Luke 4:8

New King James Version

And Jesus answered and said to him, “Get behind Me, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.’”

For Meditation

The enemy, in his relentless pursuit of surrender, does not give up. He pushes the boundaries, seeking even the most minor cracks in the believer’s faith and confidence. The child of God must, therefore, anchor themselves well in the holy scriptures and resolve to stand their ground, clothed in the whole armor of God (Eph. 6:10-18), with the glory of the Lord as their sole goal (1 Cor. 10:31).

The idiom “everybody has a price” is true for people who typically compromise their principles or integrity for personal gain in difficult times. The enemy knows this, so he changes his tactics, repackages his offers, and repositions them to maximize appeal. What is offensive in one guise becomes attractive when repackaged to make it attractive to receive. Meanwhile, it is the same poison, merely in more attractive packaging.

The challenge for the believer in temptation is to act wisely, able to resist the devil with bold determination and courage, as Jesus did. When you do that, James says, he will flee from you (Jas. 4:7). Jesus held His own against Satan’s temptation to get Him to use His power, as the Son of God, to satisfy His hunger—the cravings of his flesh in the first temptation, and so should we.

Next, Satan lures Jesus to a high mountaintop, displaying the world’s kingdoms in all their splendor and offering them in exchange for Jesus’s worship. (Lk. 4:5-7) The Creator bowing before the created? Absurd! But that is the enemy’s deception. He does not discriminate based on age, education, wealth, or status. He will tempt you regardless. We find victory only in Jesus when we are ready to resist.

The world belongs to Jesus, and all that is in it (Psa. 50:12; Col. 1:16-17). Satan’s offer was, therefore, invalid, though for now, he rules as prince of the power of the air (Eph. 2:2) with delegated authority, so Jesus rebuked him.

“Get behind Me, Satan!” He then quoted Deuteronomy 6:13 to end the matter:

“For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.’” (Lk. 8).

Jesus’ victory over temptation teaches us three crucial things: knowing our identity, authority, and rights as God’s children. These are vital weapons in our spiritual battles. Our identity as new creatures in Christ in whom the Holy Spirit dwells, has given us rights as children of God, “and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ (Rom. 8:16-17). Why, then, should we let the enemy lure us with worldly temptations, fueling greed, jealousy, ambition, envy, dishonesty, and the like? God empowers us by His Spirit to rebuke and defeat the evil one who tempts us with the glitter of this world, in Jesus’ name.

This knowledge will help you resist temptation in crucial moments, to God’s glory. Amen!

Pray with Me

Father, we thank you for Christ Jesus and what you have made us in Him. We cannot thank you enough that in His victory over temptation, you have equipped us by your Spirit to also overcome in our struggles with the evil one in temptation. Please help us to be assertive when tempted by the glitter and shine of this world and declare your glory in victory. All these we ask in the glorious name of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior, amen.

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