Jesus was tempted to sin. The devil didn’t tempt Him to do good, he tempted Him to sin, Matthew 4:1-11. So how does Jesus being tempted coincide with James 1:13-14, Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone. But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lusts.
Jesus was led into the wilderness by the Holy Spirit for the sole purpose of being tempted. Goes doesn’t tempt anyone but He allows the devil to tempt all of mankind, for it is through faith in God that we endure temptations; faith that the sacrifice of Jesus was sufficient to set us free from the law of sin and of death, and raise us up by the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus. Jesus depended on His Father to help Him endure. Although He was a Son, He learned obedience from the things which He suffered, Hebrews 5:8.
God cannot be tempted by evil, but His Son could be tempted by evil.
The Son of God was in a body of flesh and blood. When He was hungry in the wilderness after 40 days of fasting, He was carried away and enticed by the lust of His starving body of flesh to turn stones into bread to satisfy that lust. But He didn’t do it. He knew that Satan uses the weaknesses of our bodies of flesh to tempt us. He resisted the temptation.
The devil was trying to make Jesus prove He was the Son of God, which would have been a sin if Jesus had done it. The second temptation in the wilderness was an attempt to get Jesus to prove the Scriptures were speaking of Him. “If You are the Son of God, prove it by casting Yourself down; for it is written, “He shall give His angels charge concerning You,” and “On their hands they will bear You up. Lest You strike Your foot against a stone.”
[These verses of Scripture show us that temptation to prove oneself by making the promises of God come true has its roots in evil, and is used frequently by the devil, who was a liar from the beginning. Those who claim the promises of God are sinning against God because they are telling Him what to do. He is God and we are dirt. How dare we dictate to God by laying claim to a promise. We are not under the law but under grace through faith. If you want to claim something, go to the courthouse, because that is where you file claims to demand something you think you deserve.
[Also, those who say they have the authority of Christ are sinning against God, because He gave all authority in heaven and on earth to His Son who had finished His mission on earth and overcome the evil one. Yes, Jesus gave authority to some while He was on earth so that they could work the miracles He sent them to do. He gave them authority because they could not have done the miracles without authority, for the simple reason that Jesus had not yet been crucified, buried and risen from the grave, and taken up to heaven, and the Holy Spirit had not yet been given to mankind. Since the first day of the church’s beginning, miracles, and all things of God are done through faith in the name of Jesus as the next Scripture says.
[“And on the basis of faith in His name, it is the name of Jesus which has strengthened this man whom you see and know; and the faith which comes through Him has given him this perfect health in the presence of you all, Acts 3:16.]
The third temptation was offering Jesus the wealth of the kingdoms of the world, which Jesus also rejected, choosing to worship God and serve Him only, rather than accept the riches of the world.
Jesus was made like His brethren IN ALL THINGS, that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, Hebrews 2:17. He was tempted IN ALL THINGS, as we are, yet without sin, Hebrews 4:15.
Yes, according to the Holy Bible, God’s Son who had been conceived by the Holy Ghost and placed in a human body of flesh and blood, was carried away and enticed by His own lusts, but lust was never conceived, and didn’t give birth to sin, because He submitted Himself to God and resisted the devil, and the devil fled from Him, just like James said in chapter 4 verse 7, “Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.”
Jesus was the image of God in a body of flesh and blood like us. Even His brain was like ours. There are numerous desires, as well as needs, that are inherent in a human body, and He had to deal with every one of them, so that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest, in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.
Jesus is the way of escape from every temptation common to man. Through faith in Him, we are enabled to endure temptation and do the will of God, 1 Corinthians 10:13; Romans 6:17-18; 1 John 3:5-10; 1 Peter 4:1-2; and many more…
Jon David Banks, God’s most unworthy servant
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. www.lockman.org
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