Jesus’ Obedience in Overcoming Temptation

The temptation of Jesus is recorded in all 3 synoptic gospels. It was truly a crucial event in the life of Christ. We are told that Jesus, being full of the Spirit, was immediately led by the Spirit into the desert. There He was tempted by Satan for a period of 40 days and nights. During this period of time, Jesus fasted, and did not eat anything. This made Him all the more vulnerable to the devil’s temptations.

Why did Jesus have to go through this time of temptation or testing? Jesus had to go through this time of testing because He had to earn the righteousness His people needed to enter the kingdom of heaven. It was part of His active obedience. Just like Adam had to be tested in the Garden of Eden in order to secure life eternal through obedience, Christ as the greater Adam had to go through such a test to secure our salvation. This is clearly taught by Paul in Romans 5:12-21: “Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned: (For until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is no law. Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam’s transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come. But not as the offence, so also is the free gift. For if through the offence of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many. And not as it was by one that sinned, so is the gift: for the judgment was by one to condemnation, but the free gift is of many offences unto justification. For if by one man’s offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.) Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life. For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous. Moreover the law entered, that the offence might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound: That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord.” Adam failed, but Christ passed the test. We are not only saved by His death; we are also “saved by His life” (Rom 5:10).

In Luke, the temptation account is placed immediately after the genealogy of Jesus which Luke has traced right back to Adam. Luke through Paul’s instruction has correctly portrayed Christ as the 2^ndAdam who must accomplish what the 1^st Adam failed to do, namely, eternal life. What Adam failed to do under the Covenant of Works, Christ succeeded under the Covenant of Grace. Christ, being man’s perfect Representative, kept the Law of God on our behalf through His active obedience. Adam failed to obey God’s commandment in the Garden by yielding to Satan’s threefold temptation (Gen 3:6, 1 John 2:16). But Christ successfully resisted the same threefold temptation, thereby securing “righteousness to every one that believeth” (Rom 10:4). The threefold temptation consists of (1) the lust of the flesh, (2) the lust of the eyes, and (3) the pride of life. Having been tempted by Satan, Eve partook of the fruit because it was (1) “good for food,” (lust of the flesh), (2) “pleasant to the eyes” (lust of the eyes), and (3) “to be desired to make one wise” (pride of life). By so disobeying God, Adam and Eve plunged not only themselves, but also the whole human race into the condemnation of sin. Jesus Christ was also tempted in the same threefold way: He was tempted (1) to turn stones into bread (the lust of the flesh), (2) with the kingdoms of the world (lust of the eyes), and (3) to jump from the pinnacle of the temple (the pride of life). Christ was victorious. He defeated Satan with the Word of God quoting (1) Deuteronomy 8:3, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God;” (2) Deuteronomy 6:13, “Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve;” and (3) Deuteronomy 6:16, “Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.” The Word of God is the Sword of the Spirit (Eph 6:17). It is a very effective weapon against Satan’s fiery darts of temptation. Christ conquered Satan. He obeyed the commands of God perfectly, and by so doing saved us by His active obedience