Gospel Reflections #151: Jesus' Triumph over Temptation: A Source of Assurance, Freedom, and Hope

Matthew 4:1 "Now Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil."

The Spirit of God that fell on Jesus at His baptism now leads Jesus into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. Jesus took the temptation that we would have been subjected to and won the devil's temptation.

Jesus does not free us from the dominion of sin and then tell us to fend for ourselves. Being freed from the dominion of sin does not make our temptations to sin go away; we are always tempted by sin.

We do not have the power to overcome the temptation to sin. Without Jesus covering us, we will be crushed by the temptation to sin. Jesus suffered the temptation of sin to guarantee our salvation.

The assurance of our salvation comes not from our merit, but from Jesus' merit. When we accept Jesus as our Savior, not only His death but also His perfect life will be credited to our account and paid in full as our ransom.

We are surrounded by freedom of choice, security, joy, and hope through Jesus' assurance. And as we experience the peace of Jesus' presence with us, we can be confident of the joy, gratitude, and hope.

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This Gospel Reflections page is written by Masae San, a devoted student of the Bible who passionately embraces the Gospel of Jesus Christ. She shares her daily reflections on the Gospels as a way to reach out to others and spread the message of Jesus. We're sharing her message here so that you too can experience the joy that comes from the Gospel that has filled her heart.