VERSES: Matthew 4:1-11; Mark 1:12, 13; Luke 4:1-13
MEMORY VERSE: Matthew 4:4 "...It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God."
BOOK TO REMEMBER: Review Matthew through 2 Corinthians.
PRAYER: Pray that when we are tempted to sin like Jesus was, that we will be able to say "It is written" like Jesus did.
SPECIAL SONG: Matthew 4 (See May - Songs We Sing In Bible Class #5 on this blog. Click on orange circle to hear tune.) This is a song we have not sung before on the blog and it is a timely one for today's lesson. It is a familiar tune to most.
VISUAL AID: TV Box (see February - Visual Aids #1 TV Box for instructions. This is a good visual aid for this lesson, keeping the students' interest well.)
LESSON POINTS:
- After Jesus was baptized, Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness where there were wild beasts. He was led there to be tempted by the devil. Jesus had fasted for forty days and forty nights. Remember to 'fast' means that the person had not been eating any food. Jesus was hungry! The devil is sometimes called 'the tempter' because he tempts us to do evil when we know we should do good. That's what he was doing to Jesus. He was tempting Him! The devil knew that Jesus was hungry and that was the first thing he tempted Jesus with--food! The devil said to Jesus, "If you are really the Son of God, turn these rocks into bread." Do you know what Jesus said? He told the devil, "It is written, Man should not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds or comes out of the mouth of God." Jesus resisted temptation by quoting a scripture found in the Old Testament (Deuteronomy 8:3).
- The second time Jesus was tempted, the devil took Him to Jerusalem, the holy city, and set Him up on a high pinnacle or high point of the temple. The devil told Jesus, "If you are really the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written, "He shall give His angels charge concerning you and they shall lift you up." The second time, the devil tried to quote scripture to Jesus, but the devil didn't trick Jesus! Jesus said to the devil, "It is written again, You shall not tempt the Lord your God." Again, Jesus resisted temptation by quoting a scripture found in the Old Testament (Deuteronomy 6:16).
- The last time, the devil took Jesus to a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and all their glory in a moment of time. The devil said to Jesus, "I will give you all these things and this power if you will fall down and worship me." Were all of those kingdoms the devil's to give? No! They were God's kingdoms! But Jesus said, "Get behind me, Satan! for it is written: You shall worship the Lord your God and him only will you serve." Again, Jesus resisted temptation by quoting a scripture found in the Old Testament (Deuteronomy 6:13).
- Then, the devil left Jesus alone in the wilderness for a while and the angels came and helped Jesus.
"Older Student" Tips:
- It is always a good idea to memorize Bible verses. They may help in time of trouble or temptation like in this lesson. Jesus was ready for the devil. He knew His scriptures and was not afraid to quote them. The devil knew he was not going to give in to temptation because Jesus had God's words in His mind and heart and mouth. It is not a question IF we will be tempted, it is more of a question of WHEN we will be tempted by the devil. Will we be ready?
- Read 1 John 2:15-17. Discuss. How dos this apply to Jesus being tempted? He was tempted in all three areas of temptation--lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes, and the pride of life.
ACTIVITY: The Temptation of Jesus
Materials needed: 9" x 12" green construction paper, 6" x 11" white bond paper, 2" x 12" strip of orange construction paper, scissors, markers, crayons, glue.
- Hand out green paper.
- Fold into thirds.
- Unfold.
- Write "How The Devil Tempted Jesus" and "Matthew 4:1-11" at the top of the paper.
- Hand out white paper.
- Fold into thirds.
- Unfold.
- Cut on folded lines of the white paper only.
- On one white paper, draw rocks and write "If you are the Son of God, command these stones be made bread."
- On the second white paper, draw the temple with a high point with Jesus at the top and write "If you are the Son of God, cast yourself down."
- On the third white paper, draw a high mountain with Jesus at the top and write "All these things I give to you, if you will fall down and worship me."
- Color all three white papers.
- Glue white papers inside the middle of the green sections (see picture).
- Hand out orange paper.
- Fold the top edge of the orange paper down.
- Glue ONLY the top edge of the orange paper to the bottom of the green paper.. (Otherwise, the 'flap' won't open.)
- On top of the flap, write "What Jesus said..."
- Lift flap.
- Under the flap, write "IT IS WRITTEN..."