The Temptations of Jesus
How will you react when it is your
turn?
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In this Lesson
Why Jesus Was Tempted
How Jesus Was Tempted
A Common Reaction to The Temptations of
Satan
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Matthew 4
1 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the
wilderness to be tempted by the devil.
2 And when He had fasted forty days and forty
nights, afterward He was hungry.
3 Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, "If
You are the Son of God, command that these
stones become bread."
4 But He answered and said, "It is written, 'Man shall
not live by bread alone, but by every word that
proceeds from the mouth of God.'"
5 Then the devil took Him up into the holy city, set
Him on the pinnacle of the temple,
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6 and said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, throw
Yourself down. For it is written: 'He shall give His angels
charge over you,' and, 'In their hands they shall bear you
up, Lest you dash your foot against a stone.'"
7 Jesus said to him, "It is written again, 'You shall not
tempt the LORD your God.'"
8 Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high
mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world
and their glory.
9 And he said to Him, "All these things I will give You if
You will fall down and worship me."
10 Then Jesus said to him, "Away with you, Satan! For it is
written, 'You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him
only you shall serve.'"
11 Then the devil left Him, and behold, angels came and
ministered to Him.
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Not a Contradiction of Scripture
James 1
13 Let no one say when he is tempted, "I
am tempted by God"; for God cannot be
tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt
anyone.
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Matthew 4
1 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the
wilderness to be tempted by the devil.
2 And when He had fasted forty days and forty
nights, afterward He was hungry.
3 Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, "If
You are the Son of God, command that these
stones become bread."
4 But He answered and said, "It is written, 'Man shall
not live by bread alone, but by every word that
proceeds from the mouth of God.'"
5 Then the devil took Him up into the holy city, set
Him on the pinnacle of the temple,
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How will you react when you are
tempted?
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God Does Test His Children
Exodus 16
4 Then the LORD said to Moses, "Behold, I will rain bread from heaven
for you. And the people shall go out and gather a certain quota every
day, that I may test them, whether they will walk in My law or not.
Exodus 20
20 And Moses said to the people, "Do not fear; for God has come to test
you, and that His fear may be before you, so that you may not sin.“
Judges 2
21 "I also will no longer drive out before them any of the nations which
Joshua left when he died,
22 "so that through them I may test Israel, whether they will keep the
ways of the LORD, to walk in them as their fathers kept them, or not.“
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Testing us makes us stronger.
Isaiah 48
10 Behold, I have refined you, but not as
silver; I have tested you in the furnace of
affliction.
1Peter 1
7 that the genuineness of your faith, being
much more precious than gold that perishes,
though it is tested by fire, may be found to
praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of
Jesus Christ,
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When you sin, turn it into “a
success”
How will you react when you are tempted?
Repent, ask forgiveness
Recognize what your weakness is
Pray about it
Vow to never commit it again
Learn from the experience and vow avoid
the things that would tempt you to commit
it again in the future.
Tests make us stronger!
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It is good for man to be alone?
Ecclesiastes 4
12 Though one may be overpowered by
another, two can withstand him. And a
threefold cord is not quickly broken.
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How Jesus Was Tempted #1
Matthew 4
3 Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, "If You are
the Son of God, command that these stones become
bread.“
Lust of the flesh (an appeal to the senses of our
physical bodies):
Greed: the appetite for some things can become insatiable…the
more that we have, the more that we feel that we need (want).
Gluttony: (Loose morality); Can be riotous eating, but not
necessarily so
Lust: coveting something of which you have no right to
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The Reaction of Christ:
Matthew 4
4 But He answered and said, "It is written,
'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by
every word that proceeds from the mouth
of God.'"
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How Jesus Was Tempted #2
The pride of life (an appeal to the ego)
Matthew 4
6 and said to Him, "If You are the Son of
God, throw Yourself down. For it is written:
'He shall give His angels charge over you,'
and, 'In their hands they shall bear you up,
Lest you dash your foot against a stone.
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His Reaction:
Matthew 4
7 Jesus said to him, "It is written again, 'You
shall not tempt the LORD your God.'“
Exodus 17
2 Therefore the people contended with
Moses, and said, "Give us water, that we
may drink." And Moses said to them, "Why
do you contend with me? Why do you
tempt the LORD?"
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How Jesus Was Tempted #3
Lust of the eyes: (all that we can see…and covet)
Matthew 4
8 Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly
high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms
of the world and their glory.
9 And he said to Him, "All these things I will give You
if You will fall down and worship me."
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The Reaction of Christ:
Matthew 4
10 Then Jesus said to him, "Away with you,
Satan! For it is written, 'You shall worship
the LORD your God, and Him only you shall
serve.'"
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Satan Still Makes Such Offers
Today:
Lust of the flesh:
Adultery/fornication
Drug abuse/Alcohol Consumption
Gluttony of food
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Satan Still Makes Such Offers
Today:
Pride of life:
The desire to be looked up to and admired
among men
Might motivate us to take a job that would
hinder us from serving or worshiping God as we
ought to
Might entice us to “show off” in front of friends
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Satan Still Makes Such Offers
Today:
Lust of the eyes:
The things we want that would detract from the amount
of time spent upon spiritual things
Video games
Television/movies/entertainment
Pornography
Internet surfing
Text messaging/talking on the phone
Do you spend more time
focusing on these types of
things than God?
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Four Things That Motivate
People to Act:
Money
Ego
Conscience
Ideology
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“It won’t happen to me…”
1 Corinthians 10
4 and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank of that
spiritual Rock that followed them, and that Rock was Christ.
5 But with most of them God was not well pleased, for their
bodies were scattered in the wilderness.
Matthew 24
24 "For false christs and false prophets will rise and show
great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the
elect.
Colossians 3
12 Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on
tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness,
longsuffering;
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“It won’t happen to me…”
Galatians 6
1 Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any
trespass, you who are spiritual restore such
a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering
yourself lest you also be tempted.
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Be Watchful!
Matthew 7
15 "Beware of false prophets, who come to you in
sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous
wolves.
2 Peter 2
1 But there were also false prophets among the
people, even as there will be false teachers among
you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies,
even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring
on themselves swift destruction
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Conclusion:
Let’s not forget to use the tests that God may send our
way to make us spiritually stronger.
Let us remember how Jesus responded to satan while
tempted by him.
Let’s remember the lessons we learn from the
temptations of Jesus:
Satan will appeal to your senses:
Your ego
Your Ideology
Your desire for money, or the things of this world
He may even use your very conscious against you
(He pits you against yourself from within) and Jesus said in Mark
3:25 "And if a house is divided against itself, that house cannot
stand.”
God requires you to be obedient to Him.
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