Scriptural Foundation:
Luke 4:1-13 Amplified Bible, Classic Edition (AMPC)
Then Jesus, full of and controlled by the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led in [by] the [Holy] Spirit for (during) forty days in the wilderness (desert), where He was tempted (tried, tested exceedingly) by the devil. And He ate nothing during those days, and when they were completed, He was hungry.
Then the devil said to Him, If You are the Son of God, order this stone to turn into a loaf [of bread]. And Jesus replied to him, it is written*, Man shall not live and be sustained by (on) bread alone but by every word and expression of God.
*[A physical temptation scenario]
Then the devil took Him up to a high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the habitable world in a moment of time [in the twinkling of an eye]. And he said to Him, To You I will give all this power and authority and their glory (all their magnificence, excellence, preeminence, dignity, and grace), for it has been turned over to me, and I give it to whomever I will. Therefore, if You will do homage to and worship me [just once], it shall all be Yours.
And Jesus replied to him, Get behind Me, Satan! It is written**, you shall do homage to and worship the Lord your God, and Him only shall you serve.
**[An idol temptation scenario]
Then he took Him to Jerusalem and set Him on a gable of the temple, and said to Him, If You are the Son of God, cast Yourself down from here; for it is written, He will give His angels charge over you to guard and watch over you closely and carefully; and on their hands, they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone. And Jesus replied to him, [The Scripture] says***, you shall not tempt (try, test exceedingly) the Lord your God.
***[A prideful temptation scenario]
And when the devil had ended every [the complete cycle of] temptation, he [temporarily] left Him [that is, stood off from Him] until another more opportune and favorable time.
Reflection:
When I was in school I use to dislike pop quizzes. For a person like myself that wanted to be prepared for every test, pop quizzes left me feeling ill-equipped. I never really missed class or had any outstanding homework, but the simple fact that I didn’t know the date and the time that my knowledge was going to be tested, I always felt that was unfair and not a true representation of my knowledge. What is wrong with that thought process, Saints?
Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. ~ Proverbs 3:5-6
When Jesus was lead into the wilderness by the Holy Spirit, the devil harassed Him for forty days (V2), but didn’t come to speak with Jesus until He was depleted of all human resistance. Isn’t that just like a coward? Then and only then, did the Lord allow the devil to administer a “pop quiz”.
First the enemy of our souls, suggested a physical temptation scenario. Physical temptations can take the form of an immediate and present threat to your physical life or your loved ones; a threat to your livelihood; and/or a threat to your generational inheritance. Next the devil suggested an idol temptation scenario. Idol temptations can take the form of people and/or things that we place in a more important position in our hearts than the Lord – good or bad intentions, it is an indication our priorities are out of whack. The final scenario was a prideful temptation. The devil uses “it is written”, an indication that he was acknowledging Jesus’s knowledge of the Word. However, knowledge of the Word is not enough to overcome this temptation, it is only by abiding with the Lord habitually that we can all respond like Jesus did in wisdom and in truth. Prideful temptations come only when we as Saints believe that we have arrived in our walk with God. Doesn’t the Bible explicitly say – the pride comes before the fall (Proverbs 16:18)? One’s over confidence in the things of the Spirit is an indication that there are still some blind spots in your spiritual sight lines (Romans 11:25).
As Believers, we are not only preparing in prayer for the known, but we also should be preparing for the unknown. As we praise, we are not praising for only the current difficult circumstances, but for the unknown manifestations of grace that are about to break forth on the horizon. Staying in a perpetual state of readiness is what is going to aid you through the storms of life, because let’s face it, storms don’t give us any warning and at times, can be relentless. It is in these times, we must have the Word sown so deep within us, fully persuaded in truth, that the waves/circumstances around us must lay down and be muzzled.
Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. ~ Philippians 3:13-14
Jesus said it Himself that there will be trials and tribulations, but He has overcome the world for us (John 16:33). The word “world” in this scripture, doesn’t really leave anything left for you to do, but to praise Him for what He has already done.
Don’t ever be discouraged in your wilderness season; don’t be dismayed when the Lord allows for a test to be administered; and certainly, don’t look around at your circumstances as nothing more than a temporal landscape. You are being tested because what you “know” is being challenged to make room for more of what you have yet to know. Embrace each obstacle through praise and worship and watch the devil flee every single time!
Seeking Revelation:
Grab your notebook:
- Think back to a wilderness season in your life. What were the challenges that you faced (i.e. physical, mental, etc.)?
- What series of events lead you into that isolated place with the Holy Spirit?
- What series of events lead you out of that isolated place with the Holy Spirit?
- What is your testimony having gone through that storm?
- How has that season prepared you for your current season?
Beloved, when you get tempted to quit in your wilderness…think back to your lowest valley prior to this…be grateful that you are not there, but here and that you know that the Lord is working on moving you from here to another victory … very soon your “here” will be a distant memory just like your “there”…just hold on and keep looking up and out to the Lord.