Luke 4

The temptation of Christ was a pivotal moment in Jesus' ministry. It was really the start, and I'm not sure that I could go through what He went through. The good news for us, though, is that Christ went through it and came out unstained.

During this time, it's important to recognize the depth of the temptation that Christ went through. It's easy to gloss over these few verses and think that it wasn't really that hard, but in fact, Satan hit Him with everything that he hits us just all at once.

First, Satan tempted Christ with food. That seems like an easy temptation to resist when we live in a land of plenty and we can go grab a loaf of bread from the pantry anytime that we want. Christ was in the desert without food, and I think after a few hours (not to mention the days that Christ endured) that I'd be getting pretty hungry. Christ wasn't there to eat physical food, though, He was there to set the stage for the ultimate showdown with Satan. How often are we tempted with things that seem essential to our survival but really distract us from our purpose?

Second, Satan tempted Christ with money and power. The dream of all Americans is to be independently wealthy, and we easily recognize the power of money. Satan knew that Christ would have to build a group of followers in order to succeed, so offering money and power was not superficial at all. How much more quickly could Christ spread His message if He controlled the kingdoms of the world? How often are we tempted to think that forcing everyone to fit into our Christian mold is the right thing to do?

Third, Satan tempted Christ to challenge God. Satan reasoned that God wouldn't let Christ die and then, since they were in the middle of Jerusalem, the people that witnessed that miracle would all be believers. Why would Satan want to give Christ the chance to perform a major miracle and generate believers? Because He knew that Christ came to heal the people not make a spectacle of Himself and invite an audience. Christ's message was one of humility and stepping right out of the gate in pride would have tainted the whole deal. Have you ever been tempted to make your mission be about you rather than the people that you are sent to reach?