JESUS OVERCAME EVERY TEMPTATION
Exposition of Luke 4:1-14
4:1 Then Jesus, being filled with the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the
wilderness, 2 being tempted for forty days by the devil. And in those days He ate nothing, and afterward,
when they had ended, He was hungry. 3 And the devil said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, command this
stone to become bread." 4 But Jesus answered him, saying, "It is written, 'Man shall not live by bread alone,
but by every word of God.' " 5 Then the devil, taking Him up on a high mountain, showed Him all the
kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. 6 And the devil said to Him, "All this authority I will give You,
and their glory; for this has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I wish. 7 Therefore, if You will
worship before me, all will be Yours." 8 And Jesus answered and said to him, "Get behind Me, Satan! For
it is written, 'You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.' " 9 Then he brought Him
to Jerusalem, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, throw
Yourself down from here. 10 For it is written: 'He shall give His angels charge over You, To keep You,'
11 "and, 'In their hands they shall bear you up, Lest you dash your foot against a stone.' " 12 And Jesus
answered and said to him, "It has been said, 'You shall not tempt the LORD your God.' " 13 Now when the
devil had ended every temptation, he departed from Him until an opportune time. 14 Then Jesus returned
n the power of the Spirit to Galilee, and news of Him went out through all the surrounding region.
15 And He taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all.
Luke 4:1-14 NKJV
I. JESUS BEING LED BY THE HOLY SPIRIT INTO THE WILDERNESS (V. 1)
A. Jesus was baptized in the Jordan by John the Baptist to fulfill righteousness
1. Jesus submitted himself to the baptism of repentance as the son of man. (Matt. 3:15)
2. Jesus identified himself with the old covenant, law and prophets (Matt. 5:17-18)
3. Jesus endorsed John’s role as the forerunner of Christ. (Matt 11:11-14;17:10-12)
B. The Holy Spirit rested upon Jesus when He came up out of the water (baptism)
1. Jesus became in reality the resting place of the Holy Spirit in an earthen vessel (Luke 3:22)
2. Jesus received the Spirit without measure (John 3:34)
3. Jesus is the fullness of the Godhead dwelling in bodily form (Col. 2:9)
C. The voice came from heaven, “This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased”.
1. Jesus’ sonship was declared by the Father after His public baptism of repentance by John the Baptist (Luke 3:22,
Mark 1:11)
2. Jesus’ sonship was declared by the Father and witnessed by Moses, Elijah and the Apostles (Luke 9:35,
2 Peter 1:17)
II. JESUS OVERCAME THE TEMPTATION OF THE DEVIL IN THE WILDERNESS (VS. 2-13)
Jesus, the last Adam overcame the temptation of the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life in the wilderness,
while Adam and Eve fell to those temptations in the garden. From the time of Adam, God often used the wilderness as
the environmental context for the preparation of a generation or a vessel (Gen. 3, 1 Cor. 15: 22-49, Gen. 37:23,
Gen. 12:1-3, Ex. 3:1, Ex. 3:18, Num. 14:33-35, 1 Sam. 22:1, Daniel 1, Matt. 14:26-42, Acts 1-2, Acts 13, Gal. 2:1)
A. Jesus overcame the temptation in the area of appetite (lust of the flesh) – vs. 2-4
Jesus understood the purpose of this opportune time. He embraced a season of voluntary weakness through prayer
and fasting while operating in the fullness of the Spirit and developed a deep history in subduing his fleshly appetite. He
turned the temptation of the devil into an opportunity to manifest the strength of His inner man that had been energized
by the Holy Spirit. He faced the dynamic of real bodily appetite, which could have potentially caused him to yield to the
demand of the devil rather than submit to the Word of God (Deut. 8:3)
B. Jesus overcame the temptation in the area of “beholding” (lust of the eyes) – vs. 5-8
Jesus understood that the central issue of worship was the beauty and glory of God and His marvelous works. When the
devil showed him all of the glory of the kingdoms of this world as the price for worshipping him, Jesus immediately
responded with the truth about beauty and worship. Jesus refuted the deception of the devil with truth, that only God in
His infinite beauty is worthy of our worship and that we must fix our gaze upon Him. Furthermore, the devil was intending
to usurp Christ’s inheritance as The King of Kings by offering him an illegitimate way of receiving the kingdom of this
world and forever putting this world under the subjection of the devil. This temptation was meant to disqualify Christ’s
calling and steal His kingdom from Him. Jesus understood the importance of having the right perspective of beauty in
relation to worship. (Ex. 20:4-6)
C. Jesus overcame the temptation in the area of identity (pride of the life) – vs. 9-12
Jesus, being God, did not consider His equality with God something to hold on to but humbled Himself by taking on human flesh,
even to the point of His identity being challenged by the ruler of darkness. Jesus, who commands all the heavenly hosts
of angels, subjected himself in meekness to live in the form of a son of man depending on the power of the Holy Spirit
moment by moment. When Jesus was challenged by the devil to prove his identity by wielding his authority and power,
Jesus did not do so, even though He could have easily done it. Instead, he confronted the devil face to face and postured
himself even closer to the expression of a son of man, who should neither tempt, nor test the Lord our God (Deut. 6:16).
III. JESUS HAS COMPLETE VICTORY OVER EVERY TEMPTATION DURING THIS OPPORTUNE TIME (V. 13)
A. Jesus laid hold of this opportune time to accomplish the things of God in the Spirit.
B. Jesus depended on the power and leadership of the Holy Spirit during this opportune time.
C. Jesus’ obedience during this opportune time made Him an affective eternal intercessor for the sons of Adam
(Heb. 4:14-15)
Opportune time in this context is kairou/ (kairos) which can be explained as period of time, the right, proper, favorable
time , opportunity, definite, appointed time, fixed time or the time of crisis.
IV. JESUS COMING FORTH WITH POWER AND GLORY FROM THE WILDERNESS (V.14)
A. Jesus’ ministry had great glory immediately after this period in the wilderness. (Luke 4:14)
B. Jesus boldly declared His Messianic identity in the public arena (Luke 4:21)
C. Jesus faced rejection by His own people (Luke 4:22-30)
V. APPLICATIONS OF SPIRITUAL PRINCIPLES FROM LUKE 4:1-14.
A. The Environmental Context of the Wilderness.
1. Reasons for entering the wilderness
a. Led by the Holy Spirit during an appointed time (Luke 4:1)
b. Embracing voluntary weakness and setting it aside during an opportune time (Ex. 34:28)
c. Driven by the enemy or crisis (thus fleeing into the wilderness) (1 Sam. 22:1)
d. The need for Solitude (Luke 5:16)
e. A period of the judgment of the Lord (“time out” scenario) (Num. 14:33-34)
2. Characteristics of the wilderness
a. Hiddenness (1 Sam. 22:1)
b. Loneliness (1 Kings 19:9)
c. Lack of resources or convenience (Ex. 17:1)
d. Lack of familiar sign posts (Gen. 12:1-3)
e. Lurking fear due to potential danger of the wild (1 Sam. 17:34)
f. Lack of natural strength to rely upon (Luke 4:1-2)
g. Lack of activities (or variety of activities and options) (Gen. 37:23)
3. The wilderness as an alternative environmental context for the gracious dealings of God in comparison with the garden
of God.
B. Overcoming in the wilderness
5 Blessed is the man whose strength is in You, Whose heart is set on pilgrimage. 6 As they pass through the Valley of Baca,
They make it a spring;The rain also covers it with pools. 7 They go from strength to strength; Each one appears before
God in Zion. -Ps 84:5-7 NKJV
1. Developing a deep history in God through prayer and fasting- John the Baptist grew strong in his spirit in the
desert until the day of his manifestation -Luke 1:80
2. Fixing our gaze upon the beauty of God in the wilderness (a very focused life)- 2 Cor. 3:18
3. Victorious in spiritual warfare by the Word of God in the power of the Spirit.- Luke 4:2-13
4. Recognizing the purposes of opportune times/ appointed hours – Luke 22:53
5. Learning to lay hold of what Christ has laid hold of for us (abandonment) – Phil. 3:12
C. Manifestation of power and glory out of the wilderness
5 Who is this coming up from the wilderness, Leaning upon her beloved? Song 8:5 NKJV
This verse is a picture of a mature Bride come out of wilderness after many seasons of God’s dealing, deeply abiding in
Christ and full of glory and tenacity to weather many more storms and flood.
The night and prayer furnace is God’s gift for saints to help prepare the saints towards spiritual maturity and fueled the
advancement of God’s kingdom among the lost. For those who called to gather as watchmen on the wall in prayer
furnaces, the night and day prayer furnace can be a wilderness or an oasis. Often, an intercessor will encounter both
dimensions in journal in intense prayer ministry. It is my prayers, this message will encourage and empower you to
cooperate with God’s grace during such a kairos to turn every wilderness into an oasis and every kairos in a moment
to develop deep history in God and that you may grow strong in the Spirit in the wilderness until your moment of
manifestation to your appointed field. Let’s continue to press into this well spring of revival and that will bring
breakthrough in the nations of the earth.