TEACHINGS OF JESUS LESSON TEXT:Mt. 4:1-11;16:21-23;Mk.1:11-13;Lk.4:1-14;22:40; Jn.16:33;Heb 4:15;Jas 1:13-18;1 Cor 10:13; INTRODU...
TEACHINGS OF JESUS LESSON
TEXT:Mt. 4:1-11;16:21-23;Mk.1:11-13;Lk.4:1-14;22:40; Jn.16:33;Heb 4:15;Jas 1:13-18;1 Cor 10:13;
INTRODUCTION: When Satan tempts Jesus in the wilderness, Christ reveals a pattern for
believers to follow. The temptation to sin or disobey God is a basic experience all people
encounter. Jesus demonstrated the proper response—to resist with the help of God and his Word,
which is our most powerful weapon to refute the lies of the Devil. The Lord’s clash with Satan in
the wilderness occurred for our sake. It was part of God’s work of salvation, to show that he was
tempted “in every way, just as we are” (Hebrews 4:15).
A. CORE LESSONS FROM THE TEMPTATIONS OF JESUS - Mt. 4:1-11; 16:21-23; Mk.1:11-
13; Lk.4:1-14
1. Why did Jesus the Son of God have to be tempted ?– Heb.2:18; 4:15. how could God
be tempted? Doesn't the Bible say God cannot be tempted with evil, nor does he
himself tempt any man? Jas 1:13.
• Jesus is both God and Man. As Man, like any one of us, He will meet with
temptations, but he is the Sinless One.
• So He can provide help He to those who are being tempted and exposed to suffering.
Heb.2:18 and also sympathise and empathise with us. Heb.4:15
• For us to know that temptation will come our way irrespective of our spiritual
stature or piety. Jesus the son of God, Led by the Holy Spirit, after 40 days of
fasting. Thus, being baptized and filled with Holy Spirit, worshipping in church,
fasting, receiving the Holy Communion, and committed to the spiritual disciplines
daily, are no guarantees of living an easy, trouble and temptation free life. In fact,
it might be the opposite, the more we dedicate ourselves to God, the more spiritual
battles we will have to fight. No one, no matter how holy they are, is free from
temptation. Even Jesus was tempted.
• To serve as a model in life of how to respond to temptations
• To prepare Him for the work of the ministry. He must be tested further before
entering His public ministry to work out God's Saving Plan for us.
• Jesus’ victory over Satan proves that He is the righteous Son of God, mighty to save
all who call upon Him. If we trust in Him as Saviour and walk in His strength each
day, we are guaranteed to overcome. .
2. What is Temptation ?
• Enticement or allurement, entrapment or ensnare, seduction, Inducement to evil
character and action, sin, or disobedience – Prov.1:10; Ps 141:4; Gen 3:6; Jos 7:21;
Jas 1:14; 2 Pet 2:18. Man’s Passion, Ego, and lust serving as a Bait or Trap or snare.
• In the case of Jesus - The temptations were hedonism ( Lust of the body -
hunger/satisfaction), egoism (pride of life - spectacular throw/might) and
materialism (kingdoms/wealth-lust of the eyes) – 1 Jn.2:15-16; Gen.3:6.
• It is also translated to mean to test, to try, to prove - James 1:2; Jn. 6:6; Heb.
11:17; 1 Pt 1:7
3. Source of "temptation"
3.1 Temptation does not come from
a. God. God does not entice to evil - James 1:13,14
b. Situations of life. Trials are but the opportunities of choice
c. World. World of evil is but context and environment in which we live.- Jn.
17:15,16; II Cor. 4:4; I Jn. 4:4
d. Desires. These are God-given, amoral needs and drives.
• desire for riches - cf. I Tim. 6:9
• sexual desires - cf. I Cor. 7:2
• "tempted under our desires" - James 1:14,15
e. Flesh. This is the patterning within our desires of past responses to
temptation.
3.2 Temptation comes from
a. Satan, the devil, the tempter
b. Other persons may be used as instruments by the tempter.
• Peter was thus used - Matt. 16:23
• Jewish religionists used - Matt. 16:8; 19:3; 22:18,35; Mk. 8:11; 10:2;
12:15; Lk. 11:16; Jn.8:6
4. Purpose of "temptation"
4.1. Satan's purpose
a. to solicit mankind to manifest his evil character to thus deny glory to God (Isa.
43:7)
b. to cause men to think that by their self-effort they can become "like God"
(Gen. 3:5) or pleasing to God (Rom. 8:8; Heb. 11:6).
c. to solicit Christians to misrepresent who they are in Christ; doubt their
identity in Christ
4.2 God's purpose in allowing for Satan's solicitations of temptation
a. to preserve God-intended freedom of choice
b. to allow for freely chosen faith/love relationship of man with God
5. Forms of "temptation"
5.1. Temptation to act - I Jn. 2:16
a. "lust of the eyes" - Personal aspiration
b. "lust of the flesh" - Personal gratification
c. "boastful pride of life" - Personal reputation
5.2 . Temptation to react
a. Fight - anger, hostility, wrath, resentment, bitterness
b. Fright - fear, anxiety, worry
c. Flight - avoidance, apathy, escape, withdrawal
6. Temptation and sin
a. Temptation is not sin - Heb. 4:15; Jas 1:14,15
b. By freedom of choice in will, we choose to make sin-decision
. 6.1 Response to "temptation"
A. Man is responsible to exercise his response-ability in freedom of choice
• Not divine determinism nor diabolic determinism
• We derive character in every choice
B. Man may choose to succumb to the solicitation of temptation
• sin - Jas 1:15; evil - Matt. 6:13; Jas 1:13; ruin and destruction - I Tim. 6:9
B. STRATEGIES FOR TACKLING TEMPTATION - We must be armed with Biblical
Strategies for the saints.
1. Be Much Alone With God. Not only during these 40 days, but also at other times, Jesus
would get away from the crowds and even from the disciples to spend time alone with
the Father (Lk. 5:16). If Jesus needed such times, how much more do we.
2. Be Prepared To Be Tempted, Especially After A Victory. Jesus was tempted
immediately following His baptism, when the Father affirmed Him from heaven and the
Holy Spirit descended on Him as a dove. If Jesus’ baptism did not prevent His being
tempted, neither will ours. We must walk with God every day and be especially on guard
after a time of spiritual victory.
3. Be Filled With The Holy Spirit. Jesus was full of the Holy Spirit, and led by the Spirit
when He was tempted (Mt. 4:1). The filling of the Spirit will not insulate you from
temptation, but if you walk in the Spirit, you will not carry out the desires of the flesh
(Gal. 5:16). It does not say that you will not have such desires, but rather that you will
not fulfil them. Each day we should yield ourselves to the Holy Spirit, and walk in
conscious dependence on Him. Again, if Jesus depended on the Holy Spirit, how much
more must we!
4. Be armed with scripture - Each time Satan attacked, Jesus answered. But, again, be
careful! Satan can also quote the Bible for his own purposes! Always compare Scripture
with Scripture, letting the Bible interpret itself. Be careful to interpret a verse in its
context. If you struggle with a particular sin, write down all the verses on it you can
find and commit them to memory. God's Word says we must resist him. Our weapon of
resistance is the Word of God, the sword of the Spirit. Get God’s Word in your heart
before you are even tempted, so that you have it when you need it: Ps 119:9,11; Eph
6:10-11; Be saturated with the word Col.3:16-Read,Study,Memorise, Meditate, Speak.
5. Not only must you use God's Written Word to repel the enemy, you have Jesus the
Living Word to shelter you from temptation. Our Lord is our shield from temptation.
Heb 2:18. Jesus knows our weaknesses and can sympathise with us, even when we fall.
"And him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out" (Jn 6:37 ).
6. Jesus says, “Away with you Satan!” (Mt.4:10). Here Jesus demonstrates that we have
the power of spoken word to tell the devil to go away. Words, especially in the name of
God, have power. Satan must obey them.
7. Be ready for further attacks - Note Mt.4:11: Jesus’ victory over Satan was not final,
and neither is ours. As long as we are in this body, we cannot claim complete and final
victory over the world, the flesh, or the devil.
8. Watch – Be sober & Vigilant - 1 Pt 5:8-9; Mt.26:41; 1 Cor 6:18-20; 2 Pet.3:17. Watch
your spiritual gates – Ps.101:3
9. Every Temptation Has a Loophole and Is Resistible – 1 Cor.10:13
10. Identify my top temptations. What temptations am I most vulnerable to? Knowledge
is power. Just naming them and making a list helps me keep them on my radar.
11. Surrender my temptations to God. I take my list to Jesus. I acknowledge them, own
them, confess any past failures, and recognize that this is a heart matter that can lead
to a sin matter. I hash out any of my desires that are contrary to the Word of God.
12. Pray specifically and continually about the identified temptations - Ask the Lord to
keep you from the specific temptations that, Heb.4:16; 5:7; Rom.6:14; Lk.22:46
13. Be Strong in the Lord – Eph.6:10-11Put on -Rom.13:14
14. Find an accountability friend. Having someone help keep me in check makes a big
difference.
15. Submit to God and Resist the devil– James 4:7-8
16. Remember your covenant with God: Gen 39:9; Job 31:1.
17. Flee from every appearance of sin - Recognize that the Bible has one principal
defense against temptation: FLEE! (1Co 6:18, 10:14; 1Ti 6:9,11; 2Ti 2:22).
Remove yourself from temptation triggers. If alcohol is my weakness, I can make a
choice to not hang out with certain friends who drink a lot or with friends who pressure
me to drink. I can also decide to stay away from places that serve alcohol. Don’t be
isolated – Gen.39:11
18. Love Jesus more than your lusts: Jn 14:15; Phil 3:8.
19. Love righteousness: 1 Tim 6:11; Mt 5:6.
20.See the sin that you are tempted to as worthless, ugly, and unbearably sinful: Col 3:6;
Ps 97:10.
21. Stay close to Jesus: Heb 2:14-18; Phil 4:13.
22. Remember that it is Christ who lives in you, and you are already dead to sin! Sin has no
dominion over you: Rom 6:11-12; Gal 2:20; 1 Jn 4:4.
23. Remember Overcoming is rewarding - Jas 1:2-4;12.
24. Remember that Jesus himself is ready to help us out of temptation. (Heb 2:18). And if
we do sin after being tempted, God provides a way back through confession,
repentance, and faith (1 Jn 1:9). God's ability to help us in time of need and restore us
in time of fall is an essential part of our growth under his loving ownership. 2 Pt 2:9; 1:3
25.Speak to your Temptation
• I know you’re lying. -Temptations are destructive lies wrapped in enticing packages.
The sinful affair that promises excitement ultimately delivers regret and
heartache. The satisfaction that comes from indulging destructive cravings is
short-lived, but the pain can last a lifetime (Heb. 11:25).
• I don’t want that. The Bible calls temptations “deceitful desires” (Ephes. 4:22). They
masquerade as our longings. But the new nature given to every true believer wants
to please God, not grieve the Holy Spirit within us (Ephes. 4:30). Giving in to sin
alters us.
• I’m dead to sin and alive to God – Dead things cannot respond to any thing. We can
not entice, trap, cajole, tempt, or threaten, but the dead don’t respond.
C. Some Biblical Examples
1. Adam and Eve – Gen.3
2. King David - Women were a tempting lure to men such as King David. We read that
he saw the bathing beauty, Bathsheba, and committed adultery. 2 Sam.11 & 12
3. Samson was lured by the deceiving Delilah (Judges 16) and the deception led to his
death.
4. Achan - Money has frequently been a temptation in the Bible. Notice the man, Achan
in Joshua 7:21. Fortunately we have several examples of biblical characters who
responded correctly to temptation in the Bible. There are examples of people who
were not lured in by the temptation of money.
5. Abraham refused to accept a reward for service to King Of Sodom after a battle in
Genesis 14:22-24
6. The prophet Elisha refused payment when he performed a miraculous healing in 2
Kings 5:16: Peter also refused a bribe in Acts 8:20
7. Joseph – Gen.39 – Verse 6 – Natural endowment; Influence – V.7; Promotion – V.9;
Persistent – V10; setting – V.11-12; Isolation – Verse 11
8. Jesus Christ - Matt. 4:1; Heb. 4:15
CHRIST APOSTOLIC CHURCH. SURREY DOCKS DISTRICT, HQ
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