Acing the Devil's Tests, Part 1

Most of our personal temptations are when we're all alone. We look at the plate of sugar ridden dessert something no one will see me gobble down for while preparing our taxes sitting alone at a desk attempted to manipulate the numbers to work in our favor today on Insight for living. Chuck Swindoll teaches from Matthew chapter 4 where we find Jesus alone in the wilderness alone. That is with his temper. So how do we resist inevitable moments of temptation Jack titled today's message acing the devil your Bible with you.

Matthew chapter 4 the first 11 verses cover most intriguing scene where Jesus before his ministry has really gotten underway, encounters the temptations of the devil directly, face-to-face toe to toe. The encounter is contained for us in Matthew chapter 4 verses one through 11, I'll be reading from the new living translation. Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted there by the devil for 40 days and 40 nights, he fasted and became very hungry during that time, the devil came to him and said you were the son of God, tell the stones to become loaves of bread. But Jesus told him no.

The Scriptures say, people do 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 Jerusalem, to the highest point of the temple and said if you are the son of God jump off for the Scriptures say he will order his angels to protect you and they will hold you up with her hands so you won't even hurt your foot on the stone. Jesus responded the Scriptures also say you must not test the Lord your God.

Next, the devil took him to the peak of a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory.

I will give it all to you. He said if you will kneel down and worship me get out of here. Satan.

Jesus told him, for the Scriptures say you must worship the Lord your God and serve only him and the devil went away. The Angels came and took care of Jesus study the book of Matthew with Chuck Swindoll. Be sure to download it, searching the Scriptures by going to Insight world.or/studies and now let's begin the message titled acing the devils tests. Most people have cheated on tests. It may be in your case that when you came to know Christ. You decided all cheating is over for now on as a Christian I will no longer go there, doesn't mean you're not tempted to do so, but you determined your days of cheating or past. I read this true testimony this past week, which I thought was timely and many could identify with it.

The man writes when I became a Christian, a year after graduating from high school, everything changed on the inside and eventually on the outside so when I transferred to Wheaton College to major in Bible and theology about never again to cheat this well, however, was quickly tested. In my second semester of New Testament Greek which unconventional uses the same mental muscles as math I missed the midterm exam due to the flu. My professor graciously allowed me to take the test on my own time. He told me he would leave a copy of it in his mailbox outside of his office, I could pick it up.

Take it whenever I felt better. A few days later, in good health.

I stood before his mailbox.

I saw the test and grabbed it yet. As I looked down in the mailbox again. I noticed another exam completed by one of the classes best student. I looked around the hallway was empty. I cautiously lifted the other exam. It felt heavy, as of a thousand fat devils were dancing on it yet as heavy as it felt.

It was as if a calm, reasonable voice whispered from it take and copy take and copy I heeded that advice. I placed both exams in my backpack and hurried across the street to the library. I opened the backpack placed the blank test on the right and then slowly lifted the other exam then I stopped. I didn't place it down on the left instead convicted by the Spirit of God who sees all the cheating is a sin and that such a sin would be offensive to God. My teacher and my classmate, I placed the completed exam in my backpack again. I walked back across the street, placed it back in the professors mailbox return to the library and took the test on my own. I passed the test. Both the Greek test, and the temptation test. What a victory for me, one among many.

For by God's grace I never cheated in college graduate school or seminary, but I certainly was from time to time tempted to do so.

He continues, we all struggled with various temptations. Maybe your tempted to cheat or lie steel or lust. Maybe your tempted to look the other way when wrongdoing is done around you. Maybe your tempted to indulge in sexual sin when you're on a business trip when you're all alone and no one's looking. Maybe your tempted to indulge sinful anger and that tongue of yours is like a wildfire that once one spark hits the surface you let rage consume you and anyone in your way. Maybe your tempted to engage in pride to think you're better than everyone else, especially the weak willed and ill will, those who cheat, lie, steel lust and rage. I made an interesting discovery. Over the years that when God gives you two.

It gives you a test.

It's impossible for you to cheat on it. First off, he doesn't write his tests down I find it interesting that Jesus never once wrote anything. Never once is a recorded except in John eight where standing beside the woman taken in adultery. He knelt down and he wrote something in the sand all kinds of speculation is been offered to what he wrote down. That's the only place in all of the accounts of all of his life recorded in Scripture where he wrote anything. He never once gave the disciples are written exam. They never had a reason to ask. Will this be on the test. It certainly would be, but it would be written.

It would be experienced. That's why you can't cheat on the test. The Lord sends your way. The process is very simple and straightforward when he gives us a test. Think about it first.

The test is designed for us alone.

My test in every detail is not your test.

There are no cloned tests. What hits you hardest may not hit me the hardest and vice versa.

Every test is uniquely prepared for the one who will live it out. Second, there are really only two results when we take the Lord's tests. We either pass the test. Are we feeling heard in every test, God's desire is always the same. He wants us to pass. He wants us to do well. He wants us to grow when he gives us a test. He doesn't want us to falter and fail being the God of great grace. He desires us to do well to stand tall to passed with high marks.

I've often compared him to the swimming instructor on the day of the final exam.

Those folks who have been learning to swim, dive into the water and every swimming instructor has the same hope that they make it to the other side. No swimming instructor hopes don't drown. As always, you can make it. You can go there you can do it. That's the way it is with the Lord our God when he tests us, the devil is altogether different.

Nothing delights him like our failure is tests are always designed to lead us into failure is great hope is to see us yield to his subtle temptation and sin as we cover this fourth chapter in Matthew's gospel we will read about tests that were designed by the devil, for Jesus, specifically with the hope in mind that he would fail. The 11 verses are full of the devil five times. He is named. Once he is called Satan all the way through is like that like them. The main thread in the fabric.

He appears and reappears. He's engaged in one simple plan and that's to bring Jesus down with to be careful, however, that we don't make this an impractical kind of formal time of study. Practically speaking, Jesus is all alone in the wilderness. If you've never been in the Judean wilderness.

You don't know what alone is all about. It is barren beyond belief. It is usually cold at night and during the summer especially, it is blistering hot. There is no water all alone in the wilderness area on top of that he has fasted 40 days followed by 40 nights, he has maximum privacy, silence and solitude in many ways it's a perfect setting for him to grow deeper in his relationship with the father we have learned in our lives.

Practically speaking, that when we are alone we can hear God a little better than the noisy crowd when we are fasting holding back from so much to eat. We often growing our sensitivity toward the Lord and because of the silence and solitude. He is able to speak. There's everything right about this, but the danger signals were there by just being alone. Stop and think he was alone when she yielded to the serpent. David was alone on his bed when he began to take that walk on the porch and noticed Bathsheba bathing below him in her backyard. Eliza was alone under the juniper tree when he asked the Lord to take his life, King Saul was alone in the tent when depression overwhelmed him, and the demons were hot after him. Judas was alone when he made the bargain with the devil to betray him for 30 pieces of silver. The old English couplet is right still is a bold man by himself is priced for 30 pieces.

Judas sold himself not Christ. Your mind plays tricks on you when you are tempted, and in the midst of that temptation. If you're not careful you begin to feel sorry for yourself. Self-pity plays a major role when we are very much alone it says Coleridge wrote in his rhyme of the ancient mariner alone alone all alone alone on a wide wide see another one took took pity on my soul in agony how alone he felt and how alone is Jesus.

What alone we can rationalize our way into wrongdoing.

We can justify our evil desires.

Don't think the devil doesn't know this. He's been studying you since you were in the womb. He knows you completely. He does every tiny chink in your armor. He knows every every area of weakness.

He knows what appeals to you the most and the least he knows how to shape his temptations in such a way that will bring you closer and closer to his goal of having fallen fail now to send the devil can only be one place at one time he may be supernatural, but he is not God. Only God is omnipresent. So when the devil is here he is nowhere else and when he is here he is altogether here, by the way, these 11 verses former rare account.

No one else was there to tell of them except Jesus. So somewhere in the training of Matthew and the disciples he revealed the story of what occurred in the temptation he alone would know, but remember the devil's supernatural he loses with charm, he could leave the most successful charm school in the world and advertising why he would whenever Super Bowl ad that you would ever want to see he would be so appealing adapted allotment by, or tasted or tried, he knows us that well then he knows our nature that will that when he begins his often subtle approach.

It just kind of unfolds out of want you to miss that he's not a cute little red in that looks like this. I have in my hand. One of my favorite little guys who's been sitting on my library shelf in every home where I live and I look at them virtually every day I make sure is right there what you look at the sky.

He seen hard labor. He's gone through four little children growing up so we lost his pitchfork, his nose is been bent to go every way you can turn it. He lost a horn which we put back in place but there's nothing here that is about the devil isn't a toy he isn't. And if he isn't a red creature.

This red epidermis is unreal.

He doesn't elements in the missing commitments we lost his tail. He doesn't have a forked tail. He doesn't carry a pitchfork. He doesn't have fangs. He is gloriously magnificently beautiful. The angel of light is not this the only thing through the devil in this oven holding out on you. I didn't tell you that it's up pop-up it used to say go to hell, but it now says welcome, my sister gave it to me.

So knowing that I would often use it as an illustration.

She whited out to go to hell.

Part which I wish was still there and she just simply wrote in her beautiful penmanship welcome, come on, Ajay was going on.

Look at you much weight have you rule sleeping much easier. Are you your robes, hang in on you look emaciated, noticed the devil came and said what course he's not stomping up and down blaspheming the living God cursing the son of God.

That's no appeal there is compassion a commitment.

We can talk about this. I mean I just II just heard in your baptism. Heard your father your father right. I heard them call you son is a silly way to treat your son would you treat your son, hey, here's a stone turned into a warm hello think on nourishment of nursing that would be smelling at the tell you when I do that that I have a weakness when I go into a mall Cinnabon's can even get near about the smell follows me one of the state. They smell like the greatest sentiment that's ever been made and is smeared on this. All my modules are hurting right now just thinking about cinema but Jesus is been 40 days.

41 your credit course make thousands of those stones everywhere man you could you feed them. People are hungry all over the world and you're all about that students together. First of all, you will be nourished and it's about time will think that was attempting you and I miss a meal with angry martyrs. I mean go to meal is like what times cheesecake factory open bring on three of those meals 40 days for 10 days and nights stumbling across locusts and scorpions and snakes in the barrenness.

The howling winds of the wilderness. I thought you were his son, William Barclay writes we must always remember that the person who is gifted with charm, will be tempted to use that charm to get away with anything. The person gifted with words, will be tempted to use his command of words to produce glib excuses to justify his own conduct.

The person with a vivid insensitive imagination will undergo agonies of temptation that a person more solid will never experience the person with great gifts of mind will be tempted to use these gifts for himself and not for others to become the master servant of man is the grim fact of temptation that it is just where we are strongest that we must forever be on the watch I love Jesus response doesn't play with the enemy. Jesus told him no love the way this is handled in the new living scriptures know the Scripture say people to not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God. Deuteronomy 83. Check it out. He knew Deuteronomy backwards quote it at the moment. Satan has no answer.

Scriptures face to face with the enemy. Jesus turned every temptation into an opportunity to reflect his deity. You're listening to the Bible teaching of Chuck Swindoll and he titled today's message acing the devil's tests in the event you missed any program in this brand-new study of Matthew. Remember, you can catch up by streaming the audio directly from the inside for living website you'll find all the information it insight world.orc now behind the scenes were quite excited about this verse by verse series called the King of Kings.

It's a study through the entire book of Matthew were praying the thousands, perhaps millions will join us in this exciting introduction to Israel's long-awaited king in the coming weeks and months. Chuck Swindoll will guide our global audience through Matthew's account of Jesus entire ministry on earth right through his parting words commonly known as the great commission along with the daily program insight for living ministries has prepared a number of additional resources for you and each one is designed to help you dig deeper into God's word on your own and to apply the principles to your daily life. For example, the online searching the Scriptures. Studies will complement each sermon. This gives you a way to explore the passage on your own and take notes of what you're learning. You can even download the PDF and email it to your friends to search the Scriptures with Chuck go to insight.org/studies. Finally, along with the release of this brand-new series on the daily program. Chuck has recently completed his verse by verse commentary on the book of Matthew as well. It comes into hardbound volumes alongside the verses in Matthew. You also gain access to charts, maps, photos, of course, Chuck's practical observations to purchase Windows living inside commentary on Matthew Collis listening in the United States dial 1-800-772-8888 that's 1-800-772-8888 or go online to insight.org/offer Windows brand-new study book of Matthew continues Wednesday right here on insight for living.

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