Kaya’t sumagot si Jesus, “Lumayas ka Satanas! Sapagkat nasusulat, ‘Ang Panginoon mong Diyos ang dapat mong sasambahin. At siya lamang ang dapat mong paglilingkuran.’”

Mateo 4:10

When Jesus fasted, He was without food for forty days and nights. Famished and weak, gaano kaya Siya ka-vulnerable noon? This was also the time when He was tempted by Satan.

The tempter first challenged Jesus to feed Himself by asking Him to turn the stones into bread. The second one was to throw Himself down mula sa taas ng temple nang mailigtas Siya ng mga anghel. And lastly, dinala si Jesus sa isang napakataas na bundok. The devil showed Him all the kingdoms and the glory of the world and offered Him all these in exchange for His worship.

Temptation usually appeals to any of these three things: the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life (1 John 2:16). Ang mga ito ang ino-offer ng mundo, and the enemy knows so well how to lure a person — even a Christian — into following his or her own desires.

But Jesus, even in the flesh, rejected the tempter’s enticements. At every attempt, Jesus, the Son of Man, answered the devil with the Word of God. Ni-rebuke Niya ito at sinabing we are commanded to worship and serve God alone. And in the end, the devil left Him.

Ikaw, when faced with temptation, how do you respond? Nilalabanan mo ba ito or do you give in every now and then? We need to remember that temptation is not sin until we act on it. Jesus, in His vulnerable state, did not give in even when He was hungry, and even when He was offered riches, power, and dominion. Nanatili Siyang focused sa Salita ng Diyos, ni-rebuke ang kaaway, and won the victory over temptation.