Tempted by satan

[VictoryinJesus]

Luke 4: 2-14 and Mark 1: 12-13 give the account of the Spirit driving the Lord out into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. Peirazo, meaning to “try” or “test”. It is important to note that the devil is prevented by the Father until the Son is physically hungry. The Lord being not spiritually weak, but physically weak. Then Satan (the slanderer) is allowed to tempt the Lord in three ways:

1) Lust of the flesh: The temptation for the Lord to satisfy His immediate hunger:

“And the devil said unto him, If thou be the Son of God, command this stone that it be made bread. And Jesus answered him, saying, It is written, That man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.”

Jesus could have attempted to satisfy His hunger by physical bread, but instead spoke of a spiritual hunger that can only be satisfied by every word of God.

2) Lust of the eyes: The temptation of instant power, fame, glory, and kingdoms:

“And the devil, taking him up into an high mountain, shewed unto him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. And the devil said unto him, All this power will I give thee, and the glory of them: for that is delivered unto me; and to whomsoever I will I give it. If thou therefore wilt worship me, all shall be thine. And Jesus answered and said unto him, Get thee behind me, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve."

3) Pride: The temptation of immediate exaltation as The Son of God:

“And he brought him to Jerusalem, and set him on a pinnacle of the temple, and said unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down from hence: For it is written, He shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee: And in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone. And Jesus answering said unto him, It is said, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.”

The devil often approaches us in the same manner. Prevented by God until we are hungry and driven by the Spirit in a wilderness. The devil is withheld until we are in that vulnerable dry place without any sight of relief. Then our flesh is "tried" and "tested". Satan (the slanderer) speaks out against God much like he did in the garden to Eve. Satan makes an attempt to draw us away from God and into the bondage of sin.

1) Lust of the flesh: The devil tempts us to satisfy the immediate hunger of the flesh. (Genesis 25) “And Esau said, Behold, I am at the point to die: and what profit shall this birthright do to me?”

2) Lust of the eyes: The devil tempts us with instant power, glory, fame, and kingdoms. (Matthew 7) “Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? And in thy name done many wonderful works? And then I will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.” 3) Pride: The devil tempts us with self-exaltation. Challenging us to prove we are indeed sons.

These are the only wilderness temptations the Word mentions but considering we are also told in Hebrews 4: 15, “For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.” It is easy to see that Satan may have also tempted Jesus to withhold forgiveness.

Forgiveness is vital. We are commanded throughout the Word that we are to forgive our enemies. Why is the last words out of a martyrs mouth, a cry for forgiveness of their enemies? Is that them, or the Spirit of the Lord making that cry?

(Luke 23: 34) “The said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment, and cast lots.”

Are we capable of forgiveness in and of ourselves, or is it the Spirit that produces true forgiveness? Was Steven capable of producing the last words that came from His mouth right before he was stone, or was it the Spirit of the Lord cries that came from his mouth?

(Acts) “And they stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. And he kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge, And when he had said this, he fell asleep.”

If we are the children of God, then surely the Spirit will produce cries for our enemies. (Matthew 5)” But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;

That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same?"

 

[Helen]

Good word. Thanks.

 

[skyangel]

Forgiveness is vital. We are commanded throughout the Word that we are to forgive our enemies. Why is the last words out of a martyrs mouth, a cry for forgiveness of their enemies? Is that them, or the Spirit of the Lord making that cry?

(Luke 23: 34) “The said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment, and cast lots.”

Are we capable of forgiveness in and of ourselves, or is it the Spirit that produces true forgiveness? Was Steven capable of producing the last words that came from His mouth right before he was stone, or was it the Spirit of the Lord cries that came from his mouth?

(Acts) “And they stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. And he kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge, And when he had said this, he fell asleep.”

If we are the children of God, then surely the Spirit will produce cries for our enemies. (Matthew 5)” But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;

That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same?"

According to James 1:14 Every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed.
If we take that literally, no one ought to blame the devil or anyone but themselves for what goes on in their own minds and desires.
Blaming a devil or satan is a cop out in my opinion. It is a childish way of not taking personal responsibility for ones own thoughts and actions.

Regarding forgiving enemies, that all depends on how much empathy and compassion one has within them in the first place. If we cannot understand the mindset of others and why they think the way they do, it would be impossible to forgive them for doing things which we consider to be wrong, hurtful or harmful.

The interesting thing in the bible stories is that the religious people did all the harm to others by stoning them, crucifying them, etc.
They did all those things in the belief that they were doing the right thing but ultimately they were ignorant of the way their supposed faith and goodness was affecting others and actually harming them. That principle has not changed over the centuries as far as I can tell.