Winning the Battle Over Temptation
“Again, the devil takes Him up into an exceeding high mountain, and shows Him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; And said to Him, ‘All these things will I give You, if You will 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.”‘ Then the devil leaves Him, and, behold, angels came and ministered to Him” (Matthew 4:8-11).
Have you thought about the intense temptation Jesus must have went through in that 40 days in the wilderness? I wonder how the angels refrained from going to Him as Satan began to masterfully tempt Jesus at His weakest. He knew Jesus was hungry and tired and alone so, of course, that’s where he went with his “suggestions.” “You must be hungry, Jesus. Go ahead and turn these stones into bread. You’re able.” But Jesus knew that was not the will of His Father so He dutifully refused, quoting Scripture to win the battle. How well-versed in Scripture He was.
It’s easy to downplay what Jesus went through since He was God but I’ve no doubt that just as you and I have to daily choose not to fall into temptation, Jesus had to do the same thing. The difference was that He kept close to His Father and hid the Word in His heart so that He wouldn’t sin, and we have that same power. It can seem more fun to watch TV than to read the Word or to talk to a friend instead of talking to God but if you don’t get God’s Word in your heart, you won’t know how to use the sword of the Spirit which enables you to fight your battles and win! Yes, we sin but we should not live a life of sin. We have power to overcome every temptation which comes our way. We just need to decide that our relationship with God is more important that life’s temporary pleasures.
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