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[0:00] This season of Lent begins for us with examining our Lord's past of 40 days.

[0:17] In the epistle that we read this morning from 2 Corinthians 6, Paul describes for us how those who follow Christ must take up this suffering of our Lord in their own lives.

[0:30] Which he did. Many of you are familiar with this account of Jesus' temptation. Many of you might have heard that the point of the story is to show how to overcome temptation like Jesus.

[0:43] There is truth to that. But there is more than that. Jesus here is not only shown as an example, but he is also a representative. As Jesus entered into this 40 days of probation and testing, the 40 days symbolized a man's life of trial.

[1:04] St. Paul pleads to us to receive the grace of God. Not to receive the grace of God in vain. That's what we read in 2 Corinthians 6. He pleads to us to see that now, that even now, in these 40 days symbolizing our lifespan full with temptations and trials, in this time, now is the septic time, the day of salvation.

[1:32] This life with its temptations and trials is also the time to receive the grace of God, which abounds to all who return to Christ. And in that grace, by the power of the Holy Spirit, we are to carry on as our Lord did.

[1:51] Look at what Paul says in his epistle. By great endurance in afflictions, hardships and calamities, beatings, imprisonments, riots, labors, sleepless nights, hunger.

[2:04] By purity, knowledge, patience, kindness, the Holy Spirit, genuine love. By truthful speech and the power of God.

[2:17] These are all what will mark our Christian journey, our Christian pilgrimage on this earth. Maybe not to the extent that it marks Paul's life, but we can identify with some of this.

[2:28] As we labor on in the vineyard of God. And we have with us the weapons of righteousness. The word of God, for the right hand and for the left.

[2:40] That is our weapon. Through honor and dishonor. Through slander and praise. You have these lists of contradictions of the Christian life.

[2:52] Which are a mystery to the world. These people say they follow a triumphant king. Yet, their life doesn't seem so triumphalistic. They humble themselves.

[3:04] They suffer for the sake of one another. They suffer for the sake of their Lord. But these contradictions are what marks the Christian life.

[3:18] These contradictions are which are a mystery to the world. But in it, in this path, lies our victory over the world.

[3:31] It is the path our Lord walked himself. For he said in Matthew 16, For whoever will save his life, Jesus said, will lose it.

[3:43] But whoever loses his life, for my sake, will find it. We see this, even at the start of this earthly ministry, of his earthly ministry.

[3:56] We see this in his temptation by Satan in the wilderness. Jesus stands before us. In this account in Matthew 4.

[4:07] He stands before us, not only as an example, but as a representative. He is the second Adam. Just as Adam's temptation had a lasting effect on the whole human race, Jesus' temptation here has a lasting effect on those who are found in him.

[4:28] Jesus, as the second and last Adam, stands before God as a representative in the same way that Adam did. In this fight with the devil, he succeeded where Adam failed.

[4:42] And in his victory, he begins to undo the curse on the whole cosmos due to Adam's failure. Christ's whole life is a public life.

[4:55] By that I mean that all that he did, he did in a representative, vicarious way. He lived his life for us. His obedience, his death, his resurrection, and ascension.

[5:09] He lived all of it for our salvation. So the question I want us to be asking this morning is this. How does this temptation of my Lord, how does it assure me of God's love for me?

[5:26] How does it tell me of his salvation of me? We see Satan's plan in this account.

[5:37] Satan's plan to impede Jesus' messianic mission. We're told Jesus was led by the Holy Spirit after his baptism into the wilderness.

[5:48] And he was in the wilderness for how long? 40 days. And that number, 40, evokes Israel's 40 years of wilderness wanderings.

[6:01] Just like Israel had to wander in the wilderness for 40 years, the Lord Jesus Christ, the second Adam, the true Israel, had to go into the wilderness for 40 days.

[6:15] Again, in this, we see that Jesus is our representative, the Messiah, according to Matthew's Gospel. He's not only the second Adam, but he's also the true Israel.

[6:26] In his wilderness journey, he withstood the devil's attack and remained faithful to God. But what was Satan's goal? Satan's goal was to hinder Jesus from carrying out his mission as the Redeemer of the world, as your Redeemer and mine, as the Messiah.

[6:47] He wants to impede and hinder Jesus' mission that he knows must be accomplished in his humanity as our representative. So, we see it.

[6:58] Jesus was tempted for the whole 40 days. The whole 40 days, he was tempted. But we were, Matthew shows us three prime temptations of the devil.

[7:11] And we see those three temptations of the devil at the end. We just heightened the combination of all the temptations they'd been enduring for the 40 days. And I looked it up. It is possible, because we're told that Jesus didn't eat or drink these 40 days.

[7:26] Well, he didn't eat. I looked it up. It is possible for a human being to go 40 days without food. Jesus going without food is humanly possible. Because I think sometimes we read this and we're like, well, he's Jesus.

[7:39] He's like Superman or something. He can probably go 100 days without food. No, he was fully human. It is possible for a human being to go 40 days without food.

[7:50] But many of us know the pangs of hunger over one or two skipped meals. And you know what that brings about? Mental and emotional paralysis.

[8:03] So, imagine Jesus, 40 days without food. He was truly man. But even in his humanity, he is weakened. True deprivation is what he's feeling at this point.

[8:18] An attempt to come to him. Comes to him. So, we're saying, in this context, in the wilderness, 40 days without food, weakened in the flesh, the tempter, Satan, came.

[8:35] Jesus is having physical, mental, emotional exhaustion. And you may think, again, Jesus is a Superman. I want to stress it again. He is fully man. Just like you and me.

[8:47] Just without sin. And he endured. In his humanity. In every way. He endured. The full weight.

[9:00] Of Satan's temptation. Notice again the contrast. Between Jesus and Adam. In this passage. Where was Adam? When he fell. When he was in a luxurious garden.

[9:15] In Eden. Where he enjoyed all of God's bountiful gifts. He had all he needed. All he could ever want. Within his grasp.

[9:25] He had comfort. He had companionship. He had love and acceptance. Of God. That was where he was. He. That is Adam.

[9:36] Unlike us. Did not have a fallen nature. Before the fall. While Jesus. In his temptation.

[9:47] Endured. His temptation. In a world that is already corrupted. And marred. By the sin. Of Adam. And all his descendants. Instead of a garden.

[9:58] He was in the wilderness. Facing utter deprivation. Lacking the most essential thing. We need to live. Food. And the tempter comes to him.

[10:10] In this context. And what was his first temptation. Of the three. Stone to bread. So. Imagine the potency. Of the devil's first temptation. If you are the son of God.

[10:22] The tempter says to him. Command these stones. To become loaves of bread. Satan is saying to Jesus. The son of God. Should not have to suffer. In this way. And that's who you are.

[10:33] I know it. Surely. You have made the world. From nothing. By your very word. You who made that. Can turn a stone into bread. Notice here.

[10:47] That Satan does not dispute. Jesus' identity. As the son of God. He knows who he is. He knows the truth. But he wants Jesus. To use his power.

[10:59] To serve. His whole needs. He's saying to Jesus. Exercise the power that you have. Which he does have. As God's son. To satiate your hunger.

[11:12] Do you think this was an impossibility. For Jesus to do? No. We know later on. In his earthly ministries. He turned. Five loaves of fish.

[11:23] Five loaves of bread. And two fishes. He turned it into. Food enough. To feed. Over 5,000 people. But Jesus responded.

[11:37] To the tempter. With the truth of God's word. From Deuteronomy. Deuteronomy chapter 8 verse 3. Which we read. This morning. Man. Shall not live.

[11:48] By bread alone. Jesus is God. He only has to say the word. And the stone will be bread. But he comes. To us.

[11:59] He comes into the world. To dwell with us. To live with us. To tabernacle with us. As Emmanuel. As the suffering servant. He comes to live. As one of us.

[12:09] To endure the pain and sorrow. Of this fallen world. For your sake. And for my sake. Even unto death. He also comes to us. As the last Adam. The true Israel.

[12:21] To show that. He lives. Not by bread alone. But he lives. By every word. That comes from the mouth of God. Which is how we are meant to live.

[12:32] Trusting in the promises of God. Devoted to his word. Submitting to his word. Jesus' food. Is to do the will of the father who sent him.

[12:45] And to accomplish his work. In his suffering. Jesus identifies with us. And he trusted his father's provision. So. He repelled the temptation of the enemy.

[12:57] And the devil comes again. The second time. Temptation. Which is the temptation to put God to the test. And so. He takes Jesus. To the temple. God's dwelling place.

[13:10] And that becomes a setting. For Satan's second temptation. And the devil again. Trash dissuades Jesus. From following God's agenda. And here he says to Jesus. He quotes the Bible at this point. Satan does.

[13:21] He quotes Psalm 91. Specifically verse 11 and 12. And he says. Well. You're the son of God. He will command his angels concerning you. Here's God's word. And he quotes it to Jesus.

[13:32] His father will command his angels concerning you. And on their hands. They will bear you up. Lest you strike your foot against a stone. Satan is saying. If you are the son of God.

[13:43] You can expect. That you can enjoy absolute safety. In your father's house. You're in your father's house. The tempter that he is. Takes this verse.

[13:54] Out of context. Although the words that he quotes. Are from the Bible. The promise is given to those whom. In Psalm 91 verse 1 to 2.

[14:05] Dwell under the shadow of the almighty. Those who say unto the Lord. You are my refuge. And my stronghold. My God in whom I will trust.

[14:16] So the promise. That Satan quotes here. The promise is for those who have a rock solid confidence. In God's faithfulness. Towards them. But here Satan is inviting Jesus to be like Israel.

[14:29] In the wilderness. To doubt God's plan. To doubt God's promise. And to put God to the test. Isn't that what Israel did? Numerous and numerous times.

[14:40] In the wilderness. And here's the same temptation. But Jesus quotes. From Deuteronomy 6 verse 16. It is written. You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.

[14:54] Instead. You shall diligently keep his commandments. His testimonies. And his statutes. Why? Why would you do this?

[15:05] Why would you keep the Lord's commandments. His testimonies and statutes. Why would you not put the Lord to the test? Because you know that he is good. And he works all things together for good. For those who are called. According to his purposes.

[15:15] You can trust his word. You can trust his promises. So Jesus succeeded. Where Israel failed. Over and over again.

[15:27] And he invites us. To look to him as an example. But more than that. He shows us. That he has succeeded.

[15:38] Where all of us has failed. The man Jesus succeeded. By trusting in the promises of God. Satan comes a third time. Satan offers a gift of all the kingdom of the world.

[15:51] The devil tries again with this third temptation. He shows Jesus a vision of all the kingdoms of the world. And he said to Jesus. All this. I will give.

[16:02] To you. If you fall down. And worship me. And at this point. One wonders. Can the devil do this? Is this his to give?

[16:13] That is the world? Well the answer is yes and no. Because the rulership of the world. Has been delivered. To Satan. By man.

[16:25] Who was the one who was appointed to rule the world? To be the vast region of God on the earth? Anyone? Adam. Adam was.

[16:36] But Adam has relinquished that dominion over the whole world. As God's vice regent. In his rebellion. He ceded authority over to Satan.

[16:48] And so. The authority that Satan has. Is not ultimate authority. Although he is ruler of this world. As the Bible says. He is only so.

[16:59] By God's allowance. And Satan knows this. He knows that he speaks to him. That is Jesus Christ. Who has come to take back that authority. But here.

[17:11] But here is the lie. That he offers to Jesus. I know you've come. You're the second Adam. You've come to take back the authority. That belongs to man. But.

[17:24] But I know the process by which you come to do this. Let's make an agreement. I'll give it to you. That which is yours anyway. I'll give it to you. Without you having to go through the arduous way of the cross.

[17:40] Christ's messianic mission. Is to end with him as ruler and lord. That is the mission. He will end. What does Paul tell us to the Philippians? By his humiliation.

[17:51] And his abasing himself. Even unto the point of the cross. What has God done? God has exalted him. And given him a name that is above every other name. That that is name.

[18:03] Every knee shall bow. Every tongue confess that he is lord. But how does he get there? Through the path. Through the way of the cross. And Satan comes here now.

[18:15] And says. I know that's the path. Just worship me. I'll give it to you. It'll be yours. Psalm 2 verse 8 says.

[18:29] Ask of me and I will make the nations your heritage. And the ends of the earth your possession. This is part of God's covenant. Between the father and the son. Jesus Christ is to inherit a kingdom.

[18:42] A birthright. Announced by angels. Even at his birth. That he is to rule an everlasting kingdom. It is for this purpose. That he came into the world. To reclaim the dominion.

[18:52] Which Adam lost. But instead of pursuing the path of faith. And trust in God's will. By which he will attain this glorious birthright.

[19:03] That is his. Satan is trying to say to Jesus. Just bend the knee to me. And it's all going to be yours. Without pain and suffering. Does the tempest come to you in that same way?

[19:15] Does he say bend the knee. Compromise in just this one little way. It's a path of least resistance. Just do it.

[19:26] And it'll be yours. It's all a lie. He's the father of lies. So Satan comes to Jesus. Only deny your identity. That's all he's asking.

[19:38] Only Jesus. Just deny your identity as God's son. As the first Adam had done. And what a lie it is. He is the father of lies.

[19:49] Indeed. Because he's telling Jesus to do what Adam did. That's what the same lie that he told Adam in the garden. The very thing that lost Adam the kingdom. He's now asking Jesus.

[20:01] To do this very same thing. Which is to yield to the serpent. Rather than to yield to God. He claims this will now gain Jesus the kingdom. And often does the sin offer the world and a platter.

[20:15] When all he truly offers. Is death. Eternal death. He cannot give anything else.

[20:26] There's no life in him. And again Jesus replied. To the tempter. With God's word. It is written. You shall worship the Lord your God.

[20:38] And him only you shall serve. Jesus quotes Deuteronomy 6 verse 13. Jesus rejects the devil's empty offerings. As if saying to the devil. I know you're just a pretender.

[20:49] I know who you are. You're not a ruler. True dominion. And true power belongs to God. And to him alone belongs my worship. As a man created in his image.

[20:59] How wonderful will it be. For us to take up those words of our Lord. And those. That truth of our Lord. And to recognize Satan as a pretender.

[21:12] To recognize all the offerings. And the trinkets. That he wants to offer us in the world. That our flesh may be sometimes clamor for. To recognize it for what it is.

[21:24] Lies. And to know that true power belongs to God. And to him belongs our worship. As men and women created in his image.

[21:35] So with this final test. Jesus rebuked the devil. And drove him away. Then the devil were told in Matthew. Then the devil left him. And behold angels came and ministered to him.

[21:45] Of course we know that. The devil came back numerous times. After that. The temptation didn't stop then. His whole life was full of temptation. And he didn't yield. Not even a little bit.

[21:59] Devil comes in different ways to him. The devil came in the visage. Of one of his most beloved disciples. When Peter rebuked him. That was the devil. And Jesus saw it.

[22:10] And called him out as one. In the garden. Of Gethsemane. At the fulcrum. At the weight of the world upon him. The devil comes again. Even in that.

[22:21] And yet he withstood the devil. For your sake. And for my sake. And look at what Jesus employs. In his battle with the devil. Jesus employs the word of God.

[22:33] The sword of the spirit. As his weapon against the devil's attack. If Jesus will use God's word. Are you better than your Lord. To think you can withstand the devil's attack.

[22:43] Without wielding to the. Without wielding the same weapon of God. That has been given for your defense. The Bible is not just interesting stories. And intellectual musings.

[22:53] For our amusement. The Bible is for the believer. The fundamental weapon. In our fight against the forces of darkness. Jesus himself relies on the word of God.

[23:07] To withstand the temptation of the devil. And if we are to continue. Brothers and sisters. To stand in this broken world. We must know the word. And we must be able to wield the word.

[23:19] To counter the devil's lies. Jesus came into the world. To accomplish our redemption. To crush the serpent's head.

[23:29] And regain dominion over the world. As the true son of God. He is to us. The suffering servant. Of Isaiah 42 and 53. And although men will reject him.

[23:41] He will take up our infirmities. Upon himself. He will carry our sorrows. As Isaiah prophesies of him. This path that he is on. Leads to utter humiliation.

[23:53] And rejection at the cross. And yet. He walks that path. For us. And Satan is trying to dissuade Jesus. From taking it. Why is Satan trying to do that?

[24:06] Because Satan knows. That it is the path to glory. Satan knows. That it is the forwarding plan. For our rescue. And for the. From the.

[24:16] For our rescue. From the clutches. Of sin and death. And that's why he wants to dissuade. Our Lord. From taking that path. So.

[24:31] Brothers and sisters. As we look at this story. Of the temptation of Jesus. Let us know. That our Lord. Through his obedience. Has brought redemption to us.

[24:42] As you face your temptations. And you sometimes succumb to them. As you languish over your sin. And think yourself defeated by the devil.

[24:54] And you. And in your. In your weakened flesh. As you experience the brokenness of the world. And the deepening shadow all around you. Know this.

[25:05] Because of Jesus. All things are being made new. Because. By his perfect obedience. He is bound up the strong man.

[25:18] Showing that he is stronger. And you don't have to clear the shadows. Notice. Dear saints. That by his perfect righteousness.

[25:29] As the last Adam. He has secured. Full pardon. And forgiveness. Of every sin. Past. Present. And future. Of those who trust in him.

[25:42] Who believe in his name. So. Brothers and sisters. Rest. Rest. Rest. In his. Finished work.

[25:54] As we continue. In this Lenten season. Do not put confidence. In your own efforts. But rest. In his.

[26:05] Perfectly accomplished. Work for you. When the devil accuses you. Of your unworthiness. Which he will. And perhaps. Some of that acquisition.

[26:16] Will be heightened. During this season of Lent. Maybe I should stumble. And I should stumble. In following after him. The devil will come. Accusing you. Of your unworthiness. You cry out.

[26:29] In the midst of that. Cry out. With full confidence. Jesus Christ is worthy. And because. I am in him. He has made me worthy.

[26:43] Almighty God. Whose blessed son. Was led by the spirit. To be tempted by Satan. Come quickly. To help us.

[26:54] Who were assaulted. By many temptations. And as you know. The weaknesses. Of each of us. Let each one of us. Find you mighty. To save. Through Jesus Christ.

[27:06]  Your son. Our Lord. Who lives and reigns. With you. And the Holy Spirit. One God. Now and forever. Amen. Amen. Wtf, oEaC