Before We Do His Work

Matthew 4:1-11

The book of Matthew describes how Jesus began His public ministry in an interesting way. Jesus was first baptized by John the Baptist. Then He was tested in the wilderness for 40days. After this, Jesus’ ministry of preaching the gospel finally began.

Some questions arise:Was it necessary for Jesus to be tested? Did He have to pass the tests to start His ministry? Furthermore, was it necessary for Jesus to be baptized?

Truth be told, Jesus did not need John’s baptism. He instead should have been the One baptizing John, and John knew this. This is why the Bible says, “But John tried to deter him, saying, ‘I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?’ Jesus replied, ‘Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness.’ Then John consented.”(Matthew 3: 14-15)

Indeed, Jesus did not need John’s baptism. Yet Hereceived it in order to “fulfill all righteousness.” Jesus was baptized not because He needed it, but to serve as an example for all future generations.

This goes for His tests, too. Jesus didn’t have to be tempted by Satan. He did not have to prove His faith and power, either. But He went through all the temptations in order to fulfill all righteousness. In this sense, Jesus’ temptations in the wilderness were a prophetic incident, setting an example for all ministers of Christ.

By being tested by Satan and overcoming all the tests, Jesus taught us that all who follow Him can and must overcome such tests. Once again, the testing of Jesus was not something that “qualified” Him to start His public ministry. By being tested by Satan Himself, Jesus taught us the qualities required of His followers.

The three tests Jesus went through before starting His ministry foreshadow the three most important tests from Satan that Jesus had to endure during His ministry and how He overcame them. In a broader sense, they serve as a lesson for all ministers of Christ regarding the temptations and pitfalls they will most certainly face in their own ministry.

We may divide Christians into largely two groups. First, there are those who have been baptized. A baptized Christian has entered his/her most basic phase as a Christian. We hear God’s loving voice upon being baptized: “This is my beloved son/daughter, whom I am pleased with.” When we are baptized, we receive this warm welcome.

But Christians must not remain as just “children” of God. They must take a step further and become “minsters”who participate in God’s ministry. When we become minsters, however, another set of qualities—different from thoseneeded for baptism—is required of us.Today’s passage teaches us what they are.

Today are ordaining seven new elders. In other words, we are appointing ministers of God. So, today, I wish to talk about the qualities required of a minster of God, who must go beyond baptism,by looking at the testing of Jesus in the wildernesswhich provides valuable lessons to all minsters of God. These qualities apply not just to the 7 new elders being appointed today, but also to the senior deaconesses and deacons who have been called, and to all ourstaff and leaders already serving Somang Church. Therefore, I hope all leaders, both serving and newly appointed, will heed this sermon well, examining themselves to see if they possess these qualities required of a servant of God.

Now, let’s look at how Jesus was tested.

The first temptation from Satan was this:

“The tempter came to him and said, ‘If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.’”(Matthew 4: 3)

This test was not meant to confirm whether Jesus is the Son of God or not. Rather, Satan is tempting Jesus with these words:‘That’s right, you are the Son of God. Well, if that is true, it would be perfectly fine for you to turn these stones into bread for yourself, wouldn’t it?’

Satan is not questioning whether Jesus is the Son of God or not. He is saying, ‘You are God’s Son. Therefore, you are entitled to live well, eat well, and not go hungry.’ This is the temptation that he is throwing at Jesus.

Furthermore, Satan is not enticing Jesus to show that He has the power to turn stones into bread. He already knew that Jesus had that power. So, the tempter is not asking Jesus to “display”that power, but luring Jesus to use that power “for Himself.” In other words, this is a temptation to do God’s work and use God’s power for one’s own food and bodily needs.

However, Jesus’ stance was firm: “Jesus answered, ‘It is written: Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”(Matthew 4: 4)

A genuine minster of God works for God not to fulfill his own desires, but to achieve His will, His word, and His work. He does not use his power to satisfy his desire for honor, money, sex, or food, but to achieve the will of God.

Jesus is making the following clear: ‘Do not do God’s work for worldly gain or interest. A servant doing God’s work must not make bread for himself. I, Christ, was not baptized for bread. I do not work for bread. I did not start this public life and this ministry for bread.’

Jesus was fully capable of turning stones into bread. Yet He didn’t do it for himself. This is how a servant of God must be.

Jesus could bear the cross because He lived with this attitude. When He was crucified, people hurled insults at Him, saying, “You who are going to destroy the temple and build it in three days, save yourself! Come down from the cross, if you are the Son of God!”(Matthew 27:40)

Jesus was tempted by people with such words on the cross. They were surely the voice of Satan: ‘Aren’t you the Son of God? Why must you die such a terrible death? Don’t you have the power? Just come down from the cross and live as you like! Get married, get rich, get famous, and live a good, respected life as a prophet of great miracles!’

Yet Jesus, knowing God’s will, obeyed His will. This is the true minster. The true servant of God must obey God and His word alone.

The second test from Satan was this:

“Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. ‘If you are the Son of God,’ he said, ‘throw yourself down. For it is written: He will command his angels concerning you, and they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’”(Matthew 4: 5-6)

According to the book of Luke, “the holy city” was Jerusalem. It is assumed that Satan took Jesus to the top of the Holy of Holies. The tempter is tempting Jesus to live a “heroic life”, enjoying worldly glory and popularity, by a show of miraculous power. He is also tempting Jesus to use God’s power and love for Jesus’ own success and ambition.

Jesus performed many miracles. He healed the sick, raised the dead, and calmed the storm. But all these miracles were not to show Himself off. Nor were they for His own benefit. Jesus performed no miracles for Himself. He did not even ask God for a miracle for His sake.

His one and only supplication was this: “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me.”

Jesus did not “heroically” become the Savior of all mankind with the stroke of a miracle. He went through all of man’s suffering and experiences, being born in the flesh, bearing suffering, being crucified, and dying on the cross.

This fact teaches us how we must do God’s work. God does not achieve His work through miracles and supernatural events, but through our daily and natural lives. We take on His ministry in our daily lives in a natural way.

Common sense and order are the most important principles to a minster of God. Yes, we do experience miracles in this life, but God’s principles and will already reside in our daily life. We must always remember this in doing God’s work.

We must not live expecting only miracles. We must not attempt to do God’s work with miracles alone. Jesus’ resurrection from the dead—this miracleis sufficient. Jesus did not need to jump from the temple to save mankind. The crux of God’s ministry of deliverance was not lifting Jesus up when He jumped from that high place. We must always remember this.

In Matthew 16 some Pharisees and Sadducees tested Jesus by asking Him for a sign. Jesus replied, “When evening comes, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red,’ and in the morning, ‘Today it will be stormy, for the sky is red and overcast.’ You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the sings of the times.”(Matthew 16: 2-3)

Jesus is questioning why the Pharisees and Sadducees cannot discern what is natural and common sensical, if they are capable of predicting the weather. Our Lord goes on to say, “A wicked and adulterous generation looks for a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah.”(Matthew 16: 4)

Jesus is saying that the only miracle and sign that He will give them will be His resurrection three days after His death—just as Jonah came out of the fish’s belly after three days.

Asking beyond this is too much. If Jesus does more than this, then that is a gift. The miracle of our Lord’s resurrectionis enough for us. Of course, some of us with incurable diseases may ask for miracles. We will, of course, be grateful if Jesus gives us one. But the miracle He gave us is already more than enoughfor God gave Jesus’resurrection to us as a gift and hope.

The third test was this:

“Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. ‘All this I will give you,’ he said, ‘if you will bow down and worship me.’” (Matthew 4: 8-9)

Luke does not record this third test. It is assumed that the high mountain was Mt. Hermon or Mt. Nebo (Deuteronomy 34:1-3).

It was a spot from which the all the lands of the nations could be seen. Satan talks as if he is the “righteous owner” of all the lands and as if God has given him “authority” over them. But the enemy only has a dark, evil power that can be wielded only in his limited boundary, and he is only an illegal intruder who is destinedto be punished.

Satan tempts us: ‘If you bow down to me, I will give you all this.’ What kind of temptation is this? Satan is asking Jesus, ‘Did You come to earth to possess all the nations? To become the Savior of the whole world? Bow down to me, and I will help You fulfill that goal!’

In other words, the devil is tempting Jesus with these words: ‘All you need is to fulfill your objective, right? The means does not matter. Bowing down to me? Big deal. Worship me for a second, and get what You want.’

This was the last temptation from the devil before our Lord started His public life. Satan was saying something like this:‘Does it have tobe that way? Aren’t there other ways to achieve Your mission? The end is what counts, not the means. Strike a compromise with me. Then I’ll give you all you want. Let me help Youreach your goal.’

Satan does not accede that he is a temporary ruler of this world or that his authority is valid only to the extent that God allows. The enemy is not the true ruler or lord over this nation or the world. Yet he deceives us, acting as if he can give us what is “his.”

Through today’s passage, God is teaching us the essential qualities of a servant of God who is about to start a new ministry.

First, a minster of God must not work for himself. He must not use his power and authority to satisfy his own desire or honor.

Second, a servant of the Lord does not work like a “hero.” Miracles are needed, but common sense and order are important. The order of nature that God already set for us must be our textbook which holds His will. Therefore, we must be sensible and reasonable when we do the work of God.

Third, a minster of God must always deeply consider “the means,”that is, the way God’s work is done. He must always ask this question about his actions: ‘Is this a way of worshipping God? Does it give Him glory?’ A man of God never thinks that the end is all that matters, that it is okay to bow down to Satan to achieve the end. Only when he finds a way that glorifies God can he truly take on God’s ministry.

Today we reflected on how we can stand properly as minsters of God by looking at how Jesus was tested in the wilderness. Today’s message is directed at all the leaders of this church, including elders, senior deaconesses, deacons, and pastors.

Our Lord hopes that we will allreflect on ourselves and do His ministry in the proper way.