Casting off a pinnacle

[timothyu]

When Jesus was being tempted in the desert, He was told to cast Himself down from a pinnacle and angels would come and save Him. Why would He need the angels, Himself being God?
Matthew 4: 5 Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple,

6 And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.

7 Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.

 

[RandyPNW]

When Jesus was being tempted in the desert, He was told to cast Himself down from a pinnacle and angels would come and save Him. Why would He need the angels, Himself being God?
Matthew 4: 5 Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple,

6 And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.

7 Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.

Placing Himself in human form Jesus chose to make use of human abilities. As a man, Jesus would utilize his divine powers by relying on his angels. It would be the same as using his human voice to speak to others, even though as God he could've spoken apart from his vocal chords. He came as man to *be man,* and not strictly to act as God.

 

[Clare73]

When Jesus was being tempted in the desert, He was told to cast Himself down from a pinnacle and angels would come and save Hi
Why would He need the angels, Himself being God?

That was Satan's assumption.

Matthew 4: 5 Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple,

6 And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.

7 Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.

 

[Rose_bud]

Hi there
As RandyPNW said, he is both human and divine. Hebrews states that He is our great high priest. He understands our temptation. He was tempted yet was able to overcome Hebrews 4:15.

In addition, he had the wisdom to apply the Scripture in a manner that would bring God glory. As the scripture used by the temptor in Psalm 91 to support the request to cast Himself from the mountain.
But Jesus response was that you shall not test the Lord your God. An allusion to the Israelites testing God at Massah. All His responses to the temptor alluded to the happenings of Israel in the wilderness (Deut 6 :13, 16 and Deut 8:3). Where Israel failed in their obedience, He succeeded. He yielded not to the thoughts of the enemy but to that of God.
Making Him as Hebrews says not just a Son but a Son of obedience.

Hebrews 5:8-10

Son though he was, he learned obedience from what he suffered and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him and was designated by God to be high priest in the order of Melchizedek.

 

[timothyu]

He came as man to *be man,* and not strictly to act as God.

I understand that but in these scriptures He was not dealing with man. Realistically this was a spiritual event and could have been played by spiritual rules. If this was a simple matter of the Tempter dealing with a human as it always has done, then this would make sense. But the Tempter knew who it was dealing with. Just as Jesus was told to save Himself at crucifixion, the Tempter here seemed to be asking God to save Himself, perhaps a test run for later on. The question remains, why would God need angels to save Him when He created those angels/elohim?

 

[RandyPNW]

I understand that but in these scriptures He was not dealing with man. Realistically this was a spiritual event and could have been played by spiritual rules. If this was a simple matter of the Tempter dealing with a human as it always has done, then this would make sense. But the Tempter knew who it was dealing with. Just as Jesus was told to save Himself at crucifixion, the Tempter here seemed to be asking God to save Himself, perhaps a test run for later on. The question remains, why would God need angels to save Him when He created those angels/elohim?

Again, angels were the tools God had promised to give aid to His people. But Christ was telling Satan that help comes from God only through obedience to His Word. God's help cannot be manipulated by men who ignore God's guidance.

To be fair, I think God has used angels to help me in my life before I was very cognizant of obedience. I was just a young Christian somewhat naive about God's guidance. But I had accidents that could've easily killed me or could've seriously injured me. I came out unscathed, seemingly miraculously.

We can rely on God's help, but not if we listen to a rebellious spirit like Satan. Angels listen to God if they're good angels. They don't serve Satan or sinful men.

 

[timothyu]

My point is that Jesus displayed no Godly powers other than what God worked through Him.

 

[RandyPNW]

My point is that Jesus displayed no Godly powers other than what God worked through Him.

Definitely! Jesus and his Father were one. Jesus could do nothing other than what he saw his Father doing. They had an intrinsic unity. He actually *could not* do otherwise!

 

[timothyu]

Definitely! Jesus and his Father were one. Jesus could do nothing other than what he saw his Father doing. They had an intrinsic unity. He actually *could not* do otherwise!

As should we all. But we haven't been specifically anointed for a cause

 

[RandyPNW]

As should we all. But we haven't been specifically anointed for a cause

I disagree. I think if we have accepted Christ as our Lord, and have been Reborn, God calls us to something. It may very well depend on the times and the circumstances, so we may not be able to do much where we live. But no matter how small we contribute, God can take something very small and make a very big impact. So we should not despise the small things. But we should pray for big results!

 

[timothyu]

God calls us to something.

Of course.. love all as self and sow seeds regarding the Kingdom. He is taking care of the rest.

 

[RandyPNW]

Of course.. love all as self and sow seeds regarding the Kingdom. He is taking care of the rest.

Reminds me of the Keith Green song, "He'll take care of the rest." CLICK