Read Luke 4:1-12

The temptation of Jesus takes place in the wilderness. Jesus has been fasting for 40 days and is hungry. We can’t forget that Jesus would have felt hunger just like we would feel it if we had gone that long without eating. I find it significant that the first temptation that Jesus faces is connected to that physical hunger that he was feeling. He would feel weak and the temptation to simply meet his needs for food would have to be great. A lesson for us here could be that the devil knows when to come for us and what our weaknesses are at the time.

Jesus is greeted with the same temptations that we face from the devil. 1 John 2:16 “For all that is in the world – the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life – is not from the Father but is from the world.” The stones to bread would have appealed to the desires of the flesh. The kingdoms of the world would have appealed to the desires of the eyes. Throwing himself off the temple would have appealed to the pride of life. Breaking the temptations down like this can make it easier to spot a temptation for what it is.

Jesus provides the road map for success as he greets each temptation with scripture. God’s Word is the only weapon we’ve been given in our fight against the devil (Ephesians 6). It is the only weapon we need because the devil can’t defeat the truth. In each case when Jesus quoted scripture the devil moved on to something else. This shows the importance of having God’s Word in our hearts and minds as we navigate this life. Let us commit to studying more often and being prepared when the devil comes for us. The Word of God is our source of knowledge that will help us gain the victory in the end.