Temptations on the Pinnacle

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Matthew 4:5

Then the devil takes him up into the holy city, and sets him on a pinnacle of the temple,

I. View THE TEMPTATION ITSELF.

1. The place of this temptation. It was high; it was holy.

2. The first effort of the devil was to sap the foundations of the Saviour's strength with a doubt — "If Thou be the Son of God." The point of attack was our Lord's Sonship.

3. The cunning tempter has paved the way for the Satanic suggestion, "Cast Thyself down."

4. The suggestion was backed up by a text of Scripture. He misquotes the text and omits "in all thy ways." God does not promise to keep us in ways of our own choosing.

5. The answer which the Saviour gave.

II. A FEW CONSIDERATIONS DEDUCED FROM THE WHOLE.

1. Jesus was tempted as I am.

2. Jesus was tempted, but Jesus never sinned.

3. Jesus not only did not fall, but He triumphed gloriously.

worlddic.comThe devil may suggest: compel he cannot.

( St. Chrysostom.)It appeals to the trust which had been triumphant over temptation a moment before. Not even trust in God can expect God to save it from the consequences of presumption and disobedience; it must conform to the laws of God.