Overcoming Temptation

MATTHEW 4:8-11

JESUS was born to be a king—the “King of kings, and Lord of lords.” (Rev. 19:16) One of Jehovah’s promises to him was, “Ask of me, and I will give thee the heathen [nations] for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession.” (Psa. 2:8) On the Isle of Patmos the Revelator was given a vision of the fulfillment of this prophecy and in describing it he wrote, “The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.”—Rev. 11:15

The Master knew that this was the divine purpose for him, but he was unwilling to become the ruler of the world on the devil’s terms, those terms being the recognition of Satan as his overlord—“All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.” This was a bold attempt to thwart the plan of God, and one less determined than Jesus to do the will of God might well have yielded to the proposal, particularly since it seemingly offered a way to world dominion which would not entail delay and suffering.

The way to glory outlined for Jesus in the plan of God was one of suffering and death. Before he became the ruler of the world he was to die for the world—die as the Redeemer of the people in order that when they became his subjects he could offer them the blessing of everlasting life. Attaining kingship by this route was admittedly the “hard way,” but it was God’s way, and Jesus, who later said, “I and my Father are one,” was resolute in his determination to carry out his Heavenly Father’s will in every detail. Even when presented with the final test of obedience, when he wondered if it might not be possible to be spared such a cup of suffering, he said, “Nevertheless, not as I will, but as thou wilt.”—Matt. 26:39

The universal testimony of the prophecies reveals that the Lord’s plan for establishing his control over the affairs of men is one which first of all calls for suffering on the part of those who later are to rule. This thought is summed up by the Apostle Peter in the expression, “the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow.” (I Pet. 1:11) The church of Christ, made up of his true followers, participates in these foretold sufferings, and those who are faithful even unto death are promised that they will reign with Christ.

Not all the professed followers of Jesus, however, were victorious in resisting the temptation of immediate rulership when it was presented to them by the devil. History indicates, rather, that many succumbed to it. This is what led to the establishment of a counterfeit kingdom of Christ in Europe as represented in the church-state systems of the old Roman world. The true disciples of Christ knew that they were not to reign with him until after he returned, and that then they would he brought forth from death in the “first resurrection” for the very purpose of sharing the glory of his rulership over the nations—a rulership that was destined in the divine plan to establish peace on earth and to give everlasting life to all the willing and obedient.

But those who became lukewarm, and lost the true vision of the coming glorious kingdom of Christ, were willing to compromise by accepting the favor of the world and of civil governments. Eventually, union with these governments was consummated—the devil, having been rejected by Jesus, had now seduced his professed followers to abandon their loyalty to the divine plan and in return to accept the fleeting and tinseled glory of the world. “Christendom” was born.

But God’s plan did not fail. There have been a few true followers of the Master throughout the entire age. These have kept themselves unspotted from the world. Gladly they have suffered and died with the Master, and in keeping with God’s promises, these will live and reign with him in the true messianic kingdom. In the divine promise that the kingdoms of this world would become the possession of Christ, it is stated that he would dash them to pieces “like a potter’s vessel.” (Psa. 2:9) We are also told that when the kingdoms of this world become the kingdoms of God and of his Christ that the nations would become angry. We are already witnessing the fulfillment of these prophecies. The nations are now angry, and in the divine economy their anger is being used to destroy one another. Thus they are being dashed to pieces like a potter’s vessel. This means that our hope of living and reigning with Christ is soon to be translated into reality.

JOHN 6:15

JESUS was loyal to the divine plan in every respect, including its time features. In this passage we note a desire of the people—at least those to whom he had ministered along material lines—to make him a king. It was a large group which decided to do this, and Jesus evidently realized that it would be useless simply to decline the offer, so he hurriedly withdrew to a secluded place on a nearby mountain. He knew that this was not the method by which he was to be made king of the world; and he knew also that this was not the time for his kingdom to be established.

It is interesting to compare this incident with the Master’s later triumphal march into Jerusalem, which occurred just a few days before he was crucified. On this latter occasion, he did permit his friends to make a move which, as they thought, was calculated to result in their Master being accepted as the king of the Jews. But Jesus knew that he would be rejected, and that the effort would but help to stir up greater animosity toward him on the part of the religious rulers, and would be one of the contributing causes of his death.

This might well have been true on the former occasion when the people wanted to exalt Jesus as king, but now he permitted his friends to make the effort; for he knew that God’s due time had arrived for him to die. He knew also from the prophecy of Zechariah that he was thus to be presented to his people as king, “riding upon a colt the foal of an ass.” Now his obedience to what had been written led him to assent to something which previously he refuse d. (Zech. 9:9) From this we see that the time features of the divine plan are most important as guides to those who are co-laborers with him.

ROMANS 13:12-14

TODAY’S lesson is designed to promote temperance, and this passage does speak of “drunkenness.” It is obvious, however, that Paul had something quite different in mind when writing this epistle than an effort to change the habits of the world with respect to the use of alcoholic beverages. And certainly the temptations Satan presented to Jesus, as considered in the previous section of the lesson, were not along this line.

Every true Christian endeavors to practice self-control and moderation in all things. But those who are following in the footsteps of Jesus do not need to be exhorted against the evils of strong drink. Their “temperance” is practiced on a higher level, and while they endeavor to abstain from every form of evil, their righteousness is not merely negative; for they are glad to lay down their lives doing good to all men, especially unto the household of faith.

“The night is far spent, the day is at hand,” wrote the Apostle Paul. The “night” he refers to is that long dark period of human experience during which sin and death have been reigning. It has been a night filled with weeping, but the Psalmist assures us that “joy cometh in the morning.” (Psa. 30:5) Satan has been the ruler of the world during this nighttime of sin, and his subjects have often been wanton in their practice of the works of darkness.

However, the Lord’s people have been called out of the world, out of the darkness of sin, and into the glorious light of the Gospel as it shines in the face of Jesus Christ. They are no longer “of the night.” (I Thess. 5:5) Their affections are set upon things above, and their hope is centered in the new day, the day of Christ’s kingdom, when Satan will be bound and when the knowledge of God’s glory will fill the earth as the waters cover the sea.—Col. 3:2; Rev. 20:2; Hab. 2:14

If Paul could say in his day that the “night is far spent,” how much truer it is now! Indeed, we are living in the prophetic time of the morning, yea, in the very dawn of that morning. We are even now experiencing that darkest hour just before the full blaze of morning bursts upon the sin-sick and dying world. So we look up and lift up our heads, knowing that the time of deliverance for both the church and the world is near.—Luke 21:28,31

The apostle’s argument is that since the day is at hand we should “cast off the works of darkness,” put on the “armor of light.” The “light” is the truth, the truth of God’s plan, that plan in which Jesus Christ, the Redeemer and Savior of the world, is the center. If we put on this armor of light, it means that we also put on “the Lord Jesus Christ.”

In Ephesians 6:11-17, Paul details each piece of the Christian’s armor—the “helmet of salvation”; the “breastplate of righteousness”; the “shield of faith”; the “girdle of truth”; the “sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God”; and the sandals, or, as he states it, having our “feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace.” Walking in Christ and wearing such an “armor of light,” the followers of Jesus will surely be separate from the world. They will not make provision for the flesh, but instead, will be using their flesh sacrificially in the service of the Lord, letting their light shine that others may know that “the day is at hand.”

I CORINTHIANS 10:12, 13

HERE also the Sunday School Lesson Committee has taken a passage completely out of its setting in their attempt to apply it to resisting temptation to strong drink—as much as it is praise-worthy for any and all to resist temptation. “Let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall,” writes Paul. In principle, this is very good advice indeed to those who are endeavoring to overcome the habit of strong drink, but it is not what the apostle was writing about.

In the context, Paul is comparing the position of the Christian in the world with that of the nation of Israel in the wilderness of sin. Theirs were the sins of idolatry, fornication, murmuring, etc. Friendship with the world is spiritual fornication for the Christian. Setting one’s affections on things of the flesh, such as home, family, money, etc., to the exclusion of God and contrary to our vows of consecration, is spiritual idolatry. And how easy “it is to be more or less dissatisfied with the experiences of life which the Lord in his wisdom permits, and therefore crave a larger share of the good things of the world.

We may think that we are safe from falling into any of these errors of conduct, but we should always be watchful, taking heed lest unwittingly we are overtaken by the wiles of the devil and tempted in one way or another to break our vows of consecration. Paul says that no temptations come to us but those which are “common to man.” The marginal translation reads, “moderate” to man. As we have seen, Christians are not tempted to practice the gross sins indulged in by the degenerate of the world; but rather those things which to the world seem moderate, and usually quite proper.

The Greek word here translated “temptation” does not exclusively mean enticement to do wrong. Its larger meaning includes the thought of a testing, or a trial. Within this larger meaning would be included all our trials and disciplines. And how sweet the promise that “God is faithful,” and because of this will not permit us to be tried above that which we are able to bear, that when our experiences reach the point where they might crush us as new creatures, he will provide a way of escape.

QUESTIONS

Why did Satan’s offer to give Jesus the kingdoms of this world constitute a temptation?

Why did Jesus permit his friends to hail him as king at the close of his ministry, but would not do so previously?

What did Paul mean by the “night” which is “far spent,” and how do Christians put off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light?

What is the nature of temptations which come to Christians, and how do we know that we need not be overwhelmed by them?

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