City Life Starter

Written by Megan Meier

The Word

1 And Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness 2 for forty days, being tempted by the devil. And he ate nothing during those days. And when they were ended, he was hungry. 3 The devil said to him, ‘If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.’ 4 And Jesus answered him, ‘It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone.’’

Luke 4:1-4 ESV

Reflection

Jesus had just been baptized and was lead by the Holy Spirit to the Judean desert. Why did God want His Own Son to be tempted? In the Bible, the desert is often seen as a place of spiritual purification, God did this with the Hebrews who needed a mindset change after 400 years of slavery in Egypt:

“2 And you shall remember the whole way that the Lord your God has led you these forty years in the wilderness, that he might humble you, testing you to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep his commandments or not.” 

Deuteronomy 8:2 ESV

Interestingly, the Hebrews faced the same three temptations as Jesus did in the wilderness and failed (Exodus 16:1-20, Numbers 14:22, Exodus 32:1-8). Jesus’ time here was preparation for the greatest temptation to come (Mark 14:32-42).

When Jesus fasted for 40 days, He was truly at the starving point (on average death by starvation occurs in 43-70 days). He would have had extreme fatigue, difficulty concentrating, even depression, anemia, and delirium. The devil starts his temptations by questioning Jesus’ true identity and God’s Word (he uses these methods often). Keep in mind, shortly before Jesus’ journey to the desert, He was baptized and God Himself declared Him as His Son (Luke 3:22). Jesus does not need to prove Himself, and the devil doesn’t want proof of Jesus’ deity, and he certainly isn’t concerned with Jesus’ health or well-being, he is trying to deceive Him by questioning God’s Word (he did the same with Adam and Eve (Genesis 3:1-7)) and trying to get Jesus to use His Divine Powers for Himself. Jesus fights the devil with Scripture, the sword of the Spirit (Ephesians 6:17) by quoting part of Deuteronomy 8:3, the whole verse reads:

“3 And he humbled you and let you hunger and fed you with manna, which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, that he might make you know that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.”

The Hebrews had just witnessed multiple miracles in Egypt and were finally freed, but their hearts were on their stomachs after only a few days in the desert (the entire journey to the Promised Land should have taken 11 days, not 40 years). When God fed the Hebrews with manna, they were (ironically) in the Desert of Sin (yes, that’s the actual name (Exodus 16:1)). But some did not trust God to care for their needs, going against His Word and keeping more than they needed, their disobedience caused a stench (Exodus 16:4, 20). God wanted His people to know they are not just physical, but spiritual beings. Jesus’ relationship with His Father and His desire to accomplish His Mission was stronger than His starvation-induced state. Jesus was tempted just like we were, He’s not a distant deity but a relatable Savior.

“15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”

Hebrews 4:15-16 ESV

On a side note, Jesus never used His Power to feed Himself, but on two different occasions, Jesus fed a group of five thousand and another group of four thousand (Matthew 5:13-21, 15:29-39).

Application

It’s easy to love God and others when everything is going well. Hard times test what is truly in our hearts, what do we truly value. Jesus was prepared with Scripture and a deep relationship with His Father. The enemy will try to get you to question God’s Word, stay close to the Father, and use the sword of the Spirit (Ephesians 6:17) as your weapon.

Prayer

Dear Lord Jesus, You are not a distant deity but a relatable Savior, who went through the same temptations I go through but triumphed with the Word of God. Help me to thoroughly study the Word and so prepare my weapon against the enemy and grow closer to You. In Your Name I pray, amen.