Rembrandt, 1630: Temptation of Christ

It is a reasonable question to ask, whether Jesus was sinless because He was God, or because he was a man. Was it easier for Jesus to live a perfect life because He was able to access His great power as God and Creator of all that exists?

A critic might assert that Jesus’ sinlessness is a nonsequiteur.[1] In other words, the fact that the Bible states Jesus was sinless, does not really matter, because He was God in the first place. Jesus’ being sinless is expected and not an attribute that should surprise us. These are a few of the comments that critics of God and the Bible make concerning Jesus.

Fortunate for us today, we have the timeless truths of scripture that define Jesus as fully God and fully man. We have the testimony of Hebrew scholar, Paul, who states that although Jesus was Yahweh-God, He gave up some of His rights as God, and took the humble position of a servant, in order to live a sinless life and be qualified to die for all sins.

“Though Jesus was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to.  Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross.” ~Philippians 2:6-8

Paul makes it clear that Jesus was fully God but at His arrival on earth as a human being, He decided in eternity, that He would give up certain rights and privileges He had always possessed as the Eternal God. Among these were the right to access His great power for personal gain.

We see this in Jesus’ actions, or should I say, lack of action, when evil men arrested Him, tried Him illegally throughout the night, and falsely condemned Him to death by crucifixion. Not once did Jesus resist or use His power as God, to stop the unjust actions of evil men. Jesus fully surrendered His rights as God so that He would be condemned to death on the cross, and pay for all sins, for all time.

When Jesus Was Arrested, He Displayed Both Power And Submission

Near the end of John’s Gospel about Jesus, He records the night before Jesus was crucified, when Judas Iscariot led a detachment of troops to the Garden of Gethsemane, to arrest Jesus. This is a profound event, as it shows us both power and submission by Jesus, in relation to the purpose for which He came to earth:

“Then Judas, having received a detachment of troops, and officers from the chief priests and Pharisees, came there with lanterns, torches, and weapons. (1) Jesus therefore, knowing all things that would come upon Him, went forward and said to them, “Whom are you seeking?” They answered Him, “Jesus of Nazareth.” Jesus said to them, “I am He.” And Judas, who betrayed Him, also stood with them. (2) Now when He said to them, “I AM,” they drew back and fell to the ground. Then He asked them again, “Whom are you seeking?” And they said, “Jesus of Nazareth.”(3)  Jesus answered, “I have told you that I am He. Therefore, if you seek Me, let these go their way,” that the saying might be fulfilled which He spoke, “Of those whom You gave Me I have lost none.” Then Simon Peter, having a sword, drew it and struck the high priest’s servant, and cut off his right ear. The servant’s name was Malchus. So Jesus said to Peter, “Put your sword into the sheath. (4) Shall I not drink the cup which My Father has given Me?” ~John 18:3-11

1. Jesus knew all things that would happen as God, He accessed His power as God to know what would happen.
2. When the soldiers come to question Jesus, He answers that He is the Eternal God, by citing, “I AM.” When Jesus declares He is Yahweh, the power of this name causes the Roman soldiers to fall backwards.
3. Although the soldiers seek to control Jesus by asking Him questions, Jesus assumed control by asking the soldiers questions, and issuing a command: “let these go their way…” John states that he later learned that Jesus had said this, so that He might fulfill the Prophecy written for the Messiah in  ““Of those whom You gave Me I have lost none,” which Jesus predicted earlier, in, John 6:39: “This is the will of the Father who sent Me, that of all He has given Me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up at the last day.”
4. At the end of this text from John 18, Jesus reveals that in His coming to earth, He would, “drink the cup which my Father has given me,” a reference to the cup of judgment for all sins that Jesus would willingly submit Himself to, in Psalms 75:8:

Psalms 75:8: “For in the hand of the LORD there is a cup, and the wine is red; It is fully mixed, and He pours it out; surely its dregs shall all the wicked of the earth drain and drink down.”

Beginning at Genesis 3:15, God promised a Savior who would come to earth from, “the Seed of a woman (Mary), and this Savior would drink from the cup of judgment for all sins. In order for Jesus to accomplish this, He had to set aside His rights as God, to allow Himself to be arrested, convicted, killed, and then rise again, according to all the Prophecies of the Messiah.

“So all bore witness to Jesus, and marveled at the gracious words which proceeded out of His mouth. And they said, “Is this not Joseph’s son?” ~Luke 4:22

The people who had known Jesus, as He was growing up in Nazareth as Joseph’s son, found that it was impossible for them to accept that He was the promised Messiah. This gives us an idea that the early life of Jesus was likely as normal as any other young boy. It is certain that He had many wonderful attributes; nevertheless, they had not considered that Jesus was anything more than a normal human being. This makes the story of Jesus’ life truly extraordinary for us today. When Paul described Jesus as tempted in all points as we, yet without sin, in Hebrews 4:15, we understand that Jesus experienced all of the same difficulties that every other human being goes through during their life, with one notable exception: He did not give in to temptation and sin.

As God, Jesus Wanted To Live As We Live; Yet, To Never Sin

“Though Jesus was the Son of God, yet He learned obedience by the things which He suffered. And having been perfected, He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him…” ~Hebrews 5:8-9

Though Jesus is the Son of God, He had to learn to be obedient. It was by Jesus’ suffering that He was conformed into the will of God to complete our salvation. How much more shall we also need to learn obedience to the will of the Lord by the things we must also suffer in our life?

“We must through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God.” ~Acts 14:22

God allowed the journey of Joseph, Mary, and the unborn Messiah to be extremely difficult so that by their suffering, they would all be prepared to accomplish what the Lord would later require. The world needed a Savior who could understand poverty, difficulties, hardship, and suffering. Jesus was being prepared to be a Savior who understands us, even before He was born.

“For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.” ~Hebrews 4:15

Concerning The Birth Of Jesus As The Messiah In Bethlehem:

The Messiah will come to earth as “a child.”

“For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder.” ~Isaiah 9:6-7

New Testament Fulfillment:

“Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name JESUS. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David.” ~Luke 1:30-32

Jesus Did Not Begin His life At Bethlehem; He Existed As God, Before Time:

“In the beginning was (Jesus) the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” ~John 1:1

“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.” ~John 1:14

“God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds…” ~ Hebrews 1:1-2

“For to which of the angels did He ever say: “You are My Son, Today I have begotten You”? And again: “I will be to Him a Father, And He shall be to Me a Son”? But when He again brings the firstborn into the world, He says: “Let all the angels of God worship Him.” And of the angels He says: “Who makes His angels spirits And His ministers a flame of fire.” But to the Son He says: “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your kingdom.” ~Hebrews 1:5-8

The Great Enigma: God Becomes A Man

“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 Timothy 3:16

One of the mysteries of salvation is that God would humble Himself and come to earth as a tiny baby. Why did God not send the Messiah to us as a fully formed and mature human being? We see manifestations of Jesus, in the Old Testament, as the Angel of the Lord in the form of a man. Why send the Son of God to earth and necessitate that He must be born as a helpless baby?

Place yourself now—in Nazareth. You are standing beside the road, across the way from where Mary and Joseph live. A toddler is wobbling back and forth in the first days of learning to walk. He stumbles and falls to the ground. His mother runs to His aid and picks Him up, dusting off the dirt from where He has fallen. Suddenly you realize, this is the Son of God, the One who made all things that exists. He has not always been a human being. He has not always been a tiny boy. He was and is the King of the Universe, the Creator and Sustainer of all things.

Jesus walked the halls of heaven, but now He must learn to walk as a child. He has spoken the universe into existence, but now He must learn to talk for the first time as a human being.

It was the plan of God to require the Savior of the world to become one of us fully in all things. He would have to experience everything that all men will encounter during their lives. From normal birth, infancy, through the teen years and adulthood, our Savior would feel every emotion we feel. Jesus endured pain, sorrow, betrayal, abandonment, fear, and stress. He understands what it is like to live as a human being in this world. This is why He is able—not only able to die in our place but also to perfectly sympathize with all of the struggles and difficulties we experience living in a fallen world.

“Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” ~Hebrews 4:14-16

The Savior is also called Immanuel—God with us—for good reason. Not only that God is for us, He cares for us, but also that He would come to live amongst us so that we could understand that He knows what it is like to be one of us.

Because our Messiah came as a child, we can have great confidence that He truly understands what it is like for us to grow from an infant into an adult. He was not lacking information regarding how we feel as a human being, for God knows all things. More importantly, because He was willing to take the body of a human being and live with us, He knows what it is like to be one of us.

“O LORD, You have searched me and known me. You know my sitting down and my rising up; You understand my thought afar off. You comprehend my path and my lying down, And are acquainted with all my ways. For there is not a word on my tongue, But behold, O LORD, You know it altogether.” ~Psalms 139:1-4

In verse 2, the original Hebrew language, which David wrote this text from, reveals that God “understands my thoughts afar off.” David did not mean that God is far off from us, in heaven, and yet He understands our thoughts. It is the intent of the Hebrew language in this verse, that David is stating God’s comprehension of our thoughts before they form. He observes the synapses firing in our brain, connecting ideas, and feelings together. The Lord knows our thoughts far off, before we are going to think, what we are going to think. This is how intimately God knows us.

The purpose of the Messiah coming to us as a child was not so that God could comprehend what it is like to be human. Jesus came to us as a child, and learned to walk, talk, and be human, so that we could have confidence in His ability to relate to us as another human being.

The Savior’s knowledge of your life is not simply understood by the fact that He knows all about you, because He made you. He also knows what it is like to be you, living in this world full of so many heartaches, disappointments, and failures. He understands betrayal, abandonment, loneliness, suffering, and despair. He has experienced all of the emotions you have felt, and He can relate to you as no other person can. We can thank and praise the Father who, in His wisdom, sent us His Son and allowed Him to begin life as a child.

Paul wrote, in Hebrews 4:14-16, that for this reason, we can have confidence that He understands us. Therefore, we can come to Him at any time without fear or apprehension. We can come boldly to His throne of Grace; and there, we will always find mercy and grace to help in (our) time of need.

God sent us a Savior to begin life as a child and to grow into adulthood, and finally lay down His life in such great sacrifice, that all our sins could be eternally detached from us.

When we examine carefully the circumstances of Jesus’ birth, in regards to the fulfillment of this prophecy of Micah 5:2, we see truly amazing circumstances.

Luke reminds us that there were a certain number of days that had to be completed before the Messiah would come to us. Micah prophesied in describing the Savior’s birth, nearly 750 years before Jesus was born in Bethlehem.

“So it was, that while they were there, the days were completed for her to be delivered.” ~Luke 2:6-11

When we examine these hundreds of prophecies concerning the coming of the Messiah, we see that God was following a predetermined plan He had formulated before time existed. The Book of Galatians reminds us that the time when Jesus came to earth was a moment specifically planned by God in which He would reveal His Son to the world.

“But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son.~Galatians 4:4

Our God works in the realm of eternity, to affect the lives of people who dwell within time, so that we might all, someday, dwell with Him in eternity forever.

As Jesus is born in Bethlehem, in fulfillment of Micah’s prophecy, He does not come into the world as we would expect the King of the universe to make His entrance.

“And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.” ~Luke 2:7

Imagine the Creator of all things, as He is born to one of the poorest families on the earth. He brings no army with Him. He comes not in regal splendor and spectacle. His arrival is unpretentious and with great humility. It is interesting that Jesus is wrapped in the very same strips of cloth at His birth that He will also be wrapped with at His death. These are the garments of the poor used to secure an infant in the traditional binding that is said to bring comfort to a newborn.

“Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid. Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” ~Luke 2:8

The announcement made by angels given to the world declared that God, who made the heavens and the earth, came not to kings or world leaders. He arrived before a few shepherds tending their flocks on a lonely insignificant hillside. It was a common belief at this time that shepherds were among the most insignificant and despised people who occupied the earth. These humble men spent countless days and nights unnoticed, as they lovingly cared for one of the dumbest and most helpless animals on the earth. It is no surprise that the Bible often speaks of the shepherd as a loving example of the care and dedication the Messiah will have over His people—the sheep.

The birth of Jesus is announced by an angel of the Lord. His first words to the stunned shepherds are: “Do not be afraid, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people…” As the multitude of all Old Testament prophecies describe, the Messiah came for every person. God chose one specific day—a moment in time set aside by the Lord to announce that our bondage to sin and death are at an end. “For there is born to every person a Savior, who is Jesus the Christ the Lord.”

The Savior Must Be Sinless

Jesus claimed to be without sin:

“Jesus said…“Which of you convicts Me of sin?” ~John 8:46

Paul described Jesus as “without sin:”

“For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.” ~ Hebrews 4:15

Peter testified that Jesus is without sin:

“…knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.” ~1 Peter 1:18-19

The principle of a perfect sacrifice being required by the law of God, makes it impossible that any other person could qualify to remove our sins and grant us access to God. In the entire history of the world, only Jesus was validated as completely without sin.

Since all other people who have been born on the earth are sinners, they cannot be our Savior according to the principle established here in the Old Testament law of Exodus 12:5. If Jesus had not been born of a virgin, He would have inherited the sin nature we have all inherited from Adam. He would have been disqualified as our perfect sacrifice.

When claims that Jesus was not born of a virgin, what they are really saying is that He could not be the Savior of the world. The testimony of those who knew Jesus His entire life is that He was sinless.

Although Jesus is the Eternal God who spoke the universe into existence, He is also a human being who is aware of our mortal frailty. Jesus is well acquainted with temptation and sin. He is the only man to be tempted in all the same points that we are tempted, and yet never sin.

“Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.” ~Hebrews 4:14-15

The gift that Jesus offered to God on our behalf was His perfect life. If Jesus had not lived a life completely devoid of sin, He could not be our High Priest nor our Savior. The sacrifice of His human body—with the Spirit of the Living God dwelling within Him—qualified Jesus to be our perfect and eternal High Priest. All other priests presented sacrifices to God on behalf of a sinner. Jesus presented His own body as our sacrifice while, at the same time, He was our Great High Priest.

His Is One Of Us

Only a human being could offer his life to rescue another human being.⁠[2] God could not redeem us, nor could He simply ignore our sins. He had to do as He had said: “The soul that sins will die”  (Ezekiel 18:4). A sacrifice must be offered for sin in order to satisfy the requirement of justice in punishing sin. Jesus became both the sacrifice and the one who offered the sacrifice. In doing so, He forever put away all of our iniquity by quenching the full measure of God’s wrath for all of our transgressions.⁠[3]

What constitutes a violation?

If you have exceeded the speed limit on the highway, or taken a few paper clips or pens from work for your own personal use, then you have committed an offense. These are violations of human law that deal with bad behavior and the protection of the rights of others.

The Biblical definition of sin is a violation of the law of God. These statutes are based on the moral perfection of God and not men. The laws of men allow for some imperfection, while the moral laws of God do not.

When a violation has been made, a penalty is demanded based on the justice of God. No infraction, no matter how small, is overlooked by God. His standard is perfection. He requires perfection in all our behavior, attitudes, and actions every minute of every day.

Since no person has the capacity for moral perfection because our inner nature does not allow for it, we all feel that tolerance should be exercised when it comes to failures in our words and actions. Although we desire mercy for ourselves, there is something within us that has very little forbearance for the failures of others. When we see moral imperfection and wrongful actions, we automatically feel a sense of judgement in our mind and heart. This shows us that we do comprehend the principles of right and justice, and we expect these things from other people. The problem is that our own sense of judgment is misguided because we do not have the capacity to truly understand the heart of those who fail. Secondly, we ourselves are failures when it comes to keeping the moral law. Therefore, we are not really qualified to stand in judgment of the wrongful actions of other people.

Jesus, as our High Priest, has been tempted in all of the same areas that each one of us has experienced temptation, except that He never surrendered to the sinful actions most of us give into when we are tempted. This is what qualifies Jesus above all other persons to act in our behalf and take our sins as His own.

A Hostile Witness

There is no more compelling evidence than that which is presented by a hostile witness. When an adversary, who is not interested in the subject nor desires to promote the object in question, writes or states information that confirms or supports the subject, this testimony is considered invaluable.

The ancient scribes of Israel who chronicled Jesus in their writings had no interest in preserving any historical information about Him nor Christianity. The Jews who recorded their commentary about Jesus in the Talmud regarded Him and His followers as the latest of many cult religions of their day. These leaders of Israel had no desire to document the existence of Jesus, His crucifixion, nor those who followed Him, yet this is precisely what they accomplished by their adversarial comments regarding His arrest and execution. The same Jesus who is described by the New Testament is also preserved in the Hebrew scriptures. These records were written in the Jewish Talmud during the period of history in which Jesus is reported to have been in Israel, as described by the narrative of the New Testament scriptures.⁠[4]

Because those who hated Jesus or, at the very least, had no concern for Him whatsoever recorded His presence in Jerusalem during the time the four gospels also state that Jesus was there, this evidence by these hostile witnesses proves, beyond a reasonable doubt, that Jesus is a real person of history. Further, these records validate that Jesus was crucified, died, and rose from the dead, just as the honest men who recorded these events testify.

There is one stunning example in the Bible of the most hostile of witnesses: the devil, who seeks to defeat and disqualify Jesus in His desire to save all mankind. The gospel of Luke records a time when satan used the words of God to try and deceive Jesus and cause His failure.

In Psalms 91:11-12, David writes, 1,000 years before this event takes place, that during the temptation of the Messiah, this Psalm will be quoted by satan:

“For He shall give His angels charge over you, To keep you in all your ways. In their hands they shall bear you up, Lest you dash your foot against a stone.” ~Psalms 91:11-12

The New Testament Fulfillment:

“Then Jesus, being filled with the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, being tempted for forty days by the devil. And in those days He ate nothing, and afterward, when they had ended, He was hungry. And the devil said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.”  But Jesus answered him, saying, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.’ ” Then the devil, taking Him up on a high mountain, showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. 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. Therefore, if You will worship before me, all will be Yours.”

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.’ ” 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. For it is written: (Psalms 91:11-12) ‘He shall give His angels charge over you, To keep you,’ and, ‘In their hands they shall bear you up, Lest you dash your foot against a stone.’ ” And Jesus answered and said to him, “It has been said, ‘You shall not tempt the LORD your God.’ ” Now when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from Him until an opportune time.” ~Luke 4:1-13

Defeated By The Word Of God

It is interesting that satan describes Psalm 91:11-12 as a prophecy of the Messiah, written and fulfilled by Jesus at the beginning of His ministry. Jesus corrects the misuse of this verse and correctly defeats satan by the word of God: “You shall not tempt the LORD your God.” The subtlety of this answer might be missed by the casual reader. By His response, Jesus is asserting His authority as the LORD, from the Old Testament as Jehovah/Yahweh.⁠[5]

By Jesus’ example, we learn that satan is defeated by the word of God, not by intellect or power. This fallen being was once amongst the greatest of God’s creation. The knowledge he has of us is much greater than our knowledge of him and his ability to destroy our lives. We defeat the devil by the words of God and by His Spirit working in us.

As Jesus is led by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness to fast and pray for forty days, satan comes to dissuade Him from drawing near to God and completing His purpose on earth.

“Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry. Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.” ~Matthew 4:1-3

When we examine this verse in the original Greek language, satan is actually saying: since You are the Son of God, not if You are the Son of God.

The Greek phrase here is: Ei Huios ei tou Theou “Jesus, since you are the Son of God, speak to these stones and turn them to bread.” In the Book of Job, the Lord asks Job where he was when God created the universe while in the presence of all the angels, including Lucifer. The satan was there and saw Jesus speak and the universe came into being:

• Job 38:4 “Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth?
• Job 38:7 When the morning stars sang together, And all the sons of God shouted for joy?
• Hebrews 11:3 By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible.
• Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Colossians 1:16 For by Jesus all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers.

The devil is aware of the power that Jesus has to either create or destroy by the words of His mouth.

At the return of Jesus to the Mount of Olives, He will go north to the Valley of Jezreel, where the antichrist will be waiting with the armies of the world. Jesus will simply speak, and all the forces gathered to fight against Him will be destroyed in an instant. The blood from this carnage will be to the depth of a horse’s bridle for nearly 200 miles along the Valley of Megiddo (Armageddon):

• Revelation 16:16 “And they gathered them together to the place called in Hebrew, Armageddon.”
• Revelation 19:11 “Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war.”
• Revelation 19:15 “Now out of His mouth goes a sharp sword.”
• Revelation 19:19 “And I saw the beast, the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against Him who sat on the horse and against His army.”
• Revelation 19:21 “And the rest were killed with the sword which proceeded from the mouth of Him who sat on the horse. And all the birds were filled with their flesh.”
• Revelation 14:20 “And the winepress was trampled outside the city, and blood came out of the winepress, up to the horses’ bridles, for one thousand six hundred furlongs.”

When the soldiers come to arrest Jesus at the Garden of Gethsemane, He asks who they are seeking. The soldiers reply, “Jesus of Nazareth.” When Jesus answers, “I AM,” the soldiers fall backwards as the words of the eternal God are spoken:

John 18:6 “Now when He said to them, “I am He,” they drew back and fell to the ground.”

See the chapter, Controlling His Death, for details.

The devil knows that Jesus is the Eternal God dwelling in the body of a man. He has not eaten for 40 days. He feels intense hunger. His body is greatly compromised and weakened. Like any man who is starving, Jesus is tempted to satisfy His hunger by using the power He possesses. We should remember that temptation is not sin. It is only when we give into our temptations that our actions become sinful. Knowing what Jesus is feeling as a man, the devil taunts Him in this moment of great weakness.

We should understand that had Jesus used His power as God to satisfy His hunger, He would have been immediately disqualified from fulfilling the hundreds of prophecies that describe the Messiah as the servant of God, sent to ensure the salvation of all mankind. Jesus was tired; He was weak, and He was literally starving to death at this moment. The devil was well aware of the importance of this hour as he tried to cause Jesus to fail and be disqualified as the Messiah. Later, Paul wrote that although Jesus was the Son of God, He learned obedience by the things He suffered:

Hebrews 5:8 “Though He was a Son, yet He learned obedience by the things which He suffered.”

“Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.” !Matthew 4:1-2

Matthew describes Jesus coming into the wilderness of Judea. In certain areas of this wasteland, there are large stones. Perhaps satan knew that after Jesus has been without food for forty days, even the rocks began to look like loaves of hot-buttered bread.

Jesus is the Creator of all things. If He were to speak only a word, any one of these stones could become bread. Mark records that Jesus took just seven loaves of bread and multiplied them into such great quantity, that 5,000 people were fed.

“So Jesus commanded the multitude to sit down on the ground. And He took the seven loaves and gave thanks, broke them and gave them to His disciples to set before them; and they set them before the multitude (of 5,000).” ~Mark 8:6

Jesus was certainly able to satisfy His need for food if that was His desire. He was also aware that had He done so, He would fail in His mission to be the Savior of the world. It was necessary for the Messiah to be tempted in all points as we are tempted—yet without sin. Having completed this test, Jesus is now qualified to be the Savior of all those who are also tempted.

When Jesus was tempted to sin, He did not use His power as God to resist, but did not sin because He chose, as a man who wanted to do the will of God, to not sin. In this choice, Jesus was perfectly qualified to be our Savior.

The preceding study is from my book; “These Things Were Written”

Click The Image To Look Inside

NOTES:

[1] “Even if the premises were true, the conclusion would never follow. The conclusion could conceivably be true for other reasons, but the argument would still be invalid” (Tio Gabunia).[2] The principle of a “kinsmen redeemer,” one who is like us—is established in the book of Ruth. Man’s savior, must be a man, perfect and without sin.
[3] Hebrews 9:26 …but now, once at the end of the ages, Jesus has appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself.
[4] The following are specific references to Jesus of Nazareth, as found in the Talmud under passages on execution in Sanhedrin 43 a-b.⁠

• Herzog 1: On the eve of Passover, they hanged Jesus the Nazarene.
• Vatican 130: He went and brought up Jesus the Nazarene.
• Vatican 140: He went and brought up Jesus.
• Munich 95: On the eve of the Passover, they hanged Jesus of Nazareth.
• Firenze 11.1.8-9: On the Sabbath eve and the eve of Passover, they hanged Jesus the Nazarene.
• Karisruhe 2: On the eve of Passover, they hanged Jesus the Nazarene.
• Barco: On the eve of Passover, they hanged Jesus of Nazareth.
• English translations of the Talmud from Peter Schäfer, pp 133–140

[5] Strong’s Hebrew Concordance #3068, yahweh, Whenever the term: “LORD,” is observed in the Old Testament scriptures, it is “Jehovah,” or “Yahweh.”

Categories: An all sufficient sacrifice, Apologetics, God's Sovereignty, How Salvation Occurs, Jesus born to die, Jesus destroyed the work of the devil, Jesus is God, Jesus is the Messiah, Messianic Prophecies, Messianic Prophecy Bible, New Testament Criticism, Old Testament Apologetics, Robert Clifton Robinson, Salvation through Jesus, Temptation by the devil, The Four Gospels, The Prayers of Jesus, The Servant of God, These Things Were Written, We must repent, We must see our need, Why evil exists, Why God Permits Evil, Why Jesus had to die

Tags: Jesus is God, Jesus is sinless, Jesus is without sin, satan's opposition to man's salvation, Temptation by the devil