Or, The One Who Stood Faithful
Scripture: Luke 4:9-13
Date: July 26, 2026
Speaker: Sean Higgins
We’ve slowed down to consider each of the three big temptations one at a time. This is partially to examine the great example of faithfulness, but it’s mostly because we need a Savior for our unfaithfulness. We need one who will stand faithful.
Luke sets up Jesus as the one who came to seek and save the lost. In Luke’s narrative so far we’ve seen that Jesus fulfills the word of prophets and angels, Jesus has the Holy Spirit’s presence and the heavenly Father’s pleasure, Jesus represents royalty (a son of David) and even humanity (a son of Adam). But can Jesus withstand the devil unlike Adam and represent us in perfect submission and loyalty to the Father? Yes, and praise God.
The common thread in the devil’s work is to turn focus onto self, and his aim is to sow doubt about God’s blessing and so break up patient trust. Jesus’ faithfulness comes from His certainty of the truth about God and dependence on God’s sovereign timing. For us, we call this living by faith.
First, after 40 days without food, will Jesus follow His own will or His Father’s will for when it’s time to eat? Second, with a flashing vision of earthly dominion, will Jesus gain the world when His Father gives it or get it early by giving allegiance to the devil? Now, will Jesus make His Father prove He cares?
Three times the devil put a spin on Jesus’ situation, and three times Jesus responded with Scripture. The way Luke orders the temptations, the devil comes the third time with Bible verses. He tries to use God’s Word to provoke doubt in God’s word. The serpent asked Eve, “Did God actually say?” Now Satan basically tells Jesus, “Didn’t God really say…?”
The devil sows this subtle seed of doubt in the very place where God revealed His presence and promise of protection.
And he took him to Jerusalem and set him on the pinnacle of the temple (Luke 4:9a)
Each location connects with the particular temptation. The wilderness was so scarce that a stone might seem like it could be turned into food. The place that was “up,” what Matthew called a “very high mountain,” made for a panoramic view of ruling over all the earth. And here we’re given three specifics about the scene.
The devil takes Jesus to Jerusalem, the capital city, and the center of national life. In Jerusalem they went to the temple, the center of covenant life. Luke spends more of his account focusing on Jesus’ time in Jerusalem than the other gospel writers. That suggests why Luke deliberately put this temptation as the crescendo.
The devil and Jesus are at the pinnacle of the temple, what could be translated as “wingtip,” so a peak on the roof-top. This is probably the southeast corner of the temple with a steep drop that overlooked the Kidron Valley, and Josephus said that the heights here were “dizzying.” Watch your step.
The temple is the place where God promised His presence, the place where He would be and hear and care. The temple, at least at this time, was the geographical crown of God’s covenant loyalty. The devil tests Jesus’ faithfulness at the pinnacle of God’s faithfulness.
For a second time the devil makes a point to target Jesus’ identity as Son of God. And this time he pushes Jesus with a psalm.
and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here, for it is written, “He will command his angels concerning you,
to guard you,” and “On their hands they will bear you up,
lest you strike your foot against a stone.”
(Luke 4:9b-11)
If they were already in a very high place (verse 5), why not just stay there for this temptation? What was the purpose of being at the temple?
There’s nothing that suggests it would be a public show. It’s not about Jesus expecting His Father to do a miracle in front of a crowd and prove that He was the Son. They are in town, but no one is said to be watching.
So again, why the temple? Because that’s the place the Lord promised protection. Psalm 91, from which the devil quotes verses 11 and 12, is about God as the place of refuge. And where would an Israelite expect to meet God? The temple was the place where God said He would dwell with His people. The psalm is a promise of care and support and defense for those who trust the Lord. God will send angels to protect those He cares for.
So the devil says, “Let go and let God!” (Bock).
All that is true. The verses the devil quotes are true. In application to the Son of God they are uniquely true. God will send supernatural beings to protect those who trust Him, but not without any qualification. The devil tests Jesus’ faithfulness with the words of God’s faithfulness.
Jesus’ reply comes from Deuteronomy again. It’s a Deuteronomic hat trick, a third quote from Deuteronomy 6-8 that references Israel’s forty years of testing in the wilderness.
And Jesus answered him, “It is said, ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.‘” (Luke 4:12)
The problem with what the devil wanted Jesus to do is bigger than just doing something dumb. That said, thank God that He often protects us from at least some of the consequences of our own dumbness. In His divine sovereignty and love, He is not obligated to fix the foolishness and failures that belong with our human responsibility. “God can fix it so go ahead and be dumb” is bad advice.
But jumping off the top of the temple because there are verses about God protecting those who depend on Him is more than dumb, it’s actually not depending on Him. The quote from Deuteronomy refers to this as testing God, and that means we want God to prove that we should believe. It’s not believing that He will protect, it’s seeing if He will protect so that we will believe. That’s the opposite of trust and living by faith.
Faithful men do things for God that may look crazy to men without faith, but faithful men don’t do stunts just to see what God will do.
“The demanding of miraculous protection, where it is not needed, is not faith or loyalty. It is sin.” (Bock)
Jesus replies to the devil with Deuteronomy 6:16, and the whole verse says, “You shall not put the LORD your God to the test, as you tested him at Massah.” The story at Massah is found in Exodus 17:1-7, when Israel demanded proof that God cared. They were thirsty and wanted water. Had they forgotten their recent walk through walls of standing water at the Red Sea?
Jesus demonstrates His faithfulness by not testing God’s faithfulness. He knows the context of God’s promises.
The devil couldn’t get the job done.
And when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from him until an opportune time. (Luke 4:13)
The devil departed after this battle, but he’d be back for more. That opportune time arrives at Luke 22:3, “Then Satan entered into Judas,” and Luke 22:53, “this is your hour, and the power of darkness.”
I do wonder, when the devil came back and told the other demons what he had done, did they think it was appropriate? Did any of them have the horns to criticize him?
Jesus will demonstrate His faithfulness again as He pays the price for the unfaithful.
Remember that the preparation for public ministry started at Jesus’ baptism when the voice from heaven declared, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased” (Luke 3:22). Is this what having the Father’s pleasure looks like? Yes.
There were three particular temptations, so here are three general applications.
Can Jesus withstand the temptations of the devil and represent us? Yes, He can and He did. He is the one who stood faithful.
Beloved, keep on being watchful. Our adversary prowls around like a roaring lion seeking those he can devour. Resist him, firm in your faith. Take up the shield of faith in order to extinguish the flaming arrows of the evil one. Trust and obey the One who was faithful to the end.
And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. To him be the dominion forever and ever. Amen. (1 Peter 5:10–11 ESV)