Saturday's Scripture Story
The Temptations of Jesus
Matthew 4:1-11
1 Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted[a] by the devil. 2 After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. 3 The tempter came to him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.”
4 Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’[b]”
5 Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. 6 “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.’[c]”
7 Jesus answered him, “It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’[d]”
8 Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. 9 “All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.”
10 Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’[e]”
11 Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him.
Footnotes
[a] Matthew 4:1 The Greek for tempted can also mean tested.
[b] Matthew 4:4 Deut. 8:3
[c] Matthew 4:6 Psalm 91:11,12
[d] Matthew 4:7 Deut. 6:16
[e] Matthew 4:10 Deut. 6:13
Pondering Point
Our story is Jesus being tempted in the wilderness as recorded in Matthew's gospel. Learn the story anew and try to commit to memory the three types of temptations. Ask yourself how you might be tempted in these three arenas: power, needs, or value. You may come up with three words or phrases of your own to describe these temptations. That's okay. Go with it. If you are meeting with a group, use this as your hook question.
Prayer
[Insert your own prayer about temptation.]
Hook Questions
Use these questions with your group when you are using Bible stories as central piece to your time together:
- Jesus was tempted with power, needs, and perceived
value. Which of these three arenas (power, needs, value)
do you find most difficult to overcome?
Bible Storying’s Core Questions
- What did you like (or learn new) about the story?
- What did you not like (or not understand) about it?
- What are the various people doing in the story? With whom do you identify within the story?
- What is God doing in the story?
- What might God be asking of you triggered by this
story? How is he challenging you?
A great way to get God’s stories to stick with you is telling them to other people.