Pinnacles
& High Places
The Second Temptation
Deuteronomy
6:10-16, Matthew 4:1-11
Grace
Presbyterian Church
September
29, 2013
Rev.
Dr. Richard E. Miller
Recap of Last Sunday This morning, we continue our exploration
into the perilous world of temptations. Last week we found Jesus in alone and
hungry in a 525 square mile wilderness area between Jerusalem and the Dead Sea.
It was an area of yellow sand, crumbling limestone and jagged rocks and was
called Jeshimmon, or “The Devastation” by the Hebrews. The area was about the
size of Jefferson County. In this wilderness, Jesus could be more alone than
anywhere else. He had gone into this wilderness immediately after his baptism
to pray and to discover exactly how he was to fulfill God’s will for his life.
After fasting for forty days and forty
nights, Jesus was hungry and tired. And it was in this weakened state that he
encountered the power of the Tempter who said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of
bread.” And Jesus replied, “One does
not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.”
[Matthew 4:4] For us, this means that even though we need the necessities
of life, such as food and shelter, we must feast on the Word of God as well.
Second Temptation Although Jesus repelled the Tempter, the
Tempter was persistent and wouldn’t give up. So he decided to try and corrupt
Jesus a second time. This time the Tempter and Jesus travel to the great Temple
of Jerusalem. The Temple was built on the top of Mount Zion. The top of the
mountain was leveled out into a plateau. It was on that plateau that the temple
buildings stood. There was one corner of the Temple where Solomon’s porch and
the Royal porch met. At that corner there was a sheer drop of four hundred and
fifty feet into the valley of the Kedron below. It is at this high pinnacle
that Jesus and the Tempter looked out over the valley below. Then the Tempter
said to Jesus, “If you are the son of
God, throw yourself down, for it is written “He will command his angels
concerning you, and they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not
strike your foot against a stone.” [Matthew 4:6, NIV] The Tempter was paraphrasing Psalm 91:11-12
[NIV] which says, “For he will command
his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; they will lift you up
in their hands so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.” Just
as he did the first time the Tempter threw a dare at Jesus. In this case, daring
Jesus to put God’s promises to the test by thrusting himself off the pinnacle
and compelling God to intervene for his safety with a miracle.
To understand the lure of this second
test thrown at Jesus, it is well to remember that from early childhood, Jews
were taught to believe that when the true messiah came, he would be endowed
with the divine power, or “dunamis” of God. They learned the rabbinical
tradition which stated, “When the king
messiah reveals himself, then he comes and stands on the roof of the holy
place.”
Thus, a quick and dramatic way by which
Jesus could prove that he had the messianic power from God would be by leaping
into the valley below and not be injured.
Golden opportunity What a golden opportunity for Jesus! It was
carpe diem. Seize the moment! If he jumped from the pinnacle with thousands of
Jews looking on, and survived without even a scratch or a bruise, he would be
immediately hailed as the messiah. Performing such a miracle, and receiving the
applause and adulation of the crowd, was surely a far more appealing alternative
than enduring the pain and agony of the Cross. But again, Jesus said,
“No.” He rebuffed the Tempter by quoting
Deuteronomy 6:16, “Do not put the Lord
your God to the test.” [Matthew 4:7]
He refused to do as the Tempter dare
him to do because he knew that his Messiahship was not to be revealed to the
world through a simple leap down from the top of the Temple, but instead
through his gigantic leap upwards onto the Cross.
Satan Knew Scriptures What is important to realize is that Satan
knew the scriptures as well as Jesus. He tempted Jesus with Psalm 91 hoping
that Jesus might be persuaded to follow him if he thought he was fulfilling
scripture. But Jesus’ knew better and rejected the Tempter’s proposal by
dipping into his own scriptural arsenal, and throwing Deuteronomy 6:16 back at
him.
Struggling with Temptation a Lonely Business Struggling with temptation is a lonely
business. The final decision is always ours alone. When Jesus repelled the Tempter, the decision was his alone. When Eve ate the fruit of the Tree of the
Knowledge of Good and Evil, the decision was hers alone. When David sent Uriah into battle so he
could have Bathsheba, the decision was his alone. When Moses killed the Egyptian, the decision was his alone. When Judas betrayed Jesus, the decision was
his alone.
Every time we are tempted and put to
the test, we wrestle back and forth in a titanic spiritual tug-of-war. “Should
I or shouldn’t I?” In that struggle, the Tempter gives us reasons why it is OK
to do it anyway. The final decision, right or wrong, is ours alone to make.
Be Prepared So what shall we do? We can take a cue
from the Boy Scouts - Be Prepared. How?
*** First, we can do what Jesus did and
arm ourselves with the knowledge of Holy Scriptures. Many are the prisoner’s of
war who have been sustained by repeating passages of scripture such as Psalms
23, 27 and 46, Proverbs 3, John 14, 1 John 5, and Philippians 4. Paul wrote to
Timothy: “All scripture is inspired by
God and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training
in righteousness, so that everyone who belongs to God may be proficient,
equipped for every good work.” [2 Timothy 3:14-17] A key phrase is
“equipped for every good work.” You don’t have to memorize scriptures word for
word, but be familiar enough with them to receive the strength you need to
repel the temptation. Yes, scriptures can equip us to withstand the fiery darts
of the Tempter.
*** Second, we must be receptive to
the power of the Holy Spirit so that when temptations arise, we can
automatically plug in to God’s power and strength. This means establishing an
ongoing relationship with God’s Spirit before temptations arise, rather than waiting until we need
God’s help in a particular situation. In other words, we need Jesus in our heart
at all times.
That reminds me of the story of a
little girl who came up to her grandfather and laid her ear on his chest. “What
are you doing?” asked her grandfather? “Oh, in Sunday School this morning we
were told that we needed to have Jesus in our heart, so I was listening to see
if he was in your heart.” “And is Jesus there?” he asked. “Oh yes, but it
sounds as if he’s making coffee.”
*** Third, we can prepare ourselves
to conquer temptation by receiving strength, encouragement and power from one another.
We are members together of the Body of Christ. There is great power in numbers.
The Body of Christ is commissioned to support the weak and encourage the
fainthearted. Thus it is the Spirit of
God working through those around us that bolsters our inner resolve.
Paul puts it this way, “We must no longer be children, tossed to
and fro and blown about by every wind of doctrine, by people's trickery, by
their craftiness in deceitful scheming. But speaking the truth in love, we must
grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole
body, joined and knit together by every ligament with which it is equipped, as
each part is working properly, promotes the body's growth in building itself up
in love.” [Ephesians 4:14-16 NRSV]
Through the Holy Spirit, flowing
into our hearts by prayer, scripture, worship, meditation, and with those
around us, God strength flows to us. If any of you are facing great times of
testing, I urge you not to fight them alone. Reach out to others for help and
guidance, for God’s strength can flow through their voices and their caring
into your heart.
The Armor of God Paul writes to
the Ephesians and says, “Be strong in
the Lord and in the strength of his power. Put on the whole armor of God, so
that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.” [Ephesians
6:10-11NRSV] What armor of God is Paul
talking about? He says we are to fasten the belt of truth around our waist, and
put on the breastplate of righteousness. We are to take the shield of faith so
that we can quench the flaming arrows of the evil one. We are to put on the
helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God. And
we are to pray in the Spirit at all times. To be armed before the testings of life come is vital. We must be prepared
to be tested if we want to pass the test.
Final thoughts This morning I ask you to think about all
your relationships - the covenants you have made with others - with your spouse
or parents or children or friends. With business partners or customers. How worthy of their trust are you? Do
you fulfill the terms of your relationship even when it’s hard? Even when put
to the test? Arm yourselves with the power of scripture and fellowship,
remembering that it’s “Better to shun
the bait, than struggle in the snare.” [John Dryden]
Deuteronomy 6:10-16 NRSV
When the Lord
your God has brought you into the land that he swore to your ancestors, to
Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give you—a land with fine, large cities
that you did not build, houses filled with all sorts of goods that you did not
fill, hewn cisterns that you did not hew, vineyards and olive groves that you
did not plant—and when you have eaten your fill, take care that you do not
forget the Lord, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of
slavery. The Lord your God you shall fear; him you shall serve, and by his name
alone you shall swear. Do not follow other gods, any of the gods of the peoples
who are all around you, because the Lord your God, who is present with you, is
a jealous God. The anger of the Lord your God would be kindled against you and
he would destroy you from the face of the earth. Do not put the Lord your God
to the test, as you tested him at Massah.
Matthew 4:1-11 NRSV
Matthew 4:1-11 NRSV
Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the
wilderness to be tempted by the devil. He fasted for forty days and forty
nights, and afterwards he was famished. The tempter came and said to him, ‘If
you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.’ But he
answered, ‘It is written,
“One does not live by bread alone, but by every word
that comes from the mouth of God.” ’
Then the devil took him to the holy city and
placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, saying to him, ‘If you are the Son of
God, throw yourself down; for it is written, “He will command his angels
concerning you”, and “On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will
not dash your foot against a stone.” ’
Jesus said to him, ‘Again it is written, “Do not put
the Lord your God to the test.” ’
Again, the devil took him to a very high
mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor; and
he said to him, ‘All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship
me.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Away with you, Satan! for it is written, “Worship the
Lord your God, and serve only him.” ’
Then the devil left him, and suddenly angels came and
waited on him.
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