The Majesty of Christ

Our devotional lesson is taken from Luke 12: 1-12. There are three fundamental truths about Him that I would like to share with you today. It is my desire that you may grow in the knowledge and grace of our Lord as we study together His words. 

Gospel in the Air is a podcast ministry of Cornerstone Christian Church. We are located in Maui, Hawaii, USA. Our number is (808) 463-8859. You can also visit our website at www.cornerstonemaui.org or you can send your email to danibanggo@gmail.com.

Transcript

Episode 4
Topic: The Majesty of Jesus Christ
Text: Luke 4: 1-12

© Dani Banggo 11/02/2023

From the beautiful island of Maui, I want to greet you with a warm Aloha! Welcome to “Gospel in the Air,” a 30-minute devotional program that will inspire and encourage your daily walk with Jesus.  May I invite you to join me in this short devotional meditation. May you be enlightened with new insights for living as the Spirit of God reveals His passion for humankind to be saved, that is, that no one should perish but all will come to repentance.

 Our devotional lesson is taken from Luke 12: 1-12. And I will read the following verses:

 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.’ “ 

5Then 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. 

7Therefore, 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.

 
Our devotional lesson is entitled: The Majesty of Jesus Christ. There are three (3) fundamental truths about Him that I would like to share with you today. It is my desire that you may grow in the knowledge and grace of our Lord as we study together His words.  

After the baptism of Jesus, He was led by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness for the most intense spiritual encounter ever recorded in the history of the Bible between the forces of good and the forces of evil. This encounter face to face between Christ and Satan is God’s very own purpose and design to proclaim to the entire human race the majesty of Jesus Christ as God’s Son, particularly His deity, the second person in the Godhead. In fact, by gleaning on the texts alone suggests that even Satan himself cannot fully comprehend and in doubt of who Jesus is in his incarnate state. In His preexistence Jesus was called the Word (Jn.1:1), but then the Word became flesh and dwelt among us (Jn.1:14). That’s when Mary and Joseph called him by the name, Jesus, as foretold by an angel of the Lord. Satan knows too well about the prophesy regarding the Messiah as foretold by God since the beginning after the fall of Adam in the Garden of Eden and through the prophets, but as to when and how as regards to its fulfillment this thing was hidden to him. 

There are three (3) kinds of temptations that Satan tried to test on Jesus Christ. All three of them testify and speak well of his very nature as God as well as his humanity. Let us then study the three temptations according to their order:   

The first temptation is all about Christ being called the Bread of life.

Accordingly, after 40 days of fasting Jesus Christ was so weak and hungry. Taking this as an opportunity, Satan tempted him by saying “If You are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.” Without considering the background of this temptation I don’t see anything wrong at all and I would consider it as a valid concern since common sense will tell us that that is the immediate need of Jesus now, to feed and satisfy his hunger. This is the reality of life. That is why we work hard to sustain our everyday needs. And in our world today, our concerns are no longer limited to necessities such as food, shelter, and clothing, but we have more needs now. We are now living in a fast-paced society, and we need to adjust with the changing times, most especially in a place where the standard of living is so high. Today, owning a car and a house is now a necessity and it is no longer considered a luxury. To have our children finish a degree from a university or college is a dream come true to any responsible and loving parents. And the list goes on. These are noble goals and cherished dreams and there is nothing wrong in pursuing them. You might as well agree with Satan’s temptation is just as right in its proactive sense. Indeed, that’s the way life has changed a lot today. We need to adapt to the changing times otherwise, we will be left behind and become losers in the end. But is that true? Is there anything wrong by turning stones into bread since anyway Jesus can do that within his disposal if he wants to? Nevertheless, Jesus knows how clever Satan is. He knows how crafty his schemes are to ensnare his victim. Our Lord knows too well that he is the father of all lies. So, instead of giving in to his trap he reminded Satan by saying “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.’” Our Lord quoted the Scripture found in the Old Testament in the book of Deuteronomy 8:3. This was during the time in the early history of the Hebrew people when they were in the wilderness wandering for a period of forty years before they finally settled in the land promised by God to their forefathers. Throughout those forty years of their journey God did not fail to supply them of their daily provision with bread coming down from heaven, which is called manna. They were fed with that bread every morning continuously for a period of forty years until they finally reached the Promised Land. That is when the manna stopped and never to be seen again. But before that the people became rebellious and disobedient to God. They complained and grumbled against Moses because they were fed up with it. Imagine having that same kind of bread on their plates every morning for their breakfast repeatedly for forty long years! Indeed, there came a time when they could no longer appreciate God’s provision and began to despise his blessings. Why? Because they were only looking on the physical side of life, which is to satisfy their hunger, their insatiable appetite. They missed out that which is more and of greater importance than what bread can offer, that is, their spiritual food, which is the word of God. That is why God fed them with manna for them to understand that in this life we live not by bread alone but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. In other words, it is God’s desire for them to give their complete obedience to Him by carefully obeying his commandments, to walk in His ways and to fear Him. If they are faithful to His words then God’s promises will be theirs by being able to possess the Promised Land, and they will multiply greatly as a nation and live peacefully. Satan was silenced and cannot say a word because he was totally exposed by the Lord. He was caught empty handed for only telling half-truth. And it is here we learned that Jesus Christ is not just a mere human being or any ordinary man as Satan and many others in the world today would think about him. Let us hear the truth what Jesus Christ claims about Himself. In John 6: 48-51 this is what the Lord testifies about himself: “48 I am the bread of life. 49 Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness and are dead. 50 This is the bread which comes down from heaven, that one may eat of it and not die. 51 I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world.” 

This is the truth about Jesus Christ. He is our living bread. No ordinary human being in his right mind can say and claim this truth with power and authority unless one is a lunatic. And Jesus Christ is not a lunatic to claim it otherwise.  In other words, He is our only hope for eternal life. Without Him we are all lost eternally. From this standpoint alone, only God has the power and authority to claim this for himself. And I say this with all conviction from the Scripture that Jesus Christ is God. He has the power and authority to say those words because He is God Himself. Without Him we are lost, and we have no hope. He is our living bread who came from heaven to give us life. And this life is eternal. 

Satan stepped backward and was mummed and cannot say a word to argue with Jesus but to submit to His Lordship and authority. Indeed, Jesus Christ is no ordinary man but the Living Bread, a metaphor he uses to testify regarding his deity, being the Son of God.

 The second temptation is all about Jesus Christ being the center of our worship.

Satan tries to regroup from being knocked down in the first round of their encounter with the Lord. He tries to employ a different approach, this time, by attacking the humanity of Jesus. Satan argues that since Jesus is fully human, meaning 100% flesh and blood, then he might as well fall into this human frailty, which is riches, wealth, power, and authority. Is it not that even the Bible testifies that material wealth brings spiritual blindness? Let us read Rev.3: 17, “Because you say, ‘I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing’”Satan is not ignorant about the Word of God. He is well verse and very knowledgeable with the Bible. And he is using it for his advantage. But take note, this is proof reading, that is, he quotes from the Bible to justify and support his argument even it is out of context. In other words, he twists and misapplies the Bible. Indeed, since the beginning of time he was already a liar and he lied to our first parents. John 8: 44 reads in part, “He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it.”

 Since the fall of man, Satan became the ruler of this world (Jn.14: 30). But that is only for a time being as allowed by God for him to have dominion over the earth because he will soon be cast out (Jn.12: 31). Satan knows very well the weakness of man as regards to the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. All these wealth, riches, power and authority he offered them to Jesus (1 Jn.2: 16). It would have been a silver platter for Jesus to have won the world by not going anymore into the cross to die for humanity. It would have been much easier for Him to have reached out the world for salvation had he accepted the offer of Satan. It is as simple as that. Jesus would have the dominion of the world. But the price is too high for him to pay to Satan’s offer. Jesus would have bowed down and worshiped Satan in exchange for it. What a costly price the Lord would have paid, indeed! 

Many a man have been destroyed and fell into this trap of greediness since time immemorial until now. This is what causes fighting, battles, and wars among men, among nations and kingdoms the world over. All in the name of dominance, to rule the world and gain access to all its wealth and riches. It does not exempt anyone whether one is good or bad, wicked, or righteous, everyone is being tempted by what the world offers on this. Indeed, they are being worshiped as gods: the god of wealth, the god of riches, the god of power and the god of authority. Even churches are not exempted. Satan lurks specially among leaders and cause them to stumble primarily on the love of money, greediness to power and position, intoxication to authority and popularity, and the list goes on. The apostle Paul reminds the Corinthian church not to be engrossed with the things of the world because this world in its present form is passing away (1 Cor.7: 31). This is man’s folly; and Satan is the one causing it all. Satan wants to be worshiped. Satan promises to Jesus the world over only if he will bow down to him and worship him. Why worship is the issue at this point? Because worship is an act of reverence given only to a divine being, which is God. In other words, what Satan is asking from Jesus is to recognize him as God himself. But what did Jesus say to him? He said: “Get behind Me, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.’ “ 

 Jesus answered Satan by quoting also from the Scripture. He gave him a dose of his own medicine. All of Satan’s jabs were parried by the Lord and he answered them with a mighty blow! The fact that Jesus is fully human the Scripture testifies that he is being worshiped. In Matthew 2: 2 & 11, we can see that the wise men from the East came to Bethlehem to worship him. In Matthew 14: 33, the apostles who were in a boat worshiped Him, saying “Truly you are the Son of God.” Also, in Matthew 21: 9 and John 12: 13, as he was riding on a donkey entering Jerusalem the people welcomed him joyfully with a loud voice saying, Hosanna to the Son of David!” Hosanna (Greek or “hosiana,” Hebrew), is an expression of adoration or praise to a savior (https://en.m.wikipedia.org). In Matthew 28:9 & 17, the women and the apostles worshiped him when he showed himself to them after he rose from the dead. In John 9: 38, the blind man whom He healed worshiped Him. And in Luke 24: 52, His disciples worshiped Him as he ascended into heaven. In Revelation 19: 10 clearly says that even the angels should not be worship. Only God is worthy of our worship and no one else. 

Indeed, Jesus was worshiped in many instances, yet He did not rebuke or corrected them. Not like the angel of God in Revelation who forewarned the Apostle John not to bow down and worship him. He instructed him to worship God. If indeed, Jesus was a mere man He would have corrected their impression on Him. But He did not but allowed them to bow down before his feet and worshiped him. Indeed, Jesus Christ is God worthy of our praise, worthy of our adoration, worthy of our worship. Therefore, when we go to church the focus and center of our worship is no other than our Lord Jesus Christ to the glory of our Heavenly Father. When we forget Him as the author and the finisher of our faith then our worship becomes only an empty ritual.

The third and final temptation is all about Christ who is God overall. 

For the last time, Satan still relies to his former antics of using the Scripture as his ultimate resort. He expects that he can trap Jesus by presenting a truncated Gospel, one that is perverted and misapplied. He quoted Psalms 91: 11 and 12 as we have just read awhile.  In this passage, the Psalmist is sharing his own personal experience to others how an awesome God shielded him under His wings from grave dangers. Furthermore, the Psalmist described Him as a fortress and a dwelling to anyone who goes to Him and makes Him his refuge. And God charges His holy angels to minister to His saints for their safety and protection in order that evil may not befall on them. But despite a very clear meaning of the text Satan subtlety presents a different Gospel to fit his dark scheme and evil purpose. But how can he outdo the creator of the universe? It is very clear that Satan has not yet fully recognized who Jesus is at this very moment. Because had he recognized the Lord from the start, he would have bowed down to Him and submitted to His authority. He would tremble in fear and beg for his mercy. Yet one can just see how arrogant Satan is, which is really his very nature from the beginning that caused his own downfall and destruction. He once was called Lucifer, meaning morning star, a beautiful name he possessed when there was no sin found on him yet. But when pride engrossed him, he wanted to become like the Highest God himself, he then became Satan, meaning an enemy.  He wanted to sit on the throne of the Majesty. Indeed, pride comes first before destruction. And here is Satan facing his worst nightmare, God himself in the form of flesh. And he cannot recognize him. When all has been done for God to accomplish His purpose and the clock has been just set to run its course until the end of time, Jesus, at last, finally disclosed his identity not only to Satan but to the whole world to know Him that Jesus is Lord and God. With one final blow he said to him: “You shall not tempt the Lord your God.” 

Jesus Christ is not only a man or a great moral philosopher as some thought him to be. But he is God in the form of a flesh. The apostle John who wrote the book of Revelation testifies what he heard from and saw on Jesus Christ: “And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead. But He laid His right hand on me, saying to me, “Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last. I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forever. Amen. And I have the keys of Hades and of Death (Rev. 1: 17-18). 

My friend, I introduce to you Jesus Christ who is Lord and God. He came to earth and became one of us to reach you out from the bondage of sin. He came to set you free. He paid a very costly price by dying on the cross for your salvation, but He rose again after 3 days for you to have eternal life. Right now, he is knocking at the door of your heart to commune with you. Why don’t you welcome Him to dine with you? He is offering you his amazing grace for your eternal life. 

This is now your best moment to accept Him by faith. The Lord Jesus Christ is waiting for you. He is waiting for you to cry out to Him for your salvation. He is waiting for you, my friend. He is waiting for you right now.

It is my prayer that you have been blessed today. Listen to this podcast, “Gospel in the Air,” every week to be encouraged in your daily walk with Jesus. “Gospel in the Air” is a podcast ministry of Cornerstone Christian Church. We are located in Maui, Hawaii, USA. You can also visit our website at www.cornerstonemaui.org. This is your host, Brother Dani Marantan Banggo saying, keep punching the good fight of faith. Mahalo!