The Sabbath-School by W. N. G.

International Tract and Missionary Society · Oakland, California · Feb 17, 1890

The Sabbath-School.

By W. N. G.

Notes on the International Lesson.

THE TEMPTATION OF JESUS.

"AND Jesus being full of the Holy Ghost." It will be remembered that the token given to John was, "Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him." This idea of the Spirit remaining on him explains the fact of his being "full of the Holy Ghost." This precedent ought to be ample assurance of faith in the promise, "I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee." Heb. 13:5. "So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me." Verse 6. This is the principle that Jesus always acted upon.

HE was "led by the Spirit into the wilderness." Mark expresses it more forcibly, saying, "Immediately the Spirit driveth him into the wilderness." This would indicate that Jesus did not voluntarily run into temptation, but would go where the Spirit urged, though strong temptations might lie in the path of duty. He was always led by the Spirit, but this seems to have been an instance of unusual pressure upon him.

"BEING forty days tempted of the devil." We do not suppose that this was the first temptation Jesus ever had. Peloubet justly comments as follows: "It is not probable that Jesus lived thirty years in Nazareth without enduring many temptations and overcoming them; but this period of temptation was in reference to his great work as the Messiah. The new responsibilities required a new testing. Everything depended on this hour. If Jesus should enter safely upon his work as the Messiah, then the kingdom of God would come and Satan's kingdom be broken forever; and Satan could not let this crisis pass without exerting every possible power to defeat the Son of God and his mission of salvation."

ON the reality of the temptation, President Theo. D. Woolsey says: "The temptation of Christ was a real temptation, as real as our temptations, and without miraculous aids to victory, but only such aids as we all may possess. For why was he tempted by a sagacious tempter if he could not by any possibility be led into evil? And if he himself knew that he could not sin, what could the transaction have been to him but a mere formality? Or how is he an example to us, if his temptation is an unreality. No! they dishonor Christ's work who think thus."

THIS sentiment is in harmony with Heb. 2:18: "In that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succor them that are tempted." Then his temptation was of such a character as to cause him to suffer, which would hardly have been the case had it been a mere formality. "For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin." Heb. 4:15. Any Christian may know by his own temptations what was the character of the temptations of Jesus.

OF the word "devil" used in this connection, the Cambridge Bible says: "The Greek word is diabolos, slanderer, accuser; the Hebrew, Satan, is one who opposes, an adversary. The Greek word conveys the additional ideas of (1) deceiving, (2) calumniating, (3) accusing." From these definitions we get some idea of the assaults made upon Jesus in this terrible conflict, in addition to the

three main points specified in the scriptural account which forms the present lesson. Abbott says: "The term 'the devil' is always used in the Bible to signify an evil spirit, never to personify the evil in man or in the world."

AFTER the long fast of forty days, Jesus was very hungry. When individuals are in an unusually spiritual frame of mind, they think less about eating than under ordinary circumstances; other servants of God have undergone long fasts on special occasions. Both Moses and Elijah fasted forty days. At Jacob's well, when Jesus talked with the woman of Samaria and her neighbors, his disciples pressed him to have something to eat; "but he said unto them, I have meat to eat that ye know not of." In explanation of this remark, he said, "My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work." See John 4:31-34.

WHILE Jesus was hungry from his long fast, his adversary thought to take advantage of his appetite. The devil had overthrown the first Adam by tempting the woman with something "good for food;" and as he succeeded so well in that case, when she was not necessarily hungry, he no doubt thought the one who had come to remedy that fall might be caught in the same way, especially after a forty days' fast. But the "last Adam" (so called in 1 Cor. 15:45) did not yield to the tempter as did the first, but he skillfully used the weapon which the Holy Spirit had given for the purpose,—the word of God, "It is written, That man shall not live by bread alone."

THE same weapon of defense is at our command in all temptations. Are we prepared to wield it? If so, we may likewise resist evil. The indulgence of appetite no doubt unfits many for the free use of the gospel armor. These who strive for honors in the athletic contests,—in foot-races, or prize-fights,—suffer severe ordeals of temperate diet, and exercise of such kinds as are deemed necessary for success; yet they only strive for a "corruptible crown." Paul says of himself, "I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection; lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway." 1 Cor. 9:27. It would seem from these examples that the denying of appetite is an important item in the conflict with sin.

THE next point in the great test to which Jesus was subjected was on the point of political ambition. The devil called his attention to all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them, which he claimed as his, and made this offer: "If thou therefore wilt worship me, all shall be thine." What a tempting offer that was designed to be, Satan had conquered Adam, to whom all the dominion had originally been given (Gen. 1:28), therefore he claimed the earth as his own by conquest. Here was Jesus, who had come to redeem the earth for himself, by suffering and death. How magnanimous was the adversary, to just offer to give it to him without any further trouble, just for the paltry consideration of a little homage to him. But the acceptance would have been fatal to the whole plan of redemption, and Satan would have been victor again. But the self-denying Jesus, "whose right it is," was too spiritually-minded to be overcome in that way. His ever-ready weapon was brought into effectual use once more,—"It is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve."

THEN the devil thought to tempt him to do some rash thing, just to show that he was the Messiah. Coming in obscurity and poverty, for the purpose of manifesting himself to the world in that exalted office, why not do something wonderful to prove to his greatest adversary who he was? "If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down from hence," etc. Of course, if he was the Son of God the angels would keep him from harm; why not prove it at once? This was the devil's forlorn hope as a means of overcoming the sinless One by taking advantage of his long fast. And it likewise failed, defeated by the same sharp weapon, the word of God, "sharper than any two-edged sword:" "It is said, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God." Here is fidelity worthy of imitation. Neither hunger, nor proffered wealth and honor, nor cajolery, could move the humble Nazarene from his determination to satisfy the law with his own life, that the law-breaking race might be saved through his resurrection to a future life.