God’s Mission in Matthew: The Temptation of Jesus (Matthew ) Jesus is the new Israel, walking and completing Israel’s story the way God had intended from the beginning. – Jesus goes through the waters of baptism as Israel had gone through the Red Sea and the Jordan River. – Jesus is tested for 40 days in the wilderness, just as Israel was tested for 40 years. However, Jesus passes the test.

Jesus, the Son of God, demonstrates his faithfulness to God’s mission by resisting temptation through the power of the Holy Spirit. Here, Jesus is in the wilderness, echoing Israel’s experience Mt : v. 1: Jesus is led into the wilderness by the Spirit: tested or tempted? v. 2: Jesus is hungry, having fasted 40 days v. 3: ‘If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.’ Would the Son trust God’s provision? v. 4: ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’

Mt : v. 5-6: Satan is tempting Jesus to dare God, on the basis of faith, to supernaturally rescue the Son. Twisted Scripture: Psalm 91.11,12 v. 7: ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’ OT background: Exodus : Massah The devil wanted Jesus to create an artificial crisis to test his status as the Son of God; testing God, however, is the antithesis of faith.

Mt vv. 8-9: a vision of the Son’s potential without following God’s plan The devil is directly challenging the mission of Jesus, because it is exactly the dominion of the devil that God’s mission threatens. v. 10: the true Son of God does not compromise: ‘Be gone, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall love the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.’’

Jesus was faithful; under the leadership of the Holy Spirit he fully trusted God’s mission and provision, and we must follow his example: We must trust God: God’s mission is to reconcile sinners to God and in turn, to each other We must resist temptation: In the power of the Holy Spirit Through the guidance of the Word of God To accomplish the mission of God