Thursday, March 6 Matthew 4:1-11 1 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry. 3 Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.” 4 But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’” 5 Then the devil took Him up into the holy city, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, 6 and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down. For it is written: ‘He shall give His angels charge over you,’ and, ‘In their hands they shall bear you up, Lest you dash your foot against a stone.’” 7 Jesus said to him, “It is written again, ‘You shall not tempt the Lord your God.’” 8 Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. 9 And he said to Him, “All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me.” 10 Then Jesus said to him, “Away with you, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.’” 11 Then the devil left Him, and behold, angels came and ministered to Him. Jesus’ identity, strength and authority are suddenly tested in a quick succession of encounters with Satan and his wily powers of deception. As is so often the case with temptations, these encounters come when Jesus is most vulnerable—alone, needy and unproven in his newly announced calling. Furthermore, the trickery in the tests is primal and powerful, simultaneously raising doubts concerning God’s promises and appealing to purposes that can be good in and of themselves: “feed yourself, feed the world; generate a public spectacle, demonstrate God’s power for all to see; and here’s political leadership, use it to free your people and save the world.” Recognizing and resisting temptation is neither simple nor easy. In the third temptation, the evil one tips his hand: “All these I will give you, if you fall down and worship me.” In temptation there is always a price to be paid. With evil the price is costly: This will, in the end, cost you your allegiance to God, your freedom and your life. The ways of evil are pathways to death. Gracious God, in my times of testing, keep me in conversation with others in the community of faith, give me the wisdom to discern truth from deception and send your Spirit to solidify my trust in your promises.
Posted on: Fri, 07 Mar 2014 01:50:25 +0000
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