Biblical Lessons Studies - Essay Example

Running head: Biblical research essay Name: University: Course: Tutor: Date of Submission: Introduction Mathew 4:1-11 is a narrative providing details on three temptations Jesus endured in the desert after fasting in the wilderness for forty days. In the beginning 4:1, the bible records that Jesus was led by the Spirit of God into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. The spirit noted in this versa is the same spirit which descended on Jesus during the time of His baptism1. In the wilderness the same spirit descends on Jesus Christ and forces the temptations to Him. This actually indicates that the plan of God for Jesus was to start His ministry of discipleship with challenges. Practically the temptations are not the work of the Devil rather God’s plan which is evident that Christians should always appreciate the temptations they face since its God’s way of testing their faith and endurance. Actually, the devil was willing to tempt Jesus as way of ensuring that actually it was the Spirit of God leading Jesus2. Analyses of the temptations and verses Mathew 4:3, records that Satan tempted Jesus to turn stones into bread but Jesus refused by telling the devil that it’s written that Man shall not live on bread alone. Primarily Jesus had come to the wilderness to fast for forty days was a way of spiritual exercise which was significant in His life as well as ministry. Therefore this first temptation wants to lure Jesus in to the trap of using God given power into doing things according to his independent motive and not as god planned. Jesus overcame this because he had actually subjected himself to his Father’s will in regard to his mission.Primarily, the devil wanted to use this temptation to ruin the mission of Jesus by convincing Him to abandon the spiritual mission so that the devil could have Him. The devil was using this temptation to turn His spiritual nature into a means of satisfying His material need without reference to finding the will of God. Jesus refusal is a clear indication of His nature as a perfect man of God. Hunger is something normal to human nature hence it is not wrong especially during spiritual time of fasting rather it can be perceived as a period designed for Christians to focus on their attention on spiritual needs and away from the comforts of life. Jesus refusal is a clear indications to Christians that it is better to be hungry than to be fed without any reference or recourse to the will of God. From the onset Jesus knew that the spirit had led Him to a place full of hardships but He had an obligation to endure them and fulfill that task3. The second temptation recorded in Mathew 4:6, Satan tempted Jesus to throw Himself down from the top of temple. The second temptation by Satan to Jesus basically test Jesus trust in God and is seen he the devil asks Jesus to jump from the highest point of the mountain and if really was the son of God the angels would get hold of him thus ill not fall down. But Jesus knew very well and he quoted to him that it is written “thou shalt not tempt your God”. His trust was deeply in God and therefore it was hard for one to test his trust in the Lord4 .Despite the weak physical body of Christ, he still refused to acknowledge Satan’s authority on earth. In the third temptation, the devil asks Jesus to bow to him and all that is on earth will be for him, and Jesus still refused to acknowledge this and told him Satan that only God is to be worshipped.This temptation relates to the spiritual fight of Jesus Christ. Jesus having escaped the first temptation of physical realm by showing that He was not just physical but spiritual, that He could accept the hunger and the weakness as way of obeying God, Satan goes ahead to tempt Him spiritually. By the devil asking Jesus to throw Himself down shows the devils intentions for Jesus to do something spectacular to demonstrate that He is spiritually perfect5. The devil’s quotations in Mathew 4:3-4, shows that the devil actually is someone who has no inclination to obey the scripture hence most of the time he will prompt Christians to sin by quoting bible verses related to the temptation the way he did with Jesus. The last temptation recorded in Mathew 4:9, the devil persuades Jesus to worship Him in exchange for all the kingdoms on earth. This temptation presents the boldness of the devil after realizing that he was losing his battle. Primarily, the devil wanted to persuade Jesus to worship him as way of preventing the work of the king for which He had come into the world. Jesus was taken to High Mountain by the devil where He was showed all the kingdoms on earth but in reality there was no such high mountain in Israel. The idea which emerges here is that the devil only provided visions of these kingdoms hence in most the devil usually lies to Christians by providing them with false hopes for something’s which do not actual exist6. In Mathew chapter 4:1-11, Jesus is represented as a son born of legal human qualification as Israel king and this can be proved from the earlier occasion of his baptism which was divine approval in his, life as a son of God. This chapter highlights the nature of Jesus Christ nature in the faith if his heavenly father. As a son of God and the messiah, the chapter begins by showing his prayerfulness and how the temptations he passed through demonstrated too the moral aspect in his fitness to reign as an Israel king7. Mather 4:1 presents Jesus as the king of kings and a man of faith since the verse begins by describing Jesus and how He was led to the desert by Spirit to be tempted by the devil. This verse indicates the significance of having faith among Christians especially when they are facing temptations from the Devil. The verse presents faith as a significant tool for each and every Christian when ever temptations come their way during their daily Christian lives. Lessons learned The temptations present him in Mathew 4:1-11 as a son of God that was empowered of the spirit of God. This empowerment of the spirit is the one that leads him to the mountain for the prayer and fasting period of forty days and nights and the bible clearly indicated that the intention behind this was for him to go and prove to the devil that he had power over Satan home he engages in several temptations during the prayer and fasting session in the mountain. Satan attacked Jesus with three temptations which at the end of the day Jesus won or overcame him by the power of the spirit. All this were aimed at testing Jesus power of devotion or in other words Jesus obedience to his father God8. In all the three temptations, Jesus was enticed by the devil to see if at all he would break his faith in God. The bible also asserts that if Jesus was to succumb to the devils temptations he would have lost his divine sonship with God and he would have been destroyed by Satan. The presentation of the messiah here in this chapter shows Gods point of evaluation in relation to Jesus Christ his son. This makes as understand that Jesus was brought into the world by the spirit of God and therefore approves Gods favour upon him that led him into the mountain for prayer then Satan would tempt him. This therefore approves that whatever God sends he gives him or her power to and the favour to move with wherever send9. Apart from this, another case study to assert this can be seen when the Israelites are led by God through the wilderness and when they crossed the red sea so is he led into prayers immediately after the baptism. Jesus also is depicted as an author of faith when he goes on a fasting mission on the mountain. Fasting is therefore seen in this context as a spiritual reason where one foregoes particular meals which is also foregoing physical needs just to give full attention to the spiritual need. Mathew 4:1-11 reveals the assumption that Satan had on Jesus that he was a son of God and that’s why Satan attacked him with temptations when he was weak physically during the fasting process10. Because of this, Jesus is portrayed as one with the power to satisfy his own needs. Mathew 4:1-11 portray Jesus as one who can overcome every temptation even in times when one is really physically weak and can overcome every challenge despite of the underlying factors that can lead one to do so. We can also learn Jesus being the author of the faith to most faithful if not all did not complain to god of the temptation set before him by the devil the same way the first family in the old testament did, but with help of the holy ghost he overcomes all the three temptations set before him by Satan11. Jesus knew that he was on a fast and if at all he needed bread the same way the devil was putting it, he would have made one for himself other than waiting for someone else to instruct him. Jesus is revealed as a son of God who faced Satan in the midst of challenges as Satan but not as God, so any Christian is supposed to face the devil just as the devil not as a god. Therefore everyone needs to acknowledge his or her total dependence on God and even more His spoken word. Conclusion Mathew 4:1-11 entirely is about the temptation of Jesus Christ. This clearly indicates that everyone is meant to be tempted to sin almost daily or hourly the way Jesus Christ was. From the onset in the desert Jesus is confronted by the devil with all his power but Jesus overcame the devil by not giving into his will. When compared to the first temptation of Adam and Eve in the Old Testament the outset is seen to be parallel given the mere fact that Adam and Eve gave in to the temptation of the devil by sinning. Jesus therefore in Mathew 4:1-11 has can be described as the second to Adam, the head of a new race thus people born into the family of God. Jesus Christ having endured the a forty day period of temptation by the devil just as any other ordinary human being in the harsh wilderness of the Judean Desert as well as his obedience to God’s commands tends to establish Jesus identity as humanity’s redeemer and ruler of Israel12. As God creatures human beings have responsibility of resisting the temptations of the devil as Jesus did which actually gives a perfect model of obedience and a source of comfort. Through, the temptations presented in Mathew 4:1-11 Christians have confidence that they are following in the footsteps of Jesus Christ who also was tempted but trusted in God’s word and relied on His power to overcome Satan himself. Mathew 4:1-11 therefore reveals the purpose of trusting God in each temptation and why Christians should take a great solace in what Christ achieved for His people. In Mathew 4:2, the bible that Jesus had been fasting for forty days and forty nights and He was hungry13. When we relate forty to other texts covered in the bible is a number which is a representation period of hardships, difficulty and suffering. The period can be related to the Old Testament period in which the Israelites wandered for forty years in the wilderness. Forty days practical was a symbolic indication for fasting and duration meant for Jesus testing. The scripture records that Jesus defeated the devil and devil left him in Mathew 4:11 which clearly indicates that Jesus successful defeated the enemy proving that actually he was a Son of God. Everyone should position himself in faith through prayer and fasting like the master Jesus despite the challenges put a head keeping in mind that every great destiny has opposition and the contender is the devil14Anyone who calls himself a Christian should not fear him but face him using the example of the written scriptures the way Jesus did and overcame the evil during his prayer and fasting in the mountain. Believers should strengthen their faith and position themselves to hear the spirit of God for his next instructions15. Mathew 4:1-11 records that Jesus was tempted by the Devil with all his power but he did not succeed. The temptations presented to Jesus in the Wilderness therefore are a clear indication of God’s way of showing that Jesus was a perfect man to human beings in that He could resist sin by not defeating Satan and not giving in to his temptations. References American Bible Society (1976). Good news Bible: the Bible in Today's English. Michigan: American Bible Society, pp.78-90 Barclay, W (2001). The Gospel of Matthew: Chapters 1-18. Volume 1 of New daily study Bible. Publisher: Westminster John Knox Press, pp.78-89 Lucado, M (2007).The Book of Mathew.Life and lessons of Jesus.New York:Nelson Inc, pp.67- 80 Mark, P., M (2009) .It is all about Jesus faith as an oppositional collegiate subculture.New York: pp.23-40 Tyacke, N (2001). Aspects of English Protestantism, c. 1530-1700.Manchester: Manchester University Press, pp.23-37 Weaver, P., W (2007). The historical Jesus in the twentieth century, 1900-1950. Publisher: Continuum International Publishing Group, pp.34-50 White, T (2008).The Book of Matthew: A Macabre Novel of Suspense.London:McBooks Press,pp.45-67 Wiersbe, W., W (2010). The Wiersbe Bible Study Series: Matthew: Following the King of Kings. Washington: David C Cook,pp.45 Read More

His trust was deeply in God and therefore it was hard for one to test his trust in the Lord4 .Despite the weak physical body of Christ, he still refused to acknowledge Satan’s authority on earth. In the third temptation, the devil asks Jesus to bow to him and all that is on earth will be for him, and Jesus still refused to acknowledge this and told him Satan that only God is to be worshipped.This temptation relates to the spiritual fight of Jesus Christ. Jesus having escaped the first temptation of physical realm by showing that He was not just physical but spiritual, that He could accept the hunger and the weakness as way of obeying God, Satan goes ahead to tempt Him spiritually.

By the devil asking Jesus to throw Himself down shows the devils intentions for Jesus to do something spectacular to demonstrate that He is spiritually perfect5. The devil’s quotations in Mathew 4:3-4, shows that the devil actually is someone who has no inclination to obey the scripture hence most of the time he will prompt Christians to sin by quoting bible verses related to the temptation the way he did with Jesus. The last temptation recorded in Mathew 4:9, the devil persuades Jesus to worship Him in exchange for all the kingdoms on earth.

This temptation presents the boldness of the devil after realizing that he was losing his battle. Primarily, the devil wanted to persuade Jesus to worship him as way of preventing the work of the king for which He had come into the world. Jesus was taken to High Mountain by the devil where He was showed all the kingdoms on earth but in reality there was no such high mountain in Israel. The idea which emerges here is that the devil only provided visions of these kingdoms hence in most the devil usually lies to Christians by providing them with false hopes for something’s which do not actual exist6.

In Mathew chapter 4:1-11, Jesus is represented as a son born of legal human qualification as Israel king and this can be proved from the earlier occasion of his baptism which was divine approval in his, life as a son of God. This chapter highlights the nature of Jesus Christ nature in the faith if his heavenly father. As a son of God and the messiah, the chapter begins by showing his prayerfulness and how the temptations he passed through demonstrated too the moral aspect in his fitness to reign as an Israel king7.

Mather 4:1 presents Jesus as the king of kings and a man of faith since the verse begins by describing Jesus and how He was led to the desert by Spirit to be tempted by the devil. This verse indicates the significance of having faith among Christians especially when they are facing temptations from the Devil. The verse presents faith as a significant tool for each and every Christian when ever temptations come their way during their daily Christian lives. Lessons learned The temptations present him in Mathew 4:1-11 as a son of God that was empowered of the spirit of God.

This empowerment of the spirit is the one that leads him to the mountain for the prayer and fasting period of forty days and nights and the bible clearly indicated that the intention behind this was for him to go and prove to the devil that he had power over Satan home he engages in several temptations during the prayer and fasting session in the mountain. Satan attacked Jesus with three temptations which at the end of the day Jesus won or overcame him by the power of the spirit. All this were aimed at testing Jesus power of devotion or in other words Jesus obedience to his father God8.

In all the three temptations, Jesus was enticed by the devil to see if at all he would break his faith in God. The bible also asserts that if Jesus was to succumb to the devils temptations he would have lost his divine sonship with God and he would have been destroyed by Satan. The presentation of the messiah here in this chapter shows Gods point of evaluation in relation to Jesus Christ his son. This makes as understand that Jesus was brought into the world by the spirit of God and therefore approves Gods favour upon him that led him into the mountain for prayer then Satan would tempt him.

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