Pause ~ King of the Hill

This week we are finishing up our series on temptation by looking at the third and final temptation Jesus faced when he was in the wilderness.  These 3 temptations sum up all the temptations we face in life.  First there was the temptation to meet a legitimate but in an illegitimate way.  For Jesus this was the temptation to turn stones to bread when he was hungry.  We all face legitimate and God given hungers and thirsts in life that we are tempted to satisfy in ways that are unhealthy or immoral and Jesus says that what is important in these situations is to remember that our lives are much bigger than these hungers and thirst and that it is always better to live for and trust God first.

The second temptation Jesus faced was to leverage God for our own benefit.  This temptation is to ask God to bless our plans instead of pausing to consider if we are following God’s plans.  It is the temptation we have to ask God to bless what we want instead of submitting ourselves to a  life that God wants for us.  Let me say that this doesn’t mean we don’t pray for ourselves or ask God to bless us.  We need to do that, but we need to do it in humility after pausing to make sure we are seeking God’s will first and not our own.  Today we look at the temptation we all face to take a short cut.  This temptation is not about the destination or goal that we have, it is the temptation to get there in ways that compromise what is ultimately important in life.

We all face temptations to take short cuts.  It might be to cheat on a paper or exam in school so we can get the good grade. It might be to cut corners at work so we can maximize our profits or gain the upper hand on our coworkers.  It might be to compromise our values in order to maintain a relationship or to move into the right social circles.  The subtle thing about this temptation is that we might not have to compromise our values forever, we just might need to do it this one time, or in this one situation so that we can get ahead.  But as we will see, these short cuts change who we are and can undermine our faith and trust in God.

We might think that this temptation is strongest in those who are lazy, but the truth is that this might be more of a problem for those who are very driven and goal oriented.  For those who are consumed with always wanting to improve and grow and be the best they can be or for those who always want to be on the cutting edge of all things, this temptation is strong because it seems like it can help us reach out goals faster.  If you are a parent who is obsessed with having your children be the best they can be in absolutely everything, or a student who is trying to do it all so you can get into the best schools, or if you are always looking up the corporate ladder trying to figure out how to get ahead – Jesus has something to say to you.  If you are trying to be the king of the hill in all things and are willing to do whatever it takes to get there, then Jesus has something to say to you.

It is important to understand that it is not always our goals that are wrong.  Being the best we can be is a good thing.  Moving forward in our jobs is a good thing.  Wanting the best out of ourselves and our families is an good thing; this temptation is not about the destination, it is about the compromises we often have to make to get there.  In fact, the drive to be the best and to move forward is actually a God given quality - look at the story of creation.

Day one, God created.  Day two, God created.  Day three, God created.  Each day God did more and more.  Each day God was building and improving and adding to what He did the day before.  Each day the world moved forward, grew larger and better and even today we are told that the creation continues to move forward.  God is still creating.  God is still building and expanding and so the drive to build and expand and be all we can be is not a bad thing, it is a part of what it means for us to be children created in the image of God, but we can’t become so focused on the goal of being bigger and better that we forget the importance of the process

There will come a time in all of our lives when the opportunity to move forward and grab hold of something really good will come to us and we will be tempted to get there quicker if we will compromise our values and take a short cut.  When I was a pastor in Altoona we started an after-school program and it slowly grew and expanded and it was a wonderful ministry.  Early on we thought about advertising our program in the local elementary school because we would be able to reach more kids.  It would have expanded the program, it would have looked good for us to have a large and growing ministry and so we thought about it, but they told us that if we advertized in the schools the program could not be faith based.  They told us we couldn’t even say grace at the dinner we served.  We could take the short cut to the program we wanted, but we would have to leave God out.

In Lewisburg we had an opportunity to buy a local school and we were hurting for space so it seemed like a great idea and we were going to move forward with it, but to do that would have meant cutting corners on all the meetings needed in the congregation and with the conference in order to expand.  To grab hold of what seemed like a golden opportunity would have been a great short cut to what we wanted but it would have dishonored the process and the people of the church.

A few years ago in our Daycare we were given the opportunity to partner with Head Start.  It was a great opportunity that would have helped our program by providing money and opening doors for us.  It would have moved us forward at a faster pace, but to do it would have meant that we would have had to create some head start time where we could not mention God.  The short cut to a bigger and better ministry meant leaving God out of it.  In all of our lives these kinds of short cuts will appear and they may not require us to compromise everything, we might just need to cut a few corners here and there, like leaving God out of an hour of class time or not saying grace before a meal, but the temptation is there to set aside our values to be able to play the game or reach the goal.

When we face the temptation to take short cuts to get what we want, we need to pause and consider two important things.
Who we are and
Whose we are.
This was what Jesus faced in the third temptation we find in Matthew 4:8-10.

Satan took Jesus up to a high mountain to show him all the splendor of the world and Satan would have given all the splendor, glory and authority of the world to Jesus if he would have just bowed down in that moment and worshiped him.

There are two important things we need understand about this temptation.  The first is that all the splendor, glory and authority of the world is what Jesus came to get, this was his goal.  When we were created all authority was given to us.  We were given authority over all the plants and animals and over all that God had created.  God wanted us to have it all but when sin entered into the picture, we lost it all.  Jesus came to restore the order God had created.  Jesus came to reclaim all the authority of the world for humankind and Jesus did that but it came through his life, death and resurrection and not a moment of worship.  

At the end of Matthew’s gospel Jesus gives a great commission to his people and at the very beginning of that statement he says, all authority in heaven and on earth as been given to me.  All authority was given to Jesus but it didn’t come through the short cut Satan offered.  All the authority given to Jesus came through a life of obedience and Jesus’ death on the cross.  It came by defeating Satan in the resurrection not worshipping him on the mountaintop.  So Satan was offering Jesus what Jesus came to achieve, it was part of his life’s mission, but Satan was offering a short cut.

It is important for us to see this because once again it is not that the goals that we strive for that are always the problem or the temptation but the means by which we get there.  It is ok to have big goals and to strive for all that is best, in fact, God wants us to have big and lofty goals, but we can’t try to attain them by letting go of our values and integrity.  The temptation for Jesus wasn’t what Satan was offering but they means by which Jesus would have to get it.

The second thing to notice about this temptation isn’t that Satan was asking for a lifetime of devotion but a moment of worship.  This is why short cuts are so tempting because they don’t always ask us to compromise our values forever, just for a moment.  If we cheat on just this one test it doesn’t mean we will have cheat on every test.  If we cut corners on this one project it doesn’t mean we will always cut corners.  Keeping quiet or sharing in gossip just once in order to maintain a friendship doesn’t mean it will become a habit, we will just give in this one time in order to keep the peace or look good in the eyes of others.

This temptation is subtle because if we take one short cut in order to gain so much, what harm is there?  What would have been the harm for Jesus?  The consequence for Jesus in taking this short cut would have been an unbroken moment in an eternal relationship Jesus had with his heavenly father.  Worshipping Satan for just one moment would have meant Jesus was denying and turning away from God.  Jesus would have been sacrificing something that was of ultimate and eternal value to gain something immediate and temporary.  The temptation for us to take a short cut is often the same thing; we sacrifice what is important for that which is immediate.

What is most important in our lives needs to be who we are not what we can gain.  In the midst of the temptation to take a short cut which compromises our character and faith we need to pause and think about who we are and whose we are.  If we are God’s children then we need to make our relationship with God the most important thing in our lives and if that is our priority then we are not going to compromise that relationship to get ahead.  This is what Jesus shows us in his response to Satan’s offer.

As Jesus did in every other temptation, Jesus responds to Satan by going back to a story when God’s people were going to be tempted in the same way.  When the people of God settled in the Promised Land, they would be tempted to compromise their faith and follow the practices of the people around them.  They would see other people prospering and experiencing the thrills and joys of life but in ways that didn’t honor or recognize God and it would be tempting for them to do the same thing, so before they entered into the land, God told them that they needed to keep their eyes and their hearts on him.  From Deuteronomy 6, we hear the words that Jesus quoted.  Deuteronomy 6:10-14.

The people of Israel were going to be tempted to follow other gods and the ways of the people around them because it was going to look easier or better, so God reminded them to stand strong in the face of that temptation and remember who they were and whose they were.  They were God’s people.  They needed to fear the Lord, and serve the Lord and worship the Lord only.  The short cuts would be tempting but they would undermine who they were as God’s people and they would break their relationship as God.

Many times the short cuts we are tempted to take also undermine who we are and whose we are.  When we compromise our values and faith we not only change who we are and who we want to be, but we cut ourselves off from God so that we are no longer seen as God’s children.  So when we are faced with these temptations the issue isn’t the opportunity before us or the goal we are striving for, the issue is making sure we live lives that reflect who we are as followers of Jesus.

When we say no to the short cuts in life we are also giving God the opportunity to do great work in us.  It is only in saying no that we can see what the hand of God can do.  In Altoona we said no to the school and our program continued to grow and develop and remains strong 20 years later.   Our Daycare said no to Head Start and in a few weeks they came back to us and said, we want you as part of our program so we will waive all the limitations on faith if you will join us.

When we say no to the short cuts – the power of God can be seen.  It’s not always an easy road, remember the road for Jesus went through the cross, but in time it lead to the resurrection and all authority on earth as well as in heaven being given to him.
So when we face temptation, the temptation to meet a legitimate need in an illegitimate way, we need to pause.  When we are tempted to leverage God for our benefit, we need to pause.  When we are tempted to take a short cut that might compromise who we are and whose we are, we need to pause and in the face of all temptation we need to learn to put our confidence in God.

Next Steps
Pause ~ King of the Hill

1. When have you taken a short cut that didn’t turn out well?
What did you hope to gain?  What did you ultimately lose?

2. Have you ever been tempted to get ahead (become the King of the Hill) but you had to compromise your values (even temporarily) to get there?  What did you do?

3. Read Matthew 4:8-9.  What was the short cut Jesus was being offered?  Why was this tempting?  What would Jesus have to compromise?

4. Where are you being tempted to take a short cut?
• At home
• At work or school
• In faith
• With friends
What has to be compromised (even temporarily) in order to get ahead?

5.  This week choose what is important over what is immediate.

6. In the face of any and all temptations remember:
• Who you really are
• Whose you really are

Pause ~ Proving Ground

This month we are looking at temptation and there is actually something good about temptation I want to share with you.  Temptation unites us.  That’s right, in a world that grows increasingly divided over so many things; we are united in our struggle against temptation.  While we wrestle with different issues, we are all tempted to think, say and do things that we know aren’t right, healthy, or in our best interest.  While all our temptations are different, we have seen that what is at stake in those temptations is often the same.  There are 3 things at stake in every temptation and they are… (wait for people: our faith, our future, our family.)

Jesus also faced temptation and in the 3 temptations we find in Matthew 4 we see that Jesus faced every temptation we do.  This week we are going to look at the second temptation of Jesus which in many ways is an appropriate one for us to consider on Father’s Day because it is the temptation we have to leverage God our Father for our own benefit.  This is a temptation to presume and assume that God will come to our rescue and always work out our issues in life no matter what.  Matthew 4:5-7.

We are not sure how Satan took Jesus to the top of the temple but from this location they would have been able to look down into the courtyard where the religious leaders gathered to do their work.  Jesus needed to reveal himself to these very people and they would be the ones most resistant to Jesus being the Son of God.  Satan’s plan was to have Jesus reveal himself now by stepping off the top of the Temple Wall because God wouldn’t allow anything to happen to Jesus which meant that the angels would come to catch Jesus before he hit the ground.  The sight of angels appearing to catch a man would have revealed Jesus as the son of God and it would have proved his relationship with God the Father.  This was actually not a bad plan and in time Jesus did do miracles to prove that he was the Son of God, but the problem was that this was not God’s plan. What is so subtle about this temptation is that Satan not only comes with a plan that would work but he actually quotes scripture to back it up.  How can you say no when the promise of God is right there in the psalms?
Jesus could have proved that he was the son of God through this act.  In a single moment, Jesus could have proved himself to the religious leaders and proclaimed to the world that he was the Messiah but doing it this way would have forced God’s hand.  By jumping into this plan, Jesus would have been assuming that no matter what he did God would save him.  Not only is this presumptuous but it once again shows a lack of faith and trust in God.  Our faith is always at stake when we face temptation.

You might think this is not a temptation we face because we aren’t going to be tempted to jump off the Temple in Jerusalem, but the reality is that we are tempted to do things like this more often than you think.  We often ask God to bless our plans instead of seeking out God’s plan.  We presume that we know God’s will so step out into what we assume is faith instead of pausing to seek God’s will and make sure we are working with God.  How often do we try and manipulate God to do things our way instead of working to do things God’s way?  How often do we presume and assume that God will bless our lives instead of seeking to a live a life that God chooses to bless?

I have seen many marriages where one spouse struggles because their partner is not engaged at all in their faith.  When I ask why they got married when they held such different views on and practices of their faith, I have often heard, I thought God would bring them around.  We move forward with our plans and assume God will bless them and make things work out.  When we go into a class without doing any of the work and then ask God to help us get an A, we are being presumptuous.  Asking God to help us get the promotion at work even though we know we aren’t fulfilling the duties is assuming God is there to always work for our benefit.   When we cry out to God because we are drowning in debt after spending years living well beyond our financial means we are leveraging our relationship with God.  It’s not that God won’t be there to help and assist us in times of need, but when we live our lives our way and then expect God to work things out, we are being presumptuous and using God.

I mentioned this was an appropriate temptation for us to consider on Father’s Day because we not only presume on God our father, we also make assumptions about our earthly fathers and mothers.  When I was in college there was a time where I not only presumed that God would bless my plans but I also assumed that my father and mother would make things work out.  I had finished my third year at Michigan State and decided to not only change majors and change universities.  It was not a well thought out plan on my part and I had not researched things well.  I was going to move from a large but relatively quiet campus in East Lansing MI to a campus in the heart of our nation’s second largest city, Los Angeles.  I made a few plans and then left for my summer job assuming God would work things out and my parents would pay for it.

About half way through the summer my parents finally opened my eyes to the cost of this school.  For months I had been saying that it was the same as MSU and they said no, it was twice as much.  Well, guess what, my parents were right and they couldn’t afford it.  I had assumed my parents would just pay for it, but they couldn’t.  I also assumed this was God’s plan but in time I realized it was not.  When I actually visited LA and the school, I came to the conclusion that I was really not interested in living in that big a city.  I had made my plans and then presumed God would bless them and assume my parents would provide.  I am thankful that God and my parents opened my eyes to what a failure my plan would have been.  They helped me pause and then move in a different direction.

This temptation to leverage God for our benefit can be very subtle, but we all face it and we also face it in the church.  In the church this temptation is often seen when we say that we are going to step out in faith with a plan that is not well thought out and perhaps one we don’t think will even work.  Over the last 22 years I have seen many congregations step out to do new things without doing the research or having the resources and then simply saying – God will take care of it.  Some people may call this faith but at times it can also be called presumptuous.  We presume God will bless our plans which can sometimes lead to disaster.

So how do we know if we are stepping out in faith or leverage God?  Jesus shows us that one way to deal with this temptation and walk in faith is to pause and listen to our prayers and language.  When Jesus faced this temptation he quoted from Deuteronomy 6:16.

As we saw last week, when Jesus is tempted he thinks back to another time and place when God’s people faced the same temptation.  Here Jesus takes us back to a time when the people were being tempted at Massah, in fact, the word Massah means trial or temptation and it was the name given to a place called Rephidim by Moses.  It was here that the people needed water to drink and instead of trusting God they taunted him.  Exodus 17:1-3.

It’s not just Moses they are complaining against here, it is God.  They are asking why God has done this to them.  Why had God brought them out here to die?  If God really loved them then God would provide for them.  If God was with them then God wouldn’t have let this happen to them.  These aren’t words of trust they are taunts to Moses and to God and they sound all too familiar.  If God really loved me then I wouldn’t be going through this.  If God was with me then I wouldn’t be struggling right now.  If God was strong enough I wouldn’t be in this situation.

When our language and prayers are more focused on accusing God instead of trusting Him, chances are good that we have presumed upon God to help us instead of cooperating with God.  When our prayers are filled with: God, I need this, God I want this, God you need to come through or me, then chances are that we have assumed God would bless us instead of giving more thought to living the life that God chooses to bless.

The key to overcoming this temptation is to pause and consider how we can cooperate with God instead of manipulating God.  Jesus was being tempted to prove himself as the son of God by forcing God’s hand to act, but because Jesus had walked with God and was cooperating with God’s plan, he knew God didn’t want to reveal his son to the world through a spectacular show of power but a humble show of sacrifice.  The proving ground for Jesus wasn’t to be the mid-air rescue by angels but the sacrifice of a son on the cross.  Having confidence in God’s plan and cooperating with God’s will is what helped Jesus overcome this temptation which means that knowing God’s plan and cooperating with God’s will is what will help us.

As we pause in the midst of temptation and learn to cooperate with God let me share one last thought.  Cooperation with God isn’t a two way street where we negotiate with God.  Cooperation with God is submitting to God’s will.  It is humbling ourselves so that God’s will becomes our will and God’s ways our ways.  This is what Jesus did.  He humbled himself to God’s will.  It would have been so much easier for Jesus to step off the Temple wall and let the angels catch him, but the proving ground for Jesus wasn’t in the air – it was on the cross.  Jesus took up that cross because in all things he humble himself and submitted himself to the life God had for him.

This week let us overcome temptation by humbling ourselves before God and walking in faithful obedience.  We have included a daily prayer to use each morning to help us submit ourselves to God.  I invite you to join me as we pray this together.

I am no longer my own, but yours.
Put me to what you will, rank me with whom you will;
put me to doing, put me to suffering;
let me be employed for you, or laid aside for you,
exalted for you, or brought low for you;
let me be full, let me be empty,
let me have all things, let me have nothing:
I freely and wholeheartedly yield all things 
to your pleasure and disposal.  
And now, glorious and blessed God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, you are mine and I am yours. 
So be it.
And the covenant now made on earth, let it be ratified in heaven.
Amen.

Next Steps
Pause ~ Proving Ground

1. When have you presumed on others and assumed that they would take care of things for you?  When has this happened to you and how did it make you feel?

2. Have you ever had an idea, followed through on it and then asked God to bless what you were doing?  What happened?

3. What is the difference between being presumptuous with God and having faith in God?

4. What recent prayer requests have you made that might be considered more a leveraging of God than a submission to God?

5.  This week, listen to your prayers and the cry of your heart.  Are they filled with trust or taunts?  (See Exodus 17:1-3)

6. Cooperating with God means first knowing God’s will.  How do you listen to God?  Where do you turn to find God’s direction for your life or help with decisions you have to make?

7. Use John Wesley’s Covenant Prayer as your daily prayer of cooperation and submission
I am no longer my own, but yours.
Put me to what you will, rank me with whom you will;
put me to doing, put me to suffering;
let me be employed for you, or laid aside for you,
exalted for you, or brought low for you;
let me be full, let me be empty,
let me have all things, let me have nothing:
I freely and wholeheartedly yield all things to your pleasure and disposal.  And now, glorious and blessed God, 
Father, Son and Holy Spirit, you are mine and I am yours. So be it.
And the covenant now made on earth, let it be ratified in heaven.
Amen.

Pause ~ Soul Provider

This month we are looking at how to overcome temptation and one of the most important things we need to remember is that in every temptation there is more at stake than what we might think.  Last week we learned that there are three things that are always in danger when we face temptation and they are our future, our family and our faith.  In many ways our faith is always at risk because when we face temptation it is our confidence in God that is on the line because it is our confidence in God’s strength working in our lives that helps us overcome temptation.. In times of temptation we need to ask ourselves if we believe God is big enough and strong enough to help us.  When we are tempted to do something at work that is unethical but will help us get ahead we need to ask ourselves if God is big enough to help our career if we work with integrity.  When we are tempted to enter into relationships with others because our marriages or families aren’t meeting our needs we need to ask ourselves if God is big enough to restore our marriage or heal our family.

If we will pause and think about all that is at stake and then consider how big and capable God is, then we being to find power to overcome.  We can also learn to overcome temptation by looking at how Jesus overcame temptation in his own life because Jesus was tempted in every way that we were and yet rose above it.  In the three temptations of Jesus that we are going to begin to look at today we can find the root of every temptation we face.  Jesus faced:
• the temptation to meet a legitimate need in an illegitimate way
• the temptation to leverage God for our own benefit
• the temptation to take a short cut.

One common element in each of these temptations is a desire we face to do things on our own instead of trusting in God.  There is the temptation of taking control of our own lives and being in control of our futures.  Jesus faced this same thing, so let’s look at how he dealt with this by looking at the first temptation of Jesus found in Mathew 4:1-4.
The temptation for Jesus is to meet a legitimate need he has for food.  We all need food.  Jesus needed food and after 40 days of fasting, that need was acute and at some point he was going to have to eat again, so why not just turn the stones to bread and eat now?  Jesus was being tempted to meet a legitimate need but he was being encouraged to do it in his own time, strength and power instead of waiting for God.  Jesus response to this temptation was to pause and think back to another time when God’s people had to learn to trust God for food.   The story Jesus takes us back to is the story of the Israelites and their journey to the Promised Land.

After God led his people out of slavery and through the Red Sea, they spent many years in a desert wilderness which meant that most of the time food was scarce, but God provided for them.  Every morning when the people woke up the ground was covered with a substance that was like bread – it was called Manna.  The people would go out and collect the manna and there would be enough for all the people to eat for that day.  Every morning this bread was there and God told the people to go out and gather what they needed but only gather what they needed for that day.

As soon as God said, only take enough for that day, what do you think some people did?  Right, they tried to gather more than what they needed so they could meet their own need for food the next day, but when they woke up the manna they had kept was rotten and full of maggots.  God was teaching them through this process of daily bread that they were not to depend upon themselves but to trust God for everything.  So every day they had to go out and collect what they needed for that day trusting that God would provide for them the next day.  God was teaching them to have confidence in His ability to meet all their needs.

For a generation this happened and the people learned to put  their faith and trust in God but then they settled into the promised land and the manna was going to disappear because the people were going to grow crops and raise animals to help feed themselves, but God didn’t want the people to forget that He was still the One who provided for them so Moses specifically reminded the people that it is God who provides what we need.  God reminded the people of this through a summary of the wilderness journey written by Moses which we know as the book of Deuteronomy,  Deuteronomy 8:2-3

This is the verse that Jesus quotes which means that this is the story He is thinking about when he is being tempted.  Jesus was thinking about how God provided food for the people each day and how God was calling his people to trust him for all their needs and not to try and meet their needs on their own.  While food was the issue for Jesus, Moses shows us that this temptation to meet our own needs goes far beyond food, look at Deuteronomy 8:11-14.

So it’s not just food we are talking about here, it is any legitimate hunger or  need we have.  Moses talks about homes and our prosperity which we could consider as our jobs and careers and wealth.  So in every need we have there is the temptation for us to meet that need on our own and when we do this - our relationship with God is damaged and our faith is at risk, look at Deuteronomy 8:17.  When we start placing more faith and power in our own ability than in God’s provision, we move farther and farther from God and our faith grows weak.

We are all faced with the temptation to meet legitimate needs in our own strength.  We are tempted to turn away from God by saying that we can provide for ourselves in ways that make sense for us and are good for us instead of relying on God and placing our confidence in Him.  The legitimate need might be for food but it might be for intimacy and relationship.  We were created to be in personal and intimate relationships with others and so we all hunger for that close relationship, but when we try to meet this need on our own – it can lead us into unhealthy relationships which can wreck families and destroy marriages.  

We were all created to be prosperous and God has a plan for all of us to succeed but when we try to meet this legitimate need on our own we often end up making poor decisions that ruin our credit or destroy our reputation.  We were created to enjoy life and live it to the fullest but when we set out to do this on our own instead of in line with the boundaries and blessings of God, we run headlong into addictions that can destroy our future, our families and our faith.

In what area of life are we being tempted to meet a legitimate need but in an illegitimate way?  Is it the need for companionship and intimacy or the need for financial gain or the success we want at work?  Whatever the temptation is, God understands it because God is the One who created that hunger in the first place.  God created these needs within us which means that God wants to meet these need but he wants to do it in His way and His time and according to His will and purpose.  So again, in what areas are we being tempted to meet a legitimate God given hunger but in ways that just don’t line up with God’s will or values or purpose?

One way to determine what this legitimate need might be that we are struggling with in life might be to ask ourselves what the one temptation is that we seem to never be able to overcome.  What is the temptation that we seem to fight day after day, week after week and even year after year?  Chances are this temptation is to meet a legitimate need in our life which is why it never goes away because it was given by God and it is supposed to be part of our life, but we struggle because we are trying to meet the need in ways that don’t line up with God’s will.

We can overcome this temptation by reminding ourselves, as Jesus did, that there is something bigger and greater than that need in our lives and that is our need for God to be our soul/sole provider.  By soul/sole provider I mean that God is the one who wants to meet our needs and provide for all of what we hunger and thirst for in life, so God wants to be our Soul Provider, but God also wants to be the ONLY one we turn to in order to meet this need.  In other words, God wants to be our Sole Provider

That’s why Jesus quotes what is said in the Old Testament, Man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.  There was something greater than bread for Jesus in this moment and that was being obedient to the word of God and living a life that trusted God to provide everything that Jesus needed.  When we face the temptation to meet legitimate needs in illegitimate ways we need to say what Jesus said, Man shall not live by_______ alone.  You just fill in the blank with what tempts you the most.  In fighting temptation, Jesus said this out loud, he addressed it to Satan and in the process he reminded himself what was really important.  In our fight against temptation we need to say this out loud, address it to Satan which will remind us of what is really important which is never the need we face but our faith and trust in God to provide for all that we need.

So let's practice this for a moment.  Let’s say together, Man shall not live by bread alone.  Now let’s say Man shall not live by ______ alone and when we pause you put in the silence the temptation you face.

One last comment to make this morning as we look to overcome temptation.  Jesus understood the power of God’s word in overcoming temptation.  By quoting God’s word Jesus was connection himself to the power of God because God’s word is living and active and when we quote it we gain strength and power.  But quoting God’s word also helped Jesus remember other times and places when God helped his people in some very big ways.  We also need those reminders.  If we can remember how God helped people in big ways it reminds us that we have a big God who is able to help us when we are feeling weak, vulnerable and hungry.  So We need to find those stories and quote those scriptures that give us strength so that we can overcome temptation.

This week as we face the temptation to meet legitimate needs in illegitimate, irresponsible and immoral ways, let us pause and remember that our faith is always at stake and the most important thing in life isn’t food, intimately, wealth or prosperity, it is our relationship with God who wants to be our Soul and our Sole provider.
Next Steps
Pause ~ Soul Provider


1. Read Matthew 4:1-4.  What temptation did Jesus face?  Why didn’t Jesus meet his own legitimate need for food?  What was at stake for Jesus in this temptation?


2. Is there one temptation that you have struggled with over and over again in life?   Is this a temptation to meet a legitimate need we all have in life?  If so what is it?  What is at stake in meeting this need on your own and in your own strength?


3. Read Deuteronomy 8 and remember how God needs to be our Soul and Sole Provider.


4. Jesus quoted Deuteronomy 8:3 to help keep His confidence in God.  Find a passage of God’s word that can help you keep confidence in God when you face temptation. (Searching by key words in a concordance or online Bible resource can help.)


5.  This week when you are tempted to meet a legitimate need in an illegitimate way, pause and say to yourself and Satan,

I shall not live by ___________ alone.
I will trust God to be my soul and sole provider.

Pause - Day 41

Temptation, it’s all around us and it affects every one of us.  It might involve what we eat, what we watch, what we search for online or what we strive for at work.  It can involve where we look with our eyes, where we go with our feet, what we say with our lips and where we allow our hearts to wander.  Temptation is there in every stage of life because while our hungers and desires change through the years, temptation does not.  It is always there and here’s the bad news – it always will be.  Temptation will always be by our side but the good news is that we are not left to overcome it on our own.  This month we are going to look at how God helps us overcome temptation by looking at how Jesus overcame temptation in his life.

As we look at temptation there are 2 important things to remember.
1. There is always more at stake when we are tempted than what we might think.
2. Our ability to withstand temptation has more to do with our confidence in God then the strength in ourselves.  

1. There is always more at stake when we are tempted than what we might think.  In every temptation we face, there is more than what meets the eye, in fact when we are tempted there are always three important things that are in danger: our future, our family and our faith.  If the temptation has to do with food, it’s not just a matter of eating too much; we run the risk of health issues like heart disease and diabetes which can ruin our future.  If the temptation has to do with gaining status or wealth, it’s not just a matter working long and hard, working too hard or too long can impact our marriages and children so that our families might suffer.  If the temptation has to do with any kind of immoral activity, it might feel good for the moment but the long term effect will be to pull us away from God’s will which undermines our faith.  There is always more at stake than what lies on the surface and we need to remember this when we face temptation because if nothing else, our future, our families and our faith depends on it.

2. Our ability to withstand temptation has more to do with our confidence in God than in the strength in ourselves.  Look at 1 Corinthians 10:13.   The ability to overcome temptation doesn’t come from our own personal strength or self control; it comes when we trust God to provide for us a way out.  If our confidence is in God and not in ourselves, then we can begin to experience freedom and victory over the temptations we face in life because we find the power to fight it off.

Now what usually happens when we face temptations is that we push these two ideas away.  We think that the temptation we face isn’t a big deal, or we tell ourselves it won’t make any difference or hurt anyone so it’s ok for us to give in.  At the same time we assume that we are alone in fighting temptation and we know just how weak and vulnerable we are, so again we just give in.  So we tend to push these two truths away but if we can pull them together and remember all that hangs in the balance when we face temptation and that God does give us strength to find a way out or a way through the struggle, then we will be better able to overcome the temptations that we face.  

During this series we are going to look at the 3 temptations Jesus faced at the beginning of his ministry.  They are found in Matthew 4 but today we are going to set the stage a little bit by looking at what happened before these temptations came.  Matthew 3:16 – 4:1

When Jesus was baptized God clearly stated just how much he loved Jesus and how pleased he was with him and yet immediately after these words of affirmation, God led Jesus into the wilderness to be tempted.  God loved Jesus and yet that love and confidence didn’t keep trials and temptations away, in fact it led him right into it.  What we learn from this is that all those who are loved and called by God are led to challenging places where we are tempted.  Abraham was called by God and then tempted to trust his own wisdom when he faced difficult situations.  Moses was called by God and then was tempted to trust in his own strength.  Peter and all the disciples were called by Jesus and yet they were all tempted in different ways and so we should not be surprised when we are tempted.  It’s not a sign God doesn’t love us, God loved Jesus and led him into temptation.
Maybe this is why Jesus tells us to pray, lead us not into temptation, because Jesus was led there and he knows how difficult it was.  The truth is we will all face temptation but we can learn from Jesus how to overcome it.  Matthew 4:2-3

Notice that it was after 40 days of fasting that the tempter came to Jesus.  The temptations didn’t come when Jesus was strong and the words of affirmation given by God were clear, it was weeks later.  Jesus’ temptation began on Day 41 when God’s words of love were just a memory and Jesus was physically, emotionally and spiritually weak.  Temptation never comes when we are strong; it comes when we are weak and vulnerable.  Temptation comes on Day 41, when we are tired, feeling helpless and alone.  Temptation comes when we aren’t thinking about all that is at stake and when our confidence in God’s love for us and his offer of strength are just a distant memory.  Temptation comes on Day 41 which means we need to be prepared and one way we can prepare ourselves is to pause in the face of temptation and remember all that is at stake and that God is with us.

Think about what was at stake for Jesus when he faced temptation.  It wasn’t just his life and future, it was ours.  If Jesus gave in to temptation here then he would not have been the sinless one which means that he could not have paid the price for our sin.  Our salvation, our future, our lives were hanging in the balance when Jesus was tempted.  Jesus knew exactly what was at stake and in every temptation we face we need to pause and think about our future, our families and our faith and count the cost.

So it was on Day 41 that Jesus faced 3 temptations and we are going to look at each one of these in more detail during the next 3 weeks but one of the things we see here is that every temptation we face in life begins right here.  In each temptation Jesus faced we find the seeds of all other temptations – so in some sense when it says in Hebrews 4:15 that Jesus was tempted in every way, just as we are, it is true  because every temptation we face can find it’s beginning right here.

The 3 temptations that Jesus faced which we all face are these:
The temptation to meet a legitimate need in an illegitimate way.  
The temptation to leverage God for our own end or benefit. 
The temptation to take a short cut.  

Every temptation we face can be traced back to one of these three.  The temptations we face dealing with food, sex and money are all legitimate needs we have.  We need food to survive.  God gave us sex as a gift to be enjoyed and celebrated.  God provides for us wealth and riches out of his abundance and God wants us to be successful and prosperous in all that we do.  The needs that we have in these areas are all legitimate but when we are tempted to meet them in ways that are outside of God’s will and boundaries, when they are illegitimate, things start to go wrong.  The temptation to meet legitimate needs in unhealthy and inappropriate ways leads to the destruction of our future, our family and our faith.  

When we ask God to help us without giving any consideration to God’s will and plan means that we are trying to leverage God for our own benefit.  This can be a very subtle thing and often goes unnoticed, but we often ask God to help us without giving thought to how God might want to work in us or through us.  We all face the temptation to ask God to do things our way instead of pausing to think about how we might be better off doing things God’s way.

And how many of us have been tempted to take a short cut.  We consider taking a short cut on our taxes, on the final exam or paper for school or the project at work.  How often do we take a short cut when it comes to spending time with our families or time with God?  When we think that one hour a week on Sunday is all that we need for a deep and vital relationship with God we are trying to take a short cut in our faith.  Most short cuts in life lead to more pain and problems or at least don’t bring us the desired results.

It’s amazing to think that most of what we are tempted with in life finds its beginning right here.  This is important to understand because if we are able to see that every temptation is really just one of these, then the mystery and power of temptation begins to go away.  It’s like what happens when Dorothy and her friends are able to see behind the curtain.

Did you notice what happened when the curtain was pulled away? The power of the Oz diminished and the confidence and strength of Dorothy and the others grew.  When we are able to see behind the curtain of temptation and understand that there are only three ideas pulling all the strings of temptation then the balance of power shifts.  Temptation loses its power and our confidence in God grows and when that happens we are victorious.

It’s important to unmask the temptations we face because they are never going to go away, but if we can learn to pause when they come so that we can see what is going on behind them and learn what is truly at stake with them, then we can begin to dismantle their hold on us and find confidence in God to overcome them.  This week we need to begin to pause when temptation comes so we can learn how to overcome it.

Next Steps
Pause ~ Day 41

1. Read the Story of Jesus’ temptation in Matthew 4:1-11.
What was at stake for Jesus (and us) in these temptations?

2. Jesus was tempted on Day 41, after 40 days of fasting.  When are you most vulnerable to temptation?

3. Name the three greatest temptations you face:
•
•
•

4. What is at stake in each of these temptations?
•
•
•

5. How might these temptations impact:
• your future
• your family
• your faith

6. How are the temptations you face linked to one of these?  The temptation to:
• Meet a legitimate need in an illegitimate way*
• Leverage God for our own benefit*
• Take a short cut*
*more details will come through this sermon series


When faced with temptation this week,
pause to consider all that is at stake and then
pray, asking God for strength to overcome.