Matthew 4:3
"And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread."
I was recently invited to eat at a restaurant in my hometown.
When my wife and I arrived at the restaurant, in their display they had all kinds of delicious looking desserts. After ordering my food and eating my meal, the waitress came and asked if we wanted dessert. Though I did not order dessert, it was heavily on my mind because of the display in the front. The display tempted me to have dessert.
Temptation is always the precursor to sin. There is no doubt that if a person is never tempted to do wrong, then they will never do wrong. That is why Jesus told us to pray in Matthew 6:13, "And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil:..." Jesus understood that if we are never in the place of temptation, then we will never sin.
However, there are times when we cannot avoid temptation. That's why we are told to ask God to "deliver us from evil." Jesus was placed in a moment when temptation was present. Though He faced temptation, He overcame it. Always remember that the presence of temptation is not sin, but yielding to it is. In the Scriptures there are certain moments when temptation is at its finest. It is in these moments that we must beware so that we don't succumb to temptation's lure.
The first moment of temptation is when you are alone. In verse 1, Jesus went alone into the wilderness to pray. It's interesting that Jesus was going to do something spiritual, but temptation showed up. You must always be careful of temptation when you are alone. It doesn't matter how spiritual your reasoning is to be alone, temptation will show up. It is during the times when you are alone that you must be alert of temptation's lure, and avoid them at all cost. Don't let your alone times become the moment you step into sin.
The second moment of temptation is when you are weak. In verse 2, Jesus had finished forty days of fasting. You would think this was a spiritual high for Jesus, and it was, but temptation showed up at that moment. There are times when you are weaker than others, and in these moments you must beware of temptation. The weak moments are in times of sickness, when you're tired, after days of fasting, when facing great trials and battles or when you are physically or mentally worn out. Watch out for these times when you are weak. You can be assured that the Devil will make sure that temptation will try to lure you into sin. Always remind yourself that temptation will lure you when you are tired.
The third moment of temptation is after great spiritual victories. In Matthew 16:23, Peter just made a great spiritual statement about the Deity of Christ. Right after he made that statement, temptation lured his flesh to make unwise statements. After every great spiritual victory, watch out for temptation. It is after great spiritual victories that our spiritual alertness is at a low. This is when the Devil will slip temptation your way. Don't stop being vigilant when you've had a victory. Actually, you should remind yourself to be more vigilant after great victories.
These three moments are times when you must be at alert. Don't let temptation destroy you during these times. Many people have succumb to temptation at these moments, and you will be no different if you are not diligent during these times. If you know to be extra alert during these times when temptation shows up, then you will have a better chance of being delivered from the evil that temptation is luring you towards.