[simple_tooltip content=’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.’]Matthew 4:1-11[/simple_tooltip]; [simple_tooltip content=’12 Immediately the Spirit drove Him into the wilderness.
13 And He was there in the wilderness forty days, tempted by Satan, and was with the wild beasts; and the angels ministered to Him.’]Mark 1:12-13[/simple_tooltip]; [simple_tooltip content=’1 Then Jesus, being filled with the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness,
2 being tempted for forty days by the devil. And in those days He ate nothing, and afterward, when they had ended, He was hungry.
3 And the devil said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.”
4 But Jesus answered him, saying, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.’”
5 Then the devil, taking Him up on a high mountain, showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time.
6 And the devil said to Him, “All this authority I will give You, and their glory; for this has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I wish.
7 Therefore, if You will worship before me, all will be Yours.”
8 And Jesus answered and said to him, “Get behind Me, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.’”
9 Then he brought Him to Jerusalem, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down from here. 10 For it is written: ‘He shall give His angels charge over you, to keep you,’
11 and, ‘In their hands they shall bear you up, lest you dash your foot against a stone.’”
12 And Jesus answered and said to him, “It has been said, ‘You shall not tempt the Lord your God.’”
13 Now when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from Him until an opportune time.’]Luke 4:1-13[/simple_tooltip]
Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.” (Matthew 4:3)
Two of Satan’s three temptations began with the words, “If you be the Son of God.” Jesus was God, but He did have a human body that had to grow in the knowledge and wisdom of God. [simple_tooltip content=’In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.’](John 1:1[/simple_tooltip]; [simple_tooltip content=’And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness:
God was manifested in the flesh,
Justified in the Spirit,
Seen by angels,
Preached among the Gentiles,
Believed on in the world,
Received up in glory.’]1 Tim. 3:16[/simple_tooltip]; [simple_tooltip content=’And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.’]Luke 2:52)[/simple_tooltip]. It took faith for the physical mind of Jesus to believe the witness of the Spirit within Him that He was the Messiah.
In Matthew 4:3, Satan attacked the most basic of Jesus’ beliefs: who He was. Satan also knew He was hungry. Turning stones into bread must have been a temptation for Jesus, or Satan would not have used it.
Satan is very subtle in his temptations. It looked like he was trying to get Jesus to perform a miracle, but he was actually trying to make Jesus waiver in His faith concerning who He was. He tried to get Jesus to draw on the supernatural power of God to confirm His own identity, but it didn’t work! Jesus knew who He was and never wavered in believing it.
Unlike Jesus, we sometimes fall for this trick of the devil. We may say we are arguing what we believe, but we are hoping to convince ourselves. Someone who really knows who they are in Christ does not have to prove anything to anyone because they have full assurance from God’s Word that He loves them and values them.
Isaiah 30:15 says, “For thus says the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel: ‘In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and confidence shall be your strength.’” Today meditate on God’s Word and let the Holy Spirit build your confidence in who you are in Christ Jesus.
