The Lambertville record. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1872-1968, 1904-04-27
THE TEMPTATION OF CHRIST.
SERMON BY MR.. LOREN NJ. RENO IN THE
RINGoEs BAPTIST CHURCH,
APRIL II, 1904.
Matthew ": l-2l

fourth chapter of the Gospel accord
ing to Matthew we have the account
of the temptation of Christ in the
wilderness. Luke uses the first thir.
teen verses for nafrating the same.
/ In speaking of these temptations this
afternoon / shall use the order of Mat
thew. | aim to note briefly the first
and second and give more attention
/ to the eighth and ninth verses of Mat
7 thew's account.
During forty days Christ has been
tempted by the devil. For that time
t he has eaten nothing. He has become
| hungry. The devil now comes to him
in temptation, the way for which
has been prepared by his hunger.
/ day the devil said to him: "You have
been n long time without bread. You
are hungry. Since You are Gods Son
| this IS not necessary. See these stones
lying here You hive only need to
command them to become bread and
they will satisfy your wants. " This
temptation was broader than stone
and sharper than an appetite which
| could be satisfied With loaf of bread.
1t was temptation to use divine
power To serve II physical end.
1t stands for the temptation to dis
regard the higher side of life and live
for the personal and the temporal.
Note the reply of Christ: MAN shall
not live by bread alone, but by every
word that proceedeth out of the mouth
of God. There is something higher
thar the necessaries of physical life.
Life has divine side.
1t is clear that Christ cannot be
forced to yield along this line, and as
the pendulum swings to the other side
Of the vertical, so the devil goes to the
opposite extreme s'You are right, "
he may be expected to have said,
"there is divine side of life, and
God has commanded his angels to
care for those who take this side. 1t
is the right and best course Now
stand here on the pinnacle of this
temple. See the people down there?
Show them that you have taken this
divine side by casting yourself down
from here and letting God care for
YOU. The reply of Christ makes clear
the force of this temptation, Thou
shalt not tempt in the sense Of pre-
sumo upon-''the Lord, thy God. "
This is the temptation that comes to
the deyout and Cody heart. The
temptation to presume upon God $
help and care where human caution
and effort will avail
Christ has faced the temptation from
the two sides of life, the physical aad
the divine. What will come next?
He has shown the tempter that he
cannot be forced from the mission
into which his baptism and the voice
of his Father has Just initiated him,
neither into selfish indulgence nor
into religious fnnaticism. His work
he keeps before him. The third temp
tation strikes him ON this point, and
the devil says: 81 know you have n
work to do; | see you cannot be
forced from it. You have come to
conquer the Kingdoms of the world.
Stand here and view them. They are
in my power | have authority to give
hem to whom | will and | will give
them to you if You will fall down and
worship me" Christ saw the deep
blackness back of the gilded covering
lie saw in that one act of worship the
gaining of the kingdoms of the world.
lie saw In it the escape from rejection,
humiliation and cruciiixion. He saw
in it the winning of the Messlaship,
for which he had come. But back of
this gilded covering he saw the black
ness of himself being by that one act
transformed from God. Messiah to
no royal road to wealth, no short cut
to success, no easy path to victory
lie saw but one pathway that path
way that leads by Calvary and that
stops at the Cross. His reply is con
vincing for time. Thou shalt wor-
ship the Lord thy God and him only
shalt thou serve" And the devil left
him for II season But for II season
only, for | notice in the first place:
This is the great oft-repeated temp
tatlon III all his ministry. For n sea.
SON only and the tempter comes tc
him again with this same bold temp.
tation of the mountain top when, after
feeding the five thousand, they came
to him and would take him by force
and make him king. King he came to
be, but not king by force of arms, for
he saw that that pathway did not
lead to Calvary and did not stop al
the Cross. He withdrew to the noun
tain, Matthew and Mark tells us, tc
pray.
The tempter came to him again, and
this time in the form of his disciples.
He had just won from them the con-
fession that he was 1.-The Christ, the
Son of the living God. " Then he be
gan to reveal to them that pathway he
had chosen that pathway of suffering
But Peter objected. He could not
think of such life and death for his
Master. He would win success for
him by shorter route, by an easier
method. Christ's rebuke to him is
severe-"Get thee behind me, Satan''
Almost the same words used to him
who, i'll the strength of his ardor, was
pledging his fullest support as he
used to the tempter on the mountain
top. All, he saw back of his disciple
the same old tempter with the same
old temptation and of an easy path to
victory and shortcut to success.
+, He also saw that there could be but
one pathway-that pathway that leads
by Calvary and that stops at the