Bible Questions and Answers

Luke 4:5-8 And the devil, taking him 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. 8 And Jesus answered and said unto him, Get thee behind me, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.

The devil is not the fallen angel of popular Christian mythology. Satan, the devil, is the New Testament personification of the lust within man which tempts him to sin. James explains where temptation comes from:

James 1:14-15 But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. 15 Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.

Jesus tells us that defilement comes from within, not from a third party without.

Mark 7:21-23 For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, 22 Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness: 23 All these evil things come from within, and defile the man.

Jesus was made just like us and tempted in the same way that we are.

Hebrews 2:14-18 Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; 15 And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. 16 For verily he took not on him the nature of angels; but he took on him the seed of Abraham. 17 Wherefore in all things it behoved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people. 18 For in that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succour them that are tempted.

He destroyed the devil within himself by never allowing himself to be enticed by his own lust. When he died, his victory was complete. He was raised from the dead with the divine nature, eternally freed from lust.

God cannot be tempted; which is also true of those with his nature.

James 1:13 Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man:

Angels cannot sin or fall (or die) because they possess the divine nature. The same nature that is promised to the faithful.

Luke 20:36 Neither can they die any more: for they are equal unto the angels; and are the children of God, being the children of the resurrection.

2 Peter 1:4 Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

God’s will is done perfectly in heaven.

Matthew 6:10 Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.

This world is not given into the power of a ‘fallen’ angel. God rules in this world.

Romans 13:1 Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God.

No fallen angel has the power to give Jesus the kingdoms of this world. Jesus Christ was born to be king. He had free choice in how he would obtain the kingdom. He was the only one who had the power to take control of this world.

He received the power of the Holy Spirit without measure at his baptism.

He had a choice:

1. He could worship God and receive the kingdom God’s way which meant he had to be crucified in the prime of life.

2. He could worship himself and take the kingdom his way without suffering crucifixion.

Satan was his own desires.Lust is broken down into three categories, hence the three temptations that Christ faced.

1 John 2:16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.

The lust of the flesh - He was hungry, he had the power to turn stones to bread. It would be so easy to use the power to satisfy his hunger. Except that God hadn’t given him the power for his own needs. The power was given to him to save others, not himself.

The lust of the eyes - He had supernatural powers that he could use to take over the earth with all its riches and secure his kingdom that way. Again, he wouldn’t save others and his kingdom would be temporary.

The pride of life - He could throw himself from the pinnacle of the Temple and land without harm and thus convince the Jews that he was the king ordained by God. Again he would avoid crucifixion. But that wouldn’t save others and his kingdom would be temporary for he would grow old and die.

The temptations came from within his own mind. The temptation was with him to the end.

Matthew 26:53-54 Thinkest thou that I cannot now pray to my Father, and he shall presently (immediately) give me more than twelve legions of angels? 54 But how then shall the scriptures be fulfilled, that thus it must be?

He could choose to do things God’s way – and so worship God.

He could choose to do things his way – and so worship Satan, the devil - his own desires.

Jesus’ battle was to always do God’s will and not his own.

John 6:38 For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me.

John 8:29 And he that sent me is with me: the Father hath not left me alone; for I do always those things that please him.

As he said when he faced the final battle in Gethsemane:

Matthew 26:39 And he went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.

There are two kinds of devil.

1. The lust within ourselves which we can overcome.

James 4:7… Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

2. The lust within others which we cannot overcome.

Revelation 2:10… behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.

May I suggest that you read: Do You Believe in a Devil? (click on title)

I hope you find this helpful.

God bless,
Glenn