Pastor Wayne Cordeiro
February 3, 2002 - W0205

Each of us have been given a call. God gave us an assignment, an identity of who we are to be: a people who represent Him. The Bible says, ìGod created man in his own imageî (Gen. 1:27). He placed His own image and call within you so that you could make manifest His glory through your life. And in the short time we have on earth, your role is not to just exist and die. It is to represent Godís glory through your life. You are an Ambassador of Jesus to our world!

You see, for a lot of people, the only Jesus theyíll ever see is through you. The only Bible theyíll ever read will be the one that speaks through your lifeóexpressed through your words and through your decisions. As a result, your identity in Christ is the most eternal thing you can choose to live every day. If you get distracted, if you dilute or even lose your identity, youíll become vulnerable to temptations that lead down ravaged trails with tragic endings.

And guess who knows that better than anyone? You got it: the enemy of our souls. You see, the enemy knows he canít take you out of the world. So what he will try to do is dilute your identity by tempting you when youíre vulnerable. He pulls us into the world and gets us to forget who we are in Christ. As soon as we forget that, we become susceptible to the worldís temptations. And once we give in to that, then there is no difference between a Christian and those who donít know Christ. The only difference is that we go to church on the weekend and they donít. Other than that thereís no difference between you and the world.

Then we wonít influence anybody. And heís won! Itís okay if weíre Christians, as long as weíre not influencing anyone for Jesus. Thatís the enemyís best plan.

But God tells us that although you and I are in the middle of a crooked and a perverted generation, you are to appear as lights in the world. And although we are in the world, we are not of the world. We have one chance at this, so donít lose your identity. Donít lose your confidence. Because identity is easy to lose, but itís tough to get it back.

Question 1: If someone were to identify you by how you live your life, would they be able to identify you as an Ambassador of Jesus? How so? How could you be a brighter light for Him?

The same thing happened to Jesus: the devil tempted Him in an attempt to dilute His assignment. The devil knew that Jesus had come to die on the cross so that He could reconnect each of us to God and to eternity. But if the devil could just tempt Jesus, well then Jesus would become just another Joe. So the devil hit Jesus with all kinds of temptations.

In fact, youíre going to hear a phrase over and over: ìIf You are the Son of God...î The devil uses this to hit Jesus at His identity. Letís take a look at the three temptations of Jesus:

The 1^st Temptation

ìAnd the tempter came and said to Him, ëIf You are the Son of God, tell this stone to become breadíî (Luke 4:3).

But [Jesus] answered and said, ìIt is written, ëMan shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of Godíî (Matthew 4:4).

The first temptation was toÖ

1) ìUSE WHAT YOU HAVE FOR YOURSELF!î

The devil will persuade you to use whatever you have for yourself. Whether thatís your authority, talents, money, skills, finances, abilities or looksóhe convinces you that they are for you to use for your purposes. Weíve seen the abuse of that in politics, in unions, in the mediaÖ any place where people have power and influence. They begin to use these things for selfish purposes and it destroys their whole legacy.

So you end up with the position, but without the influence. You end up with fame and media attention, but no honor or depth of character. You end up with personal wealth, but no deep relationships. You buy into the lie, but you also forget who you are.

God reminds us that those things donít belong to us and they are not for our own purposes. They are for His purposes. You and I are not owners, we are simply stewards of what Heís entrusted to us. He has given them to us in order to fulfill His eternal purposes and His Kingdom.

Once we remember that we are stewards, there is a great confidence. Why? Because God gives us instruction and an authority for how best to use and steward His gifts. But for those who refuse to invest in His Kingdom, the Lord says, ìEven what you have shall be taken away from you.î As you continue to faithfully invest, He increases your identity and talents. And you begin to be someone who gains confidence in a shaky world.

Question 2: In what practical ways can we remind ourselves of who we are and Who we represent?

Question 3: What gifts has God given you to steward? How can you invest those gifts for the Kingdom in such a way that others would glorify your Father in heaven?

The 2^nd Temptation

Well, the devil continued to tempt Jesus: He showed Jesus all of the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time.

ìAnd the devil said to Him, ëI will give You all this domain and its glory; for it has been handed over to me, and I give it to whomever I wish. Therefore if You worship before me, it shall all be Yoursî (Luke 4:6-7).

Look carefully and youíll detect a second conniving temptation the devil presents to each of us:

2) ìEVERYBODYíS AFTER THE SAME GOALS IN LIFE. IíLL JUST GET YOU THERE FASTER!"

The devil says thereís glory to earthly glitter, and itís his to give away. So if you just dilute your identity, and exchange your call for this glitter, you can have anything the world has to offer. Heíll also convince you that everybody wants the same goals in life, even Christians. So as long as you donít let people know youíre a Christian, just be incognito about it and cut a few corners by forgetting your integrity, then nobody will ever find out.

And true to the deal, he gives us glitter but he also starts to chip off who we are and what weíve been created to be. Before you know it, people canít tell a Christian apart from anybody else. And the devil will say you donít have to worship him, just diminish the Lordship of God.

Heíll also get you to use God to get you what you want. And what happens is youíre striving for the same goals the world has except youíre using God as a good luck charm to get them. And the devil will say, ìGood! Go to church and pray for God to give you those goals. Use God as a means to an end. Then your heart will be the same as the worldís. And it wonít be true worship, it wonít be a real relationship with God. So pray, do incantations and chant. And if God doesnít help you, I will. Or manipulation or compromise will, but weíll get you there somehow.î

The Lord warns us to be very careful of the worldís glitter. Jesus came not to give you the glitter of this world, but to give the free gift of salvation. He also came to change your heart, so you could understand your identity and your assignment.

ìAnd Jesus answered and said to him ëYou shall worship the Lord your God and serve Him onlyíî (Luke 4:8).

The 3^rd Temptation

And he led Him to Jerusalem and had Him stand on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, ìIf you are the Son of God, throw Yourself down from here; for it is written, ëHe will give His angels charge concerning You to guard You,í and, ëOn their hands they will bear You up, lest You strike Your foot against a stoneíî (Luke 4:9-11).

And Jesus answered and said to him, ìIt is written, ëYou shall not put the Lord your God to the testíî (Luke 4:12).

3) ìTRADE YOUR TOMORROWS FOR ONE TODAY, & DONíT WORRY ABOUT THE CONSEQUENCES.î

Did you know that the devil actually quotes Godís Word? Sure! He quoted this out of the Old Testamentís book of Psalms. Heís been around a little longer than you and I, and he actually knows how to use the word of God to twist it for his own purposes. Heíll even use scripture against you, in an attempt to trump you.

The devil is really good at not showing you the price of sin today and what itís going to cost you and your future. Itís like a diamond ring in a jewelry store window. Ever notice they always have the price tag tucked underneath the ring so you canít see it? Thatís just like the devil! He says, ìYes, look at this piece of earthly glitter. Do you like it? Oh, donít bother looking at the price tag. Just fall in love with it, desire itÖ and now you MUST HAVE it! Trade all those sorrows coming tomorrow for this one treat today.î

Question 4: Have you ever been tricked to trade all of your tomorrows for a treat today? How much was the ultimate cost of that treat? Pray for each person who answers and cover that hurt with a reminder of Godís forgiveness and grace.

Yes, God forgives, but you never want to use the grace of God to continue to sin. You see freedom in Christ is not defined as all those things I can do, but all those things I donít have to do anymore. God tells us that we are new creations in Christ, we have a new identity in Him. He then goes about changing our hearts and giving us new goals. And when He sees that your heart has changed, He can then add all the other things. ìSeek first His kingdom and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added to youî (Mt. 6:33). But that can only come if our hearts are right. So God is saying be careful how we use His grace.

God is able to rescue the Godly from temptation. If you want God to rescue you from temptation, be willing to be Godly. If youíre not willing to be Godly, then all the power of God will not be able to help you resist temptation. Even if God tried to help you, you would find a way to get what you wanted anyway.

Our assignment is for people to see less of us and more of Him; the world needs to see Jesus! Donít forget who you areóyour identity is in Christ and you are His light in the midst of a dark age and a perverted generation. He promises that if our hearts are good, He will be able to give us the power of heaven to have confidence in a shaky world. And in that, weíll face temptation but like Jesus, we will overcome:

ìAnd Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit...î (Luke 4:14).

Question 5:  How will you be changed by what you learned today?      

                                                                  Summarized by Doreen Rabaino