conquering the tempter

i decided to start reading Matthew tonight. in all honesty, i have really slacked off on my devotional reading, and i have been feeling it. and tonight i found myself stopped on a passage i have dwelt on before, yet with no real spiritual gain. just more of a "huh, thats really interesting". but tonight i believe i got more out of it than just that.

the temptation of Jesus has always fascinated me. the idea that the King of kings, the Lord of lords would be tempted kind of blows me away. i have to wonder what satan was really thinking. did he really think he might succeed? its in Matthew 4, you should check it out. i mean honestly, the third temptation i often want to laugh. satan, tempting the Creator with His creation. funny.

but two things hit me tonight. something i think we should all ponder. the first, has to do with when we are tempted. i know for me i am most easily tempted when i am tired. i believe it is when we are at our weakest point that we are most easily conquered. did you notice how satan doesnt try his tricks until Jesus had been wandering around for 40 days? it is not until He is hungry and weak that satan launches his attack. how true is this for us? more than that, look at the boldness of satan in his attack. iv often seen, and honestly at times fight it within myself, this attitude of invincibility. we get this idea that it wont happen to us. but let us remember that we are not dealing with an enemy who is incompetent. he is sly, and he is bold. if satan is bold enough to tempt the Creator of the universe, should we not also expect him to tempt us?

Jesus though, was victorious. i mean, we are talking about God in the flesh, He created satan before he fell. i think Jesus models for us here a way to handle temptation. often i believe we try to deal with it on our own. at least i do. we get this idea that we just need to be stronger, we just need to fight a little harder. but all i have found down that path is more pain and more guilt. there is no victory. Jesus knows this, and so He responds with God's Word. He quotes Scripture to satan, refuting his temptations and offers one at a time. Jesus, when weak and tired, conquered temptation not by His own power, but by that of the Word of God. can you comprehend that? Jesus, who has all the power ever, chooses to not use it. instead, He fires back with the Word of God, penned by the prophets of the LORD!!! what an example for us!

satan tries every day to tempt God's children. often times i think he wins. i know in my life, he has gained more footholds than i want him to have, and it is always due to my poor response. temptation will always be present in this world. it is something we must learn to deal with effectively if we desire to walk in the footsteps of Christ. and like many other things, He provides for us an example we should take notice of, and put into practice.