Class Lesson October 15, 2017

The battle is on. Join the fight! 

As followers of Christ, we are in the middle of a conflict that has been raging for thousands of years—whether we know it or not. Our conflict is a spiritual battle, and it’s critical for us to know the stakes. 

Last week we were told to suit-up with the armor that God provides for our daily battle. This week, we will look at the battle plan God has laid before us.

THE BIBLE MEETS LIFE 

On October 8, 1871, a fire broke out in Chicago that killed an estimated 300 people, left 100,000 others homeless, and destroyed over 17,000 buildings. Over the years, Mrs. O’Leary’s cow took the heat (no pun intended) for the Great Chicago Fire, but historians eventually removed the blame from this poor animal. 

One good thing came out of this tragedy: people became more aware of the need for fire safety. Since 1922, America has commemorated the date of the Great Chicago Fire by observing a National Fire Prevention Week. Schools perform fire drills with their students, and firefighters encourage families to identify ways to prevent fires and establish plans for what to do when a fire does occur.

We face the threat of fire in another way. Satan, our enemy, seeks to harm us with “the flaming arrows of the evil one” (Eph. 6:16). He continually seeks to tempt us and pull us away from God’s gracious and loving desire for our lives. Satan may be crafty, but our Lord is greater, and He modeled for us a foolproof plan to avoid getting burned by spiritual attacks. 

THE POINT: We can follow Jesus’ example in defeating spiritual attacks. 

WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY? 

Matthew 4:1-4 

1 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 After he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. 3 Then the tempter approached him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.” 4 He answered, “It is written: Man must not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.” 

None of us is immune to temptation. For some of us, certain things continually tempt us. When we read of the temptations Jesus faced, we might be inclined to assume temptation wasn’t a struggle for Him because, after all, He’s God! Surely He didn’t face the temptations we face today. 

Think again. Jesus is God, but He’s also fully man. And although He didn’t face the exact same temptations we faced last week, He faced the same types of temptations. The writer of Hebrews had this to say about Jesus: “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who has been tempted in every way as we are, yet without sin” (Heb. 4:15). 

Satan came against Jesus with three temptations. The first temptation centered on Jesus’ physical needs. The purpose of fasting is to focus on God through intense prayer. So, Jesus had been feeding Himself spiritually in prayer and communion with His Father. Yet He was likely weak on a physical level, since he had not eaten in 40 days. Satan attempted to exploit this weakness. 

“If you are the Son of God” carries the force of jeering—as if to say, “Why not use your power as God to meet a legitimate need in Your own life?” The temptation was for Jesus to misuse, even exploit, His Messianic power for personal gain. Jesus insisted He would not act according to His own will, but only the will of the Father. (See John 6:38.) Therefore, Jesus would trust the provision of His Father instead of taking action for self-gratification. 

What are some ways we face temptation through our physical appetites? 

Jesus responded to Satan by quoting from the Book of Deuteronomy: “It is written: Man must not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.” Jesus would live in obedience to the Word of God and nothing else. No matter how physically hungry He may have been at the moment, He would maintain His trust in a loving Father who would provide what He needed. 

Matthew 4:5-7 

5 Then the devil took him to the holy city, had him stand on the pinnacle of the temple, 6 and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down. For it is written: ‘He will give his angels orders concerning you, and they will support you with their hands so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’ 7 Jesus told him, “It is also written: Do not test the Lord your God.” 

Satan is cunning. Since Jesus deflected the first attack by reminding the devil that we live in obedience to every word of God, Satan’s next attempt involved using Scripture as part of his temptation. 

Before he quoted Scripture, Satan took Jesus to Jerusalem and “had him stand on the pinnacle of the temple.” The temple represented God’s presence and power to the Jewish people. Therefore, if Jesus jumped from this highest point, He could demonstrate God’s power because, as Satan quoted from Psalm 91:11-12, “He will give his angels orders concerning you, and they will support you with their hands so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.” 

There’s a big problem with that: Satan was taking the passage out of context. Satan used a psalm centered on God’s care and protection for us when difficulties arise, then tried to justify putting God to the test. Instead of rightfully treating the passage as an acknowledgment of God’s protection when harm comes, Satan tried to make a case for Jesus deliberately putting Himself in harm’s way.

We’re often tempted to challenge God, as well. The Israelites did that when they needed water in the wilderness. Instead of praying and looking to God for provision, they questioned and doubted His plan. They put God to the test. Years later, Moses reminded the people of this incident. (See Deut. 6:16.) Now, as He stood before a Scripture twisting tempter, Jesus repeated the same command God taught His people through Moses: “Do not test the Lord your God.” 

When we’re tempted to question God, doubt Him, or put Him to the test, we can stand strong by doing the following:

• Know what God’s Word says. We should always read a Bible verse or passage in its correct context. Scripture interprets Scripture. Jesus would not let Satan twist a passage of Scripture for his own agenda, and neither should we. Psalm 91 needs to be understood in light of Deuteronomy 6. The Bible corroborates the Bible. The more we immerse ourselves in Scripture—all of Scripture—the better we become at detecting Satan’s lies. 

• Rest in God’s love and security. Jesus knew the truth of Psalm 91:11-12, which is that God does protect and care for us; God gives us no reason to question that or test its truthfulness. We can always trust God regardless of what may tempt us to think otherwise. God loves us completely, and nothing will separate us from His love and protection. (See Rom. 8:31-39.) “What then are we to say about these things? If God is for us, who is against us?” (Rom. 8:31).  

What are some ways we are tempted 
to test God? 

Matthew 4:8-10 

8 Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. 9 And he said to him, “I will give you all these things if you will fall down and worship me.” 10 Then Jesus told him, “Go away, Satan! For it is written: Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.” 

Finally, Satan offered his boldest temptation. He took Jesus “to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor.” Satan could offer those kingdoms legitimately, since even Jesus acknowledged him as “the ruler of this world” (John 12:31; 14:30; 16:11). But why would Jesus even consider such an offer? After all, Jesus knew God’s plan. He knew He would ultimately gain all these kingdoms and rule them forever.

What are we often tempted to worship 
in place of God?

One thing made Satan’s offer attractive. Jesus also knew the plan of His Father—that the road He was about to travel would include pain, suffering, and death. Jesus could avoid all that if He accepted Satan’s offer. It would mean the instant achievement of His goal without any of the suffering.

We face the same type of temptation today. We want success, pleasure, possessions—things that are not wrong in and of themselves, but are wrong when we take shortcuts to achieve them. But the temptation to take such shortcuts always comes with a catch, and Satan’s offer to Jesus was no different. “I will give you all these things if you will fall down and worship me.”

Jesus had enough. “Go away, Satan! For it is written: Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.”

Pride will lead us down the enemy’s short path to success, happiness, or whatever we’re chasing—but the price we pay will destroy us. On the other hand, humility before God will ultimately lead us to experience far more than we can imagine. When tempted to take the shortcut and compromise our worship of God, we should remember God’s promises: “What no eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no human heart has conceived—God has prepared these things for those who love him” (1 Cor. 2:9).

What can we learn from Jesus’ example about overcoming spiritual attacks? 

LIVE IT OUT

Based on our study this week, what steps will you take to defeat the attacks that come your way? Consider these suggestions:

• Look to Jesus. Be intentional about keeping your focus on Christ. Lean on Him for strength to stand, knowing He understands. “For since he himself has suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are tempted” (Heb. 2:18). 

• Stay clear. If you know of people, places, or circumstances that fuel your vulnerability to temptation and spiritual attack, resolve to avoid those things. For best results, talk to someone else about your decision. 

• Memorize Scripture. Make Scripture memory a weekly discipline and habit. Begin with memorizing verses that address areas where you often feel tempted or under attack. 

Expect opposition when you step forward in faith. Spiritual attacks will come. But we can follow Jesus’ example to stand against those attacks and remain victorious.

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Teacher's Notes

The Bible tells us we are in a war, and our adversary, Satan is bent on destroying us. Last week we learned that when we put on this whole armor of God, we will be prepared for Satan’s attempts to attack us with our pride, envy, lusts, itching ears, disappointment, discouragement, doubt or division—or any other tricks he may use. What is this armor?

Belt of Truth / Breastplate of Righteousness / Helmet of Salvation / Shield of Faith / Feet Shod of Peace / Sword of the Spirit 

But do we have a battle plan for Satan’s attacks or his temptations in life? 

Everybody encounters temptations, it’s part of the human experience ever since Adam and Eve in Genesis. 

What is temptation? 

• Temptation is an enticement to act contrary to God’s will. 

Satan tries this with Jesus this morning and he continually tries to do this with us. 

We will learn a lot from Jesus this morning about a battle plan for the temptations we face today. 

Matthew 4:1-10 

I. Matthew 4:1-4 

1 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 After he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. 3 Then the tempter approached him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.” 4 He answered, “It is written: Man must not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.” 

Okay, what’s just happened to Jesus? 

• He was baptized and the Holy Spirit descended on Him and God spoke from heaven saying He was pleased with Him – big moment, a very spiritually high moment. 
• If you read Luke’s account in 4:1 it says that Jesus was full of the Holy Spirit. 

And then He is led by the Spirit into the wilderness, in Luke it the desert, to be tempted by the devil. Okay, so let’s stop there for a moment: 

Isn’t this a complete contradiction to the very words of the Lord’s prayer? (Lead me not into temptation) 

• God may use circumstances to test our devotion to Him, but the devil can use those same circumstances to tempt us to choose a path of selfishness. 
• Sometimes we feel that if the Holy Spirit leads us, it will always be besides quiet waters (Psalm 23:2). But that is not necessarily true. He led Jesus into the desert for a long and difficult time of testing, and He may also lead us into difficult situations. When facing trials, first make sure you haven’t brought them on yourself through sin or unwise choices. If you find no sin or unwise behavior, then ask God to strengthen you for the test. Finally, be careful to follow faithfully where the Holy Spirit leads. 
• So, the Spirit sometimes leads us into periods of testing. 

What was the first temptation? 

• First, Satan tempted Jesus to use His divine, supernatural power to satisfy His hunger saying, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread” (Matt. 4:3). Christ immediately answered, “It is written, ‘man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of god.’’’ 
• The first temptation centered on Jesus’ physical needs. Jesus had been fasting for 40 days. The purpose of fasting is to focus on God through intense prayer. So, Jesus had been feeding Himself spiritually in prayer and communion with His Father. Full of the Holy Spirit, and wearing no doubt the full armor of God. Yet He was likely weak on a physical level, since he had not eaten in 40 days. Satan attempted to exploit this weakness. “If you are the Son of God” carries the force of jeering—as if to say, “Why not use your power as God to meet a legitimate need in Your own life?” 
• The temptation was for Jesus to misuse, even exploit, His Messianic power for personal gain. Jesus insisted He would not act according to His own will, but only the will of the Father. (See John 6:38.) Therefore, Jesus would trust the provision of His Father instead of taking action for self-gratification. Our Lord is hungry, and the devil tempts Him to convert stones into bread, but He replies with Scripture, quoting Deuteronomy 8:3 “It is written: Man must not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.” 
• Jesus would live in obedience to the Word of God and nothing else. No matter how physically hungry He may have been at the moment, He would maintain His trust in a loving Father who would provide what He needed. 
• Matthew 6:33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 

II. Matthew 4:5-7 

5 Then the devil took him to the holy city, had him stand on the pinnacle of the temple, 6 and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down. For it is written: ‘He will give his angels orders concerning you, and they will support you with their hands so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’ 7 Jesus told him, “It is also written: Do not test the Lord your God.” 

What was the second temptation? 

• Then the devil suggested that Jesus jump off the pinnacle of the temple and miraculously land on His feet in order to attract a crowd (vv. 5-6). This time he even used Scripture verses to support his proposal. Again, Jesus quoted the Word of God as His defense, “On the other hand, it is written, ‘You shall not put the lord your God to the test’” (v. 7). 
• Satan is cunning. Since Jesus deflected the first attack by reminding the devil that we live in obedience to every word of God, Satan’s next attempt involved using Scripture as part of his temptation. The second temptation concerns the pride of life (Matthew 4:5–7), and here the devil uses a verse of Scripture (Psalm 91:11–12), but the Lord replies again with Scripture to the contrary (Deuteronomy 6:16), stating that it is wrong for Him to abuse His own powers. 
• The devil will tempt us to question or test God and to try to manipulate His promises for our benefit without regard for His sovereign will or purpose. 

III. Matthew 4:8-10 

8 Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. 9 And he said to him, “I will give you all these things if you will fall down and worship me.” 10 Then Jesus told him, “Go away, Satan! For it is written: Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.” 

What was the third temptation? 

• Finally, Satan took Jesus to a very high mountain to show Him all the kingdoms of the world. He offered to hand them all over to Christ if He would bow down and worship him (vv. 8-9). Basically, the devil was offering Jesus a shortcut to the kingdom so as to avoid the cross. But Christ said, “Go away, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only’” (v. 10). 
• The third temptation concerns a quick route to the Messiahship, bypassing the passion and crucifixion for which He had originally come, this was the way. The devil already had control over the kingdoms of the world (Ephesians 2:2) but was now ready to give everything to Christ in return for His allegiance. But the mere thought almost causes the Lord’s divine nature to shudder at such a concept and He replies sharply, “You shall worship the Lord your God and serve Him only” (Deuteronomy 6:13). 

What was the battle plan for each of these temptations? 

• The battle plan of defense against temptation is reliance upon the Word of God. 

We have no power to beat the devil at his game of temptation apart from the Word of God. This is the ammunition the Lord has given us to defend ourselves. Within the Scriptures are the power and promises of God. However, we each need to find the particular verses that apply to our individual temptations. Satan doesn’t use the same enticements on all of us, but instead, he customizes them to our particular personalities and weaknesses. Furthermore, we will face varied temptations throughout our lives. We may overcome some which once enticed us, but the devil is always ready with new ones. 

In order to consistently live in victory, we need to build a wall of truth around ourselves. When our minds are filled with Scripture, we start to think like God and respond as He desires. Each time we successfully fend off a temptation with His Word, our faith is ignited with assurance and confidence because of God’s faithfulness. We never walk through temptations alone because the Lord lives inside us. He will give us the strength to resist temptations when we cling to His Word and use it to defeat the devil. 

Jesus’ battle plan was simply, “It is written.” 

• Knowing and obeying God’s Word is an effective weapon against temptation, the only offensive weapon provided in the Christian’s armor. 
• Jesus used Scripture to counter Satan’s attacks, and you can too. But to use it effectively you must have faith in God’s promises, because Satan also knows Scripture and is cunning at twisting it to suit his purposes. 
• Obeying the Scriptures is more important than simply having one to quote. So, read them daily and put them into practice in your life. This is what “sharpens the sword”! 

Think for a moment about the areas of temptation with which you most often struggle? 

1. What’s been your strategy for dealing with these enticements? How successful have you been at resisting?                                                                                                                
2. How would using Scripture as a defense prevent you from entertaining the devil’s suggestions and yielding to them?                                                                                                    
3. Do you have any specific Scripture passages that you can use to defend yourself against these temptations? If so, what are they? If not, what can you do to find some? 

Hope to see you this Sunday! 

In His Love, 

David & Susan