The Third Temptation

The third temptation of the Savior in the wilderness was described by Matthew this way: “And again, Jesus was in the Spirit, and it taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me” (JST Matt. 4:8).  Satan here was trying to tempt the Savior with possessions and the things of the world.  Elder Holland in a classic talk as BYU president entitled The Inconvenient Messiah made this comment about this encounter: “From a high mountain where they might overlook the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them, Satan says, ‘All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.’ Satan makes up for lack of subtlety here with the grandeur of his offer. Never mind that these kingdoms are not ultimately his to give. He simply asks of the great Jehovah, God of heaven and earth, ‘What is your price? Cheap bread you resist. Tawdry messianic drama you resist, but no man can resist this world’s wealth. Name your price.’ Satan is proceeding under his first article of faithlessness—the unequivocal belief that you can buy anything in this world for money.”  This message of the adversary continues to be repeated in our day—he constantly tempts us to seek for the things of the world, to focus our desires on wealth and possessions and the ability to buy everything it has to offer. 

             Of course, as followers of Christ we know in our minds that money and possessions should not be the focus of our lives.  We know that the right answer to this same temptation which comes again and again is “Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve” (Matt. 4:10).  And yet, as Elder Bednar said, “What we know is not always reflected in what we do.”  The challenge is that the adversary does not just come one time with this temptation—it comes to us over and over again.  The story of Nehor should act as a warning to us.  He went among the members of the Church speaking of riches and telling them not to worry about living a righteous life: “The Lord had created all men, and had also redeemed all men; and, in the end, all men should have eternal life.”  He also had the audacity to tell them that “every priest and teacher ought to become popular; and they ought not to labor with their hands, but that they ought to be supported by the people.” I don’t think that there were many who believed him the first time around—why would they want to listen to someone who told them they needed to pay him for his “religious” teachings.  These were righteous Nephites who remembered the laws Mosiah had just given them and who knew the right way.  But Nehor was persistent in this teaching, encouraging them to seek money and costly apparel: “And it came to pass that he did teach these things so much that many did believe on his words, even so many that they began to support him and give him money” (Alma 1:3-6).  It wasn’t the power of his argument that swayed them; it was the repetition combined with the allure of money.  He repeated these things so much that they started to believe him despite what they knew in their hearts.  The world similarly tells us over and over to seek after costly things, to become popular, to be lifted up in pride.  From ads that bombard us selling the latest gadgets to the news that constantly tells us about the wealthy to the movies that entertain us with stories of obtaining riches, Satan tries to get the message to us again and again.  Our challenge is to stay focused so much on the things of the Lord that we have no time to worry ourselves over the “glory” of the things of the world that Satan as to offer.  We must learn, as the Savior commanded Emma, to each day “lay aside the things of this world, and seek for the things of a better” (Doctrine and Covenants 25:10).