Victory in the Wilderness – Hit the Mark
“I’m so happy that I didn’t sneeze.” Martin Luther King, Jr.
Image: Vernoll Coleman/NY Daily News/Getty Images
On September 20, 1958, as he sat signing autographs for his book, Martin Luther King Jr was stabbed and nearly killed. He was whisked to the hospital with the blade of the knife still stuck in his chest. It would take a delicate and laborious operation to remove it. So close was the tip of the blade to his aorta that he was told that if he had merely sneezed before it was removed, his life might have ended.
In his famous Mountain Top speech, Dr. King recounts the impact of that moment.
“And I want to say tonight – I want to say tonight that I too am happy that I didn’t sneeze. Because if I had sneezed, I wouldn’t have been around here in 1960, when students all over the South started sitting-in at lunch counters. And I knew that as they were sitting in, they were really standing up for the best in the American dream, and taking the whole nation back to those great wells of democracy which were dug deep by the Founding Fathers in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution…”
“If I had sneezed, I wouldn’t have been around here in 1962, when Negroes in Albany, Georgia, decided to straighten their backs up. And whenever men and women straighten their backs up, they are going somewhere, because a man can’t ride your back unless it is bent… I’m so happy that I didn’t sneeze.”
Dr. King’s survival of this assignation attempt paved the way for the advancement of the civil rights movement. His victory, as it was, would unlock victories for masses of others. What he suffered and endured would have ramifications far beyond what he could have ever imagined. I’m so glad he didn’t sneeze.
This week we study another dastardly attempt on a life. The temptations in the wilderness story are more than a match of wills. Satan’s assault on Jesus concerned the entire human race. Each temptation was weighted with eternal consequences.
The Bible records that, after forty days of fasting, Jesus is confronted by Satan.
“And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry. Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.” Matthew 4:2-3
We could spend our time together dissecting the implication of Satan’s words. That same seed of doubt is what he used on Eve and sadly, what he often successfully uses on us. But our primary interest now is on the response of Jesus.
“But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’” Matthew 4:4
In this profound response we gain much insight. The Deuteronomy text referenced the time in the sojourn through the wilderness by the children of Israel. They were hungry and had zero means of providing food on their own. Zero.
They were given manna and the significance of this food is found in the same quotation:
“So He humbled you, allowed you to hunger, and fed you with manna which you did not know nor did your fathers know…” Deuteronomy 8:3
God provided for their needs by giving them something that had never existed before. He was not dependent on what was. This was a demonstration that they could place their complete confidence in Him. And it is here where Satan attempts to get Jesus.
If Jesus had turned the stones into bread it would have signaled a lack of confidence in His Father’s provision and care. Instead of relying on God to make a way out of no way, Jesus would have set an example for men that when the going gets tough, don’t wait on God. And this one deviation from complete confidence in God would have spelled the eternal ruin of man.
I’m so glad He didn’t turn the stones into bread. If He had turned the stones into bread He would not have been able to reward the leper’s complete faith in him when he said, “Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean.” Matthew 8:2
If He had turned the stones into bread, He would not have been able to say to the centurion whose heart was broken and in anguish over the sickness and eventual death of his servant, “Go your way; and as you have believed, so let it be done for you.” And his servant was healed that same hour.” Matthew 8:13
If He had turned the stones into bread He would not have been able to say to the woman with the 12 year long ordeal of bleeding, “Be of good cheer, daughter; your faith has made you well.” And the woman was made well from that hour.” Matthew 9:22
In each chapter of the sacred Word of God we find assurances of God’s love and care for us. And in the story of Christ’s wilderness encounter with the enemy of man, we find in Jesus our example of complete confidence in God’s love and care for us. I’m so glad He didn’t turn stones into bread.
Here are a few Hit the Mark questions for this week’s lesson discussion:
- What does it mean to have complete confidence in God?
- Is being able to repeat scriptures the secret to overcoming temptation? Why yes or no?
- Explain what it means to “live by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.”
- What, if any, is the difference between knowing facts about God and having faith in God?
- What is the difference between faith and presumption?
- How can one know if what they are attempting to do is outside of the will of God?
- Is gaining the victory over appetite simply eating healthfully? Explain your answer.
- Is the following statement True, Mostly True, Somewhat True or Not True: It is easier to gain the victory over temptation if you can control your appetite. Explain your answer.
We close this week’s lesson on Victory in the Garden with a text that sums up our faith relationship with God.
“But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” Hebrews 11:6
Until next week, let’s all continue to Hit the Mark in Sabbath School.
To listen to the Audio Version, including some of the MLK speech, click HERE
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