Overcoming temptation by the Word of God
by Ivan Ho 3 May 2022
The first temptation of Satan to Jesus was to turn stone into bread. He said to Jesus: “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become bread.”
Some believers think that because Christ is in them, they can do whatever they want, and that sadly includes what the devil tempts them to do. They think that God has the power to do anything and so can they because “I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength”. So they go ahead and do things that God has not told them to do, in order to proof their identity in Christ. In so doing, they have fallen into the devil’s trap. Some people spend their whole life trying to do spectacular things in order to proof to the devil that God is with them. Mind you, our identity in Christ is not governed by what we do. We are who we are by the grace of God. Grace of God is not dependent on our works, nor is it dependent on the miraculous things that God can do. Jesus has the power to turn stones into bread, just as He turned water into wine. Jesus has the power to do all things, but that doesn’t mean He would do them just because He has the power to do so. He doesn’t have to prove to anyone who He is, let alone the devil. Jesus only does what He sees the Father does.
Jesus was led by the Spirit of God into the wilderness to fast for 40 days and 40 nights. Jesus did not fast for Himself, but instead He was led by the Holy Spirit. Many of us try to get out of the desert that God puts us there in the first place, ahead of the timing of God because we can’t stand inactivity.
In His hunger after fasting for 40 days and 40 nights, the devil came to tempt Jesus to turn stones into bread. The devil offered Him food at the time Jesus needed it badly. Man are often being led by our immediate needs. If say your immediate need is emotional, guess what, the devil would come to tempt you at your hour of need. The devil would feed you with things that satisfy your soulish longings and you would probably thank God for answering your prayers, not knowing that the devil is leading you away from God. When you take the bait of satan, you are already under demonic control until you walk away from the temptation governed by your needs and become totally dependent on God.
Jesus told the devil: “Man does not live by bread alone but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4).