Matthew 4:5-7

Matthew 4:5-7

At that time the Devil took Him into the holy city and he set Him upon the pinnacle of the temple and he said to Him, “If you are a son of God, throw yourself down.  For it has been written that He will command to His angels regarding you and they will lift you up upon the hands in order that you should not strike your foot against a stone.”  Jesus spoke to him, “Again it has been written: Do not examine the Lord your God.”

Thoughts for Today

First Thought:

Jesus is taken to the pinnacle of the temple.  Imagine the spectacle that would be created if someone jumped off of the roof of the temple and landed safely carried down by God’s angels!  Imagine how hard it would be to deny that Jesus was the Messiah!  The Devil seems to be pushing Jesus into God’s agenda!  After all, didn’t the prophets tell the Hebrew people that God’s Messiah would come suddenly into the Temple?  But here’s the thing.  God would reveal His Messiah through the cross, not the spectacle.  Remember the story where Elijah is looking for God but God is in the silence and not the fire or wind or earthquake?  God reveals Himself in His own way, not in the ways that we always expect Him to do so.  If Jesus were to draw attention to Himself here, He would be going away from God’s plan and asserting His own agenda.

How good are you at letting God’s agenda take precedence over your own agenda?  How good are you at remembering that God is not often in the spectacle but in the consistently small moments of daily life?  Why is it easier to think God is in the spectacle rather than in the daily routine?

Second Thought:

Once more Satan questions Jesus as to whether or not He is a son of God.  But look at what Satan does in this instance.  Satan even brings God’s Word to bear on the situation.  Satan attempts to use God’s Word against Jesus.  Of course, this is not the first time that Satan has used this ploy.  Did not Satan help to deceive Eve by throwing doubt upon God’s words while simultaneously attempting to twist their meaning?  That is how Satan works.  Satan no doubt has better mastery over God’s Word than any of us simple temporal human beings.  We should be wary of all of Satan’s tactics – especially those that involve twisting God’s Word.

Are you surprised by the fact that Satan seems to have considerable knowledge and skill in using God’s Word?  Are you surprised that Satan would attempt to use God’s own Word against Jesus?

Third Thought:

Jesus’ response is masterful.  When He says that we should not examine God, what Jesus is saying is that it is not up to us to try and find the limits of God.  It is not up to me to use whatever powers God gives to me to try and demonstrate God’s incredible nature!  God can do the miraculous when He desires.  Who am I to put God on the spot?  My job is not to determine when God will act in an incredible manner.  My job is to humble myself before God and do as He desires.

Do you ever try to examine God and find His limits?  Do you ever try to put God’s power on display in some spectacular fashion and have it backfire upon you?

Passage for Tomorrow: Matthew 4:8-11