One thing that Jesus was NOT - was flashy. When He cured someone, it was with a touch. When He spoke, the crowds came to Him. And when He resisted the Devil - it was through the simple mechanisms of fasting, prayer, and Scripture. These are things each of us can do daily or weekly, which fits completely with Jesus's advice to not put on a public display. Your life - your resistance to temptation - will be all the display you need.
In the Gospels, the best known examples of Jesus facing and resisting temptation are the 3 tests in the desert at the very beginning of His ministry. Just after His baptism by John, Jesus was led into the desert by the Holy Spirit, where He fasted for 40 days. At the end of that time, the Devil came and tempted Him 3 times. The first was the request to turn stones into bread. For the second test, the Devil took Jesus to the top of the Temple and bade Him leap off, and be protected by the angels. The third test was the presentation to Jesus of all the world's empires, in exchange for Jesus worshipping the Devil. What is notable about all three examples - and the most applicable to your life - is that Jesus had the strength to resist these powerful and almost overwhelming temptations by His fasting and praying for 40 days, and by quoting Scripture.
Another example is Jesus's prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane. Jesus never asked to be let out of His mission. He simply asked if there were an alternative. Jesus always recognized that God's will must be done. Jesus berated the apostles who accompanied Him for falling asleep, explaining that the time could be better spent in prayer, the better to strengthen themselves against temptation.
Jesus faced several temptations during His trial before Pilate and Herod, including the mocking by the soldiers and the physical and emotional torture He faced by the whipping, crowning with thorns, and humiliating slaps from the guards. Jesus resisted the temptation to either quit His ministry or retaliate (remember, He had told Peter in the Garden at his arrest that He could summon legions of angels to His side). Jesus resisted the temptation by remaining true to His mission.
The final temptation of Jesus was when He was hanging on the cross, dying from blood loss and suffocation. The crowd and the thief to his side mocked Him, calling for Him to come down from the cross. Again, Jesus resisted the temptation by focusing on His mission, even granting eternal life to the thief who praised Him.
Jesus throughout the Gospels emphasized connecting with God, but nowhere was that more obvious than these incidents where He was tempted. He repeatedly explained that prayer and fasting were paramount in strengthening yourself to resist temptation, and quoted Scripture to answer the Devil.
A copy of "The Six Temptations Of Jesus Christ" can be purchased at: http://www.knowledge-download.com/Six_Temptations
Erik Carter is an experienced computer programmer and attorney. He has written SIX TEMPTATIONS OF JESUS CHRIST (http://www.knowledge-download.com/six_temptations) and AGGRESSIVE PLEADINGS FOR THE NON-CUSTODIAL FATHER (http://www.knowledge-download.com/six_temptations).
Christians all over the world will all be tempted in... Read More
Life is growth. For many people life is like a... Read More
One night, whilst watching TV, I understood a very useful... Read More
Tea-totalling Texans? Them's fightin' words!I live in a small Texas... Read More
Angels, those divine beings of love and light, are here... Read More
The Bible tells us that we must be led by... Read More
About a month ago I opened up my bible in... Read More
We all sin. To avoid using the "s" word, we... Read More
A year ago, a beautiful woman came to see me.... Read More
Meeting someone so attractive, so beautiful. Your heart beats like... Read More
I am not saying this because I am in need,... Read More
We often forget that we are human beings first, and... Read More
Make no mistake about it, change is challenging whether it... Read More
The fundamental aim of spiritual study is to get facts... Read More
In the spring of 2003, I spent three weeks in... Read More
Greetings Divine Ones, I am going to ask you a... Read More
Nicole Kidman and Will Ferrell recently starred in the movie... Read More
Give us today our daily bread. Matthew 6:11 (NIV) We... Read More
I have been reading a lot lately about the concepts... Read More
Over the past few years I have watched the popularity... Read More
If you were Satan and your goal is to destroy... Read More
Recently it has come to my attention people are noticing... Read More
Unconditional love means unconditional freedom. Love and freedom are two... Read More
"Everything in the universe is a pitcher brimming with wisdom... Read More
"You have not handed me over to the enemy but... Read More
Did you ever know somebody who easily accumulates wealth? If... Read More
The Mystical Experience"The mysteries of life become lucid ? and... Read More
It will all be clear in a minute, but first... Read More
The atmosphere surrounding the earth is still a matter of... Read More
With those words recorded in Exodus 15:26, God proclaims to... Read More
Being critical of Buddhism isn't easy.Buddhism is the most likable... Read More
In the game of billiards there are two things you... Read More
We are living in highly challenged times. Our mass consciousness... Read More
Have you ever noticed how much our lives resemble a... Read More
Mrs. Dixon the famous prognosticator and psychic to the stars... Read More
"Let me take you down to a town called Paradise."Van... Read More
"Mama, save me!"My six year old son jumped into my... Read More
It's human nature to point a finger when we think... Read More
"Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances,... Read More
Would you like an exciting and wonder-full resolution for the... Read More
Angels, those divine beings of love and light, are here... Read More
I know eyebrows are probably raising about now, but let... Read More
A subject of debate for thousands of years, spirituality will... Read More
The Key to True Love...Do you long for love?Most of... Read More
In his book, Stress Without Distress, Dr. Selye suggests that... Read More
There is light at the end of the tunnel, but... Read More
I am deeply drawn to the above Irish Blessing.This blessing... Read More
There is an old tradition song called, The Lighthouse and... Read More
What could be a scary thought for some? How bout'... Read More
Matthew 3:4-6 John Baptizes the People4 Now John wore a... Read More
Spirituality |