TEMPTED OF SATAN by Augusta W. Heald

Pacific Press Publishing Company · Oakland, California · Jul 22, 1897

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 23, No. 28.

“TEMPTED OF SATAN.”

By Augusta W. Heald

THE story of the Gospel by Luke tells us how the hosts of heaven sang praises at our Saviour’s birth (Luke 2:10–12); but how was his advent regarded by the prince of evil, whose works the Lord came to destroy? Satan would, if possible, have slain the infant Jesus by the hand of cruel Herod, who put to the sword the innocent children of Bethlehem—blessed martyrs in the cause of Christ. Now he comes forth and boldly presents his temptations to the Messiah, God’s anointed Son. Can he lead the Redeemer to sin?—then the scheme of redemption is a failure, and man is indeed without hope. Jesus must meet in his human nature the temptations to which man is subject. His power to withstand the tempter must come through his faith in God; for he “was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.” Heb. 4:15. He is “touched with the feeling of our infirmities,” for he, as man, knows the weakness of the flesh.

Mark says, “He was there in the wilderness forty days, tempted of Satan; and was with the wild beasts.” Mark 1:13. After this long fast he hungered, and in the desert wild there was no food to sustain life. At this point the tempter said in effect, “It is needless for you to suffer thus; if you are indeed the Son of God, you can by one word change these stones into bread.” The Saviour stood in man’s place man can work no miracle to selfishly save himself from death by hunger or destitution, and our Lord refused to exert divine power in his own behalf. Thus he would teach us even in circumstances of extremest want and privation, to trust in our heavenly Father’s care, and not venture into sin even to supply the direst necessity. So he rebuked the tempter, saying, “It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word . . . of God.” Matt. 4:4.

Foiled in this attempt, Satan sought to lead the Saviour to make a reckless and daring display of power by hurling himself from a pinnacle of the temple. “If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down; for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee; and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.” Matt. 4:6. But to this the Saviour replied, “It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.”

Again frustrated, Satan took our Lord into an exceeding high mountain, and caused the glory of the world to pass before him as in a panorama, and said, “All this power will I give thee, and the glory of them; for that is delivered unto me; and to whomsoever I will I give it. If thou therefore wilt worship me, all shall be thine.” Luke 4:6, 7. What blasphemous presumption was this, to ask the Lord of glory to bow down and worship him! But was this a temptation to our Lord? Was the statement of Satan, “All is delivered unto me; and to whomsoever I will I give it,” a fabrication of the father of lies? Then it could not be a temptation to the Lord. Is it then true that Satan has power over the splendors of this world?—It is true; for we know from the account in Genesis that to Adam, as the head and representative of the human race, was given the dominion of the whole earth. Gen. 1:28. Through sin Adam and all he possessed became subject to Satan; for “of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in bondage.” 2 Peter 2:19. To the captor therefore was delivered by Adam all his possessions. So the dominion of this fair world passed into the hands of Satan, the usurper, to the same extent that it had belonged to Adam. We know this to be true from the Saviour’s words to his disciples, “The prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in me.” John 14:30. This was indeed Satan’s masterpiece of temptation.

The glory, the riches, the honors of earth were here placed over against the life of shame and the humiliation and pain of the cross of Calvary, but, thanks be to God, our Redeemer triumphed again with the written Word: “Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.” Luke 4:8. The hosts of heaven were watching this mysterious conflict between the prince of life and the powers of darkness. They beheld with wonder and amazement the sufferings of their King, and when he triumphed over the adversary, and sank fainting with exhaustion, they were permitted to come and minister unto him.

“Cold mountains and the midnight air Witnessed the fervor of Thy prayer; The desert Thy temptations knew, Thy conflict, and Thy victory too.”

AUGUSTA W. HEALD.