Herald of the Kingdom
After his baptism, the Spirit “drove Jesus into the wilderness… for forty days and nights.” Like Moses on Mount Sinai, the Messiah of Israel found himself alone in the Judean wilderness where he was confronted by the Devil. His only guide was the Word of God. Like Israel, he was “tested.” Unlike that nation, he overcame every challenge and emerged victorious from the experience “FULL OF THE HOLY SPIRIT,” and he then began to proclaim the Good News of the Kingdom in the villages of Galilee.
Just as
Moses did not eat during his time on the mountain, so Jesus “fasted” the
entire period he was in the wilderness. Not coincidentally, his temptation preceded
his ‘Sermon on the Mount’ recorded in Matthew in which he
pronounced his authoritative applications of the legal statutes received by
Moses on Mount Sinai.
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- (Matthew 4:1-2) - “Then was Jesus led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tested by the Devil. And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he afterward hungered.
- (Deuteronomy 8:2) - “You will remember all the way which Yahweh your God led you these forty years in the wilderness, that he might humble you, to test you to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep his commandments, or not.”
- (Deuteronomy 9:9) – “When I was gone up into the mount to receive the tables of stone, even the tables of the covenant which Yahweh made with you, then I abode in the mount forty days and forty nights; I did neither eat bread nor drink water.”
Jesus was “LED BY THE SPIRIT.” All three synoptic gospels leave no doubt it
was the Spirit of God that led or “drove” him to this confrontation with
Satan. He was under divine compulsion. As the Messiah and God’s Son, he had to succeed
where Israel failed – (Mark 1:12, Luke 4:1).
- (Matthew 4:3-4) – “And the tempter came and said to him, If you are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread. But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.”
The first
temptation recalled the incident when the Israelites murmured against Moses and
longed for the “fleshpots of Egypt.” But in the wilderness, Yahweh responded graciously by providing
Israel with “manna” from heaven - (Exodus 16:1-4).
Rather
than complain or demand what was his by right since he was the Messiah, Jesus responded to the Devil by
citing the passage in Deuteronomy that described the miraculous feeding
of Israel:
- (Deuteronomy 8:3) – “And Yahweh humbled you, and suffered you to hunger, and fed you with manna, which you knew not, neither did your fathers know; that he might make you know that man does not live by bread only, but by everything that proceeds out of the mouth of Yahweh does man live.”
Unlike
Israel, he did not mutter complaints against God because of his hunger.
Instead, he submitted to the will of Yahweh.
TEST NOT GOD
- (Matthew 4:5-7) – “Then the Devil took him into the holy city; and he set him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to him, If you are the Son of God, cast yourself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning you; and, On their hands, they shall bear you up, lest haply you dash your foot against a stone. Jesus said to him, Again it is written, You shall not test the Lord your God.”
Ironically, having declared that
the Messiah lives by every word that comes out of the “mouth of the Lord,”
Satan next used one of those very words to tempt Jesus to commit a rash act. Since
devout Jews expected the Messiah to appear in the Temple, would it not advance
his mission if he descended safely from the “pinnacle of the Temple” and
landed gently in its courts while the nation was at worship? – (Malachi 3:1).
Israel “tested” Yahweh
with their complaints, but more than once, Jesus refused to do so. At his
baptism, the voice from heaven identified him as the “beloved Son,” but he
was summoned to fulfill that role as the “Servant of Yahweh” who “suffers”
for his brethren.
This Messiah would be manifested to Israel in his submission to suffering, not in impressive displays of royal, supernatural, or military power – (Psalm 2:7, Isaiah 42:1, Matthew 3:17).
Again, Jesus responded by
citing a passage from the Book of Deuteronomy - “You shall not
test Yahweh your God, as you tested him in Massah.” It was at Massah that Israel
complained once more - (Deuteronomy 6:16):
- “… And there was no water for the people to drink. Wherefore, the people strove with Moses, and said, Give us water that we may drink. And Moses said to them: Why do you strive with me? Why do you test Yahweh?” - (Exodus 17:1-3).
The Gospel of Matthew
intends for us to recall this scriptural background when reading about the testing
of Jesus (“You shall not
test the Lord your God”). And once again, where Israel failed, the Messiah overcame.
WORSHIP GOD ALONE
- (Matthew 4:8-10) – “Again, the Devil took him to an exceeding high mountain, and showed him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; and he said to him, All these things will I give you if you wilt fall down and worship me. Then said Jesus to him, Get you hence, Satan: for it is written, You shall worship the Lord your God, and him only shall you serve.”
The next temptation was all too
real. At his baptism, the heavenly voice alluded to the second Psalm, a
messianic passage that promised God’s “Anointed One” would inherit all
the kingdoms of the world - (Psalm 2:7-8, Matthew 3:17).
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What the Devil offered Jesus was his according to God’s decree. Strikingly, he did NOT dispute Satan’s right to grant sovereignty over all the governments of the Earth, which certainly included the Roman Empire and Caesar’s throne.
Imagine all the good he could do
if he wielded the might and majesty of Rome! If anyone deserved unlimited
political power, it was the Son of God. Nevertheless, he rejected the offer, and
in doing so, he quoted from the same passage he had just cited to fend off the second
temptation:
- “You shall fear Yahweh you God; and him shall you serve… You shall not go after other gods, of the gods of the peoples that are round about you; for Yahweh, your God is a jealous God; lest the anger of Yahweh your God be kindled against you and he destroys you from off the face of the earth. You shall not test Yahweh your God, as you tested him in Massah” - (Deuteronomy 6:13-16).
Having
completed his test, the Devil departed, and angels “came and ministered to
him.” According to Luke, Satan “departed
from him FOR A SEASON,” indicating this would not be his last attempt
to derail Christ’s mission. On at least one other occasion, he would again tempt
Jesus with political power - (John 6:15).
Precisely how the angels “ministered to him”
we do not know. However, having overcome every test by the Devil, Jesus next “returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee.” Only then did he begin to proclaim the Kingdom
of God.
His messianic mission began in conflict as the
Devil gathered his forces to stop Jesus. Thus, also, his mission would end in
conflict and death at the hands of his enemies, but not before he proclaimed
the Good News to Israel. Having overcome the Devil and his temptations, the
Kingdom Herald was now under the direction, anointing, and power of the Holy Spirit.
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