Luke 4: 1-13. John 3: 7-10. RSV Bible.
Saturday 30th September 2017 I was at the Bridge Church Bolton at a Proclaim Trust ‘Fixed 17’ Conference Evangelist Barry Woodward
At the conference I heard several testimonies from people whose lives were destroyed by the responding to the devil’s temptations taking drugs and alcohol and it wasn’t until they came to the end of themselves they cried out to God. Then they were open to hear the gospel about Jesus their Saviour and Lord and were released from their bondage. In all of their situations God had prepared a Christian to tell them about Jesus.
In our reading in Luke’s Gospel, God was preparing Jesus for his ministry, he was led by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness, where He spent forty days praying and fasting. His prayers I’m sure reflected how he wanted to glorify His Father and to consecrate himself, to keep focused on his calling and purpose, to proclaim the coming of God’s kingdom and with it the signs: miracles and his healing ministry.
For His ministry to succeed Jesus’ encounter with the devil was a very relevant part of it.
It wasn’t until the end of the 40 days and nights, that the devil seized his moment and challenged Jesus’ identity, “If you are the Son of God”. It’s a small word ‘If’ in this context it was meant to undermine his identity and he challenged Jesus to prove it.
“If you are the Son of God command these stones to become loaves of bread.”
The devil will challenge our spiritual identity; Jesus was born into the world to become one of us, in order for us to have the identity of being a child of God.
At the ‘Fixed 17’ event Trudy Makepeace gave her testimony, she spoke of losing her identity as a result of being under the influence of the devil. Her life style reflected this: lying, stealing, and prostitution. Trudy said that she felt ashamed and was afraid of her family finding out. Tracy was befriended by a Christian who brought her to faith and released her from the bondage of the devil into being a new creation in Christ. Tracy being aware of the struggle with temptation that every Christian experiences said, “No matter who we are, when we walk away from God, we lose the security of which you belong to.”
From her experience taking drugs starts in a small way and soon becomes an addiction, ‘The same with alcohol they take away the pain, the wounds of rejection, this feeling of nobody loves me, I don’t love me, the way I am, unloved’.
Resisting temptation applies to every Christian it’s a slippery slope.
Jesus’ response to his temptation, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.”
We believe that Jesus is the living bread, his words are life and they are acted upon by the Holy Spirit.
In John’s gospel Jesus spoke to Nicodemus about being born again, Jesus referred to the Holy Spirit being like the wind; we can hear the sound of the wind and feel it, but we are not able to see it. Nicodemus said,”How can this be?” so Jesus in response said, “Are you a teacher of Israel, and yet you do not understand this?” Nicodemus without the Holy Spirit giving him understanding, he hadn’t related to what Jesus was referring to found in scripture. Ezekiel’s prophecy; “Prophesy to these bones and say to them, O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. behold, I will cause breath to enter you and you shall live.” Born again from the deadness of a life without God, to being raised up a new creation in Christ and receiving eternal life.
The Holy Spirit is constantly prompting people to seek the Lord and receive his word into their heart.
I heard some amazing testimonies two weeks ago at the Christians Against Poverty’s event ‘The Gathering’ at the Harrogate Conference Centre.
Stef’s testimony revealed how she came to know Jesus as her Saviour. Growing up she was rejected by her father, who declared to her and to others, that he no longer had a daughter, that his daughter was dead.
Stef left home and later on she was in serious debt and was helped by Christians Against Poverty who sorted out her debt problem for her, not by paying the debt off, but by their expertise in negotiating with the creditors and putting in a place a budget for her to follow. Also they introduced Stef to Jesus, she came to know her heavenly Father’s love for her through Jesus dying for her sin on the cross. Stef’s life has been released and her life transformed through Jesus breathing his words of love into her heart.
The devil lied when he offered Jesus the kingdoms of the world
Again the word ‘if’ is said by the devil. “If he would serve him and worship him.”
Jesus was being tempted to come under the devil’s authority which would have broken his relationship with His Father and for the devil to be ‘Lord over his soul’. Jesus responded, “You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only shall you serve.”
Yesterday at ‘Fixed 17’, a testimony from a man who described himself like the man who lived among the tombs, breaking the chains and fetters that bound him and cutting himself with stones. Luke 8: 26-39
John said that he had no control over his violent behaviour, He was sent to prison on an attempted murder charge, and there in prison he was so violent, literally broke the handcuffs, he attacked people, as a result he was kept in solitary confinement for long periods.
Through a Christian’s witness and a succession of God co-incidences: one day his friend was assaulted and stabbed in his cell, John bandaged his head wound and was about to take revenge on the man who perpetrated the assault, when he turned and looked at his friend his bandage on his head covered in blood and his hands stretched out pierced from the stab wounds, he said,” I saw Jesus in his appearance” and as a result it stopped him taking revenge. John surrendered his life to Jesus and Jesus became Lord over his soul.
The third temptation took Jesus to the edge of a pinnacle of the temple this time the devil used scripture, he tried to pressurise him to commit suicide, to jump from the highest pinnacle of the temple. Jesus said, “You shall not tempt the Lord your God.” God the Father does not tempt people to take their life.
Christians Against Poverty’s guest speaker at Harrogate was Malcolm Duncan he told us about his nephew’s suicide. His nephew took out a Wonga loan for £400 pounds; he kept it a secret from his family. The debt increased and his nephew killed himself. Afterwards, they found on his phone that during one day Wonga had rung him 33 times about his loan. He said the effect on the rest of the family is still being felt.
Increasingly many people are being pressured by the thoughts coming from the devil to take their own life; it’s presented to them as the only way to resolve their problem.
From this series of temptations Jesus had with the devil, the devil had discerned who Jesus was, the Son of God. We know this because the first encounter in Jesus’ healing ministry in Mark’s Gospel was to a man with an unclean spirit; the spirit being in the man knew who Jesus was.”What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us, I know who you are, you are the Holy One of God.” Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit and it left the man. Mark 1: 24
John the disciple wrote that “The reason Jesus the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil,” and in doing so he made his kingdom known. Matthew 12: 26 recorded Jesus’ conversation with the Pharisees and were Jesus spoke of the devil’s kingdom, and God’s kingdom.1 John 3: 8. Matthew 12: 26, 28.
Today we celebrate the Harvest; Christians Against Poverty announced that 7,000 people have come to faith in Jesus since their ministry began 21 years ago. (65,000 people helped to become debt free)
Yesterday at ‘Fixed 17’ over 90 people gave their lives to Jesus.
Now they will count it all joy when they are tempted as they apply their victory in Jesus Christ.
Footnote Trudy Makepeace
In 2006 Trudy met with Jesus, who radically transformed her life. Since then, Trudy has managed a rehab centre, ministered in prisons and travelled. Trudy recently graduated from Elim Bible College and is a member of the team at E5 Bristol City Church.