_|_ | C O P | N E T Temptations The Temptation of Christ ------------------------ There are many stories about temptations in the Bible. Perhaps the most important is the account of the temptations of the Lord Jesus Christ by Satan following our Lord's baptism in the Jordan river. The account of Christ's temptation was given in three of the four Gospels. St Mark's account was only in two verses: "And immediately the Spirit drove Him into the wilderness. And He was there forty days, tempted by Satan, and was with the wild beasts; and the angels ministered to Him" [Mark 1:12-13]. This short account clearly states that the temptation of Christ happened "immediately" after His baptism in the Jordan river [Mark 1:9-11]. This immediacy is also evident in St Matthew's and St Luke's accounts. The significance of this "immediacy" is to warn us that the devil is likely to strike when our spiritual life is strong. It is for that reason that the Coptic Church's lectionary always includes the Gospel of the temptation of Christ at the beginning of Lent (the second Sunday to be exact), to warn us that as we are starting our spiritual growth during Lent, the devil is likely to increase his efforts to divert us from that goal. St Matthew's and St Luke's accounts give more details about three particular temptations that took place after forty days and forty nights of fasting: the temptation to transform a stone to bread, the temptation for material wealth and earthly power, and the temptation to test God. Before we talk about these, it is important to realize that these temptations were not the only ones to which Jesus Christ was subjected. In St Luke's account we read: "Then Jesus ... was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, being tempted for forty days by the devil" [Luke 4:1-2]. This verse clearly talks about other temptations that occured before the end of the 40 day and forty nights of fasting. Also, at the end of St Luke's account we read: "Now when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from [Jesus] until an opportune time" [Luke 4:13]. This verse again talks about the devil trying "every temptation" and the devil departing until an "opportune time" for more temptations. Thus our Lord, as a human being, was subjected to many more temptations, not only in the wilderness after His baptism, but throughout His whole life. For example, we know what happened when Herod wanted to see a miracle [Luke 23:8-9]. The Lord Christ could have "impressed" Herod with a miracle and avoided the cross, but that is exactly what the devil wanted! We know what happened when the passers by addressed the crucified Jesus saying "He saved others; let Him save Himself if He is the Christ, the chosen of God." [Luke 23:35]. Jesus could have walked away from the cross and everybody would have followed Him! Right? Wrong! If He did, we wouldn't have gained salvation, which is exactly what the devil wanted. Of all the temptations, to which our Lord was subjected, only three were detailed in St Luke's and St Matthew's accounts because they serve as a "prototype" of all temptations---the "bag of tricks" of Satan. In the first temptation, the devil uses the following logic: "You need it, you have the capability to do it, why not?" So, speaking to the Creator incarnate, he says: "You are hungry, You can transform stone to bread, why not?" To a student he may say "You need that A grade to keep your fellowship, you can copy the homework, or cheat on the exam, why not?" To a head of a household he may say "You need that money for your children's education, you can simply not report the correct income to the IRS, why not?" Changing stone to bread won't hurt anybody. Cheating won't hurt anybody. Tax evasion won't hurt anybody. Right? Wrong! Changing stone to bread, while not hurting anybody, is a violation of the whole premise of incarnation---that the Pantocrator, Creator of heaven and earth, takes a human body and lives confined in the weaknesses of hunger, thurst, pain, and even death. Cheating on an exam, while not hurting anybody, is a violation of school rules. And, tax evasion, while not hurting anybody, is a violation of the law of the land. So, while the goal may be legitimate (whether it is quenching one's apetite, getting high scores, or saving some money for one's children), the means are not. Christianity teaches us that the goals do not justify the means. Moreover, we should not be driven by such earthly goals because God provides these without even having to ask for them: "But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you." [Matthew 6:33]. In light of this we can understand our Lord's answer: "It is written, 'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.'" [Matthew 4:4]. In light of this we can resist the temptation of using wrong means that are within our reach to achieve our possibly very legitimate goals. In the second temptation, the devil uses the following logic: "God promised something, let's see if He delivers!" So, speaking to the Creator incarnate, he says: "It is promised that God protects his sons and daughters from every danger. Well, let's put this promise to a test!" To a student he may bring God's promise in Matthew 6:33 (discussed above) and say: "Well, why study? God said that `all these things shall be added to you` if you are a true Christian. Right? Thus fasting and praying should be enough to get that A grade"! To the head of a household, he may say "Didn't God say `Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things.'? Thus, you need not work hard to make that extra income and save for your children's education!" The problem here is that by jumping from the top of the mountain, expecting angels to carry us, or by not studying, expecting that prayers and fasting will guarantee an A grade, or by not working as hard as we can, expecting that tomorrow will worry about its own things, we are testing God; we are doubting His promises. We should have faith in God, not test Him. He is faithful to the end. This is best denmonstrated by the beatiful ending of the passage about the temptation of Christ. In Matthew 4:11, we learn that after "the devil left [Jesus], behold, angels came and ministered to Him." Those are the same angels that were promised in the verse that the devil used to tempt the Lord by saying "If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down. For it is written: 'He shall give His angels charge concerning you,' and, 'In their hands they shall bear you up, lest you dash your foot against a stone.'" [Matthew 4:6]. Thus God was true to His promise, and indeed sent His angels to care for His Son. Our church's history provides another proof of God's faithfulness, when Copts were asked to move the Mokattam mountain if they had faith, or else! Well, faith they had, and mountain He moved! In the third temptation, the devil uses the following logic: "You need it, I have it, all you have to do is join my troops, why not?" So, speaking to the Creator incarnate, he says: "Look at all this wealth and power, it's mine! But you can have it if You follow me." To a student he may say "See all these cool guys (or attractive gals) that everybody likes? You can be like them! All you have to do is stop going to this backward church." To the head of a household he may say "See all of these successful and happy families, they don't go to church, they don't fast, and they don't give to the poor! What good is it to do all of this?" Here the temptation is not to break a rule, but rather to make a choice different from the Godly choice. Not going to church is not against any laws. Spending one's money on vanities is not against any laws. However, both signify choices that do not coincide with God's will. A very important point to be made about this particular temptation is that the devil is showing his true colors, his blatant lies! To Christ he said: "All this authority I will give You, and their glory; for this has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I wish." [Luke 4:6]. Satan does not have that authority for "The earth is the Lord's and all its fullness, The world and those who dwell therein." [Psalms 24:1]. It's amazing how blatant Satan's lies are! The very first temptation of the human race, when the serpent tempted Eve to eat the fruit of the forbidden tree, was based on a blatant lie: "And the serpent said to the woman, 'You will not surely die.'" [Genesis 3:4]. As Christians we should recognize Satan's lies. Success is not being cool or looking sexy. Success is not to waste one's money, time, and health on vanities. The ultimate success is in an everlasting relationship with God, a relationship that leads to eternal life. Questions to stimulate discussions ---------------------------------- Who brings temptations on us? ---------------------------- Temptation is the work of the devil. This is the only thing to which he can subject us. If we don't fall into the temptations, he cannot get any closer! If we do, he slowly gets to control our lives. Why does God allow the devil to subject us to temptations? --------------------------------------------------------- As sons and daughters of God, we are free to chose good and evil. If God doesn't allow us to be tempted, then he is denying us the right to chose. Is the devil free to subject us to any temptation? ------------------------------------------------- No! God allows us to be subjected to those temptations that He knows we can conquer. When are we likely to be tempted? -------------------------------- When we get closer to God, when the devil feels that we are flourishing with God's grace, he moves in with temptations. "Then Jesus, when He had been baptized, came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him. And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, 'This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased'. Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil." [Matthew 3:16-17, 4:1] How should we prepare ourselves to face temptations? --------------------------------------------------- All we have to do is pray for God's help and have faith that with God's help there is no way the devil can get us to fall into his temptations. So the two key words are "prayer" and "faith". What if we fall into temptation? ------------------------------- Falling into a temptation is not the end of the world! Because of our weaknesses, we are all likely to fall into many temptations. The Bible tells us about so many instances when Saintly people fell to the devil. From the Old Testament, we know of David's adultery. From the new testament we know of Peter's denial of Jesus! The most important thing is not to fall slaves of our inequities, but rather to stand up quickly, repent, and have faith that with God's grace we will be saved. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- _|_ This article is one of many more articles about the Coptic Orthodox | Church, the Christian Apostolic Church of Egypt. These articles can be | obtained electronically from Copt-Net Repository, using anonymous FTP COP|NET from pharos.bu.edu:CN. Please mail inquiries to CN-request@cs.bu.edu. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------