April 10, 2019 – Click here to listen
As I studied Chapter four of Luke this morning one thing that caught my eye was that when Satan finished trying to tempt Jesus in the desert he departed to wait for an opportune time. Luke 4:13 – “When the devil had finished all this tempting, he left him until an opportune time.” It seems that he does not just tempt people indiscriminately but looks for an opportune time when we are at a weak point and prone to give in, or when our worldly lusts and desires overwhelm our need to serve God. If we are wise, we will recognize it when this occurs and fortify ourselves with prayer and gathering with other believers.
Jesus in His weakened condition after a 40 day fast, was offered food and in fact the entire world and all of its glory. “All this authority I will give to you and their glory for this has been delivered to me, and I can give it to whomever I wish. Therefore, if you will worship before me it will be yours. Jesus already owned the entire world and everything in it as God; however, He was man-God at this time. Dominion over the world was ceded to Satan when Adam and Eve, the former caretakers of the world sinned. Satan was trying to convince Jesus to forego His sacrifice for our sins on the cross and take the treasures the world had to offer now in exchange for His worshipping Him, instead of reclaiming them after His ascension.
How many take the devil’s deal and run with it? Short term worldly material gains have overtaken many of us, but in the end, we find the deal was not the deal for which we thought we had bargained. It was reputed that legendary blues singer and songwriter Robert Johnson went down and sold his soul to the devil at a local crossroads to achieve musical success. According to legend, as a young man living on a plantation in rural Mississippi, Johnson had a tremendous desire to become a great blues musician. The problem was that he was embarrassingly bad on the guitar. He was instructed to take his guitar to a local crossroads at midnight. There he was met by a large black man (the devil) who took the guitar and tuned it. The devil played a few songs and then returned the guitar to Johnson, giving him mastery of the instrument. In exchange for his soul, Johnson was able to create the blues for which he became world famous to this day and was reputed to have power over women that would enable him to sleep with anyone he chose. He is now recognized as a master of the blues and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on the very first vote.
Sadly, he died at just 28 years old, reportedly murdered by a jealous husband, and yet his soul lives on forever. I hope that the great musician Robert Leroy Johnson’s legend isn’t true, and he somehow met the Lord. Today I see many celebs, politicians, and powerful business leaders that could fit that legendary role. Did Satan find the opportune time for their temptation? Did their lives end prematurely like so many: Jimi Hendrix, Janice Joplin, Kurt Cobain, Jim Morrison, Tupac, River Jordan, James Dean, Selena, and a plethora of others. Stay close to the Lord . . .
Corinthians 11:3
But I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent’s cunning, your minds may somehow be led astray from your sincere and pure devotion to Christ.