Jesus it Tested (Luke 4:1-13)
Rick Walker
Vinogradar church of Christ
Vinekeeper Congregation
Kyiv, Ukraine
SUMMARY The glory of Jesus’ baptism was not followed by another glorious event, but by the humiliation of testing and temptation. Jesus’ encounter with the devil was just the opposite of what the rabbis expected, and it holds an important lesson for us. Luke 4:1-13.
We have covered the preaching of John and the baptism of Jesus. Now we come to the final event in the life of Jesus before he entered into his ministry. Jesus enters the desert to undergo forty days of testing and temptation. We are in Luke 4:1-13.
There are a lot of important truths and lessons in this narrative. Today we are going to limit ourselves to some lessons about the testing and temptations in general. Not the specific details of the temptations Jesus endured, but just the fact that Jesus was tempted. What lessons are there for us?
The Testing of God’s Son [1:07]
The first lesson for our lives is that that God put his own faithful son through a time of testing. The bodily affliction of hunger and the spiritual affliction of temptation by the devil himself.
In all the speculations of the rabbis about the coming Messiah, they never even considered that he would go through a time of testing. Oh, they understood that Moses and other great leaders were tested, but not the Messiah. In their thinking the Messiah was not destined for suffering, he was destined for glory. He would come with this glorious power and overwhelming exaltation.
They taught a lot about the testing of men like Abraham and Moses and other spiritual leaders. But not the Messiah. No testing. No temptation. There will be glory. These things are not meant for the Messiah.
Jesus has just reached a high point in his spiritual life. A glorious event. His baptism. God’s voice spoke from heaven. Jesus saw the heavens torn open and the Holy Spirit descend and rest upon himself. How glorious is that? God the Father and the Holy Spirit validating Jesus.
What glory comes next? Will multitudes of angels appear in the temple and sing his praises? Will Jesus shine with the glory like at the transfiguration? Will he ascend to heaven in a fiery chariot like Elijah? Will he be enthroned in heaven and surrounded by angels? Surely something glorious will happen. After all, he is the son of God!
Rabbis: Messiah’s Glory [4:44]
You may be familiar with the 19th Century scholar Alfred Edersheim. Here is his observation. The rabbis had no thought that Satan would ever attack the Messiah. It was just unthinkable that the Messiah would be assaulted by the devil.
In fact, they said it would be just the opposite. The rabbis said that Satan would be so overwhelmed at the sight of the Messiah that he would simply fall at his feet and surrender. He will simply declare that he is defeated without even putting up a fight.
The temptations in the wilderness are just the opposite of what the rabbis were expecting. They expected the devil to surrender to the Messiah, not attack him. No temptation for Jesus. Everything they taught about the Messiah was glory. Glory after glory after glory in endless succession.
Here is a specific statement of the rabbis: The Messiah will stand on the pinnacle of the temple and the Gentile nations will come to him at that hour and lick the dust off of his feet. The Gentiles will proclaim that they are the servants of the Jews, and every Jew will have 2,800 servants. And the Messiah will be exalted up to the heavens and the glory of God will come upon him for the whole world to see! (Edersheim, Life and Times, “The Temptation of Jesus.” 310)
Wow. Imagine that.
The Baptism and the Testing [5:55]
There are strong connections between the baptism of Jesus in the Jordan River and the time of testing in the desert. When Jesus was baptized, he was revealed to be God’s son by the voice of God himself. “You are my Son. I am pleased with you.” (Lk. 3:23)
A few weeks later, after Jesus was tempted by the devil, John told the people Jesus is the lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world. (John 1:29)
One day Jesus is shown to be the Son of God. And God is pleased with him because he has been faithful. And then his obedience is tested in the desert. Will be he be faithful through a forty day fast? And three temptations? Will Jesus remain faithful? Will God still be pleased with him forty days later?
God’s voice said, “You are my son,” and the Holy Spirit descended. The devil’s voice said, “If you are really God’s son, throw yourself down.”
Driven by Holy Spirit [7:36]
Another connection is the role of the Holy Spirit. At the Jordan River the Holy Spirit descended in bodily form. (Lk. 3:23) And it is very interesting how the testing in the desert began. Did the devil drag Jesus into the desert? Was it the devil’s plan? The answer may surprise you.
Jesus was sent or led into the desert by the Holy Spirit. Mark says it in this way: Jesus was driven into the wilderness. The Greek word in Mark is ekballo. (Mk. 1:12). Ekballo has the idea of some kind of force. It is the same word used when Jesus performed exorcisms. Jesus drove the demons out of the possessed.
The devil did not drag Jesus into the desert. The Holy Spirit drove Jesus into the desert to be tempted and tested.
Well, you see the connections. Jesus was declared to be the devoted Son of God at his baptism, and he was shown to be God’s devoted Son in the desert. Declared to be, and then shown to be—a true, devoted son.
When Jesus was revealed to be God’s son by the voice of God, when the Holy Spirit descended upon him, the next thing will be something glorious and great. Surely so! Something worthy of God’s son. The people could not have imagined fasting to the point of death. They could not have imagined being led around and tempted by the devil.
Royalty does not live like this. Especially when the king’s father is God. Especially when he has the Holy Spirit without measure. But, what happened? His afflictions began.
Israel Tested [10:12]
It is not the first time something like this had happened. I am reminded of Israel. Moses appeared before Pharaoh, saying Israel is God’s son. (Ex. 4:22) And after Israel escaped Egypt with gold and silver and gifts from the Egyptians, Pharaoh’s army chased them down to the Red Sea.
Israel was first declared to be God’s son, and was then tested in the wilderness for forty years.
Jesus was first declared to be God’s son, and was then tested in the wilderness for forty days.
Israel was baptized in the Red Sea and then tested. Jesus was baptized in the Jordan River and then tested near the Dead Sea.
The difference is that Israel failed the test of devotion. They complained about their hunger. They worshiped the golden calf.
But Jesus remained faithful. He did not turn stones to bread. He did not bow down and worship Satan. He did not throw himself down from the pinnacle of the temple.
Do you see the parallels? Do you see the connections? Of course you do. Israel was God’s son, baptized in the Red Sea and tested for forty years. And Jesus was God’s son, baptized in the Jordan River, and tested for forty days. Israel was symbolic of Jesus—except that Jesus was faithful.
The Christian Tested [12:06]
So, what is the lesson for us? Augustine said: “God had only one son without sin, but never a son without suffering.” (“Afflictions Sufferings Quotes”, Precept Austen).
The lesson that faith is tested. Since Jesus, who was pleasing to God in every way, without sin, had his faith tested, we should not be surprised that ours is tested. Even Jesus was tested. The most mature Christian may be tested, because Jesus was tested for forty days.
This week I saw a post on a message board for our churches in Ukraine. There were a lot of posts by different ones as Christians are scattered all over western Ukraine and Poland and other countries. I don’t know who wrote the post, but it very simply said that 1 Peter is a good letter to be reading.
Peter wrote to Christians in the provinces of Asia, modern day Turkey, because they were suffering trials.
And he told them to not be surprised by what was happening to them, as if it were something unusual (1 Pet. 4:12). Why were these trials necessary? It wasn’t because there was something lacking in their character. They were not being punished. Peter says they love Jesus, though they have not seen him. And they experience the joy of being Christians. (1 Pet. 48, 9) Peter says these trials prove that your faith is genuine. (1 Pet. 1:6, 7)
Jesus was not afflicted for forty days because there was something lacking in his character. Afflictions even come to the righteous. Job in the land of Uz. Jesus in the desert. Christians in Asia during the reign of Nero. Me in my world. And you in your world.
Surviving Trials [14:35]
To survive the ordeal we must know that afflictions have a purpose. To know there is a guiding hand that has a purpose will help bring us through.
It has been said that one sure way to break a prisoner is to give him a meaningless task. Move this pile of rocks from here to there. Now, move it back. And back again. Back and forth. Back and forth. A meaningless exercise. Without purpose. Breaks the prisoner.
But it is not like that with the Lord. The Holy Spirit did not drive Jesus into the desert for a meaningless exercise. Not to move a pile of rocks back and forth. The Lord has a goal. There is purpose. So that we can know that our faith is real and our character is good. And to build stronger faith.
While the Titanic was sinking, men were told to wait and let the women and children board the lifeboats first. Then the men. Of course. It is said that some men went and changed into women’s clothes, came back, and boarded with the women. Others, most, waited their turn. The crisis revealed character. For some it was good. But not for others, who pushed their way to the front disguised as women.
David Tested [16:41]
Does anyone want to have their heart examined? Would a man pray for the Lord to examine his heart?
David did. In Psalm 26:2: Test me. Try me. The word is the same word used by Peter. To be examined. (dokimazo, 1 Pet. 1:6). David is not praying for affliction and temptation. Jesus said pray, “Lead us not into temptation.”(Matt. 6:13) David is praying for examination, not suffering. David saw value.
Jesus Told this Story [17:38]
Jesus’ in the desert being tested and tempted. This is one story that was not witnessed by the disciples. Or, by anyone else. It was Jesus alone for forty days. How did the disciples come to know this story? Jesus must have told them about his encounter with the devil. Surely, when Jesus taught about temptations, he drew on his own experiences in the Judean wilderness.
Can there be any doubt that when Jesus taught his disciples about testing and temptation, he told them about his own? Jesus was speaking from his own experience. And what lessons could they have drawn from Jesus telling this story? Even the most faithful are not without testing. And even the most righteous are not above being tempted: Job, in the land of Uz. David, in the land of Israel. Christians in Asia. Me in my world.
And you in your world.
Rick Walker
Vinogradar church of Christ
Vinekeeper Congregation
Kyiv, Ukraine
