Then the devil taketh Him up into the holy city, and setteth Him on a
pinnacle of the temple, and saith unto Him, If Thou be the Son of God,
cast
Thyself down: for it is written,--
"He shall give His angels charge concerning Thee:
And in their hands they shall bear Thee up,
Lest at any time Thou dash Thy foot against a stone."
Satan now supposes that he has met Jesus on His own ground. The wily foe
himself presents words that proceeded from the mouth of God. He still
appears as an angel of light, and he makes it evident that he is
acquainted
with the Scriptures, and understands the im****t of what is written. As
Jesus
before used the word of God to sustain His faith, the tempter now uses it
to
countenance his deception. He claims that he has been only testing the
fidelity of Jesus, and he now commends His steadfastness. As the Saviour
has
manifested trust in God, Satan urges Him to give still another evidence of
His faith.
But again the temptation is prefaced with the insinuation of distrust, "If
Thou be the Son of God." Christ was tempted to answer the "if;" but He
refrained from the slightest acceptance of the doubt. He would not imperil
His life in order to give evidence to Satan.
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The tempter thought to take advantage of Christ's humanity, and urge Him
to
presumption. But while Satan can solicit, he cannot compel to sin. He said
to Jesus, "Cast Thyself down," knowing that he could not cast Him down;
for
God would interpose to deliver Him. Nor could Satan force Jesus to cast
Himself down. Unless Christ should consent to temptation, He could not be
overcome. Not all the power of earth or hell could force Him in the
slightest degree to depart from the will of His Father.
The tempter can never compel us to do evil. He cannot control minds unless
they are yielded to his control. The will must consent, faith must let go
its hold upon Christ, before Satan can exercise his power upon us. But
every
sinful desire we cherish affords him a foothold. Every point in which we
fail of meeting the divine standard is an open door by which he can enter
to
tempt and destroy us. And every failure or defeat on our part gives
occasion
for him to reproach Christ.
When Satan quoted the promise, "He shall give His angels charge over
Thee,"
he omitted the words, "to keep Thee in all Thy ways;" that is, in all the
ways of God's choosing. Jesus refused to go outside the path of obedience.
While manifesting perfect trust in His Father, He would not place Himself,
unbidden, in a position that would necessitate the interposition of His
Father to save Him from death. He would not force Providence to come to
His
rescue, and thus fail of giving man an example of trust and submission.
Jesus declared to Satan, "It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the
Lord
thy God." These words were spoken by Moses to the children of Israel when
they thirsted in the desert, and demanded that Moses should give them
water,
exclaiming, "Is the Lord among
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us, or not?" Exodus 17:7. God had wrought marvelously for them; yet in
trouble they doubted Him, and demanded evidence that He was with them. In
their unbelief they sought to put Him to the test. And Satan was urging
Christ to do the same thing. God had already testified that Jesus was His
Son; and now to ask for proof that He was the Son of God would be putting
God's word to the test,--tempting Him. And the same would be true of
asking
for that which God had not promised. It would manifest distrust, and be
really proving, or tempting, Him. We should not present our petitions to
God
to prove whether He will fulfill His word, but because He will fulfill it;
not to prove that He loves us, but because He loves us. "Without faith it
is
impossible to please Him: for he that cometh to God must believe that He
is,
and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him." Heb. 11:6.
But faith is in no sense allied to presumption. Only he who has true faith
is secure against presumption. For presumption is Satan's counterfeit of
faith. Faith claims God's promises, and brings forth fruit in obedience.
Presumption also claims the promises, but uses them as Satan did, to
excuse
transgression. Faith would have led our first parents to trust the love of
God, and to obey His commands. Presumption led them to transgress His law,
believing that His great love would save them from the consequence of
their
sin. It is not faith that claims the favor of Heaven without complying
with
the conditions on which mercy is to be granted. Genuine faith has its
foundation in the promises and provisions of the Scriptures.
Often when Satan has failed of exciting distrust, he succeeds in leading
us
to presumption. If he can cause us to place ourselves unnecessarily in the
way of temptation, he knows that the victory is his. God will preserve all
who walk in the path of obedience; but to depart from it is to venture on
Satan's ground. There we are sure to fall. The Saviour has bidden us,
"Watch
ye and pray, lest ye enter into temptation." Mark 14:38. Meditation and
prayer would keep us from ru****ng unbidden into the way of danger, and
thus
we should be saved from many a defeat.
Yet we should not lose courage when assailed by temptation. Often when
placed in a trying situation we doubt that the Spirit of God has been
leading us. But it was the Spirit's leading that brought Jesus into the
wilderness to be tempted by Satan. When God brings us into trial, He has a
purpose to accomplish for our good. Jesus did not presume on God's
promises
by going unbidden into temptation, neither did He give
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up to despondency when temptation came upon Him. Nor should we. "God is
faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able;
but
will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to
bear it." He says, "Offer unto God thanksgiving; and pay thy vows unto the
Most High: and call upon Me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee,
and
thou shalt glorify Me." 1 Cor. 10:13; Ps. 50:14, 15.
Jesus was victor in the second temptation, and now Satan manifests himself
in his true character. But he does not appear as a hideous monster, with
cloven feet and bat's wings. He is a mighty angel, though fallen. He avows
himself the leader of rebellion and the god of this world.
Placing Jesus upon a high mountain, Satan caused the kingdoms of the
world,
in all their glory, to pass in panoramic view before Him. The sunlight lay
on templed cities, marble palaces, fertile fields, and fruit-laden
vineyards. The traces of evil were hidden. The eyes of Jesus, so lately
greeted by gloom and desolation, now gazed upon a scene of unsurpassed
loveliness and prosperity. Then the tempter's voice was heard: "All this
power will I give Thee, and the glory of them: for that is delivered unto
me; and to whomsoever I will I give it. If Thou therefore wilt wor****p me,
all shall be Thine."
Christ's mission could be fulfilled only through suffering. Before Him was
a
life of sorrow, hard****p, and conflict, and an ignominious death. He must
bear the sins of the whole world. He must endure separation from His
Father's love. Now the tempter offered to yield up the power he had
usurped.
Christ might deliver Himself from the dreadful future by acknowledging the
supremacy of Satan. But to do this was to yield the victory in the great
controversy. It was in seeking to exalt himself above the Son of God that
Satan had sinned in heaven. Should he prevail now, it would be the triumph
of rebellion.
When Satan declared to Christ, The kingdom and glory of the world are
delivered unto me, and to whomsoever I will I give it, he stated what was
true only in part, and he declared it to serve his own purpose of
deception.
Satan's dominion was that wrested from Adam, but Adam was the vicegerent
of
the Creator. His was not an independent rule. The earth is God's, and He
has
committed all things to His Son. Adam was to reign subject to Christ. When
Adam betrayed his sovereignty into Satan's hands, Christ still remained
the
rightful King. Thus the Lord had said to King Nebuchadnezzar, "The Most
High
ruleth in the
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kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever He will." Dan. 4:17. Satan can
exercise his usurped authority only as God permits.
When the tempter offered to Christ the kingdom and glory of the world, he
was proposing that Christ should yield up the real king****p of the world,
and hold dominion subject to Satan. This was the same dominion upon which
the hopes of the Jews were set. They desired the kingdom of this world. If
Christ had consented to offer them such a kingdom, they would gladly have
received Him. But the curse of sin, with all its woe, rested upon it.
Christ
declared to the tempter, "Get thee behind Me, Satan: for it is written,
Thou
shalt wor****p the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve."
By the one who had revolted in heaven the kingdoms of this world were
offered Christ, to buy His homage to the principles of evil; but He would
not be bought; He had come to establish a kingdom of righteousness, and He
would not abandon His purpose. With the same temptation Satan approaches
men, and here he has better success than with Christ. To men he offers the
kingdom of this world on condition that they will acknowledge his
supremacy.
He requires that they sacrifice integrity, disregard conscience, indulge
selfishness. Christ bids them seek first the kingdom of God, and His
righteousness; but Satan walks by their side and says: Whatever may be
true
in regard to life eternal, in order to make a success in this world you
must
serve me. I hold your welfare in my hands. I can give you riches,
pleasures,
honor, and happiness. Hearken to my counsel. Do not allow yourselves to be
carried away with whimsical notions of honesty or self-sacrifice. I will
prepare the way before you. Thus multitudes are deceived. They consent to
live for the service of self, and Satan is satisfied. While he allures
them
with the hope of worldly dominion, he gains dominion over the soul. But he
offers that which is not his to bestow, and which is soon to be wrested
from
him. In return he beguiles them of their title to the inheritance of the
sons of God.
Satan had questioned whether Jesus was the Son of God. In his summary
dismissal he had proof that he could not gainsay. Divinity flashed through
suffering humanity. Satan had no power to resist the command. Writhing
with
humiliation and rage, he was forced to withdraw from the presence of the
world's Redeemer. Christ's victory was as complete as had been the failure
of Adam.
So we may resist temptation, and force Satan to depart from us. Jesus
gained
the victory through submission and faith in God, and by
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the apostle He says to us, "Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the
devil, and he will flee from you. Draw nigh to God, and He will draw nigh
to
you." James 4:7, 8. We cannot save ourselves from the tempter's power; he
has conquered humanity, and when we try to stand in our own strength, we
shall become a prey to his devices; but "the name of the Lord is a strong
tower: the righteous runneth into it, and is safe." Prov. 18:10. Satan
trembles and flees before the weakest soul who finds refuge in that mighty
name.
After the foe had departed, Jesus fell exhausted to the earth, with the
pallor of death upon His face. The angels of heaven had watched the
conflict, beholding their loved Commander as He passed through
inexpressible
suffering to make a way of escape for us. He had endured the test, greater
than we shall ever be called to endure. The angels now ministered to the
Son
of God as He lay like one dying. He was strengthened with food, comforted
with the message of His Father's love and the assurance that all heaven
triumphed in His victory. Warming to life again, His great heart goes out
in
sympathy for man, and He goes forth to complete the work He has begun; to
rest not until the foe is vanquished, and our fallen race redeemed.
Never can the cost of our redemption be realized until the redeemed shall
stand with the Redeemer before the throne of God. Then as the glories of
the
eternal home burst upon our enraptured senses we shall remember that Jesus
left all this for us, that He not only became an exile from the heavenly
courts, but for us took the risk of failure and eternal loss. Then we
shall
cast our crowns at His feet, and raise the song, "Worthy is the Lamb that
was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and
honor,
and glory, and blessing." Rev. 5:12.
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