Sermon Tone Analysis

*Intro* – One of my all-time favorite movies is Holiday Inn with Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire.

We watch it almost every Christmas.

In it there is a scene where a star performer, Linda, is coming from New York to be in the July 4 show at the inn out in the middle of nowhere in NE.

But, Gus, the driver has been bribed not to get her there on time.

So, on the way back he takes a wrong turn.

Linda protests, but Gus simply says, “Shortcut.”

Shortly he takes another wrong turn.

Again, she protests.

Gus simply replies, “Shortcut to the shortcut.”

As the road gets worse and worse, Linda’s anxiety grows, but Gus perseveres until he drives right off into the middle of a river.

His was a shortcut to nowhere.

I suppose we’ve all been there, haven’t we?

We all know that we live in a now world.

In school it’s about Cliff’s notes, and in life it’s about shortcuts.

But there are no shortcuts to spiritual growth.

No shortcuts.

But that’s what the 2nd temptation of Jesus Luke 4 is about – the enticement of a shortcut.

Satan offers Jesus an easy way, a shortcut, to dominion outlined for Messiah in the OT.

It is a great temptation to Jesus, living as a man.

But the premise is false.

As always, Satan is lying.

The false premise we saw last week was that “man must live”.

Jesus counters – “No, man must obey.”

Today the false premise is “you can shortcut your way to God’s blessing”.

But there are no shortcuts.

What we actually do is make an idol of the blessing and the shortcut ends up being a shortcircuit.

*I.

The Seduction*

V. 5, “And the devil took him up and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time, 6 and said to him, “To you I will give all this authority and their glory, for it has been delivered to me, and I give it to whom I will.

7 If you, then, will worship me, it will all be yours.”

This is the most significant of the three temptations.

I want us to see three things.

*A.

The Process (It’s threefold)*

*1.

Appeal to the Eye*

V. 5, “And the devil took him up and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time.”

He may have simply caused him to visualize this in his mind, but Matthew tells us he took him to a very high mountain.

That seems pretty literal.

But by whatever means he shows Jesus the world and says, “All that, I’ll give to you.”

Smart guy.

He enters through the eyegate.

The same thing happened in Gen 3:6 when we read that Eve “saw that the tree was good for food.”

She probably hadn’t thought much about that tree before.

There was plenty else around.

But Satan got her to look.

Temptation often comes that way.

Every salesman knows that.

Get people to look.

The lust of the eye is powerful.

Ever notice all that trivial stuff they put near the checkout counters at grocery stores?

Why?

All stuff we don’t need or even want – nothing we think about until it hits us in the face – and suddenly we just have to know what Brad just said about Jennifer, or how Kate Middelton captured a prince.

We guys think we are exempt.

It’s only for lack of opportunity.

Just send a guy to the store with a list and see what else he comes home with.

I can still remember getting a new car in 1973.

Then in 1974 every new car had square headlights and suddenly, I needed a new car.

Wanted the square headlights.

The lust of the eyes.

Job knew the power of the eyes, thus said in Job 31:1, “I have made a covenant with my eyes; how then could I gaze at a virgin.”

He was determined not to give sin a foothold by what he looked at.

We can learn from that determination.

*2.

Appeal to the Flesh*

V. 6, “and (the devil) said to him, “To you I will give all this authority.”

I’ll give you authority.

You’ll be able to do whatever you want.

Isn’t this what you came for – to rule?

Well, I’ll guarantee it.

Just imagine what you can do with this world when it is all under your control.

You will be the man.

Think of all the good that you’ll be able to do.

An appeal to the flesh.

*3.

Appeal to the Pride of Life*

V. 6, “To you I will give all this authority and their glory.”

Glory – pride of position.

See Caesar before the cheering crowd.

That could be you, Jesus.

I’ll give it to you.

Just worship me.

One time.

Just once.

You can still worship God all you want.

That is no concern of mine.

But I’ll do you better.

He’s going to ask you to die to get this, if you ever do.

Just bow the knee to me one time and it is all yours.

All the acclaim.

The crown can be yours – without the cross.

Shortcut.

You’ve been a carpenter.

I’ll make you the king you were born to be.

I’ll give you the world.

The pride of life.

Do you see how literally this ties in with I John 2:16, “For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world.”

Jesus didn’t have that verse of Scripture.

It hadn’t been written yet.

But He knew that truth.

He saw through the glitz and glamor of the world that Satan offered to the rottenness underneath.

He didn’t come for the world in its present form.

He came to clean it up so that He could have a kingdom of peace and joy and sinless perfection.