Luke 4:1-13

1 And Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness 2 for forty days, being tempted by the devil. And he ate nothing during those days. And when they were ended, he was hungry. 3 The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.” 4 And Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone.’” 5 And the devil took him up and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time, 6 and said to him, “To you I will give all this authority and their glory, for it has been delivered to me, and I give it to whom I will. 7 If you, then, will worship me, it will all be yours.” 8 And Jesus answered him, “It is written, “‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and him only shall you serve.’” 9 And he took him to Jerusalem and set him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here, 10 for it is written, “‘He will command his angels concerning you, to guard you,’ 11 and “‘On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.’” 12 And Jesus answered him, “It is said, ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’” 13 And when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from him until an opportune time.

It is remarkable how very very good things (even the Word of God) can be used for self-serving evil. In Satan’s third temptation to Jesus (v.9-11) he specifically uses Scripture (Psalm 91:11-12) as a means to tempt Jesus! 

9 And he took him to Jerusalem and set him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here, 10 for it is written, “‘He will command his angels concerning you, to guard you,’ 11 and “‘On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.’” 

Our minds are so prone to have a perspective, a thought, a mindset, and our assumption should be that by default our sin rules the flesh and mind. Satan knows this and will even try to use Scripture (God's very words) against us, to feed our flesh, to enflame the passions of the flesh, to create fractures in our connection to God and one another. And the born-again believer has the God-ordained ability (empowered by the Holy Spirit) to pause, take it up to God our Father, re-orient, and take a godly perspective in any and every situation. We cannot ease up on the gas pedal in “renewing our minds” (Romans 12:2) not only personally, in prayer, in the closet, before God’s holy presence, but also together as a body and with our covenanted members and spouses and loved ones speaking true, godly words and perspectives into our lives (Hebrews 3:12-13). There is too much at stake, we are too easily fallible, and the path is too narrow to be traveled without a fellowship that is committed to calvary's road. 

Posted by Robert Han on 10/14/2016

Comments

Perspective is a tricky thing because no matter who you talk to, that person will believe that their perspective it true. This becomes a challenge when you are honestly and lovingly trying to rebuke to show the err in their ways. I think many of us can admit to being on both ends of that spectrum. It is easy to think that you're in the right and being firm in your beliefs. Once you bow your head a little in submission do you realize that there is this other way of seeing life. Even at times when godly peers are providing their perspective as true, only God's perspective seems to be the best option. It takes much humility and selfless-ness to gain God's perspective. Self entitlement and pride are always at war when seeking this perspective. You have to fight the whispers of "you deserve it" or "how dare they...." Satan is so skilled at twisting things. It shouldn't be surprising that he uses it as one of his tactics.

Diana Lim on 10/18/2016 at 7:59 AM

Good word Diana!

Robert Han on 10/18/2016 at 10:01 AM