Jesus faced Satan's third temptation, to be seen as earth's King, without the sufferings of crucifixion. The devil’s condition was for Jesus to bow down and worship him, just once. It was, in a sense, the ultimate temptation – to make God legitimise Satan's authority by submitting to him. The condition, for Jesus to bow down to him just once, demonstrated Satan’s insatiable lust to control God and all that belongs to Him. The temptation offered a shortcut to glory but Satan could never deliver what he had promised. Satan, who only deals in false promises, did not understand the total commitment of Jesus to only do what the Father had commanded. And therefore the ‘prince of this world’, had no hold over Him (John 14:30).

Worship is not just about admiration and respect, but it is also a deep commitment to serve. So when Jesus dismissed the tempter, He quoted the command of Deuteronomy 6:13 to worship and serve the Lord only: nobody is higher or more powerful than Him. Jesus also emphasised that God remained the God of Satan ('the Lord your God'), and no rebellion will be allowed to rule indefinitely. Satan will also be punished, along with all who have believed his lies. His evil short-cuts will produce an eternity of suffering (Revelation 20:10; 21:8).

Jesus did not accept any of Satan's lies, but we might. Satan continues to offer people what they want without any cost. And so the power-hungry gain control, the greedy gain money and possessions, and the immoral have their short-lived satisfaction. For everybody, Christians included, temptation will scream, purr, bark or beckon with magnetic force: is there any way to make Jesus-like decisions? Yes! James, the half-brother of Jesus has the answer: "Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded." (James 4:7-8). We cannot resist the devil in our own strength. We must first submit to God, worship and serve Him, repent of 'playing with sin', and let God's love, strength and power come to us; and then we will be able to resist the devil's lies.