Why Didn’t Jesus Turn the Stones into Bread?
When Jesus was tempted in the wilderness, He did not turn the stones into bread because He said, “It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:3,4). The devil said to Him, “If thou be the Son of God.” Jesus didn’t need to prove himself to the devil. After hearing the voice of the Father at His baptism saying – “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I’m well pleased” – He has nothing to prove.
Satan’s opening attack on the Son of God was an appeal to the appetite. And this was also the basis of his approach to Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. The Lord teaches that the physical nature must be constantly under the control of the higher powers of the mind, the will and the reason, in order to avoid falling. As the Son of God, Jesus did have power to satisfy His hunger by creating bread, but He did not.
Adam and Eve fell because of appetite and Jesus had to overcome this temptation. The devil wanted Christ to satisfy His hunger by creating bread without regard to what the Father’s will might be. It was God’s will for Christ to overcome the sin of appetite that He may be an example for us.
Satan suggested that the path of duty will lead Christ to die but Jesus affirmed that death within God’s will is better than life away from God. He who sets out to live for “bread” alone does not really live at all, and at best is going to die, for “bread” without God brings death and not life.
What infinite love is this that the innocent Son of God suffered to the point of death to show us the right path of obedience. Jesus was submissive to His Father and trusting Him fully in every step. Jesus trusted that at the right time, God will supply all His needs. And the Heavenly Father did (Matthew 4:11).
In His service,
BibleAsk Team
