Alexandr Korol

The first temptation was hunger — but again, don’t interpret this as a purely physical thing; this could be sacred language — a temptation by hunger. And the words of Satan were: “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.” And Christ replied: “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.” Then the second provocation, the temptation by pride. Satan said: “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down, for it is written: He shall give His angels charge concerning You, and in their hands they shall bear You up, lest You dash Your foot against a stone.” Jesus answered: “It is also written: You shall not tempt the Lord your God.” Then the third temptation of Satan — his words were: “All this power I will give You, and the glory of them, for it has been delivered to me; and I give it to whomever I will. Therefore, if You will worship me, all shall be Yours.” Jesus replied: “Get behind Me, Satan; for it is written: You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only shall you serve.” And then: “After the third temptation, according to the Gospel of Matthew, ‘the devil left Him, and behold, angels came and ministered to Him’ (Matthew 4:11). In the Ostrog Bible (Matthew 4:10), Christ says, ‘Go after me, Satan...’” You see, it turns out that the struggle Jesus faced — just like Buddha — was with these... well, it’s like a system. And the old system tries to dictate to you: “Do this, do that,” and it highlights things to you — “Look, it’s written in the book,” or “It’s said here or there, you can do whatever you want, blah blah blah.” But what does someone who is nearly enlightened do? He responds differently — he sees everything from his own angle, not from the false angle of Satan, the devil, the demon, but from his own, true perspective. And that’s where he shows his vigilance and says, “No, it’s like this.” So ultimately, it’s a battle over the right angle of perception — how you see and interpret everything. Next: “In other books of the New Testament, the Apostle Paul mentions the temptation in his Epistle to the Hebrews: ‘For in that He Himself has suffered, being tempted, He is able to help those who are tempted’ (Hebrews 2:18). And from the same epistle: ‘For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who in every way was tempted as we are, yet without sin’ (Hebrews 4:15). Unlike other Gospel stories that were expanded in apocryphal literature with many added details, the story of Christ’s temptation is not explored in the apocrypha. It is only briefly mentioned in the Gospel of Nicodemus during the dialogue between the Devil and Hell before Christ’s descent there: