And he fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterward he was hungry. And the tempter came and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread." But he answered, "It is written,And he fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterward he was hungry. And the tempter came and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread." But he answered, "It is written,
'Man shall not live by bread alone,
but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.'"
Then the devil took him to the holy city, and set him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down; for it is written,
'He will give his angels charge of you,'
and
'On their hands they will bear you up,
lest you strike your foot against a stone.'"
Jesus said to him, "Again it is written, 'You shall not tempt the Lord your God.'" Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain, and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them; and he said to him, "All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me." Then Jesus said to him, "Begone, Satan! for it is written,
'You shall worship the Lord your God
and him only shall you serve.'"
Then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and ministered to him. - Matthew 4:2-11 (RSVCE)
At the end of forty days Satan comes to Jesus, disguised, it is said, as one of the hermits who lived in the neighborhood of the Jordan, and pours into His ears his infernal suggestions of sin.
How utterly repulsive to the Son of God must have been the presence of the evil one. He Who had been nursed in Mary's bosom, and carried in the faithful arms of His dear foster-father, Saint Joseph, now allowed Himself to be borne hither and thither by the being whom He loathed and hated with His whole soul. This was, indeed, a painful beginning of His Sacred Ministry.
Why did Christ allow Himself to be tempted? Did He not already know perfectly every wile and deceit of Satan? Yes, He knew them, but not by experience. He wanted us to have the consolation of knowing that He suffered being tempted; that He endured the misery of being haunted with the foul suggestions of Hell; and that therefore He, the sinless Lamb of God, knows how to succor those who are assailed by Satan's evil suggestions. With what confidence, then, can I appeal to Him to aid me when I am tempted!
Observe our Lord's manner of dealing with the tempter. There is no arguing with him, no discussion. Our Lord deals with the enemy promptly, boldly, firmly, with decision. Sharp and clear is His answer, and very unmistakable is the rebuff given to His assailant. When Christ says, "Get thee hence," Satan is glad to leave Him. So we should meet temptation, promptly, boldly, fearlessly, and then Satan will be glad to leave us.
- taken from The Ministry of Jesus Christ: Short Meditations on the Public Life of Our Lord, by Father Richard Frederick Clarke, SJ