READ: Matthew 4:1-11
INTRODUCTION
Have you ever taken time to consider who you really
are? Too often we allow others to define us. We may have grown up
with people around us who told us we'd never amount to anything. Our own
parents may have said that we were worthless or that we were losers. It
may have been in school that other students teased us and told us that we were
ugly or stupid. Sometimes the problem is that we compare ourselves with others
and we allow unrealistic standards in the media to define us. We look at
the airbrushed magazine covers at the glamorous women, or the muscular men, and
then we decide that we are somehow defective or inferior by comparison.
The problem with allowing others to define us is that
we tend to live our lives in a way that reflects who we think we are. If
we think we're a tough guy then we have a tough guy persona. If we think
we are a loser then we never even try to achieve anything. If we think we
are ugly then we do not take care of ourselves physically. If we think
we are not worth loving then we reject others before they can reject us.
The point is that how we live our lives is a reflection of who we think we are,
and who we think we are is often defined by the world, or by the people around
us.
Here's a thought, how about we let God define
us? God said we are created in His image and in His likeness (Gen.1:26-27). God said we are the apple of His eye (Zech. 2:8). God
said, "I have loved you with an everlasting love (Jer. 31:3). And if
that wasn't enough, God said that you are so valuable to Him "that He gave
His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have
everlasting life" (John 3:16).
The world will try to define you, will try to tell you
who you are, what you can do, and what you have, but you must not allow the
world to have this power over you. You must remember who you are in
Christ Jesus. You are who He says you are; you have what He says
you have; and you can do what He says you can do. The Word says
"greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the world" (1 John 4:4). The Word says that you can do all things through Christ Jesus who
strengthens you (Phil. 4:13). The Word says that "we are children of
God, and if children, then heirs - heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ
(Rom 8:16-17). This is who He says you are. Now whose report are
you going to believe? I shall believe the report of the Lord. I
chose to believe what "thus saith the Lord" concerning me.
When we doubt who we are, when we question our worth,
our ability, and our value in the kingdom of God, then we either attempt less
than we should and achieve less than we could, or we overcompensate by trying to prove ourselves (if we would only hold on to who we
are in Christ). But, you've
met people like that. They have an inferiority complex and to compensate
they talk louder than everyone else, they act bolder than they need to, and
they have an air of conceit or pride about them. In reality it's just a facade, a mask that they wear to hide their own self-doubt and fears.
People who allow the world rather than the Word to define them will usually
fall into one of these two extremes.
I) THE TEMPTATION OF JESUS
Now let's return to our text. Most of us are
familiar with this text. We know that this is the account that follows
the baptism of Jesus. He was compelled by the Holy Spirit to go into the
wilderness where He fasted for forty days and afterward He was hungry and He
was tempted by satan.
We know that this is what is in this text, but when we
talk about the temptation of Jesus it seems that we often fail to appreciate
the fact that Jesus was "in all points tempted like as we are" (Heb. 4:15). I think that sometimes we have a borderline docetic view of
Jesus. Docetism was a heresy in the early Church that taught that Jesus
didn't really have a human body, but that He only appeared to be human.
The docetic view is that Jesus wasn't really human at all. But the Bible
says that "He became flesh and dwelt among us" (John 1:14). I
say that sometimes we have a borderline docetic view of Jesus, because when we
talk about the temptation of Jesus there is a tendency to think, "Well, He
was tempted, but He couldn't possibly have been tempted like I am
tempted."
The Bible is clear that Jesus became flesh and
blood. The Bible is equally clear that Jesus was "in all
points tempted like as we are." So when we read of the temptation of
Jesus in our passage, we need to appreciate the fact that Jesus was
tempted. He was hungry and He was tempted to turn stones into bread
(illus.), but He allowed the Word of God to be the guide for His actions.
He was tempted to throw Himself off the pinnacle of the temple to see if
angels would catch Him, but He allowed the Word of God to direct His
actions. He was tempted to bypass the crucifixion and take the easy road,
but He resisted and triumphed over temptation by coming back to "it is written".
This illustrates how important it is to know what is
written. It illustrates how important it is to read the Word and to know
the Word. Jesus overcame the temptation of Satan by saying, "It is
written". I hope that you will join me and others in the church this
year by reading through the Bible. It may save your life, but
even more importantly, it will let you know who you are in Christ Jesus.
There is no doubt that from a youth Jesus studied the
scrolls of the Old Testament and Jesus knew the Word. The Bible says He
"grew and became strong in spirit, filled with wisdom" (Luke 2:40). When Jesus came out of the wilderness, the Gospel of Luke tells us
He went to the synagogue where He had grown up and found in the scroll of
Isaiah where it is written, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me because He
has anointed Me." He didn't have the Bible like we do, divided in
chapters and verses. Jesus was so familiar with the Scriptures that He
was able to take the scroll and roll it out to the passage that affirmed that He is
Messiah. This is why Jesus could stand up to satan and say with
authority, "it is written".
This is important because as Jesus illustrates in our
text, a key to spiritual victories is found in "it is written".
Likewise, a key to answered prayers is found in the Word. Jesus said,
"If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will,
and it shall be done unto you" (John 15:7). In addition, the
key to faith is found in the Word. The apostle Paul said, "So then
faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God" (Rom. 10:17). Yet there are so many people trying to live victorious lives
without getting into the Word or letting the Word get into them. They may
attend church and even Sunday school, but until you read and study the Word for
yourself you will always be at a disadvantage to the enemy when he comes to
tempt you.
II) THE TEMPTATION OF SELF-DOUBT
As I said earlier, the Word of God is the only sure source
for telling us who we are and what we have in Christ. Without the Word we
will be allowing the world to define us, and our lives will be a reflection of
those definitions. But when we know who we are in Christ, our lives will
reflect that self-concept, that self-understanding of who we are.
We will truly talk the talk and walk the walk.
Look closely at the text we read today. Notice
how satan prefaced the first two temptations. He said, "If You are
the Son of God, command that these stones become bread" and, "If You
are the Son of God, throw Yourself down." This was part of the
temptation. Jesus was being tempted with self-doubt. Jesus was
being tempted to prove it, to do something stunning and spectacular to prove to satan and to prove to Himself that He was the Messiah. (Pharisees and
even His mother also tried to get Him to prove it.)
Satan wants to fill you with self-doubt. He'll
say, "If you are really a Christian, then do something spectacular to
prove it." Some people will go far beyond what God's will is trying
to prove something. They will go into debt and acquire bills they cannot
pay, and call it faith. They think that gain is godliness and they try to
prove their faith with their possessions. When you know who you are in
Christ, you don't have to try to prove anything to anyone.
Jesus didn't have to turn stones into bread or leap
from the pinnacle of the temple to prove who He was. He knew who He was
and all He said was, "it is written". He came back to the
Word. Remember what Jesus told the Pharisees when they denied that Jesus
was the Son of God. Jesus said, "You search the Scriptures, for in
them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of
Me" (John 5:39).
Jesus knew who He was because He knew the Scriptures
and He knew that "it is written". And because Jesus knew this,
He didn't have to prove anything to the devil. You don't have to prove to
anyone how spiritual you are. You don't have to prove to anyone that you
are some great saint or some great preacher or teacher. All you need to
do is know who you are in Christ Jesus, know what the Word of God says about
who you are and then live it. The fruit will follow when you live a life that
is in line with who God says you are.
Self-doubt robs us of the victories that should be
ours. Self-doubt steals the joy out of our walk with God.
Self-doubt causes us to either go to extremes to try to prove something.
You've seen people like that; their first time in a church they have to testify
and talk about how much faith they have and start speaking things over the
church. Or self-doubt causes us to retreat and never try anything for
fear of failure.
So where should we be? What should we do?
We should be the sons and daughters of God. We should do what He calls us
to do in His Word. We should stand up to the enemy and let him know that
we don't have to prove anything to him, and we will not allow him or the world
to define us. We are who God says we are. We have what He says we
have. And we can do what God says we can do. How do we know these
things? We know them when we know what thus says the Lord. We know
them because "it is written".
We often live far short of our true potential in the
Lord simply because we don't know what God has spoken in His Word over our
lives. God said, For I know the thoughts that I
think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you
an expected end. Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I
will listen to you.(Jeremiah 29:11-12)
Did you know that God has been thinking about
you? His Word says that His thoughts are for your peace and not evil, and
for your future and hope. It is written.
III) VICTORY IN THE WORD
Verse 11 tells us that after the third time Jesus
said, "it is written"; the devil left. In other words, it was
clear that Jesus knew who He was, He knew what was written, and He didn't have
to prove anything to the devil. The devil gave it his best shot, but it
wasn't enough to cause Jesus to fail. If we will stand strong in who we
are in Christ, and if we will stand upon what thus saith the Word of God, with
the shield of faith in one hand and the sword of the Spirit in the other, then
we can also put the enemy to flight.
However, if we don't know the Word, then we will
inevitably fall. David wrote in Psalm 119:11, "Thy word have I hid
in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee". The Word of
God tells us who we are and the Word of God enables us to live a life that
reflects the fact that we are the children of God. The Word of God sets
the boundaries and points us the way to victorious living in Christ. But
if that Word is not in our heart, if we don't know it and won't live it, then
we are vulnerable to the attack of the enemy and we will fall to temptation.
If you will join me and the church in a renewed
emphasis of the Word of God in our lives this year, I know that you will find
yourself stronger in faith, better equipped to overcome temptation and sin, and
you will know who you really are in Christ. It will change your life.
When satan tempts you to be unfaithful, you will say,
"I know who I am in Christ. I AM WHO GOD SAYS I AM!" I am married to the person I am going to
spend the rest of my life with, and I will not sin against her or God and be
unfaithful."
When the enemy tempts you to take drugs or drink that
alters your mental capacity, you will stand up and say, "I will not take
that drug, I will not drink that drink, because I know who I am in
Christ. I have put on the mind of Christ and I will not distort it or
destroy it with drink or drugs."
When the devil tempts you to hide in the shadows and
not to do anything to advance the kingdom of God, you will stand up and say,
"I am a child of God, the enemy is under my feet, and I will I stand up
and be accounted for in the kingdom of God."
When the enemy tempts you to hold back your tithes and
offerings, you will pull out your wallet and say, "I know that God is my
provider. He'll never fail me. He'll never let me down. He
said that if I seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, then He
will supply my needs."
When satan tries to silence your witness, you will
step up to the plate and say, "I've got a testimony and I'm not going to be
afraid to tell it to the lost and dying world. He said that I am His
witness and I have the power of the Holy Spirit on me to tell the world that
Jesus saves!"
CONCLUSION
Do you know who you are today? You may have had,
and you may still have, people in your life who have tried to tell you who you
are. But unless they are speaking God's Word over your life, then they
don't know who you are. God says you are His child. The apostle
John says, "Beloved, now we are the children of God" (1 John 3:2). The apostle Peter said that we have been called "out of
darkness and into His marvelous light" (1 Peter 2:9). We are
children of the light (1 Thess. 5:5). We are devil stompin', victory
walking, Jesus talking, Spirit filled, sons and daughters of God and we don't
care who knows it. We're not ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ, for
it is the power of God unto salvation to them that believe (Rom. 1:16).
Do you know who you are and if you do, does your life
reveal it by how you live? John wrote: This is how we know who the
children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not
do what is right is not a child of God; nor is anyone who does not love his
brother. (1 John 3:10)
If you are a child of God, let your light shine, let
your love show, and let the joy of the Lord be your strength.
If you're here today and you know that your life does
not reveal that you are a child of God, if you are trying to overcome the
definitions that others have tried to put on you, or if you are ready to break
out of the self-doubt and walk in confidence in the Lord, then I want to pray
with you today. I want you to walk out here humbled by that fact that God
calls you son or daughter, but also empowered by that reality to live the
abundant life.
By Mark E. Hardgrove, D.Min.
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