Participants:
Series Code: AU
Program Code: AU000080S
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00:00 - You ever seen those cartoons
00:02 where somebody's got like a devil on one shoulder 00:04 and an angel on another? 00:05 It's a cheesy way of describing 00:07 what it's like to be tempted. 00:10 So what does it mean, temptation? 00:12 And really what's so wrong about just giving into it? 00:16 And what if you're actually forced 00:17 to choose between two really bad options? 00:20 I'll be right back to start unpacking some of that 00:23 on today's episode of Authentic. 00:27 [country music] 00:46 You probably remember this 00:48 because it was so incredibly controversial, 00:50 but back in the late 1980s, 00:52 the American director Martin Scorsese released a film called 00:55 "The Temptation of Christ" based on a 1955 novel 00:59 by the same name. 01:01 And as you might expect, anytime you mess around 01:03 with the biblical story of Jesus, 01:05 it really upset a lot of people. 01:07 In fact, one group of protestors in France actually set fire 01:11 to a theater with people inside, 01:13 which if you ask me is a really strange way to try 01:16 and set the record straight when it comes to promoting 01:19 the teachings of Christ. 01:21 Martin Scorsese received multiple death threats, 01:24 which again seems like an odd way to try and make the truth 01:27 about Jesus seem more obvious. 01:29 Now, to be perfectly honest, I've never seen the movie, 01:33 even though I wasn't a practicing Christian 01:35 when it first hit theaters. 01:37 And in hindsight, I'm guessing that my Christian background 01:41 probably kept me from wanting to see it, 01:43 the same way that my current Christian practice has made 01:46 the premise of the film seem, well distasteful to me. 01:50 Today the teachings and the person of Christ 01:53 are so important to me that I'm just not interested 01:56 in waiting around in the mud with somebody 01:58 who was trying to twist the life of Christ 02:00 into something that it wasn't. 02:03 I mean, let's be honest, the actual narrative you find 02:06 in the Bible is challenging enough without having 02:09 to make stuff up. 02:10 And I've always felt that altering the story 02:13 is kind of pointless because if Jesus was real, 02:17 and He really was the Son of God, 02:20 all you could possibly hope to do by changing the story 02:24 is to cheat yourself of something pretty incredible. 02:27 I mean, think of it like this. 02:29 Let's pretend you were dying of a terminal disease, 02:32 and the doctors have an actual cure, 02:35 but you choose to believe that drinking dandelion milk 02:38 is a better solution. 02:40 In a case like that, you're going to die 02:43 because you wasted time on a lie instead of investigating 02:46 the life-giving truth. 02:48 Of course, if it's all just fiction, 02:51 then what does a little movie matter? 02:53 Believe what you want 02:54 and waste your time contemplating whatever you want. 02:58 But if this book is telling the truth, 03:02 I would think it might be smarter to wrestle 03:04 with a deeply challenging reality, 03:06 a reality that has the potential 03:08 to add meaning to your life. 03:12 Now that having been said, I will give the original author, 03:16 and now I'm talking about the book and not the movie. 03:18 I'll give the author a few points 03:20 for bringing one important idea to the forefront. 03:24 And that's the idea that sometimes we talk about Jesus 03:28 as if He's completely unlike us. 03:31 He got that part right. 03:33 Not much else, but he got that right. 03:35 I mean, when Jesus was tempted, it was real. 03:39 It wasn't some kind of show trial. 03:41 And that's really important to understand 03:43 because Christians sometimes like to emphasize Christ's 03:46 deity and talk about Him as if He was completely different 03:50 from every other human being who's ever lived. 03:52 But the Bible is crystal clear 03:54 that He lived an authentic human life, 03:57 like it says in this passage that I often quote 04:00 from the book of Hebrews, 04:02 "Seeing then that we have a great high priest 04:04 who has passed through the heavens," the author tells us, 04:07 Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. 04:11 For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize 04:14 with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted 04:17 as we are yet without sin." 04:21 So now we're about to tread on some really dangerous ground 04:24 because trying to figure out exactly how divinity can blend 04:28 with humanity so that Jesus can be fully God 04:31 and fully man at the very same time, 04:33 well, that's really beyond even the brightest of minds. 04:36 And you quickly get into trouble 04:38 if you're not being careful. 04:40 It seems like there are two equal but opposite ditches 04:42 that you can fall into when you consider 04:44 the nature of Christ. 04:46 One, you can talk about Jesus like He's entirely like us, 04:50 completely the same in every single detail, 04:53 which can lead to ignoring His deity. 04:56 Or two, you can talk about Jesus like He's completely 04:59 not like us, which ignores the incarnation 05:03 and the humanity of Christ. 05:05 So anytime you touch on the nature of Christ on the way 05:07 that Jesus was fully God and fully human 05:10 at the very same time, you run into the risk 05:13 of very probably getting it wrong, 05:16 at least if you find yourself trying to drill this down 05:19 to the very finest details. 05:21 And so I wanna move forward 05:24 with a great deal of caution today 05:26 because I don't wanna find myself playing the part of a fool 05:29 who rushes into places where angels fear to tread. 05:32 It's a responsibility that I take very seriously 05:35 because while I'm naturally gonna be wrong 05:37 about all kinds of stuff all the time, 05:40 I still do my level best to talk 05:42 about what I know to be true and to stay away from things 05:46 that are way above my pay grade. 05:49 So with that disclaimer firmly in place, 05:52 I wanna talk about the real story of the temptation 05:54 of Christ, the way it reads in the Bible, 05:57 because I think it says a lot about the way that you and I 06:00 are required to navigate life. 06:02 It's the story of a man who was completely unlike us 06:06 because He was sinless, God in human flesh. 06:10 But more importantly, it's also the story of a man 06:13 who was like us the way the book of Hebrews describes. 06:16 He came to live an authentic human life and to show us 06:20 what it means to live as the image of God. 06:23 And we really have two choices 06:25 when it comes to examining this story 06:27 because the Bible gives us two different versions, 06:30 at least when it comes to the details. 06:33 Mark only mentions the temptation of Christ in passing, 06:36 but then you find one detailed account in Matthew 06:40 and another one in Luke. 06:42 Now the content is the same. 06:44 It's the same list of three temptations, 06:46 but Matthew and Luke actually list them 06:49 in a different order. 06:50 Matthew arranges the temptation, 06:52 so they kind of build to a natural climax, 06:54 and he ends with the devil offering to give Jesus all 06:57 the kingdoms of this world. 06:59 But then Luke's order is somewhat different. 07:02 He lists the temptations differently, 07:04 beginning with the temptation to turn stones into bread, 07:08 then the offer of the kingdoms of this world, 07:10 and then finally daring Jesus to leap 07:13 from the pinnacle of the temple. 07:15 Luke is roughly approximating 07:17 the order of the temptations you find in the Garden of Eden 07:20 where the serpent starts with an appeal to human appetite. 07:23 And then leads to this idea 07:25 that we can become something more than human, God-like. 07:30 Of course, as I've mentioned in other episodes, 07:32 Matthew is emphasizing the kingship of Jesus, 07:35 demonstrating that Jesus is the lion of the tribe of Judah, 07:39 and Luke is underlining the humanity of Christ 07:42 by showing Jesus as the Son of man. 07:46 And I struggle a little bit to decide 07:47 which version we should look at today 07:49 because there's a lot to learn from both approaches. 07:53 But I think because Matthew 07:54 is actually a bit of a personal favorite, 07:57 I'm gonna look at it from his perspective. 08:00 Of course, what you should probably do when the show is over 08:02 is go back and read both accounts to see what you can learn 08:05 from these two different approaches. 08:08 But now it's time to get down to brass tacks, 08:10 and do a little bit of reading. 08:12 So here we go, beginning in Matthew 4:1, the Bible says, 08:18 "Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness 08:21 to be tempted by the devil. 08:23 And when He had fasted 40 days and 40 nights, 08:25 afterward He was hungry." 08:28 So let's pause there for a moment 08:31 and consider the information we already have. 08:34 The temptation of Christ according to the Bible 08:37 was something that had to happen. 08:39 So in other words, it was planned. 08:42 It tells us the Spirit led Jesus into the wilderness, 08:45 specifically for the purpose of being tempted. 08:48 You see, as you study the ministry of Jesus, 08:51 what you're gonna find is that there's just no end 08:53 to the breadth of it. 08:55 If you ask the question, what did Jesus come to do, 08:59 you're not gonna find an easy answer. 09:01 I mean, yes, the book of Luke summarizes His ministry 09:03 beautifully by saying, "The Son of Man has come to seek 09:06 and to save that which was lost." 09:09 And that's really what He did in a nutshell. 09:12 But unpacking that idea is gonna take the rest of your life, 09:16 and even then you won't be done. 09:19 And right here at the top of the story, 09:21 we discovered that Jesus had to face the devil. 09:23 He had to be tempted, 09:25 and the Spirit of God arranged Him, why? 09:28 Because you and I failed, humanity failed. 09:31 We believed a lie, 09:32 and we caved in in the face of temptation. 09:35 And if Jesus is gonna stand as the new head 09:37 of the human race, as an authentic human being made 09:40 in the image of God, He's gonna have to face 09:43 the same challenges that we do. 09:45 And I'll be right back after this 09:47 to explore that just a little bit more. 09:50 [bright music] 09:53 - [Narrator] Life can throw a lot at us. 09:55 Sometimes we don't have all the answers, 09:59 but that's where the Bible comes in. 10:01 It's our guide to a more fulfilling life. 10:04 Here at The Voice of Prophecy, 10:06 we've created the Discover Bible guides to be your guide 10:08 to the Bible. 10:10 They're designed to be simple, easy to use, 10:12 and provide answers to many of life's toughest questions, 10:15 and they're absolutely free. 10:17 So jump online now or give us a call, 10:19 and start your journey of discovery. 10:23 - The story of the real temptation of Christ begins 10:25 by telling us that this was something that had to happen. 10:29 And then it tells us that by the time the devil shows up, 10:32 Jesus has already been fasting for 40 days. 10:35 Now, it doesn't tell us exactly why He's fasting, 10:38 but it's not too hard to figure it out. 10:40 Right before this story, we find the story of Jesus baptism 10:44 where a voice from heaven suddenly says, 10:46 "This is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased." 10:51 He's been publicly introduced as Messiah, and the baptism 10:55 is the point at which Jesus public ministry begins. 10:58 So what is He doing in the wilderness? 11:00 He's probably contemplating the nature of His work, 11:03 the task that lies before Him. 11:05 And He's probably fasting to keep His mind clear, 11:08 which is a spiritual discipline that Christians have largely 11:11 lost sight of here in the 21st century. 11:14 And it's after 40 days of not eating 11:17 that the devil suddenly shows up. 11:19 It says in verse three, "Now when the tempter came to Him, 11:23 he said, if you are the Son of God, 11:26 command that these stones become bread." 11:29 There's an important word in that statement, 11:31 and it's a really short word. 11:33 It's that tiny word, if. 11:36 God, the Father has just publicly declared that Jesus 11:39 is His son, and now the tempter is trying 11:42 to make Jesus doubt that. 11:44 And you'll notice he doesn't do it when Jesus is strong, 11:47 and brimming with confidence, the tempter hits Him 11:50 when he's fatigued. 11:52 Now, I've never fasted for 40 days, but I've done it for 10. 11:55 And I can tell you that there comes a point 11:57 where you begin to feel, well a little weak. 12:01 So what we have here in essence is a person 12:03 who's getting kicked while he's down. 12:06 And that tells us something about the nature of temptation. 12:09 It doesn't really happen when you're resolute and brave, 12:13 it happens during moments of weakness when you're tired, 12:16 or you're angry, or maybe you're even bored. 12:19 And it's at those moments 12:21 that bad ideas quickly develop into temptation. 12:25 Let me give you an example of what I'm getting at. 12:27 On a normal day when you're making a purchase 12:29 at the Seven 11, you can look at those lottery tickets 12:32 on the counter and know that your odds of winning 12:35 are incredibly low. 12:37 You know, one out of millions. 12:40 So you have the presence of mind 12:41 to think about your household budget. 12:43 And you realize that dropping 50 bucks on lottery tickets 12:46 is not the best use of your money. 12:48 In fact, it's not much better 12:50 than actually burning the cash. 12:53 But now let's suppose that you've been fired, 12:56 and your funds are low and you don't have the money you need 12:59 to make your mortgage payment on the first of the month. 13:01 This morning, you saw that the jackpot 13:03 is now at $1.3 billion. 13:07 So your desperate need begins to drive your appetite in ways 13:11 that it wouldn't otherwise. 13:13 And of course, you tell yourself 13:14 that if you had that kind of money, 13:16 you'd be the most benevolent person on Earth. 13:18 And you think about all the good you would do, 13:20 you would build a new clinic, 13:21 you would open an orphanage in India, 13:23 you would even give most of that money to the church. 13:26 But of course, the odds are exactly the same 13:29 as they were before, which is as close to zero 13:31 as you can get without it actually being zero. 13:35 But now for some reason, 13:36 when you don't actually have 50 bucks to spare, 13:39 you're far more tempted to buy the tickets 13:41 than when you do have the 50 bucks 13:44 because now you're being driven by desperation. 13:48 Or maybe it's something far more serious 13:50 than you're spending a couple of bucks on a lottery ticket, 13:52 which for most people is neither here nor there. 13:56 Maybe you're tempted to go and rob a bank. 13:58 It's something you would never do 14:00 under any other circumstance. 14:02 But now you are at risk of being thrown on the street, 14:05 and your perception of reality is being skewed 14:08 by your sense of desperation. 14:10 I mean, don't most people judge criminals differently 14:13 if we know they stole a loaf of bread 14:15 because they were hungry? 14:17 Everybody instinctively knows there's a difference 14:19 between stealing because you're needy 14:22 and stealing because you are greedy. 14:24 The world's not gonna judge you quite as harshly, 14:27 and really don't you need the money more than most people? 14:31 Nevermind it, stealing actually transfers your problems 14:34 to somebody else. 14:35 And nevermind the fact 14:37 that people usually get hurt during a bank robbery, 14:39 or at least traumatized. 14:41 In this case, we just tell ourselves 14:43 the ends really do justify the means 14:45 because we're in trouble. 14:47 Now, what I'm not suggesting 14:49 is that we shouldn't pay attention 14:50 to someone's motives when we're considering punishment. 14:54 I'm simply pointing out that desperation has a way 14:56 of shifting our values, of making us consider things 14:59 we would never consider under any other circumstance. 15:04 What isn't a temptation 15:05 when we're strong suddenly becomes one when we're weak. 15:09 And that's what's happening to Jesus. 15:11 He's been tempted after 40 days of fasting. 15:15 Hey, the devil says, if you really are the Son of God, 15:18 why don't you just turn these stones into bread? 15:20 Easy peasy, no need to go hungry. 15:24 It's the temptation of exception. 15:27 Intellectually, you know it's wrong, 15:29 but these are special circumstances, right? 15:31 And most of us wouldn't hesitate to find an easy fix 15:35 for hunger and that's the way it always seems to go. 15:38 We know that something is wrong, 15:40 and of course we would never do it, 15:42 but then we tell ourselves this is a special occasion. 15:46 Just think about the number of times you've told somebody, 15:48 look, I'm sorry I did that to you, 15:50 but here's what you've got to understand. 15:53 Understand what? 15:54 That you actually had a good reason for behaving badly. 15:57 Is that supposed to make the way you hurt 15:59 somebody else now acceptable? 16:03 Look, I understand there are special cases 16:05 where you had to choose from the least among evils, 16:08 like the famous conundrum that came from World War II. 16:11 The Nazis are knocking at your door and they're demanding 16:14 to know if you're hiding Jews, if you tell the truth, 16:17 there's a good chance that innocent people are going to die. 16:20 So you've gotta make up your mind. 16:22 Do you lie to save human lives or do you tell the truth, 16:26 and watch your house guests get herded into a cattle car 16:29 and sent to a death camp? 16:32 So yeah, in the real world we often find ourselves 16:35 up against some really hard choices. 16:37 And sometimes we try to figure out not how to save the day, 16:41 but how to cause the least harm. 16:44 And I do think it might be a good idea 16:45 to come back someday and reexamine that exact scenario 16:49 because I actually think there are good answers 16:51 about how to navigate those kinds of ethics. 16:54 But for right now, I just wanna focus 16:56 on the temptation we all experience. 16:59 We like to convince ourselves 17:01 that something might be wrong under most circumstances, 17:04 but this circumstance is an exception. 17:08 What we find the devil doing in this story 17:10 is trying to convince Jesus to use His divine power 17:12 to solve a human problem. 17:15 But what Jesus came to do, at least in part is to succeed 17:19 where the first Adam failed. 17:21 When the tempter first appealed 17:23 to our appetite in Eden, it worked. 17:26 We chose personal satisfaction over obedience to God. 17:29 And in this story, precisely the opposite happens. 17:33 Adam and Eve were not dying of hunger 17:35 the day they were tempted. 17:36 In fact, they lived in a world of plenty, 17:40 but still the tempter appealed to their appetite and said, 17:42 listen, maybe God said you couldn't eat from every tree, 17:45 but have you actually looked at this one? 17:48 "So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food," 17:51 it says in Genesis, "that it was pleasant to the eyes 17:54 and a tree desirable to make one wise, 17:57 she took its fruit and ate." 18:00 Way back then it wasn't a case of need, 18:03 but most people would've no problem suggesting that Jesus 18:05 might be perfectly justified in doing this 18:09 because He's just been fasting for 40 days. 18:11 And we all know that 41 days starts to get dangerous. 18:17 I'll be right back after this. 18:25 - [Narrator] There is a place so still, 18:32 you can almost hear your imagination. 18:38 [gentle music] 18:42 So free, your spirits can soar. 18:52 So vast, it needs to be explored. 19:01 [soft music] 19:06 So high, you can touch the clouds. 19:14 A place called Discovery Mountain. 19:22 [soft music] 19:31 - Back in the 1960's when Joseph Fletcher released 19:34 his now famous book, "Situation Ethics" he argued that right 19:38 and wrong are not necessarily clear cut ethical categories, 19:42 that the real world might be more a matter 19:44 of shades of gray. 19:46 Something might be wrong under most circumstances, he said, 19:49 but sometimes it's perfectly justified 19:52 because the situation demands it. 19:54 "There are times" Joseph Fletcher wrote, 19:56 "when a man has to push his principles aside 19:58 and do the right thing." 20:00 Now, I wanna be careful because in a broken world, 20:03 there actually are some gray areas and not everything 20:06 is always easy to figure out, ethically speaking. 20:09 And I also wanna be careful 20:11 that I don't make a caricature out of this book 20:13 because while I disagree with this basic premise, 20:16 the book is far more nuanced 20:18 than I'm about to lead some of you to believe. 20:21 I guess I just felt the need to mention him 20:23 because he had such a profound influence on the way 20:26 that our generation thinks. 20:29 But now let's get back to the matter at hand, 20:31 and that's the first temptation of Christ 20:33 the way it reads in Matthew chapter four. 20:36 Somebody might be asking why it would be wrong for Jesus 20:39 to feed Himself. 20:41 And the answer is, well, it wouldn't be. 20:43 And that's kind of the point. 20:45 The road to darkness never starts with an obvious evil. 20:50 Of course, Jesus is hungry. 20:51 And of course, it's not a sin to take care 20:53 of your basic physical needs. 20:55 That's not the point of the story. 20:58 What the devil is suggesting is that Jesus should use His 21:00 divine power for His own benefit, 21:03 and he's also tempting Him to defend himself. 21:06 The heavens had parted, 21:07 the voice of his Father had told the world 21:09 that he was Messiah, the Son of God. 21:12 And now in a moment of physical weakness, 21:15 another voice is saying, if you are the Son of God, 21:21 in other words he's tempting Jesus, the man 21:23 to doubt something that God has plainly said, 21:26 which is exactly what happened in Eden. 21:29 "Do not eat from that tree," God said, 21:31 but then the serpent whispered, 21:33 "Did God really say" that for real? 21:36 Which brings us to Jesus' answer, 21:38 which you find in verse four. 21:40 "But He answered and said, 21:42 it is written, man shall not live by bread alone, 21:45 but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God." 21:50 Here's what's going on in this story. 21:52 A balancing of two essential requirements are physical needs 21:56 and our need to be in harmony with our maker. 21:59 And if you have to prioritize one of those, 22:02 if it comes down to choosing between those two, 22:05 we need to choose our relationship with God. 22:08 The human brain is remarkably good 22:09 at finding reasons to disobey. 22:12 We have this talent for manufacturing a reason that God 22:15 must be wrong in this particular case, 22:18 that He would change His mind 22:19 if He only understood our circumstances. 22:22 You and I are remarkably gifted 22:24 when it comes to the art of justification. 22:27 And the fallen heart almost always chooses self. 22:32 Just a few chapters later, Jesus makes it obvious 22:35 why He made the decision He did. 22:37 Listen to what He says in the Sermon on the Mount, 22:40 "Therefore do not worry, saying what shall we eat, 22:44 or what shall we drink, or what shall we wear? 22:47 For after all these things the Gentiles seek. 22:49 For your heavenly Father knows 22:51 that you need all these things, 22:53 but seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness 22:56 and all these things shall be added to you." 23:00 Have a look at what we already know from this story. 23:03 The temptations were something Jesus had to go through. 23:06 And it says that the Spirit was the one 23:07 who led Him into the wilderness. 23:10 This was an exercise in trust, 23:12 which is one of the biggest things the human race lost 23:15 when we turned our backs on God. 23:17 We used to trust what He said. 23:19 We used to believe 23:20 that He always had our best interests at heart. 23:22 We used to trust that He actually knew 23:24 what He was talking about. 23:26 And then we listened to a serpent 23:27 and foolishly tossed our trust out the window. 23:31 So as a real human being, Jesus the man 23:34 was going to have to restore that trust between the creator 23:37 and His creation. 23:38 He was gonna have to endure real privation, real discomfort 23:42 and trust that obedience was still important. 23:45 And so, no, there's nothing wrong with eating 23:47 when you're hungry, but there is something wrong 23:50 with taking moral shortcuts when you know full well 23:53 what you should be doing. 23:56 Jesus had to conquer appetite in pursuit of obedience 23:59 because you and I rejected obedience 24:01 for the sake of appetite. 24:02 And if He was going to become the new head 24:05 of the human race, He had to do this as one of us. 24:09 If He caved into temptation, you and I would be lost. 24:12 Our corporate rebellion, 24:13 our corporate disobedience would stand on the books 24:15 for all eternity and there would be no justifiable way 24:19 to restore us to the kingdom of God. 24:22 What we have in the Bible is the story of a man 24:25 who would not take shortcuts, 24:27 who wouldn't take the easy road, not if it meant losing you. 24:31 The final path to victory in this case included the cross. 24:35 And if there was ever a reason to say, 24:37 you know in this case I'm just not going to do it, 24:40 and that would've been it, 24:41 but that also would've been game over for all of us. 24:44 I'll be right back after this. 24:47 [bright music] 24:50 - [Narrator] Dragons, beasts, cryptic statues, 24:55 Bible prophecy can be incredibly vivid and confusing. 24:59 If you've ever read Daniel or Revelation 25:01 and come away scratching your head, you are not alone. 25:05 Our free "Focus on Prophecy" guides are designed 25:07 to help you unlock the mysteries of the Bible, 25:10 and deepen your understanding of God's plan for you 25:13 and our world. 25:14 Study online or request them by mail 25:16 and start bringing prophecy into focus today. 25:21 - So far, we've only explored 25:22 one out of the three temptations, 25:24 that means we're gonna have to come back some other day. 25:27 So maybe let's review some of the highlights so far. 25:31 This is the story of a real man. 25:33 He was God in human flesh, that divine Son of God, 25:37 but he was also a real human being. 25:40 And sometimes we forget that. 25:42 I mean, yes, Jesus is larger than life 25:45 and He's very much unlike us in a lot of ways. 25:48 But the point of this story is to show us 25:50 that God understands what it's like to live in this place. 25:53 When the Spirit led Jesus out into the wilderness, 25:55 it wasn't a matter of just going through the motions. 25:58 When the Bible says that Jesus was tempted, 26:00 it means He was really tempted. 26:03 And that's about the only part of the last temptation 26:06 of Christ that the original author got right, 26:09 the fact that Jesus was actually tempted. 26:12 I've met a lot of Christians who tell me that Jesus 26:14 couldn't have sinned in this story, 26:16 and that doesn't really make sense 26:18 because then it's not a real temptation 26:20 and He's not a real human being. 26:23 And let's be honest about this, Jesus was tempted 26:25 to do things that you and I will never be tempted to do 26:28 because changing stones into bread isn't exactly a part 26:32 of our skillset. 26:33 So in that sense, you might say that Jesus 26:36 was tempted beyond what you and I go through. 26:40 So yes, He could have sinned, 26:42 or there wouldn't be a point to the story, 26:44 but at the same time I think it's important to point out 26:46 that Jesus wouldn't have sinned because of His character. 26:50 And there's no doubt that this story is designed 26:53 to build your confidence in who He is. 26:55 This is a God you can trust. 26:59 You and me, we would've failed, but He didn't. 27:03 Which only goes to show that you really can trust Him 27:05 with your future. 27:07 Look, I know some people say 27:08 that none of this ever actually happened, 27:11 but that's an impression that quickly fades away 27:13 if you make the effort to sit down and actually read this. 27:16 And I mean really pay attention to what's happening. 27:20 This is the story of a world full of people you can't trust, 27:25 and a God who goes to great lengths to prove 27:27 that He's trustworthy. 27:29 So maybe it's time to give this story one more look. 27:34 Maybe it's time to examine God as He comes to this world 27:37 in human flesh to live among us, really as one of us, 27:41 and succeed in every area that we failed 27:45 and then gave His life for us. 27:47 Look, I've run out of time today, 27:48 so I'm gonna have to leave the other two temptations 27:51 for another time. 27:52 Thanks for joining me today. 27:54 I'm Shawn Boonstra, 27:55 and this has been another episode of Authentic. 28:00 [upbeat music] 28:16 [upbeat music continues] 28:28 [upbeat music ends] |
Revised 2023-09-13