Are you struggling with temptation? Discover how Jesus’ wilderness experience offers practical lessons on withstanding life’s toughest tests. In this teen Bible plan, you’ll learn how to develop self-discipline, protect your mind, and resist compromising your integrity. With insights from Matthew 4:1-11, this plan is perfect for teens seeking strength in their faith journey.
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Day 1
Scripture: Matthew 4:1-4
Matthew 4:1-11 is one of the most interesting stories in the Bible that applies to all of us. Here we have Jesus, the powerful Son of God, in a vulnerable state. He was “led into the wilderness by the Spirit to be tempted by the devil.”
The story goes like this: Jesus fasted for 40 days and 40 nights in an isolated place. Just like us, Jesus’ human side was physically weak and mentally/emotionally strained from being alone in the wilderness for over a month! The “wilderness” portion of the story is critical because it’s a place of the unknown. You never know who or what is watching you, there’s always something rustling in the trees, you have a heightened sense of awareness, and you likely have high anxiety because danger is constantly lurking. Though your prayer game is strong, you probably still feel isolated and in need of companionship. To top that off, Jesus was fasting all day, which means he was probably exhausted, dehydrated, and severely undernourished. My imagination tells me that Jesus was extremely vulnerable to an attack! Right on cue, the adversary slid in to conduct a multi-layered attack.
Temptation #1: Physical Needs and Desires
He began by tempting Jesus’ physical needs/desires. If you think about it, this is the first and sometimes easiest daily failure–especially when we go a while without something. For example, if we decide to cut sugar from our diet, it’s almost like our senses are heightened and we can smell and see cookies from a mile away!! So, how did Jesus respond? He told the adversary something like this: “Nah. I’m self-disciplined enough to focus on more than just feeding my fleshly desires. I have big dreams! By praying and denying myself food over the last 40 days, I’ve trained my body how to survive and become more self-disciplined.”
Denying ourselves physical desires is an extremely effective way to work our self-control muscle and grow self-discipline. Fasting (i.e. going without food or other desires to focus on praying) is one of many ways we can grow our willpower. Other methods include:
- Understanding and being honest about our cravings and desires.
- Actively tracking when we’re most vulnerable and hungry for our individual desires.
- Setting clear and achievable goals to combat the perceived void that develops when we don’t get what we need or want.
- Finding new healthy hobbies.
These are just a few ideas to get you started that have worked for me. I highly recommend searching for and applying what works best for you. Give that physical temptation the “Not today, bruh!🤚🏾” You can do it, and the self-discipline you develop will prepare you for the second and more complicated attack that we’ll learn about tomorrow–an attack on the mind.
Day 2
Scriptures: Matthew 4:5-7, Mark 15:34
Temptation #2: Emotional Needs and Desires
This one was interesting. Again, we have Jesus, the Son of the living God, being taken up to the highest point of the Temple in Jerusalem. The adversary tempted Jesus to jump! Why is this one of the temptations? Was the adversary just wanting to see a magic trick? Quite frankly, this portion of the story seems a bit strange at face value. However, I believe that this was an attempt to attack Jesus’ mental state.
Having been isolated for 40 days and 40 nights, I can imagine that Jesus was lonely and tired. He probably desired a warm bed and someone to talk to. Instead, He’s faced with His biggest enemy who’s trying to manipulate the Bible and trick Him into doing something. Believe it or not, jumping from the top of the Temple would have potentially felt like a reasonable thing to do given the circumstances. Perhaps Jesus would’ve felt the embrace of his Heavenly friends that I’m sure He longed for after being lonely. Maybe, He wanted to see if He really had any friends that would show up or if His Father would abandon Him and allow Him to crash on the ground. Sounds crazy, huh?
Well, remember when Jesus said, “Eloi, Eloi, lama Sabachthani? Which is translated as, “My God, my God, for what have you forsaken me?” (Mark 15:34) This proves that Jesus felt the same emotions of hurt, abandonment, and isolation. Which means He needed consolation after isolation and confirmation that He had the support system that He believed He had. I imagine that jumping from the top of the Temple would’ve been the ultimate “trust fall,” and what better time to “fall” for this temptation than after being alone for over a month?
That’s why this specific temptation is important for us to learn from! It’s easy to shrug it off and say, “Of course, He wouldn’t jump,” like I did in the past. Instead, we get to learn from Jesus as He responds to the adversary’s attack of the isolated and lonely mind. Understanding the timing of this attack can help us defeat the same attack in the future when we feel lonely, isolated, and abandoned. Jesus realized that though tempting, the idea that He should jump had deeper implications. He inherently knew that He had loved ones who could and would surround Him, but this wasn’t the way to draw their attention, consolation, and love. Thus, He refused the offer.
This one is worth hinging on because it often causes the most permanent damage. We feel vulnerable, so we attempt to express ourselves to the world around us and fill a void with quiet protests. That’s how we fall into self-harm, promiscuousness, constant overeating, self-degrading comments, and more. We’ve been in a wilderness experience that makes us feel isolated, alone, abandoned, tired, ugly, dumb, made fun of, ostracized, and isolated. All of these are real feelings based upon things we’ve heard and begun to believe about ourselves. Now, we’re at the top of a metaphorical Temple ready to jump to see whether someone–anyone–will come save us! Don’t jump!
Jesus proved–as you’ll see later in this story–that God has placed people in our lives who are there to help us through our hardest situations and most vulnerable moments. The assertion that we are alone and that no one understands (or is willing to understand) is simply inaccurate. Be willing to open up and be comforted. I get it; it’s tough when you feel abandoned and alone. It’s even tougher when you have opened up and feel that you did not receive the response you desired or deserved. Don’t give up! Keep reaching out to those around you. Use resources to connect with counselors, teachers, trusted advisors, etc. You are not alone, and you will overcome this!
Day 3
Scriptures: Matthew 4:8-11, Philippians 4:19, 2 Corinthians 12:9-10, 2 Corinthians 4:4
Temptation #3: Selling Out for Things
This brings us to our final attack–selling out for immediate pleasure. Isn’t this another strange one? Jesus, the Son of the highest King, was tempted to bow down to the adversary! That’s like a world championship boxer handing his title over to an amateur who’s only won fights in his backyard against his little siblings. It’s unfathomable! This temptation seemed like a Hail Mary pass–a desperate attempt to try one more thing to see if Jesus would bite. It’s completely asinine!… Or is it?
The adversary (aka the god of this world) was offering to give Jesus control of all the kingdoms he could see. (Satan is referred to as the “god of this world” in 2 Corinthians 4:4 to highlight his influence on the ideals, opinions, goals, hopes, and views of the majority of people.) He was attempting his own Mufasa/Simba moment where he offered Jesus “everything the light touches.” We would all quickly conclude that of course Jesus would deny the adversary the pleasure of being bowed to and worshiped. In hindsight, we cannot perceive this happening; however, I believe the purpose of this story is to examine the “exchange.” The adversary offered to exchange tangible valuables for submission and respect.
How often do we bend, submit, compromise our integrity, and even sacrifice our dignity to accomplish a goal? Isn’t it true that sometimes we waive our personal values, integrity, and talent (aka “sellout”) for money and personal gain? We feel the inkling and conviction to do what’s right, but we “bow” by claiming that the end result justifies the means.
This temptation is obvious when we picture Jesus bowing down to the devil, but it’s not as obvious in our daily lives. It’s not obvious when there’s a deadline looming over our heads, when we “forget” to study for a test when we don’t want to disappoint someone with our actions or words when we want to advance in our individual careers and relationships, or when we’re trying to fill a void. These situations (and more) often cause us to compromise what we know to be right in exchange for something we deem valuable.
This last temptation is an excellent example for us. Jesus, the greatest example, made a strong statement as He told the adversary, “Aye get outta here! I’m not compromising my integrity for you or anyone else!” (Obviously paraphrased.) Can you make that same declaration today? Resist the urge to compromise, and send the devil packing!
The story doesn’t end with the resistance, and the last part is awesome! It perfectly illustrates God’s character and our relationship with Him.
Once again, Jesus found Himself alone after sending the adversary away. That’s when God sent Jesus exactly what He needed in that moment–comfort and companionship. God proved that He knows and will provide everything we need when we need it (Philippians 4:19)! That’s why we shouldn’t sweat when we’re vulnerable or obsess over our weak moments because God strengthens and reinforces us at our most vulnerable times (2 Corinthians 12:9-10). We aren’t alone when we’re tested with temptations and hardships, and we will prevail with God on our side!