Jesus was
quoting from the book of Deuteronomy 8:3 in this passage from Matthew 4:3-4 He was being tempted by the Devil in the desert wilderness, He had been fasting for
forty days and was very hungry, tired, and was ready to begin a new chapter in
His life. The devil took full advantage
of Jesus’ weakness by mocking Him and His divinity by saying “Since you are the
Son of God, go ahead and turn this stone(s) into bread”.
Isn’t it
like the devil to attack us at our weakest point and to challenge our resolve
to stay faithful to what we have been called to do, even if we are on the brink
of a new chapter in our lives which can bring us new revelation and joy in Christ. The devil knows that if he can challenge us
to doubt, fear, or move out in the flesh as opposed to being led by the spirit,
we can suffer prolonged desert experiences which can some time to work through.
I love Jesus’
response to the devil, as He quotes from the Old Testament as
a response. Notice that the devil is
using a "stone" both literally and figuratively here, Jesus later compares Himself to
a "stone".
Matthew 21:42 J.B. (PHILLIPS)
“And have you never read these words of
scripture,” said Jesus to them: ‘The stone which the builders rejected has
become the chief cornerstone. This was the Lord’s doing, and it is marvelous in
our eyes?’
The devil in
an underhanded way is stating a half-truth here, “since you are God’s Son, tell
this stone to turn into bread.” Jesus wasn’t going to circumvent the reason for
His fast anymore that He was willing to put the needs of the flesh before the
purposes of God. Jesus who was the "stone" that the builders rejected would Himself become the "bread" that would bring the
word of life to all that received it.
The devil knew this and was appealing to Jesus’ sensibilities by trying to speed up the process of Jesus' passion by using hunger as a motivator. Tempting Him with an easy way out of His suffering.
What the devil was doing with Jesus is what he does with us, he tries to speak
half-truths to us which sound reasonable to get us to circumvent the purposes
of God in our lives so that we can go the way of all flesh which is the way that leads
to death, as opposed to receiving the bread of life which is Jesus by receiving
His Word directly from communication with Him.
What Jesus
is essentially saying here without saying it directly to the devil is: "I am the bread that
sustains life and I am the Word of God". It
is interesting that the devil did not challenge Jesus’ statement because Jesus only quoted from the books of the law. I
also find it interesting that the devil operates from the books of the law and
finds satisfaction with answers from the law, for in the law there is no grace
or mercy only sin and death which is the realm in which he operates.
Jesus operates
from a different paradigm which the devil cannot operate from, which is from the unmerited love and favor of God. Jesus is the
word of God in the flesh which fulfilled the law and all of its requirements by His death and resurrection from the grave and now He presently lives forever and speaks to
us about the love of the Father.
As we take
communion we are remembering the life of Jesus who took on the evil of this
world in His body by being beaten and tortured nearly to death that we might
receive the benefit of His sacrifice in the form of healing and wholeness in
our bodies. The curse of the law is removed that the mercy and grace of God may take
hold. The bread represents the broken
body of Jesus that we receive into our bodies in which He becomes a part of us.
And with the cup, remembering that in
Christ that we receive the blood because of His death on the cross and the resurrection
which represents new life. This also we
receive into our bodies.
This
interchange Jesus had with the devil in Matthew 4:3-4 reveals more than meets
the eye when taken in full context. As Jesus had quoted other scriptures in the
body of this text with the devil, so we can take the whole of the text with other scriptures
which affirm what Jesus came to do that will give us a firm understanding of
what Jesus (who is the word of God) is actually speaking here.
This is an
amazing passage of scripture above with deep truths and meanings which when you root
out the context of the passage.
"I myself am the living bread
which came down from Heaven, and if anyone eats this bread he will live
forever. The bread which I will give is my body and I shall give it for the
life of the world.” John 6:51 (PHILLIPS)
Be Blessed;
Stephen Barnett
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