Luke 4:9–13 (ESV)
The Temptation of Jesus (Temptation #3)
9 And he took him to Jerusalem and 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 will command his angels concerning you,
to guard you,’
11 and
“ ‘On their hands they will bear you up,
lest you strike your foot against a stone.’ ”
12 And Jesus answered
him, “It is said, ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’ ” 13 And when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from him until an opportune time.
When the devil
took him to the pinnacle (top) of the Temple, this was about a 100 feet high. To jump off the top of a building 100 feet high is about like jumping off a 10 story building and landing on the ground. What happens? You go splat when you bounce.
If you survive, what will life be like afterwards? I have jumped off a twenty foot diving board into water and that was scarey. Unless you know what you are doing, jumping 100 feet into water would be like hitting concrete. If you know what
your doing, the record high dive jump is held by Dana Kunze at 172 feet. That record may have been broken by now, but the devil wasn’t asking Jesus to jump into water. The issue though is not how high or what the devil is asking Jesus to
jump into, but an issue of twisting the Word of God. The twisting is more in the interpretation and context. The devil knows the Bible, but is always twisting it to force God to react (divine providence). Jesus quotes Scripture back by saying
“You shall not put the Lord your God to test” (Deut. 6:16). Three failed temptations, devil... YOU'RE OUT!
What I think is just as interesting
as the three temptations is verse 13. The devil lost, but he hasn’t given up. Verse 13 states: “And when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from him until an opportune time.” The devil was going to
wait just for the right time. He thought he found it in the Garden of Gethsemane, but he was wrong. Jesus is God, the devil didn’t have a chance. Word of warning to all who read this: “If the devil wouldn’t give
up on Jesus, he won’t give up on you!” Stay faithful until the end. I pray: O Lord, protect me from the devil and his ways. Let me never think that the devil won’t mess with me, but help me to turn to you for
protection. You are my Lord and Savior. Help me to continue to live in my baptism. Amen!