Lesson Fourteen - The Chameleon Temptation
Then the devil took Him up into the holy city and set Him on the pinnacle of the temple.
It may come as rude awakening for many who are not familiar with this and the story of Job, to learn that with God’s permission Satan is able to touch our bodies and even carry us to places we have not planned to go. As the devil took Jesus or led him to the top of the temple so are we prone to the kind of trial of our faith that may directly touch our body with disease and other uncomfortable affliction. He can with one deception or the other lead us unawares into corners and situations we have not premeditated upon.
We observe in this particular instance too that the scene of the temptation has changed dramatically. From an obscure and lonely desert, Jesus now finds himself on top of a much frequented temple. Any spectacular act He did here would be witnessed and probably applauded by a lot of people. And He seemed to be proffering on Jesus an opportunity for instant recognition and acceptance by the peoples. This was really be a tantalising offer since Jesus well knew what He would have to go through to gain such acceptance eventually. Maybe just one jump would settle it all?
We do well to observe further here that Satan does not relent when we defeat him in one instance. He seeks to catch us in another. Maybe Jesus would prefer showing off to the crowd what he had refused to do in the solitary place. Should a change of scene warrant a change of character? Does God expect or equip us to be more faithful in one situation than in another? The answer to both questions is “no”. We should therefore remain steadfast
It may come as rude awakening for many who are not familiar with this and the story of Job, to learn that with God’s permission Satan is able to touch our bodies and even carry us to places we have not planned to go. As the devil took Jesus or led him to the top of the temple so are we prone to the kind of trial of our faith that may directly touch our body with disease and other uncomfortable affliction. He can with one deception or the other lead us unawares into corners and situations we have not premeditated upon.
We observe in this particular instance too that the scene of the temptation has changed dramatically. From an obscure and lonely desert, Jesus now finds himself on top of a much frequented temple. Any spectacular act He did here would be witnessed and probably applauded by a lot of people. And He seemed to be proffering on Jesus an opportunity for instant recognition and acceptance by the peoples. This was really be a tantalising offer since Jesus well knew what He would have to go through to gain such acceptance eventually. Maybe just one jump would settle it all?
We do well to observe further here that Satan does not relent when we defeat him in one instance. He seeks to catch us in another. Maybe Jesus would prefer showing off to the crowd what he had refused to do in the solitary place. Should a change of scene warrant a change of character? Does God expect or equip us to be more faithful in one situation than in another? The answer to both questions is “no”. We should therefore remain steadfast
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