The Last of the Temptations -- I'm Not Talking about the Singing Group Either

I have been studying the temptation of Jesus, and I hope that you have been doing it along with me. Feel free to post your thoughts and what you are learning by digging deeper in the Word as well.


This is my last blog on the temptation. Each gospel has a different flavor because each of the men who penned the books are different, and the purpose of their books was different as well. But at the end of these there are some interesting statements, I want to cover.



Matthew 4:11, “Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him.

Mark 1:13, “and he was in the desert forty days, being tempted by Satan. He was with the wild animals, and angels attended him.”

Luke 4:13, “When the devil had finished all this tempting, he left him until an opportune time.”



I don’t know about you, but I’m glad the devil leaves. However, you can rest assured he will come again to tempt you at an opportune time. When is your opportune time? When are you the most vulnerable to temptation? What are the areas of your weaknesses? Take a look at your desires and wants to see if they leave you open to temptation.

Then there’s this whole wild animal thing going on in Mark. So, Jesus was dealing with the fleshly side of himself (his hunger) while fighting off tigers and bears, oh my! Just kidding. We don’t know what kind of wild animals. But suffice it to say, there were obviously other things to distract Jesus’ attention in addition to the temptation. It’s never just one thing at a time, is it? Life doesn’t work like that and neither does temptation. You take your eyes off of God because there’s some wild donkey braying in the bushes and then Satan pops up to avert your attention to another area, and before long we are stressed out, maxed out, pushed to the limit and SNAP! If you don’t keep your focus on God, if you don’t know the Scripture by heart, the devil is a roaming lion seeking those he can devour(1Peter 5:8), and friend, let me tell you, you’re just the appetizer.

Think you’re above temptation? Think again. Jesus was tempted. You will be tempted. It’s how you will respond that matters.

Sin has a high cost, but God’s grace is free. PTL!