? We should keep our focus on God and let all other things pass away.
