THE COLOSSAL EFFORT

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Chapter Three LESSON 5
THE COLOSSAL EFFORT TO BREAK THE SERVANT
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THE SERVANT FACING VENEMOUS TREATMENT
Consider Him who endured such contradiction from
sinners lest you grow weary mentally, and faint
in your minds (Hebrews 123).
THE SERVANT FACING VENEMOUS TREATMENT
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The Judean Wilderness
There can be no testimony without a test.
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What Moses Learned over 40 years in the wilderness
The trilogy of answers Jesus gave the tempter
during His three temptations came out of the life
experiences of Moses, the eminent lawgiver and
emancipator.
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Temptation 1
Would Jesus worship the thing God made (the
bread), or would He remain loyal to the God who
is the creator of the bread
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Temptation 2
Jesus, you are much too special to follow a path
that leads to a cross let me show you a far
easier way. - Satan
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• How did Moses respond when God offered him an
  alternative plan?

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The third temptation was another bold effort to
break Jesus bond of implicit trust with His
Father.

• Go ahead, Jesus, and jump from the temple. You
  are so special to your Father you will not even
  have to reach for your Deity. Your Father loves
  you so much He will dispatch His angels to take
  care of you just as the Scriptures say you will
  not even strike your foot against a stone.

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Accidents, untimely deaths, terminated jobs, loss
of health, floods, tornados, etc.
HAS GOD FAILED ME?

Its so easy to conclude God has failed me He
could have prevented this had He wanted to.
People then often walk away saying, Gods love
cant be trusted at the crunch times of life.
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Has God Failed Me?
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THREE GREAT IRONIES
Irony 1. The Rebellion reached its peak when the
people were just a few steps from their oasis in
the wilderness! If they had only persevered a
short while longer!
Why do you think many people give up and blame
God on the brink of their miracle?
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IRONY 2He was there all the time!

• When Moses struck the rock, a geyser of water
  gushed out, and Israels Messiah with delight
  stood by the rock watching the whole scene, just
  as He had said I will stand there before you by
  the rock

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3 - How Ironic!JUST THREE MORE DAYS!
The cruel spiritual leaders of Israel at the
crucifixion of Jesus were a mere three days away
from witnessing the greatest miracle of the ages
the resurrection of the Son of Man.
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WHY GOD TESTS US

• Deuteronomy 816 He gave you manna to eat in the
  desert, something your fathers had never known,
  to humble and to test you so that in the end it
  might go well with you.
• Deuteronomy 82 the Lord led you in the
  desert to test you in order to know what was in
  your heart, whether or not you would keep his
  commands.

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Satan Tempts God Tests --A Huge Difference

• James 113-15 When tempted, no one should
  say, "God is tempting me." For God cannot be
  tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone
• 14 but each one is tempted when, by his own
  evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. 15
  Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth
  to sin and sin, when it is full-grown, gives
  birth to death.

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JESUS THREE ANSWERS

• Man does not live on bread alone, but on every
  word that comes from Gods mouth.
• Worship the Lord your God and serve Him only.
• Dont put God to the test.

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Heres How He Did It

• The Lord Jesus depended for His answers on
• 1) the Word of God (the O.T.),
• 2) as guided by the Holy Spirit.
• He did it without grasping for the powers of His
  Deity not even one time.

We have the same weapons 1) the Word of God
(the Bible) and 2) the guidance of the Spirit.
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THE WAY OF ESCAPE

• When Paul wrote that God will make a way of
  escape from temptation for His children, this is
  that way of escape
• 1) the word of God and
• 2) the aid of the Holy Spirit.

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Chapter Three Lesson 6
The Colossal Effort to Break the Servant
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• The devil walked away in dismal defeat after
  the wilderness temptation, but he remained
  determined to fight again at an opportune time
  (Luke 413).

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SATANS GOAL BREAK THAT BOND WITH HIS FATHER!

• Satan dogged the steps of Jesus all the time,
  every day of His ministry. His goal was to break
  Jesus bond with His Father. Since the devil is
  our enemy too, it is of the utmost importance
  that we study how Jesus overcame Him, because the
  Lord is our example.

HOW TIGHTLY ARE YOU BONDED TO THE HEAVENLY FATHER?
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SATANS STRATEGY

• Keep the pressure on Jesus.
• Create a situation that would
• tempt Him to misspeak in
• some way, or become angry,
• or upset, or offended. Try
• anything, no matter how
• vicious and cruel, that might
• cause Him to grasp for His
• Deity and do something
• independently of His Father
• and of the Holy Spirit.

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TEMPTATIONS DURING HIS MINISTRY YEARS

• 1. Plotting to Kill Jesus
• 2. Charging Him with Blasphemy
• 3. Evil Spirits Screaming Out His Identify
• 4. Accusing Him of Being Demon Possessed
• 5. Unbelief
• 6. Keeping Bad Company
• 7. Breaking the Law
• 8. Challenging His Authority
• 9. Trapping Him in His Speech
• 10. Rejecting Him

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How Jesus Won Six Summary Statements

• 1. An attitude of implicit trust
• 2. A commitment to live humbly
• 3. He knew who His Father was hence,
• He knew who He was.
• 4. He lived by the ethic of love
• 5. He never had a goal to please Himself
• 6. He kept His eyes fixed on the ultimate
• joy ahead

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The OKC Survivor Tree
What does the story of the old elm tree the
Survivor Tree that survived the Oklahoma City
bombing of 1995, tell you about your capacity to
endure?
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Passion Week Satans All-out Stand
1. Raw Terror 2. Putdowns 3. Murderous
Plots 4. Betrayal 5. Denial in His Inner
Circle 6. False Testimony 7. Blasphemy 8. Roman
Cruelty 9. Crucifixion
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10. Forsaken by His Father

• Without question, this was the toughest of them
  all. The explosion hit when the Lord was the
  weakest He had lost so much blood and expended
  so much energy just trying to breathe. The throes
  of death were already settling in His holy body
  was beginning to shut down. Could His pure mind
  handle one last struggle and of all places,
  coming from His Father whom He implicitly
  trusted?

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The Forsakenness of Jesus - What Does it Say to
You when you feel abandoned by God?
If God does not answer your prayers the way you
pray them, will you still love Him?
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Who killed Jesus? Is it right to blame the Jews
only?
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BLENDING SOVEREIGNTY AND FREE WILL

• Every person who had any part in the drama of the
  ages the crucifixion of Jesus acted out of
  his own free will. The sovereign God brought all
  of these willing participants together to fulfill
  the predictions of the prophets and to achieve
  the death of Jesus Christ. The result is the
  gospel of God.

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The Empty Tomb
Calvary and the empty tomb vindicate Jesus
diagnosis of mans fallen condition, and
demonstrate the Fathers cure.
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MEASURING IMPLICIT TRUST IN THE HEAVENLY FATHER

• Please mark where you think you fit today on
  this scale
• __________________________________
• 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
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