Jumpstart: A Dispensational Devotional | Lessons from the Temptations of Christ

By: George Zellar

Luke 4:1-13

THE BELIEVING HEART must be alert and ready for Satan’s fierce attacks. As a roaring lion he walks about seeking whom he may devour (1 Peter 5:8). God tests; the devil tempts; and the Lord Jesus was fully prepared for the challenge. Consider these vital factors:

1) The Spirit of God was intimately involved. Christ was led by the Spirit (Matthew 4:1), driven or sent out by the Spirit (Mark 1:12), and filled with the Spirit (Luke 4:1).

2) “The whole point of the test focused on the Lord’s submission to the will of God. In each temptation Satan endeavored to induce Jesus to act in a manner contrary to complete dependence on God by asserting a measure of independence springing from self-interest” (J. Oswald Sanders).

3) God’s Word, rightly understood and applied, was central to the victory. Three times the Lord appealed to the Scripture and declared, “It is written.” This same weapon is available to every believer.

4) Do not be deceived by Satan’s devices. For his diabolical purposes he too can quote from Scripture (Matthew 4:6), as do the many cults which he has established.

5) Christ did not defeat Satan by appealing to His Divine nature or Supernatural power.

6) As a perfect Man, depending on His Heavenly Father and relying fully on God the Holy Spirit, Christ gained the victory over Satan. We can follow His example and defeat Satan in the same way.

7) “Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ”…”But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (2 Corinthians 2:14; 1 Corinthians 15:57).

Summary: The Lord Jesus demonstrated that man, submitting to God’s will, walking in the Spirit, using and relying upon the Word of God, is more than a match for Satan.