“…and he was in the desert for forty days, being tempted by Satan. He was with the wild animals, and angels attended him.” (Mark 1:13)
The author of Mark's Gospel explains that Jesus was tempted by Satan when he was in the desert for 40 days. It is not a pleasing story that he was tempted by Satan even before he started his official life to proclaim God's kingdom. The Gospel of Mark reports this event very simply but the authors of other Gospels explain these temptations in details. I will put off those three temptations like "rock to become bread, to descend from the temple, to bow down to me" for the later time, but today I like to follow the reports in Mark's Gospel and focus on the fact that Jesus was tempted by Satan.
First of all, it sounds very strange for the son of God to get temptation from Satan to us. Because it seems to be very unreasonable that the word temptation could be possible for Jesus who knows everything and has power to subdue everything. On the premise that in the Old Testament there is none of description that Yahweh God gets temptations from Satan, we even could wonder if Jesus might be in a little lower level than God. But we Christians believe Jesus has the same intrinsic nature (homosius), so we cannot take this kind of difference in quality.
And then what does it mean that the person who is the same as God got some temptations, which never occurred to God?
Temptations might happen only in case we have body. Jesus could not help these temptations because he has a body just like us, even though he is the same as God in essence. The authors of Gospels did not mention much in details, but we can assume that Jesus might have temptations all through the 3 years of his official life, not just in the 40 days in the desert before his official life. It might be possible to assume until he was clothed in resurrected body. Before the event of crucifixion, he prayed to take away the cup from him if possible, and on the cross he cried out, "God, do you forsake me?" It seems to mean that until he died Jesus was anxious about his physical limited ability, his commission, and also God's power. Or course ultimately he died on the cross with a perfect trust on God.
We, having body and soul, could not help temptations. Big or small temptations follow us just like a shadow. What we get temptations proves that we are alive in good health in the world. Just on that moment we don't have any ability to judge what's right or what's wrong, or the time to die, we finally could get away from temptations. Temptations are very fatal so that's why Jesus was teaching his disciples "not into temptation" through the Lord's Prayer, and "watch and pray so that you will not to fall into temptation" at Gethsemane. Apostle Paul's teaching like "wake up and pray always" came from the assumption that Christians face with temptations.
Nobody could live a life without any temptations, but it is evident that some people could win over temptations or the other could lose. It is not that simple to win over temptations. Satan is much wiser and more powerful than us. But those Satan's activities are valid only under sovereignty of God. If we could trust God honestly, there are no any temptations that we cannot overcome.
Lord, we are praying for a neighbor who is trapped in temptation. We pray that he could have total trust for God, who is the foundation of much more power than Satan, who is the owner of temptations.
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