
This chapter includes two important things: (1) the Lord's being tempted (vv. 1-11) and (2) the Lord's calling of four disciples (vv. 12-25).
Verse 3:"And the tempter came and said to Him, If You are the Son of God, speak that these stones may become loaves of bread." The Lord does not need to prove Himself, because He has God's testimony (Matt. 3:17).
Verse 4:"But He answered and said, It is written, `Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out through the mouth of God.'" Adam was defeated because he did not do what God had commanded him to do; Christ was victorious because He did not do what God had not commanded Him to do.
The temptation in this chapter follows baptism. Why did the Lord's baptism give rise to the devil's temptation? It is because baptism focuses not only on death but also on resurrection. By His resurrection Christ was designated the Son of God in power (Rom. 1:4). Among so many people, only One was designated by God to be the Son of God. The resurrection of Lazarus can be counted only as a returning to the physical life. Christ is the firstfruits of resurrection (1 Cor. 15:20). His resurrection designated Him the Son of God. Therefore, Satan had to challenge Him.
The temptation here is parallel to the temptation in the garden of Eden. Adam was tempted after he woke up from his sleep; so was the Lord. The period from Adam to Christ was four thousand years. During that period of time, no one could call himself the Son of God. But on that day a voice out of the heavens said that He was the Son of God. Therefore, Satan had to challenge Him. Satan would never let any of God's regenerated children go that easily without attacking them. Sin, the world, and the environment are all against the children of God. If Christ, who is our Forerunner, had to pass through great temptations to prove that He is the Son of God, then how could those who belong to Him be exceptions?
The first thing in the work of Christ is to manifest Himself as the Son of God. The church begins with the confession of Christ as the Son of God (Matt. 16:16, 18). (Once there was a man who was teaching the Gospel of Mark. When he came to the question, "Who do you say that I am?" (Mark 8:29), a sinner who had never cared for the Lord repented and confessed in tears the Lord Jesus as his Savior.) The record of the Gospels is to prepare men to confess the Lord Jesus as the Son of God.
The demons recognized the Lord, and they also recognized Paul (Acts 19:15). We should have a reputation before the demons. The victory of the Lord's work did not come from fighting but from His standing firm in the proper position. Afterward, it was sufficient for Him only to declare His victory. Therefore, He was able to send forth His disciples to simply cast out demons in His name. Evan Roberts said that everything would be all right if only a Christian knew how to stand firm in his position.
Verse 1:After the Lord had obtained God's testimony that He was the Son of God, what He encountered first was not victory but temptation — warfare.
Verse 2:The number forty always signifies a time of trial. This verse shows the right way for fasting. The Lord was not hungry for forty days and forty nights. Instead, He fasted forty days and forty nights. What is fasting? A person fasts because the burden within him becomes so heavy that he is unable to eat, or because a spiritual warfare is serious to the extent that his body does not feel the need for food. The Lord was not hungry while fasting. Rather, when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He became hungry.
In the garden of Eden, Adam and Eve were full but were still greedy for more food. Here, the Lord was truly hungry and could hardly refuse the food, yet He did not eat. If we cannot overcome in the matter of food, we will not be able to overcome in other things (Phil. 3:19; Heb. 13:9). Food should be only for nourishment and not for pleasure. Those who serve their stomach cannot buffet their body. God cannot do much work in people of this kind.
In verse 3 "the tempter" is mentioned, and later it is pointed out that he is the devil. Likewise, in Genesis 3 it merely says "the serpent" (Gen. 3:1).
When the Lord was baptized, there was a voice out of the heavens, saying, "This is My Son, the Beloved." The devil always remembered this and could not be at ease. He had to prove and see whether or not this One was the Son of God and how much it was related to Hades. In Matthew 16:18, after saying, "Upon this rock I will build My church," the Lord immediately said, "And the gates of Hades." All the power of Satan cannot shake the Son of God. If you stand on this testimony, you have a most firm standing.
The modernists' efforts in opposing the Son of God is absurd. Likewise, the traditionalists' efforts in supporting the Son of God also is absurd. From the beginning the Lord was the Son of God. After His baptism, He was designated the Son of God. Thereafter, the Lord would not be provoked to prove who He was. It was sufficient for Him to have God's testimony. What is needed is God's testimony; there is no need for man's explanation.
The Lord would not do anything without God's command. If there was no word from God, the Lord could not do anything. He was hungry, and it was legitimate to change the stones into bread, yet He would not do it. In the garden of Eden, Adam did what God had forbidden (Gen. 3:11). Here, the Lord would not do what God did not command Him to do. Therefore, whatever God commands us to do, we should obey. If God does not command us to do certain things, we should not act on our own. We should never go before God. Presumptuousness is as much a sin as rebellion. Moses was not able to enter into the land of Canaan, not because he did too little, but because he did more than what God commanded him to do (Num. 20:7-12). Both the Lord's doing and His not doing are miracles. Having strength and using it all up — this is the nature of man, for he hopes to receive glory thereby. Having power yet reserving it — this is the nature of God. Satan considered that the Lord indeed was the Son of God, but if He had caused the stones to become bread, He would have been finished, for He would then have acted apart from the Father.
Verse 4:"But He answered." The Lord's answer was completely opposite to Satan's proposal. Satan was on one line, but the Lord changed to another line to deal with him.
"It is written." This is one of the principles of warfare. When temptation comes, it is true that our withstanding enables us to hold our position and causes the devil to flee (James 4:7). However, most of the time, this will only bring about a deadlock. But if we declare the word of God, the devil will flee. The word of God is the sword of the Spirit (Eph. 6:17). When we wield it, we gain the victory. However, it is also important to have faith. The word of God may be likened to the verdict handed down by the Supreme Court. This shows that before the Lord went into the wilderness, God had already given Him the word. God had said that He could get through, so He could get through.
Verses 5-7:Satan, who still would not let go of the matter of "the Son of God," also quoted the Scriptures. The first time it was the Lord who quoted the Scriptures to deal with Satan. The second time it was Satan who quoted the Scriptures, and the Lord refuted him by quoting the Scriptures again. The Bible should not be quoted in a careless way. What the Lord is showing here was that the first time He Himself quoted the Scriptures because God had given the word. But the second time, since God had not given the word, if He had cast Himself down, He would have tempted God. To have faith is to do according to what God has said; to tempt God is to decide to do something when God has not said it. Faith has only one principle: God has said it and I believe it.
Concerning the word "again" (v. 7), we should remember that in seeking God's will, if we receive just one verse and cannot back it up with another verse, we may be in danger.
Verses 8-10: Satan was willing to give up all the kingdoms of the world and their glory, but he was not willing to give up the worship from men. In this age Satan is the ruler of this world. In his entire life Satan's aim is to receive worship from men by hiding behind numerous idols and religions. Many idols have spirits because Satan is behind them. Satan's intention is to rob God of the worship from men. Therefore, the Scriptures say that God is a jealous God. It is written, " You took up...the star of your gods that you made for yourselves. / Thus I will bring you into captivity" (Amos 5:26-27).
John 4:23 says, "The Father also seeks such to worship Him." The Greek word rendered "seeks" is emphatic. The Father has to seek for worshippers because Satan is trying to rob God of the worship from men. David said that he would not take up the names of other gods upon his lips (Psa. 16:4).
In Old Testament times, those who had in them a spirit of the dead or a familiar spirit would be stoned to death (Lev. 20:27). Even if the wife of a man's bosom should entice him secretly, saying, "Let us go and serve other gods," she would be stoned to death. Furthermore, the first one to cast the stone on her would be her husband (Deut. 13:6, 9-10).
The Lord rebuked the tempter three times with the word of God. The first two times He did not point out that the tempter was Satan. However, the third time, because the tempter was attempting to rob God of worship, the Lord pointed out that he was Satan. The Lord also quoted the Scriptures, saying, " You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only shall you serve" (Matt. 4:10; Deut. 6:13). The Lord is coming soon. We should reject any attempts to rob God of His worship.
Verse 11:"Then the devil left Him, and behold, angels came and ministered to Him." Every saint has the ministering of angels (Heb. 1:14). While we are being tempted, angels are standing by our side. We should pray God to send His angels to encamp around us and protect us.
Verse 12-17:Although John was put into prison, the Lord continued the message preached by John (v. 17). Although the first one who preached the message concerning the kingdom of the heavens was imprisoned, the nature of his message was not changed.
Verses 18-22:Peter was called when he was casting a net; John was called when he was mending nets. Eventually, what Peter did every time was a work of net-casting, and what John did every time was a work of net-mending. Peter cast a net first on the Jews and then on the Gentiles. Among the four Gospels, John's Gospel was written the latest. At that time, the Lord was no longer seen by men, but John brought men back to the source. When John wrote his Epistles, modernism had come into existence. Therefore, John led people to know the One who is from the beginning. The church had degraded, so John came to mend the nets. If the church had not degraded during the apostolic age, we would not have known how to take care of the situation when the church became defeated. Therefore, the Lord allowed the church to become defeated in the apostolic age so that John could come to mend the net and people would know how to take care of the situation. It seems that a person's condition at the time of his salvation more or less determines his work later on.
Verses 23-25: What the Lord preached was none other than the gospel of the kingdom. This is the same as the gospel of grace (Acts 20:32). However, the kingdom of the heavens has a specific emphasis. All who follow the Lord must be fishers of men. If a person is saved yet has never led another person to the Lord, he is not following the Lord. The Lord said, "I will make you fishers of men" (Matt. 4:19).
After Jesus healed many sick people, great crowds came to follow Him. Today if our spiritual diseases are healed by the Lord, many will come to follow Him.