Bible Study - The Temptation of Christ

(19) NW Bible Study - Bible Quiz #19, The Temptation of Christ - YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SMCGm5hXgDU

Transcript:
(00:01) so obviously I just gave away in the prayer that the uh subject tonight is number 19 Jesus tempted by Satan and of course that comes with a question where do we find that and again I'm going to uh remind you that in this series what I have attempted to do in each case is not only tell you where the information is but then to analyze why is this important for us to understand and maybe we could ask the question what's important about this for us to understand so the question of the Temptation Of Christ this issue this
(00:41) event is recorded for us in four in four it's recorded for us in three places Matthew chapter 4 Mark chapter 1 and Luke chapter 4 so let's I'm going to begin here in Mark or excuse me in Matthew chap 4 verse one where we simply introduce it says then Jesus was led up Matthew 4:1 then Jesus was led up by the spirit Into the Wilderness to be tempted by the devil now this is one of the most profound moments in all of human history yet I often wonder whether we fully understand what exactly the purpose of this temptation was and I think it's fun
(01:27) for us to kind of step back take a look why did christ have to go through this what was this about was this just a test to see if he could resist sin was that what this is about or was there something much greater at stake one of the clues that we have about this is that it says that Christ was led by the spirit Into the Wilderness that's an interesting idea because it indicates that this is it wasn't a random event it wasn't even event an event driven by Satan was an event driven by God when he led Jesus Christ by his Spirit Into the Wilderness
(02:05) to be tempted of Christ now of course Christ fasted for 40 days and for 40 nights under you know whatever the conditions were uh in the wilderness and he was fasting and praying and he was preparing for the battle that was ahead then Satan comes he's tempting him with with what we can see in in this temptation is food and Power and an easy path to rulership but it's what we would consider this was a very difficult test I mean I don't think any of us would would would have a chance at at passing this test Jesus Christ himself
(02:43) demonstrating the challenge that was before him by fasting for 40 days and for 40 nights so what was behind this and I I think as we get through this today we're going to see that this was truly a test of qualification for Jesus Christ to become the king of kings who will return to depose the God of this age which is Satan who now rules Jesus Christ had to qualify and I think that's what we're going to see as we get through this he had to qualify by overcoming Satan in order to become the King of Kings when he does return to put
(03:18) down all the governments including the government of Satan we go over here to 2 Corinthians chapter 4 to realize that Jesus Christ did not come as the king of this world there was already a king on this world when he came in his physical form second Corinthians chapter 4 Paul explains this to us when he says in 2 Corinthians chapter 4 verse 4 he tells us let's start even here in three where he's saying uh but even if our gospel is veiled it's veiled to those who are perishing those people who are perishing whose Minds the God of this age has
(04:08) blinded who do not believe lest the light of the Gospel of the glory of Christ who is the image of God should shine on them so the God of this age who has blinded the minds of those who do not believe of course we have now an entire world it says the scripture also says that that he has blinded the entire world and so this being Satan who has ruled since before man was ever created tempted this is the same being who was in the Garden of Eden who tempted Adam and so we have a corollary that we see in scripture a comparison between two
(04:49) Adams we have a former Adam and we have a latter Adam we have Adam in the Garden of Eden we have Adam who is now Jesus the Christ and they and they're both tempted by Satan one failed and one succeeded and that's really an important lesson for us to see and to understand so what we see here as we kind of go back as we walk through all of the elements uh of this and we kind of begin to frame where we're going to be going as we investigate these two atoms and we investigate these two Temptations and we see what and why and
(05:25) how Jesus Christ why he had to be tempted and what would the purpose of that was for and then how uh how that has affected the plan of God you know also kind of interesting to think about is how that would have affected the plan of God if if Christ had not truly overcome as he did so what we're going to see here is that this isn't just about personal obedience for Jesus Christ when he overcame it was about proving he was worthy to establish God's Rule and to rule over this Earth in place of Satan who has been the ruler of this world
(05:59) since before Adam was ever created it is Christ's victory over Satan in the wilderness that set the stage for his ultimate Mission which is to establish the kingdom of God and Dethrone Satan forever this was a a Divine appointment and the gospels of course make that clear I just read to you from Matthew chapter 4 and verse1 but let's let's read it also here in Mark that was Matthew 4:1 let's go to Mark 1 where the same uh the same event is recorded for us so Matthew excuse me Mark 1 and verse 12 where it says immediately the spirit
(06:46) drove him that is Christ Into the Wilderness the wording here in Mark's account is especially striking because it says that the spirit drove him into the Wilderness which emphasizes urgency and necessity in other words this mission of Jesus Christ this had to happen it was essential it was divinely appointed by God that Christ must go through this and of course the Wilderness itself where he was driven to which is where Satan was carries deep biblical symbolism it's a place of testing where God examines the faithfulness of his
(07:29) people you know if you go go all the way back to ancient Israel when Israel was delivered from Egypt they were led into where the Wilderness and for two years the people failed to pass test after test notice what God says here in Numbers Chapter 14 Numbers Chapter 14 this was this was what God had to say after they had failed once again he had sent spies into the promised land to spy out the land and to come back and to give a report what God wanted them to do was to come back and give a good report they did not do
(08:03) that and in verse 22 God has this criticism which he says because all these men who have seen my glory and the signs which I did in Egypt and in the wilderness and have put me to the test now these 10 times and have not heeded my voice this is God's complaint against Israel I know it sounds kind of strange when he's saying uh that they put me to the test as though God was the one being tested but that's not really what he's saying here he's saying that in all the tests that Israel had gone through 10 times they
(08:40) had failed meaning that God had tested or tempted he of course God doesn't tempt anyone so but God does test and so God certainly tested Israel many times but the idea that God himself would have been tested which is the idea here which more or more accurately means to be proven which means that it's it's in their failures that there were provocations of Israel in their repeated failures to pass the tests that that God had set before them so their chance to prove that they would be obedient and faithful to God they failed repeatedly
(09:22) God God simply says here 10 times you have failed me and and in that way tested me you know in that sense God saying you tested me in terms of my faithfulness what I would do and yet I was faithful I proved myself repeatedly to you and yet you failed over and over again and of course for 40 years Israel was tested in the wilderness and time and again they failed they complained about the food they rejected God's leadership they fell into idolatry it was sin and failure sin and failure for 40 years if you turn over here to
(10:02) Deuteronomy chapter 8 and verse two Deuteronomy chapter 8 and verse 2 and you shall remember that the Lord your God LED you all the way these 40 years in the wilderness to Humble you and test you to know what was in your heart whether you would keep his Commandments or not and so here we see how God uses this wilderness uh idea this Wilderness as a place of testing Israel for 40 years dwelt in the wilderness and were tested to see where their heart was now you can see this symbolism then Jesus Christ is driven
(10:46) into the Wilderness to be tested also in this case by Satan but obviously where Satan was not just Rel living Israel's experience he was actually fulfilling it he was actually demonstrating The Obedience that God was looking for so where they failed Christ would succeed he was going to be and he was the obedient son who would not waver in faithfulness to God and of course his victory in the wilderness that he faced would demonstrate that he alone was worthy to lead God's people to become the King of Kings you know the same Wilder is where
(11:31) God has tested many great leaders and prepared them for their calling Moses spent 40 years in the wilderness before leading Israel out of Egypt Elijah spent 40 days in the wilderness before receiving Revelation from God John the Baptist lived in the wilderness preparing the way for Jesus Christ and of course now Jesus Christ is being prepared not just as a teacher or a prophet but as the king who would establish God's righteous rule in in place of Satan's corrupt authority over in Luke CH 4 this is the third area or the third passage in which
(12:09) the gospels cover this very same event Luke 4 verse one it says then Jesus being filled with the Holy Spirit returned from the Jordan and was led by the spirit Into the Wilderness so it's important to recog recognized that this test was necessary it was not just about proving that Jesus was sinless he could have lived his entire life without ever sinning he could have never encountered Satan and never sinned either but that would not have qualified him to replace the God of this world he had to face Satan directly in open confrontation and
(12:53) he had to defeat him the very rulership of this Earth literally was at stake scripture reveals that Satan had already been given the position of rulership over the Earth before Adam's creation and as we just read in 2 Corinthians Paul calls him the God of this age now that indicates clearly rulership when you have God the Father and Jesus Christ God of gods were the God of this age little G which also still represents Authority obviously under the authority of God now there's some interesting typology if you think about it as well and you'll
(13:34) see this as we as we go through this today but Adam's test was in Eden think about that it was in Eden this perfect beautiful garden that God had created and placed Adam and Eve to T to uh to tend it and to keep it and it is in this beautiful perfect Paradise where Adam is tested and that's such an interesting idea when you look at at this cycle of the typology the original Adam tempted and tested in Eden the second Adam tested in the wilderness because the first Adam failed and the world became a spiritual Wilderness but the second Adam did not
(14:17) fail what was the first Adam's test it was a simple test of obedience would you obey would you let God decide what is right and wrong and then obey or would you choose for your yourself to do that and of course Adam chose for himself and obviously by choosing to decide for himself what is right and what is wrong rather than following God's commands Adam failed his test if Christ was going to establish God's government on Earth and he had to First demonstrate perfect submission where Adam had failed in Genesis 1 and verse
(14:58) 26 where just reminded here Genesis 1 and verse 26 and then God said let us make man in our image according to our likeness let them have dominion over the fish of the sea over the birds of the air and over the cattle over all the Earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth and so God created Adam and placed him in this wonderful beautiful thing and gave him dominion over all of the animals and over all of the birds and over the physical Earth in the sense that he would be the dominant species
(15:36) created in the very image of God but Satan understood exactly what was happening understood that that God had placed man and had given him the the purpose of learning and becoming if he would accept it the very children of God a role Satan nor any of the Angels ever had been offered now Satan did not want to see Adam succeed in this and all and that would have entirely depended upon Adam being willing to submit to God and so Satan tempted him to see if he could get him to reject God in favor of himself by the way that's exactly what
(16:12) Satan did after I don't know how many Millennia Satan lived and existed before he rejected God but ultimately he did and he chose himself in his own way but it's it's because it's because he was successful in Def in in you know defeating Adam if you will and causing Adam to fail to submit to God that Jesus Christ had to overcome Satan and demonstrate true submission by overcoming Satan and choosing to submit and to obey God where Adam had failed to do that now notice back here in Luke chapter 4 Again Luke chapter
(17:06) 4 verses 5-7 as we continue with this story it says then the devil taking him up on a high mountain showed him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time and the devil said to him all this Authority I will give to you and so now we see this is the third of the test and we'll walk through them carefully here in a minute but I wanted you to understand that this is what's behind Satan's motivation during this temptation the third of the tests is literally what the whole thing is about Authority would Jesus Christ submit to
(17:48) Satan or would he submit to God it's the ultimate test it's like he offers Christ the easy path to power and Christ has a choice I can take power now or I can wait that's the question and of course Christ's answer is immediate it's absolute as he says all this Authority I give to you says Satan and their glory for this has been delivered to me and I give it to whomever I wish therefore if you will worship me before if you will worship before me all this will be yours and Jesus answered and said to him get behind me Satan for it is written you
(18:30) shall Worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve and so he obviously rejected Satan ultimately uh in favor of obeying God he qualified to Rule now over in Philippians chapter 2 Philippians 2: 8 and 9 and being found in appearance as a man he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death even the death of the Cross therefore God also has highly exalted him and given him the name which is above every name so this Wilderness where Christ was tempted it's not just about Temptation it's about
(19:31) qualification Jesus was proving that he alone was worthy to be king this was why God had him tempted in the wilderness by Satan he had to prove he was qualified to rule unlike Adam who chose selfdetermination over submission to God Cho Christ chose perfect obedient unlike Israel who repeatedly rebelled in their wild wilderness Jesus Christ remained faithful in his he stood in perfect obedience he rejected Satan's illegitimate Authority demonstrating his worthiness to establish God's rule on Earth his victory in the in the
(20:10) wilderness foreshadowed his future victory over Satan at his return of course the battle was not over then that was that was like the first that's the first battle in the bigger war and of course Jesus Christ won that battle and in winning that battle of course the the outcome has now been decided the kingdom of God will be established and Jesus Christ will be its king all of that because Christ's victory was over Satan and his challenges let's let's look at those now more carefully because Satan's Temptations
(20:55) were not random each of them was designed to test a specific spefic aspect of Christ's role as king So if Christ is going to overthrow the ruler of this world he first has to prove that he's worthy to rule and of course there are then three challenges which are not just about Obedience of course they're about whether or not Christ is going to qualify to be king of kings through that obedience let's look at the first Temptation in Matthew chapter 4 Matthew chapter 4 and verses three and four it says now when the tempter came
(21:50) to him he said if you are the Son of God command that these Stones become bread but of course Jesus Christ answered and said in verse four it is written man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God you know when something is written as compactly as this is it's really kind of hard to it's like it's hard in the in that brief reading unless you stop and meditate on that to kind of see all the various aspects of what's going on here and there's there's quite a bit here because remember he had been
(22:27) fasting for 40 days and for 40 nights he was human and so no doubt having fasted for that long he was hungry and of course human beings when we when we when we need our physical uh when we have physical needs that must be satisfied we We crave to have them satisfied and of course we do an awful lot uh both right and wrong because of our human nature to make sure that we are satisfied but Jesus Christ then demonstrated that instead of being reliant on himself turning stones into bread that he was going to submit to God and that is his
(23:10) very response man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God there's something more important than food I'm not going to do for myself because just because I could which is really what he's being tempted to do here reject God rely on yourself make yourself some food here and he said no I'm going to trust God I'm going to rely on God and of course what God wants from his Kings and if you go all the way back and you look at ancient Israel what did God want from his Kings he wanted them
(23:45) to rule righteously which means to look to God first and not to themselves and that's what makes this a very potent test or a very real test for Christ's uh qualifications would he be one of those Kings who's going to rule righteously and submit to God or is he going to rule based on what he thinks is right and what he thinks is wrong ruling Accord his according to his own desires and Jesus demonstrated how he was going to rule by saying I yield to god that's literally what that is about so what's the second Temptation
(24:21) well the second one you might think this one might be just a bit more dangerous here let's look at verses 5 through 7 where it says then the devil took him up into the holy city he set him on a pinnacle of the temple and he said to him if you are the Son of God throw yourself down for it is written now he quotes a scripture Satan quoting scripture he shall give his angels charge over you and in their hands they shall bear you up lest you dash your foot against a stone and of course once again very short we see Christ's response it is
(24:58) written again you shall not tempt the Lord your God so of course Satan's Temptations for Christ is Leap go ahead just jump what what would that have done he's he's trying to lure Christ into a prideful Act Right of Christ saying you know what I I I'll show you Satan you know that God does what I want think about that God does what I want so I could throw myself down and God would lift me up lest I Dash my foot if I if I am a prideful person that's what we would do you know human beings that's that's the way we are isn't it and so
(25:41) here we have Satan trying to get Christ to do what he himself would do obviously he looks to himself and he places what he wants in his desires above that of God and here we see he wanted to he would he really wanted to appeal to Christ's vanity had Christ had vanity and pride so you know I picture I picture what is what do you think Satan was thinking there in that moment you know do he see in his Mind's Eye that Christ throws himself off this building and as he's descending this Legion of angels come and they they wrap Christ up around
(26:16) his arm within Christ smiling backwards see I showed you Satan that God is here for me and and if I need him I all I have to do is just tell him what I want and he'll do it you know that kind of makes me think about that idea that some people seem to have which is they have God in their pocket and they just can kind of pull God out and when I want something done there's God to do it for me and I think I don't think it works that way and I think Christ is showing us here that's not how it works and so rather than looking to
(26:47) himself in vanity and in Pride he looks to God and that's what he demonstrated as he overcame that challenge and of course he says Don't Tempt God that isn't right right so he's obviously not looking to glorify himself because wouldn't that be what that is see look I can do this and look what God will do because I did this and all I have to do is tell God what he needs to do and he'll do it that's what makes me really uncomfortable about that idea within our own human nature so what's this third Temptation about then
(27:19) the final test was the most direct he offered him the kingdoms of this world if he would only Bow Down and Worship Him verses 8 10 we're still here in Matthew CH 4 it says again the devil in verse 8 took him up on an exceedingly high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory and he said to him all these things I will give you if you will fall down and worship me and Jesus said away with you Satan for it is written you shall Worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve well what's interesting about this
(27:58) of course is that Satan himself validates that he had the authority given to him by God this is a very profound statement of course now if this is a lie this is when you would expect to see Christ correct that but he does not correct him he accepts this because he doesn't say you are wrong Satan he says no Satan get away from me for it's written you shall Worship the Lord your God in him only shall you serve this is saying uh Satan I understand you have authority here on this Earth but there's a greater Authority than you and that is God and I
(28:32) submit to that Authority that's the whole test you know Satan for Millennia we don't know how long whatever millions and millions and billions of years potentially is Satan served in the very government of God at the very Throne of God he rejected God as his God and Jesus Christ here he is being tempted by Satan to do the same thing and and Christ's response is no I am not going to do that s you know what's interesting too is say what do you think is in his mind on this you know Christ you can get away without having to suffer no rejection no
(29:15) death no pain no Stripes none of that all you need to do is one small Act of submission and you can have the very power you're destined for under me of course it's the ultimate test of loyalty would Jesus accept rulership on Satan's terms or would he wait for God's appointed time that's that's the profound question that was in play and of course Jesus answered that very swiftly and he was very absolute in his response he did not waver he did not capitulate uh he didn't leave any room for doubt as he pointed to who is the god he would serve and is
(29:52) not Satan but he was going to wait for God now notice over in John chap 18 as Christ is being questioned by pontious Pilot in John chapter 18 verse 36 well verse 35 pilate answered says am I a Jew your own nation and chief priests have delivered you to me what have you done and Jesus answered my kingdom is not of this world if my kingdom were of this world my servants would fight so that I should not be delivered to the Jews but now my kingdom is not from here and so he was not going to accept any Kingdom under Satan his
(30:42) kingdom is the kingdom of the father that's what he wanted to make abundantly clear so the significance of these Temptations cannot be overstated this was a battle for the future of the world if Jesus had failed in any of these tests he would not have been the perfect King nor would he have been our savior instead by resisting these Temptations Jesus proved he was qualified to redeem humanity and establish the kingdom of God on this earth when he returns now his response to Satan is also obviously a lesson for us because
(31:20) every Temptation he faced is one we will face in some form do we trust God to provide for us or or do we need to control everything ourselves that's a very important question do we demand that God does what we want or do we live by faith do we obey God and do what he wants do we compromise to gain success take the shortcuts or are we willing to wait for God's timing yield to what God wants and wait on God Jesus showed the way forward he demonstrated that the only path to True power is through surrender James chapter
(32:02) 4 James chapter 4 and verse 7 says therefore submit to God resist the devil and he will flee from you and of course after these three tests Jesus Christ demonstrating resistance to the devil of course Satan leaves him there Christ obviously fully submitted to God and this is why the devil had to leave and this is what we're told to do flee from s Satan resist Satan and he will flee from you so resist do what Christ did resist I guess that makes us the ultimate resistance today because we are resisting the God of this age and
(32:44) his way and choosing God and his way of life Christ did not defeat Satan through Miracles or through force or through even debate he defeated him through obedience isn't that remarkable as a thought he defeated Satan by simply obeying God he he just refused to step outside of God's will which meant Satan had no hold over him now obviously that's not the last time they would face each other but the outcome well that's now been decided Satan Satan Satan doesn't learn his lessons quickly though and so of course
(33:28) he naturally tries to destroy Jesus Christ but Christ's victory in the wilderness foreshadows the greater Victory which is to come he won the spiritual battle that he had to win over Satan at the time but now he had to go forward to preach the kingdom of God to call disciples heal the sick and to proclaim the good news of Salvation which he came to bring but of course the final battle was still ahead Satan would try again he would stir up opposition infiltrate the hearts of men he would lead them to reject Jesus Christ he would work through
(34:05) betrayal through false accusations and through the crucifixion but even in Death Christ overcame his victory in the in the wilderness was just the beginning his sacrifice was coming and beyond that of course the throne that awaits for him Revelation 11 Revelation 11 verse 15 then the seventh angel sounded and there were loud voices in heaven saying the kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of his Christ and he shall reign forever and ever that's the beautiful future that's coming when Jesus Christ returns to this
(34:54) earth and that's only made that was only made possible because he overcame came the God of this age and qualified to become the King of Kings that's what the Wilderness Temptation was about it was about rulership about proving before all the powers of Heaven and Earth that Jesus was the rightful King and because he overcame we have hope because he conquered Satan we know that the ruler of this world will not Reign forever because the kingdom of God is coming and its king with it so Christ is the qualified King now he
(35:33) emerged from the Wilderness Victorious he had been tested and he proved faithful he had rejected Satan's shortcuts he refused to misuse his power he remained completely loyal to God's Will and because of this he qualified to be king and of course from that moment forward his path was set he would preach the gospel of the Kingdom endure rejection suffer the crucifixion and ultimately be be glorified his victory over Satan was the first step towards taking the throne that was rightfully his Luke chap 22 Luke 22: 29 and
(36:22) 30 we'll all start here in verse 28 he says but you are those who have continued with me in my trials and I bestow upon you a kingdom just as my father bestowed one upon me that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and sit on Thrones judging the 12 tribes of Israel so God has now already DEC decreed that Christ would rule but before taking the throne Jesus obviously had to demonstrate that he would rule righteously unlike Adam who chose self-determination over submission to God's Authority Christ proved his
(37:04) worthiness through perfect submission to God's will the victory in the wilderness established a Divine pattern that would continue throughout his ministry Hebrews chapter 5 Hebrews 5: 8 and n it says though he was a son yet he learned obedience by the things which he suffered and having been perfected he became the author of Eternal salvation to all who obey him Christ's qualification had three crucial deel develop excuse me had three crucial Dimensions that set him apart as the P perfect ruler so first unlike
(38:04) Earthly Kings who sees power through Force Christ qualified through service and sacrifice Satan offered him immediate Authority without any suffering but Christ chose the path of suffering knowing that true leadership comes through giving rather than taking notice what he said in Mark 10: 45 mark 10 and verse 45 make sure I'm in the right spot here ah I was almost one early Mark 10:45 it says for even the son of man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life a ransom for many this is how Christ came he came to serve that
(38:53) was his whole Focus was to serve and to show how to to be a leader under God second unlike Adam who was tested in a perfect garden and failed Christ was tested in the harsh Wilderness and succeeded he demonstrated that it that his righteousness wasn't dependent on favorable circumstances but rather he would stand firm regardless of the circumstances First Corinthians chapter 15 1 Corinthians chapter 15: 21 and 22 it said for Since By Man Came Death that is by Adam by man came also the resurrection of the Dead that is Christ
(39:46) for as in Adam the first obviously all die even so in Christ all shall be made alive the contrast is Stark Adam failed Christ succeeded through Adam sin entered this world and through that all who have sinned also guilty of Eternal death as it says in Romans 6:23 the wages of sin is death and in the context of that scripture of course it's Eternal death but Jesus Christ sacrifice his perfect life and sacrifice in death pays that penalty for us us and so we are Made Alive through the second Adam Jesus the Christ third unlike Satan who rules
(40:37) through deception and fear Christ qualified by rejecting Satan's way his kingdom is not going to be he's not going to rule through manipulation he's not going to rule by deception he's going to rule through truth and through love John chapter 18 John chapter 18 and verse 37 he talks about his future king he says and pilate therefore said to him are you a king then and we just read Because Christ previously we read where Christ said my kingdom is not of this world and so pilate says to him are you a king then and Jesus answered you say
(41:29) rightly that I am a king for this cause I was born and for this cause I have come into the world that I should bear witness to the truth everyone who is of the truth hears my voice this is how Christ is going to rule through truth and love this is who the true ruler is and of course the rebellious governments of man will all fall to that Kingdom which Jesus Christ is going to be bringing with him when he returns to this world Daniel 2 and verse 44 reminds us of what's coming Daniel chapter 2 and verse 44 and in the days of these Kings the
(42:21) god of heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed and the kingdom shall not be left to other people it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms and it shall stand forever Christ's qualification in the wilderness was the decisive first battle in a war that continues to this day a war that will culminate in his return as king of kings and Lord of lords now Satan may still be the God of this age but his time is running out the qualified King is coming and here's the thing he's called
(42:58) first fruits out of this world believers who will share his rule when he establishes the Kingdom on this Earth so it's not just that Christ qualified to be a ruler but he showed the first fruits how to overcome how to qualify to rule with him and so we've been given this incredible opportunity to overcome Satan and this world right now to to take our place as Kings and Priests under Christ in his government and this Divine calling from God transforms everything about our Christian Journey the trials we face those aren't just tests of Faith they're
(43:42) qualifications for rulership Revelation chapter 3 Revelation chapter 3 and verse 21 notice what Christ says here he says to him who overcomes I will grant to sit with me on my Throne as I also overcame and sat down with my father on his throne he who has an ear let him hear what the spirit says to the churches so as Christ overcame our path to co- rulership with Christ follows the same pattern as him so in other words The Temptations we face today they're not random hardships but they are Divine qualifications for our future
(44:40) role this truth transforms how we view our struggles they're not meaningless trials but they're preparation for our future roles they're qualifying us to rule and reign with Jesus Christ Romans chapter 8 says Romans 8 verse1 17 he says and if children well let's go back to verse 16 it says the spirit itself Bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God and if children verse 17 says then heirs Hees of God and Joint HS with Christ if indeed we suffer with him that we may also be glorified together so we
(45:30) must suffer trials and Temptations in this life and we must overcome as Christ overcame to qualify for our role in the future as Kings and Priests under Jesus Christ as he brings the government of God to this very world and we will help him establish that very government across the face of this planet so how then do we follow Christ's pattern of qualification well there are I'll give you just four Essential Elements four Essential Elements for qualifying and following Christ's pattern number one we must rely on God's
(46:12) word as our primary weapon Jesus defeated Satan by standing on scripture remember he said repeatedly it is written it is written now he's obviously quoting from scripture when he says it is written because it's written by God in the scriptures and so he constantly goes back to the very word of God that's what he's teaching us to do go back to the word of God and use that as you battle your Temptations as you battle through your tests and of course that means that we have to do it the way Christ did it and use biblical Truth for every
(46:50) challenge that we Face Ephesians chapter 6 tells us it's interesting the the wording here as well the imagery that's evoked here in Ephesians chap 6 verse 17 where he's talking about the armor of God where he says here in verse 17 take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the spirit which is the word of God you know the only offensive weapon in the entire Armor of God that is given to us is the sword of the spirit which is the the word of God that's the weapon that we're supposed to use to attack and defend ourselves against our
(47:39) adversary without this sword we fight unarmed I wonder how many times have we Fallen to to Temptation because we just didn't know what God's word had to say about something or maybe we hadn't really anchored a principle correctly deeply enough in our heart so so that we could resist so that we could overcome but Christ showed that Victory begins with Biblical literacy knowing what the Bible says and then how to apply that when Satan twists the truth and tries to deceive us and he tempts us into failure number two again I'm covering
(48:18) four brief but essential ways in which we must qualify the way that Christ qualified we must reject immediate gratification and any worldly shortcuts remember Satan offered Christ ways to shortcut the process to get something now without waiting for God's timing and of course our our culture celebrates that right instant results I mean we wouldn't have a lottery if there wasn't a desire for a quick fix in life but the path to rulership requires patience and Trust in God's perfect timing Isaiah chapter 40 and verse 31
(48:57) Isaiah chapter 40 and verse 31 but those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength they shall Mount up with the wings like eagles they shall run and not be weary they shall walk and not faint so our strength comes from God our ability to overcome therefore comes from God now the the third essential element we have to note here is that we must Embrace suffering as a part of our qualification Christ did not avoid hardship he endured the crucifixion for the joy that was set before him you know our natural tendency
(49:42) is to escape difficulties but God wants us to endure trials to develop the character that we need to be Kings and Priests 1 Peter chapter 4 1 Peter chap 4: 12 and 13 it said beloved do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you as though some strange thing happened to you you know I I always read that and I think to myself the the shock and surprise on the face of someone who was in the middle of a trial and they just don't know why I have no idea why I have to go through this but we've been learning why we have
(50:25) to go through this as first fruit we must learn to overcome but he says but Rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ's sufferings that when his glory is revealed you may also be glad with exceeding Joy there's a wonderful future in front of us as first fruits but it's only on the other side of the suffering and of The Temptations and of the overcoming that we have to go through in this age that we're going to get there and the fourth thing that I wanted to bring out here is that we must must maintain a kingdom of God perspective
(51:01) amidst a Satan ruled World Christ refused Satan's offer because he knew the father had something better planned and likewise we must see beyond today's challenges to our future inheritance that rulership and reigning with Jesus Christ that is before us when he returns to this Earth with God's kingdom 2 Corinthians chapter 4 vers 17 and 18 2 Corinthians chapter 4: 17 and 18 where he says for our light Affliction which is but for a moment that's the attitude that we need to try to get to it is hard obviously it's hard
(51:46) when we're in the middle of a trial but here Paul is saying but think of it as a light Affliction by comparison by comparison because it's just for a moment moment here we are you might live 70 80 90 years but in the scope of Eternity it's a blip on the on the scale it's it's not even like it wouldn't show up on a radar it's such a tiny little blip of time he says for our light Affliction which is but for a moment is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of Glory while we do not look at the things
(52:26) which are seen but at the things which are not seen for the things which are seen are temporary but the things which are not seen are Eternal and that's where our Focus has to be so we can overcome today we can get through this if we have a kingdom of God Focus if we're thinking about eternal things and taking our place as Eternal beings in the family of God we have to have that view have to let that view permeate us and then drive us that has to be what motivates us to stay the course and to overcome to qualify to rule with
(53:05) Jesus Christ you know not all who are called today will qualify to rule because just as many in ancient Israel failed their Wilderness test some Believers today May Fail to overcome as well but for those who follow Christ's pattern of qualification who stand on God's word who reject worldly shortcuts who Embrace suffering and who maintain a kingdom of God perspective there awaits for us an incomparable reward Revelation CH 5 says it this way Revelation 5:10 describing our future role in God's kingdom Revelation 5 and verse 10
(53:57) it says and he has made us Kings and Priests to our God and we shall reign on Earth you know it it should be difficult for us to picture what that means because we look around and we see what men think of what ruling and reigning looks like it was Christ who said that to the sons of Zebedee who through their mother asked if they could sit at the right and the left hand of Jesus Christ in the coming Kingdom and he said it's not mine to give but you look at the way the world rules and that is not how how you are to
(54:28) rule and that's that's our only way of really seeing it other than what Christ did when he said I come to serve not to be served and that's what he's looking for in us and so we have to learn to overcome ourselves and to prepare ourselves to be like Jesus Christ to serve the way Jesus Christ came to serve and to be that same servant to his people when he comes as king of kings and Lord of lords and we are resurrected as first fruits to serve with him from the beginning God's plan has followed a pattern it's always been a
(55:02) cycle of testing and overcoming first in the Garden of Eden with Adam when he failed to choose to follow and obey God he brought sin into this world and with sin the world became a Wilderness a spiritual Wilderness Jesus Christ was born into this Wilderness of sin he overcame the God of this age to qualify to become the ruler of a government that would yet come that government will come when Jesus Christ returns to this Earth but Christ is not going to rule alone Jesus Christ is going to rule and reign with his Kings
(55:41) and Priests his first fruits who will be brought up who will be resurrected when he returns and given their positions of authority their opportunity to rule and reign with Jesus Christ during the Millennium and after and what are we going be doing we're going to be building a paradise a paradise to mirror the very first Garden of Eden where Adam failed in that perfect beautiful garden we're going to be rebuilding that Garden on this Earth with Jesus Christ and all of mankind is going to be brought to this earth and they're going to have
(56:15) their opportunity to choose their opportunity to be in the garden and compare two ways of life the way of life which will govern this world which will have governed this world for an entire Millennia a thousand years under Jesus Christ's Rule and man that those human beings physical human beings will then have an opportunity to compare that way of life to Satan's way of life and to choose without deception to follow God's way of life and to reap those benefits and we see therefore this typology of the original Adam failing in that Garden
(56:53) of Eden Jesus Christ coming and succeeding in the will Wilderness of sin us the first fruits also having to overcome in that same Wilderness of sin to qualify as Christ qualified he qualified to become the King of Kings and the Lord of lords we are qualifying to become Kings and Priests under Jesus Christ to help him to build this world to rebuild this world to create that paradise that awaits all the rest of mankind so that when God brings them into this world they won't have to try to overcome a world that is literally A
(57:27) wilderness of sin it is a Wilderness in Paradise they'll have a fair chance to choose God's way or Satan's way it is a beautiful plan the typology is magnificent if we just stop and meditate to see just how thorough God is and how beautiful his Plan of Salvation is for all of mankind and so now as we go through and today as we've gone through the episode the incident the temptation of Jesus Christ by Satan we now understand why that was such an important event and why he had to go through that in order to qualify and why
(58:04) we must mimic Jesus Christ and do what he did to overcome the same way that he overcame so that we can qualify to be first fruits it's a beautiful plan of God we can be very thankful that he's called us to be a part of it