Are You Really the Son of God?

Our text for today is taken from Matthew 4

¹THEN JESUS was led (guided) by the [Holy] Spirit into the wilderness (desert) to be tempted (tested and tried) by the devil. ²And He went without food for forty days and forty nights, and later He was hungry.³And the tempter came and said to Him, If You are God's Son, command these stones to be made [loaves of] bread.

Strategy 1: Attack their Identity

What is the first thing you notice about the devils strategy? He attacked Jesus’ IDENTITY. This is the same thing he tries with believers. He always tries to sow doubt in the believer’s heart. Similarly, the devil’s strategy is to force believers to prove who they are through deception. Our anointing and power is not given to us to try to justify our relationship with Christ. Beloved, Jesus Christ justified YOU when you received him, full stop.

Now the bible tells us that the spirit and the flesh are always at war with each other. We know that the realm of the devil is the flesh as the bible tells us that the works of the flesh are basically any evil you can think of. The devil believed that he would overcome Jesus because His flesh had been subjected to 40 days and nights of hunger. Whew! Little did the devil know that the spirit of Jesus was even more alert and powerful as a result of His time of separation and prayer. So what did Jesus do?

⁴But He replied, It has been written, Man shall not live and be UPHELD AND SUSTAINED by bread alone, but BY EVERY WORD THAT COMES FORTH FROM THE MOUTH OF GOD.

He did not allow himself to be drawn into juvenile contests about His legitimacy. Jesus did not react but he responded with the words of God. In fact he was declaring to the devil that His strength is not from a finite source, it is SPIRIT. He was telling the devil that God is able to strengthen ones mortal body. Do you not see that verse 4 is a picture of what happened those 40 days and nights? Jesus was upheld and sustained by the word of God. When the enemy attacked him, he reverted to the same word. Have you ever asked yourself why the bible says the word gives life? Now you know.

⁵Then the devil took Him into the holy city and placed Him on a turret (pinnacle, gable) of the temple sanctuary. ⁶And he said to Him, If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down; for IT IS WRITTEN, He will give His angels charge over you, and they will bear you up on their hands, lest you strike your foot against a stone.

Strategy 2: Use the word; twist it to deceive them into error

Beloved, the devil knows the bible, sometimes more than some believers. It will never be your portion in Jesus name! He was still attacking Jesus through the flesh but suddenly turned to using pride. He was very cunning because he was misquoting scripture by twisting it out of context to suit his purposes. How many people have been manipulated into giving offerings they cannot afford because the sermon that was preached coerced them and made them feel very guilty and unchristian if they did not?

How many Christians do you know who have ended up in the hands of wolves because they can quote a few scriptures. Not all “pastors” are from God, some belong to and are working for satan. But that is another post altogether. Please note that the enemy put Jesus on the top of the TEMPLE. The temple was a very significant place. It was built for the Spirit of God to abide in by the Israelites. What was the significance of putting Jesus there and what was he (satan) saying? Let us look at what God said to him to get a clue.

⁷Jesus said to him, On the other hand, it is written also, you shall not tempt, test thoroughly, or try exceedingly the Lord your God.

If you think about the incident that happened in heaven, that is the great rebellion that led to the expulsion and downfall of the devil; what satan was asking Jesus to do was to replay that scene and rebel against the leading and guidance of God. Do you not remember that when Matthew 4:1 started it said that,

...JESUS was led (guided) by the [Holy] Spirit...

Jesus often preached that He ONLY did what He saw the Father do. He talked about the communion and unity he shared with the Father. God was always with Jesus and behind all His works and actions. So satan was trying to use the tactic of divide and rule. He knows the power of unity. He was also asking Jesus to “fall” the same way he had convinced the third of angels that “fell” to fall from grace. This would have been a form of pride. The word tells us clearly that God is the one that will lift us up, not ourselves. Why? It is because God detests pride. It is one of the seven things he hates. Be alert in the spirit and never fight the devil on his turf (the flesh), always fight him on your turf, THE WORD!

Strategy 3: If all else fails, buy their souls.

⁸Again, the devil took Him up on a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and the glory (the splendor, magnificence, preeminence, and excellence) of them.⁹And he said to Him, These things, all taken together, I will give You, if You will prostrate Yourself before me and do homage and worship me.

Beloved they are many on this earth who has sold their souls for money and fame. The bible says, “What does it profit a man if he gains the world but loses his soul?”

¹⁰Then Jesus said to him, Begone, Satan! For it has been written, You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him alone shall you serve.¹¹Then the devil departed from Him, and behold, angels came and ministered to Him.