Temptation

I was reading in Matthew this morning about the temptation of Jesus in the wilderness and I was reminded of the wasteland in which we find ourselves on a daily basis. Satan promised Jesus little more than short cuts to the things He already had or didn’t want. What Satan didn’t offer the Lord was anything that He needed.

Of course Jesus could have turned the rocks into bread and satisfied His fleshly hunger. Indeed, being God, Jesus could have just bid His hunger “Go away!” and it would have done so. But that would have been the short cut. How many times in the course of our day do we see the easy path to our accomplishments and take it regardless of the greater cost of cutting the corner only to realize that cost as having to live with what we did to get through the day?

Satan dared the Lord to jump off the temple pinnacle to demonstrate His command over legions of angels who would catch him before He hit the ground. How many times have we taken Satan’s bet and jumped off our own pinnacle by saying, “I can do what I want and you can’t touch me because “my people” have my back.” only to turn around and see our people shaking their heads in disgust at our words and actions?

Jesus was taken to a very high mountain and shown all the kingdoms of the world and their glory and guaranteed the worship and adulation of the masses if He would only fall down and worship at Satan’s feet. Have you ever flown over a big city at night or seen a photo of the Eastern Seaboard from outer space? It really is beautiful. It does indeed look glorious. Unfortunately, from 36,000 feet you can’t see the crime and corruption that comes with any gathering of people. All you see are the pretty lights. That is the bribe upon which Satan tried to hook Jesus.

I work in the entertainment industry and I can’t tell you how many lives I have seen ruined as the result of abandoning the values in life that truly count for the promise of blinding lights and adoring crowds that roar with wild approval for everything the star might say or do. But that isn’t the only place where this decimation of the soul occurs. I know a person who has, time and again, completely debased himself in order to be able to say he was backstage with the cool people just so the “glory of the kingdom” would be his in the form of having been seen in the scene.

All of the temptations and challenges Satan put before Jesus were aimed at the humanity the Lord took on in order to complete his appointed task here on Earth. He wasn’t here to prove His might and power but rather to present the Glory of God’s kingdom. Despite the fact that we call Him Lord, Jesus didn’t come to lord over us, I came to walk among us and deliver the salvation we can have never receive on our own.

Because Jesus was both God and man he was able to see through the temptations of Satan despite feeling their pull. However, we are simply and entirely human. Therefore, we have to look a lot closer and try a lot harder to identify Satan’s bribes and false promises for what they are. And even when we do spot the game, there is still the impossible task of resisting the temptation despite knowing the consequences. There is only one way we can win that fight. We have to stay as close to God through His word and the accountability of others who choose to be “like Christ”.

I love my wife and I would never do anything to hurt her or damage our marriage. But I know that if I were ever to let my guard down when I’m in the field covering a show – or anywhere else – Satan would creep through the opening with his bag of tricks. So I can never think that I am impervious to stumbling. I am grateful that I get more compliments than criticisms for my writing and people know me when I show up and they treat me with respect. But the minute I buy into that acceptance with anything more than humble gratitude I will fall flat on my face and that acceptance will be gone, I will have hurt those who truly love me and, worst of all, I will have disappointed God.

I’m glad people watch me, not because I like to be the guy everyone sees but because they also know I’m a Christian and if I conduct myself in a manner not befitting that claim they’ll call me on it if for no other reason but to say, “Look at that, another hypocritical ‘Christian’”. If that isn’t enough reason to walk right and tight, I keep reminding myself that character is what you are in the dark when only God is watching.