A woman I worked with long ago used to say, “If opportunity came disguised as temptation, one knock would be enough.” Unfortunately, it seems that it is much more common for temptation to come disguised as opportunity than the other way around. Something seems too good to be true, but we want so much to believe it that we convince ourselves that this time it might just be possible that our luck has changed or the planets have lined up or it’s our turn to come out on top or things are going our way or we’re being rewarded for something or karma is kicking in. We’re so good at finding excuses to give in to temptation when it comes disguised as opportunity…. It’s not unlike a wolf dressed in sheep’s clothing – danger lurking in the guise of innocence.
Fortunately for us, Jesus recognized wolves and sheep for what they are and did not confuse temptation with opportunity – not even when it came knocking three times.
In terms of the chronology of today’s Scripture passage, it comes right on the heels of Jesus’ baptism. All three synoptic Gospels place the temptation in the desert story right after the baptism of the Lord. Mark’s version goes so far as to use the word /yoo-thus/ (εύθύς), which translates as immediately or instantly, saying, “and instantly the Spirit drove Him into the wilderness. And He was there in the wilderness forty days, being tempted by Satan….” Luke’s Gospel gives the fullest account of the temptation of our Lord, explaining to his mostly Gentile audience what the Jewish people Matthew wrote for would have known. Matthew’s Gospel tells us of three temptations and the responses given by Jesus.
The period of time Jesus spent in the wilderness, forty days, is noteworthy, but not as significant as some would have us believe. In the study of biblical numerology, forty is an interesting number. One of the more common claims about the meaning of forty is that it symbolizes a time of probation or trial. Evidence cited usually includes the forty years the Hebrew people wandered in the desert, the forty days and nights of the flood, and the temptation of Jesus. While the numerology bits can be interesting, it is important not to get bogged down in them. They are not really meant to be a secret code. Scripture is to be read in its plain meaning, according to the Reformers. As my Hebrew professor, Dr. Durlesser, who wrote a book on Biblical numerology, taught us, forty days or years basically means a long time. Forty days would be longer than a month – more than a full moon cycle, thus a long period of time. Forty years would be the equivalent of a couple of generations – a very long time. So the forty is important, but more as an indicator of Jesus having to endure what was a period of testing for a long time.
And where did Jesus endure this testing? In the wilderness. We often see the Greek word used there /air-AY-mon/ (έρημον) translated as desert, but it more literally means wilderness. Why is that important? Because of the mental pictures we tend to get when we think of a desert. We tend to think of large sand dunes and camels and palm trees at an oasis. While a desert can certainly be all of that, the word desert is actually a scientific term which refers to any area in which the average rainfall is less than ten inches per year or where “where more water is lost by evapotranspiration than falls as precipitation.”1 Thus, not all deserts have the look we tend to associate with deserts. A desert is simply a place that is dry enough that vegetation and animals are somewhat scarce – a place that is not comfortable and welcoming, but rather barren and uncomfortable. But whether the area into which Jesus went was sandy or rocky, which is more likely around the area He’d have been in, the point was that it was not an inviting area and He was there a long time.
While Jesus was in this barren, uncomfortable place for a long time, the Devil, or Satan, or the Evil One or however you understand the word /diabolou/ (διαβόλου), was offering Him the very things that would be lacking in such a place. Things a person would miss. Satan began by offering normal daily sustenance. Now we know Jesus was hungry – Matthew’s Gospel doesn’t mince words about that. However, we also know from the history of God’s people that He does not let them starve. They may be eating manna for months or nothing but quail for days on end or, as with John, locusts and wild honey, but God does provide enough. Even if it takes a miracle of angels who produce a meal out of nowhere, God provides. Not necessarily lavishly, but God provides. So Jesus was hungry. He’s likely been fasting as that was a common religious practice, but fasting would end with sundown. What there was to eat was probably not the comfort food of home. So Satan says to Jesus that if He is the Son of God, Jesus should turn the stones into bread.
Jesus knew the point of the wilderness time was not about physical food, but about feeding His soul. Thus, rather than give in to temptation and create a comfortable oasis for Himself, He withstood what any human would have to withstand without using divine powers for His own personal comfort and gain. The response Jesus gives to Satan clearly demonstrates the folly of Satan’s suggestion. “Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.”2 He is here quoting Deuteronomy and the giving of manna to the Hebrews wandering in the desert. Jesus is pointing out not only the folly of feeding the body and not the soul, but is also highlighting God’s divine providence.
The second thing Satan suggests is that Jesus throw Himself off the highest point of the Temple. Satan even quotes Scripture at Jesus – much like the Pharisees would do later. Satan quotes Psalm 91, which says God’s angels will keep the believer from striking one’s foot against a stone. That’s like saying God will send angels to protect the faithful from even so small a thing as a stubbed toe. Satan is taking the quote out of context and trying to use it as a way to get Jesus to test God instead of understanding the Psalm as the song of trust and reverence it is. Even within that Psalm of praise and trust, in verse 15, it is clear that God does not keep us from all trouble, but is with us through all trouble. Jesus responds in a way that shows He truly understands the words Satan tries to twist. Jesus replies with a verse in context that we are not to put God to the test. This comes also from Deuteronomy. It is part of verse 16, but that verse is in a section that points out we are supposed to live lives of gratitude, not be constantly asking for more and more. Here’s what a slightly larger section of that passage from Deuteronomy says,
10 When the LORD your God brings you into the land he swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, to give you—a land with large, flourishing cities you did not build, 11 houses filled with all kinds of good things you did not provide, wells you did not dig, and vineyards and olive groves you did not plant—then when you eat and are satisfied, 12 be careful that you do not forget the LORD, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.
13 Fear the LORD your God, serve him only and take your oaths in his name. 14 Do not follow other gods, the gods of the peoples around you; 15 for the LORD your God, who is among you, is a jealous God and his anger will burn against you, and he will destroy you from the face of the land. 16 Do not put the LORD your God to the test as you did at Massah. 17 Be sure to keep the commands of the LORD your God and the stipulations and decrees he has given you. 18 Do what is right and good in the LORD’s sight, so that it may go well with you and you may go in and take over the good land the LORD promised on oath to your ancestors, 19 thrusting out all your enemies before you, as the LORD said.
So we see from these words that God will continue to bless those who acknowledge the blessings already received and also that Jesus is exactly right – we are not to test God, but to trust God. And when we trust God, God will “thrust out [our] enemies.” That theme of trusting in God’s divine providence continues in Jesus’ second response to Satan as it was in the first and even foreshadows the coming victory of our Lord.
Satan’s third attempt to tempt Jesus is another earthly focus: power. Satan offers Jesus “all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor.” Saying he will give them to Jesus if Jesus will bow down and worship Satan.
10Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’” Jesus is, of course, quoting from that same section of Deuteronomy, which is an expansion of the great Shema – the ancient words that Moses spoke saying, “Hear O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is One. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.” Jesus is staying focused on what is truly important – following the Lord’s commandments and loving the Lord with His whole self. Jesus doesn’t bother to try to logic Satan out of this last reported temptation. Jesus could have just as easily replied that none of the things Satan showed were his to offer, but Jesus does not focus on worldly logic any more than He has focused on worldly needs or desires. He stays focused on what is real – on loving and trusting and worshipping only the One True God.
And with that, Satan is defeated, as was promised is the very Scriptures Jesus quoted. And that’s kind of the point. Yes, Jesus had divine powers we do not have, but during this time of temptation, Jesus did not use His divine powers to create comfort or power for Himself. He did not test God to see if God was keeping His word. Instead, Jesus faced all these temptations as fully human, living through them with the same discomfort that we might have if we were in the wilderness alone for a long time. But Jesus remained focused not on Himself but on trusting the Lord. Because of this Satan was defeated. Jesus defeated Satan’s efforts to tempt Him not by using some divine power, but by simple human trust in the Heavenly Father who has and is and will continue to be a keeper of promises.
This story, though somewhat daunting on its surface, can be seen as the greatest of encouragement. Too often we read the story of Jesus’ temptation as something we could never withstand, as something that makes us feel so much less faithful than we’d like to be. But the story can build us up if we will realize that we have at our disposal everything Jesus had and more because we also have His eternal and perfect forgiveness. All the passages Jesus quotes are not about the Messiah or the powers of God’s chosen and anointed leaders. Instead, each passage Jesus quotes is about regular, everyday, ordinary folks and God’s care of His people. Thus, they all point to the ability of the average believer to withstand the temptations of Satan by trusting in and whole-heartedly loving the Lord.
This story is not a depressing tale of deprivation, a great battle of wits, or the triumph of divine powers over the powers of hell. Instead, it is a story of how all of us are able to resist a little temptation if we will focus on what is real and true and important, if we will trust and love the Lord and believe with our lives as well as our lips that God is in control.