Jesus Survived

What Did Jesus Do?

Jesus was led by the Spirit in the wilderness for forth day…
he ate nothing during those days.
Luke 4.1-2

I have never watched any of the Survivor series that keep recurring on television, all I know of them is what I have seen on the promos. As best I can understand it, a group of men and women survivor wannabes are dropped off in some exotic, sometimes quite desolate, but always challenging location with the goal of determining who will be the last man (or woman) standing. Then they proceed to vote each other out of the wilderness. If you are a Survivor fan please forgive me, but I just don’t get what is so fascinating about the whole premise. If you want to marvel at some real survival skills, take a look at Jesus.

Granted, the Holy Spirit was with Him, but then those Survivor contestants have all those cameramen and the production crews around them. And there were angels ministering to Jesus. (Mark 1.13) But Jesus had to face something more daunting in the wilderness than the T.V. contestants ever do. Oh, for sure they have to deal with snakes and scorpions and the like, but Jesus had wild animals to contend with as well. (Mark 1.13) Still, none of the modern day Survivors, to my knowledge, has had to endure a one-on-one confrontation with Satan.

The truth is, from what I have heard about it, the television program reveals that all the contestants give in rather quickly to the temptation to be rid of rivals and eliminate losers from among the group. On Survivor it’s “dog eat dog.” When Jesus was tempted the only one who faced “elimination” was the Lord himself, and it wasn’t so much a matter of Him besting Satan; that truly would have been no contest—Jesus had to master himself.

First, Jesus had to prove his hunger would not get the better of Him. Though He had to have been insanely hungry, the temptation of bread made from stones He refused, conquering His physical hunger by “surviving” on the spiritual food of every word of His Father. (Matthew 4.4)

Next, Jesus showed, unlike the driven Survivor participants, that He worshiped and served not His own interests or that of anyone but one master, the Lord God, His Father. Though all the world was in effect laid at His feet, Jesus passed up the opportunity for glory and power. (Luke 4.5-8) The one thing that makes Survivor work is the desire of each candidate for fame and money, two masters among who knows how many, that they desperately serve.

Finally, Jesus refused to show off how much His Father loved Him by throwing himself off the pinnacle of the temple in Jerusalem. (Luke 4.9-12) Not so much as His heel would have been bruised, but God is not to be tested; and besides that, Jesus had nothing to prove to the devil. Survivor is nothing but showing off and proving yourself, and, if you will, putting God to the test continually by willingly undergoing one risky scenario after another.

I am not saying that everyone should stop watching Survivor; but we would all do well to spend more time with Jesus, taking a close look at all He did and said. Jesus mastered temptation, endured a brutal trial, suffered the cruel cross, experienced death itself, and He rose from the grave; and all to glorify the Father and save us. So much more than a mere survivor, Jesus alone is our Redeemer! That’s what Jesus did.

S.D.G.

Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4