Invocative Sunday (Lent 1)
Matthew 4:1-11
Trampling Satan
Pastor James Preus
In 1 Samuel chapter 17 a hefty wager is made on a strange battle. Goliath the Philistine giant made a wager with the Israelite army. He would fight any of them. If an Israelite soldier could defeat him, then the Philistine army would be their slaves. However, if Goliath kills the Israelite soldier, then the Israelites would be the Philistines’ slaves. The stakes were too high and the odds seemed against them, so the Israelites were too afraid to fight. But the children here know the end of this story. Young David, a shepherd boy, without any sword in his hand, but a sling and a pouch with five smooth stones, confronted Goliath and challenged him in the name of the LORD. And with a quick fling of the sling and by the guiding of the Lord, that shepherd boy slew the giant and won the victory for Israel.
This beloved Bible story foreshadowed an even stranger battle with much higher stakes, first foretold in the Garden of Eden when mankind fell into sin, “I will put enmity between you and the woman and between your seed and her seed; He will bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heal.” (Genesis 3:15) Jesus stepped onto the battle field to do what no human being had ever done, defeat Satan. Satan was Goliath. Jesus was David. If Satan won, he took everything, all mankind, every single human being who ever had been born and ever would be born, as his slaves. Yet, if Christ won, He rescued us from Satan’s bondage to transport us into His kingdom of light.
Christ won. And He did not simply tie Satan up in a little ball and cast him into hell, as He has always had the power to do as Almighty God. Christ defeated Satan in human flesh. St. Paul writes, “But when the fulness of time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive the adoption as sons.” (Galatians 4:4-5). Jesus was born under the law as our brother. He was tempted in every respect as we are, except without sin (Hebrews 4:15). And thus, he fulfilled the Law in our place and gives us the victory.
Yet, it was not enough for Christ to obey the Law in our place. And His victory over Satan in the wilderness is not the end, but only a battle. Christ must go to the cross. To His active obedience of obeying the law, He must add his passive obedience of suffering and dying for our sins. As He heard Satan say, “If you are the Son of God” when He was tempted in the wilderness, so he must hear him from the cross, “If you are the Son of God, come down!” (Matthew 27:40) The five stones David carried in his pouch have been said to symbolize the Scriptures, because Moses wrote five books. And so, Christ defeated Satan by employing Holy Scripture. Yet, it was when the five wounds were placed in Jesus’ flesh that His victory was finished.
And so, by being tempted, yet without sin, Jesus was the perfect sacrificial lamb without blemish, who was offered up to take away our sins. His heel was bruised by Satan, but He crushed Satan’s head. By one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so now by this one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous. (Romans 5:19) Jesus said in Luke 22 that Satan demanded to have Peter to sift him like wheat. Satan, the great accuser, demanded to have all of us. On account of our sins, Satan claimed ownership over us. He demanded us from God. Yet, Christ has made full atonement for our sins. The Stronger Man has broken into the house of the strong man, bound him, and plundered his possessions (Luke 11:12). Now God has delivered us from the dominion of darkness and has transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of our sins (Colossians 1:13-14).
Yet, the devil remains a deadly adversary. Like a roaring lion, he prowls around seeking someone to devour (1 Peter 5:8). He uses temptation to sin and unbelief to draw us out of the kingdom of light and back into the kingdom of darkness. As Christ came up from the waters of His Baptism and immediately entered the wilderness to be tempted by Satan, so we baptized Christians must endure temptation as we sojourn in this wilderness. If Satan was so bold as to go after Christ Himself, he will not hesitate to attack you. This is nothing to take lightly. Some, by rejecting faith and a good conscience, have made shipwreck of their faith (1 Tim. 1:19). If we continue in sin without repenting, God may give us up to our passions and the Holy Spirit may depart from us, so that we become servants of Satan again. So, this is no time for complacency. St. Paul calls us to put on the whole armor of God, so that we may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil (Ephesians 6:11).
In Jesus’ temptation from Satan, He draws our attention to three helps available to us against temptation. First, the Word of God, which is the sword of the Spirit (Ephesians 6:17). Satan’s first temptation of Jesus was to break the Third Commandment, “Remember the Sabbath Day by keeping it holy.” What does this mean? “We should fear and love God so that we do not despise preaching and His Word, but hold it sacred and gladly hear and learn it.” As Moses and Elijah did before Him (Deuteronomy 9:9; 1 Kings 19:8), Jesus went into the wilderness to fast for forty days and converse with God. Satan tempted Jesus that He did not need God’s Word, but rather bread for the body. Jesus quoted Scripture, Deuteronomy 8:3, stating that man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.
Yet, the lesson here is not simply to quote this passage, and the devil will flee from you. Rather, the lesson is to feast on the Word of God! Read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest Holy Scripture. When you rise and when you lie down, when you walk by the way with your children and when you sit down to eat (Deut. 6:6-7). The Word of God should be in your ears, on your tongue, and in your heart. And you will find that the more you feast on the God’s Word, the less you hunger for the transitory bread of this life.
The bread we crave goes far beyond food for the belly. We crave stuff, money, possessions, power, influence, and many other man-made gods. We crave them, because, like the children of Israel in the wilderness, we do not trust God to give us what we need and desire. So, we grumble and crave. We remain unsatisfied, and we toil in our dissatisfaction. But the more you listen and meditate on God’s Word, the more you learn that he cares for every need of your body, that you are worth more than many sparrows, which He does not fail to feed, so you should not fear to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, because all these things will be added unto you (Matt. 6:33). The more you feast on God’s Word, the more you learn to trust in Christ, His forgiveness and salvation, and to expect far greater things from Him than the glittering junk we’ve become so fascinated with here on earth. The more we feast on God’s Word, the more we recognize that all the treasures of this world wither and fade away when the breath of the Lord blows on it, but the promises of God in His Word endure forever.
The more you gladly hear and learn God’s Word the more you learn that the Third Commandment teaches you the First Commandment, “You shall have no other gods,” so that you wait patiently to receive from the Lord’s bountiful hand rather than to worship at any false altar. The more you feast on God’s Word, the less appealing Satan’s temptations become.
The second help available to us in temptation is the holy angels. Angels came and ministered to Jesus after his temptation. However, Satan misapplied a scripture passage about angels to tempt Jesus. And Satan uses this same temptation against us today day. Satan quoted from Psalm 91, “He will command his angels concerning you … on their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.” However, Satan edited it. The actual passage says, “He will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways. On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.” (vss. 11-12) God indeed sends angels to assist us. Scripture says that they are ministering spirits sent out to serve for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation (Hebrews 1:14). The presence of angels is a great comfort to Christians, who know that evil spirits, that is, fallen angels, demons, are very present and seek to do us harm. However, angels are sent to protect those who are to inherit salvation, those who belong to Christ, and to guard them in the way of the Lord. We cannot test God and expect the protection of His angels when we forsake God’s Word and pursue our own pleasures.
We put the Lord to the test by misapplying and twisting His holy Word to serve our sinful pleasures. This is breaking the Second Commandment; you shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God. God sends angels to protect His Christians from danger. But part of that protection from danger is avoiding the paths of the wicked and the congregation of the unrighteous (Psalm 1). Yes, angels are sent to protect you from danger, but often, the most dangerous thing to do is to stand on God’s Word and to walk according to His commandments. You cannot plunge yourself into sin, thinking, “God’s angels will be with me.”
Angels are not a comfort to those who forsake God’s Word and follow paths of wickedness. Yet, to sinners who cling to Christ for mercy and hold on to the promises of God’s Word and follow His Commandments, the presence of angels is a great comfort. Jesus says that our angels always behold the face of our Father in heaven (Matthew 18:10). Psalm 103 calls them Mighty Ones, who obey the voice of God’s Word. And St. John tells us in Revelation 12 that the angels cast Satan and his angels out of heaven with the blood of the Lamb, Christ Jesus. So, when we cling to that blood, receiving it in the preaching of the Gospel, remembering that we were washed in it in our Baptism, and receiving it in the Sacrament of the Altar, we should remember that angels go with us to fight for us for the sake of that precious blood.
The third help Jesus teaches us is available to us in temptation is Himself. Christ goes with us all the way. He walks with us and fights for us. Yes, Christ, the Stronger Man, who bound the strong man, Satan, and plundered his house, the greater David who slew the greater Goliath, the Seed of the Woman, who crushed Satan under His foot, He goes with you as you face Satan. St. Paul writes in Galatians 3, “For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.” (vs. 27) So, as you face Satan, you face him as his victor, not as his victim. Jesus promises that those who stand on the confession of Christ will prevail against the very gates of hell (Matthew 16:18) and that He is with His Church to the very end of the age (Matthew 28:20). St. Paul write in Romans 16, “The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet.” It is those who are justified by faith, who are at peace with God (Romans 5:1). And so, it is through faith in Christ that we have assurance that our sins are forgiven and we have the confidence to pray that God would lead us out of temptation and deliver us from the evil one.
It is through faith in Christ that we worship the Lord God and serve Him. St. Peter tells us to resist Satan firm in our faith, and God Himself will restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish us (1 Peter 3:10). And so, through faith in Christ, God gives you the authority to say, “Begone, Satan!” Amen.
Matthew 4:1-11
Trampling Satan
Pastor James Preus
In 1 Samuel chapter 17 a hefty wager is made on a strange battle. Goliath the Philistine giant made a wager with the Israelite army. He would fight any of them. If an Israelite soldier could defeat him, then the Philistine army would be their slaves. However, if Goliath kills the Israelite soldier, then the Israelites would be the Philistines’ slaves. The stakes were too high and the odds seemed against them, so the Israelites were too afraid to fight. But the children here know the end of this story. Young David, a shepherd boy, without any sword in his hand, but a sling and a pouch with five smooth stones, confronted Goliath and challenged him in the name of the LORD. And with a quick fling of the sling and by the guiding of the Lord, that shepherd boy slew the giant and won the victory for Israel.
This beloved Bible story foreshadowed an even stranger battle with much higher stakes, first foretold in the Garden of Eden when mankind fell into sin, “I will put enmity between you and the woman and between your seed and her seed; He will bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heal.” (Genesis 3:15) Jesus stepped onto the battle field to do what no human being had ever done, defeat Satan. Satan was Goliath. Jesus was David. If Satan won, he took everything, all mankind, every single human being who ever had been born and ever would be born, as his slaves. Yet, if Christ won, He rescued us from Satan’s bondage to transport us into His kingdom of light.
Christ won. And He did not simply tie Satan up in a little ball and cast him into hell, as He has always had the power to do as Almighty God. Christ defeated Satan in human flesh. St. Paul writes, “But when the fulness of time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive the adoption as sons.” (Galatians 4:4-5). Jesus was born under the law as our brother. He was tempted in every respect as we are, except without sin (Hebrews 4:15). And thus, he fulfilled the Law in our place and gives us the victory.
Yet, it was not enough for Christ to obey the Law in our place. And His victory over Satan in the wilderness is not the end, but only a battle. Christ must go to the cross. To His active obedience of obeying the law, He must add his passive obedience of suffering and dying for our sins. As He heard Satan say, “If you are the Son of God” when He was tempted in the wilderness, so he must hear him from the cross, “If you are the Son of God, come down!” (Matthew 27:40) The five stones David carried in his pouch have been said to symbolize the Scriptures, because Moses wrote five books. And so, Christ defeated Satan by employing Holy Scripture. Yet, it was when the five wounds were placed in Jesus’ flesh that His victory was finished.
And so, by being tempted, yet without sin, Jesus was the perfect sacrificial lamb without blemish, who was offered up to take away our sins. His heel was bruised by Satan, but He crushed Satan’s head. By one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so now by this one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous. (Romans 5:19) Jesus said in Luke 22 that Satan demanded to have Peter to sift him like wheat. Satan, the great accuser, demanded to have all of us. On account of our sins, Satan claimed ownership over us. He demanded us from God. Yet, Christ has made full atonement for our sins. The Stronger Man has broken into the house of the strong man, bound him, and plundered his possessions (Luke 11:12). Now God has delivered us from the dominion of darkness and has transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of our sins (Colossians 1:13-14).
Yet, the devil remains a deadly adversary. Like a roaring lion, he prowls around seeking someone to devour (1 Peter 5:8). He uses temptation to sin and unbelief to draw us out of the kingdom of light and back into the kingdom of darkness. As Christ came up from the waters of His Baptism and immediately entered the wilderness to be tempted by Satan, so we baptized Christians must endure temptation as we sojourn in this wilderness. If Satan was so bold as to go after Christ Himself, he will not hesitate to attack you. This is nothing to take lightly. Some, by rejecting faith and a good conscience, have made shipwreck of their faith (1 Tim. 1:19). If we continue in sin without repenting, God may give us up to our passions and the Holy Spirit may depart from us, so that we become servants of Satan again. So, this is no time for complacency. St. Paul calls us to put on the whole armor of God, so that we may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil (Ephesians 6:11).
In Jesus’ temptation from Satan, He draws our attention to three helps available to us against temptation. First, the Word of God, which is the sword of the Spirit (Ephesians 6:17). Satan’s first temptation of Jesus was to break the Third Commandment, “Remember the Sabbath Day by keeping it holy.” What does this mean? “We should fear and love God so that we do not despise preaching and His Word, but hold it sacred and gladly hear and learn it.” As Moses and Elijah did before Him (Deuteronomy 9:9; 1 Kings 19:8), Jesus went into the wilderness to fast for forty days and converse with God. Satan tempted Jesus that He did not need God’s Word, but rather bread for the body. Jesus quoted Scripture, Deuteronomy 8:3, stating that man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.
Yet, the lesson here is not simply to quote this passage, and the devil will flee from you. Rather, the lesson is to feast on the Word of God! Read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest Holy Scripture. When you rise and when you lie down, when you walk by the way with your children and when you sit down to eat (Deut. 6:6-7). The Word of God should be in your ears, on your tongue, and in your heart. And you will find that the more you feast on the God’s Word, the less you hunger for the transitory bread of this life.
The bread we crave goes far beyond food for the belly. We crave stuff, money, possessions, power, influence, and many other man-made gods. We crave them, because, like the children of Israel in the wilderness, we do not trust God to give us what we need and desire. So, we grumble and crave. We remain unsatisfied, and we toil in our dissatisfaction. But the more you listen and meditate on God’s Word, the more you learn that he cares for every need of your body, that you are worth more than many sparrows, which He does not fail to feed, so you should not fear to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, because all these things will be added unto you (Matt. 6:33). The more you feast on God’s Word, the more you learn to trust in Christ, His forgiveness and salvation, and to expect far greater things from Him than the glittering junk we’ve become so fascinated with here on earth. The more we feast on God’s Word, the more we recognize that all the treasures of this world wither and fade away when the breath of the Lord blows on it, but the promises of God in His Word endure forever.
The more you gladly hear and learn God’s Word the more you learn that the Third Commandment teaches you the First Commandment, “You shall have no other gods,” so that you wait patiently to receive from the Lord’s bountiful hand rather than to worship at any false altar. The more you feast on God’s Word, the less appealing Satan’s temptations become.
The second help available to us in temptation is the holy angels. Angels came and ministered to Jesus after his temptation. However, Satan misapplied a scripture passage about angels to tempt Jesus. And Satan uses this same temptation against us today day. Satan quoted from Psalm 91, “He will command his angels concerning you … on their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.” However, Satan edited it. The actual passage says, “He will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways. On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.” (vss. 11-12) God indeed sends angels to assist us. Scripture says that they are ministering spirits sent out to serve for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation (Hebrews 1:14). The presence of angels is a great comfort to Christians, who know that evil spirits, that is, fallen angels, demons, are very present and seek to do us harm. However, angels are sent to protect those who are to inherit salvation, those who belong to Christ, and to guard them in the way of the Lord. We cannot test God and expect the protection of His angels when we forsake God’s Word and pursue our own pleasures.
We put the Lord to the test by misapplying and twisting His holy Word to serve our sinful pleasures. This is breaking the Second Commandment; you shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God. God sends angels to protect His Christians from danger. But part of that protection from danger is avoiding the paths of the wicked and the congregation of the unrighteous (Psalm 1). Yes, angels are sent to protect you from danger, but often, the most dangerous thing to do is to stand on God’s Word and to walk according to His commandments. You cannot plunge yourself into sin, thinking, “God’s angels will be with me.”
Angels are not a comfort to those who forsake God’s Word and follow paths of wickedness. Yet, to sinners who cling to Christ for mercy and hold on to the promises of God’s Word and follow His Commandments, the presence of angels is a great comfort. Jesus says that our angels always behold the face of our Father in heaven (Matthew 18:10). Psalm 103 calls them Mighty Ones, who obey the voice of God’s Word. And St. John tells us in Revelation 12 that the angels cast Satan and his angels out of heaven with the blood of the Lamb, Christ Jesus. So, when we cling to that blood, receiving it in the preaching of the Gospel, remembering that we were washed in it in our Baptism, and receiving it in the Sacrament of the Altar, we should remember that angels go with us to fight for us for the sake of that precious blood.
The third help Jesus teaches us is available to us in temptation is Himself. Christ goes with us all the way. He walks with us and fights for us. Yes, Christ, the Stronger Man, who bound the strong man, Satan, and plundered his house, the greater David who slew the greater Goliath, the Seed of the Woman, who crushed Satan under His foot, He goes with you as you face Satan. St. Paul writes in Galatians 3, “For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.” (vs. 27) So, as you face Satan, you face him as his victor, not as his victim. Jesus promises that those who stand on the confession of Christ will prevail against the very gates of hell (Matthew 16:18) and that He is with His Church to the very end of the age (Matthew 28:20). St. Paul write in Romans 16, “The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet.” It is those who are justified by faith, who are at peace with God (Romans 5:1). And so, it is through faith in Christ that we have assurance that our sins are forgiven and we have the confidence to pray that God would lead us out of temptation and deliver us from the evil one.
It is through faith in Christ that we worship the Lord God and serve Him. St. Peter tells us to resist Satan firm in our faith, and God Himself will restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish us (1 Peter 3:10). And so, through faith in Christ, God gives you the authority to say, “Begone, Satan!” Amen.
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