Good Morning Sisters and Brothers in Christ,
Last week we studied why Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the Devil. Jesus, as a man, as the second Adam, had to overcome Satan in the very temptations the first Adam failed. One other thing I always pondered was why Satan in two of the three temptations said, “If Thou be the Son of God……” What was the purpose of saying this? Was Satan trying to get Jesus to doubt His deity, His position in the God Head, to lose His temper? What? One thing God has taught me the past eight years is EVERY Word has a reason for being in the Scriptures. Unless we diligently seek after Him, we won’t receive the reward of wisdom, which is divine rhema, or revelation (Hebrews 11:6). Always ask why and study to receive the revelation? God is more than happy to explain it to you.
In Genesis 1:26 God gives the ownership or title deed to the earth and everything in it to man. In Genesis 1:28 God decrees it to Adam’s ears to hear. We also read it in Psalm 115:16.
Psalm 115:16
The heaven, even the heavens, are the LORD’S: but the earth hath He given to the children of men.
Now, what happened to the title deed when Adam sinned and fell? Yes, the title deed went over to Satan. He now had dominion over the earth. Some ask how this could happen. Satan is the lord of sin, the curse. It’s his domain, not God’s. Without going into the deep details, the Spirit of God could come into the earth, but He could not stay in the earth. Why? God didn’t have legal authority in the earth. Man did according to Genesis 1:26, 28 and Psalm 115:16, once God had given the title deed to man. God had to work through man to get things done in the earth. Prior to Jesus’ resurrection and upon the fall of Adam, the Spirit of God could come on man, but it could not stay in or on man, in the earth, permanently. Therefore, Old Testament Saints were “saved” through faith, but they were not “born again.” After Jesus defeated Satan in Hell, He visited the Saints, the “saved,” in Abraham’s Bosom, or Paradise, and witnessed to them. They all received Jesus Christ as the Messiah and were born again. Jesus led them from Paradise to Heaven. By the way, there is no purgatory, no holding pen, no paradise one can pray relatives or friends out of into Heaven today. It never existed, and it doesn’t exist. This is simply a lie from Satan. Once a person passes from this earth, their eternal fate is sealed – Heaven or Hell. There is NO one in this earth that can change their fate with prayers or rituals. The Holy Scriptures are very clear about this.
Ok, so everything I talked about in the previous paragraph has what to do with Satan’s challenge, “If Thou be the Son of God..?” Simply put, Satan was challenging the legal authority of Jesus to operate in the earth as the Son of God. Satan, who once was Lucifer, an angel that held a very prominent position in God’s court, knew if he caught God lying or in violation of His Word, the earth and everything in it would belong to Satan forever and he would rule it forever. Therefore, if Jesus was operating in His deity, as the Son of God, God had violated His own law. As you study, you will see Jesus NEVER operated in His deity on this earth. He operated solely as the Son of man. Therefore, the Holy Scriptures say Jesus was tempted just as we are:
Hebrews 4:15
For we have not an high priest [Jesus Christ] which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.
It’s very hard for some Believers to accept Jesus only operated as a man in this earth and not as God in the flesh. Jesus was God in the flesh, but God had to operate in the flesh and not as His divine Spirit. Therefore, His flesh was tempted just as our flesh is tempted. Some say, “yeah, but He was God.” Yes, He was God, but He COULD NOT operate as God, or God would have violated His Word and doomed the earth and man to eternal damnation under the reign of Satan. God loved us too much to allow this to happen.
Satan was challenging Jesus to operate as the Son of God so Satan could cry foul in the Courts of God and have dominion over the earth for all eternity. But what did our precious Lord and King do? The very thing we should always do – answer Satan’s every challenge or problem he sends our way with the Word of God. Jesus never lost His temper, never shouted, never reasoned with, never argued with, or never accused Satan during the exchange. He simply rebuked Satan with the Word of Almighty God.
For those that may still struggle with the ownership of the earth belonging to Satan, let’s look at one of the temptations of Jesus in Luke chapter 4.
Luke 4:5-7
5 And the devil, taking Him [Jesus] up into an high mountain, shewed unto Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time.
6 And the devil said unto Him, All this power will I give Thee, and the glory of them: for that is delivered unto me; and to whomsoever I will I give it.
7 If Thou therefore wilt worship me, all shall be Thine.
Notice what Satan says in verse 6. “….for that is delivered unto me; and to whomsoever I will give it.” What is delivered unto Satan? Verse 5 tells us “…all the kingdoms of the world.” Satan is affirming he owns the earth and that it was given unto him. By whom? By Adam when he fell. Did Jesus refute what Satan said? No, because it was the truth at that time. Had Satan been wrong, Jesus would have corrected him with the Holy Scripture.
The Good News is Jesus, our Lord, King, and Redeemer, took back the ownership of the earth from Satan through His redemptive acts, the passion, and restored it to Believers. We, the Body of Christ, have ownership of the earth. Now, the Spirit of God could come into the earth, at Pentecost in the Book of Acts, and remain in us permanently and eternally. Rather than one Jesus in the earth, there are MANY Jesuses in the earth as His Spirit filled us at our eternal Spiritual birth when we made Him Lord and King of our lives. Now, Satan doesn’t battle one Jesus but many, many Jesuses.
Have a wonderful week in Christ.
Larry