Post by M.R. Hagerty on Feb 20, 2023 11:56:59 GMT -7
Mark 1:12-13, Matthew 4:2-7, Luke 4:5-7, Matthew 4:10, Luke 4:13, Matthew 4:11
12 Immediately the Spirit impelled Him to go out into the wilderness. 13 And He was in the wilderness forty days being tempted by Satan; and He was with the wild beasts, and the angels were ministering to Him. (Mark 1:12-13)
2 And after He had fasted forty days and forty nights, He then became hungry. 3 And the tempter came and said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread." 4 But He answered and said, "It is written, `MAN SHALL NOT LIVE ON BREAD ALONE, BUT ON EVERY WORD THAT PROCEEDS OUT OF THE MOUTH OF GOD.' " 5 Then the devil took Him into the holy city and had Him stand on the pinnacle of the temple, 6 and said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down; for it is written, `HE WILL COMMAND HIS ANGELS CONCERNING YOU'; and `ON their HANDS THEY WILL BEAR YOU UP, SO THAT YOU WILL NOT STRIKE YOUR FOOT AGAINST A STONE.' " 7 Jesus said to him, "On the other hand, it is written, `YOU SHALL NOT PUT THE LORD YOUR GOD TO THE TEST.' " (Matthew 4:2-7)
5 And he led Him up and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. 6 And the devil said to Him, "I will give You all this domain and its glory; for it has been handed over to me, and I give it to whomever I wish. 7 "Therefore if You worship before me, it shall all be Yours." . . 10 Then Jesus said to him, "Go, Satan! For it is written, `YOU SHALL WORSHIP THE LORD YOUR GOD, AND SERVE HIM ONLY.' "
13 When the devil had finished every temptation, he left Him until an opportune time. . . 11 and behold, angels came and began to minister to Him. (Luke 4:5-7, Matthew 4:10, Luke 4:13, Matthew 4:11)
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Commentary
Mark 1:12-13
12 Immediately the Spirit impelled Him to go out into the wilderness.
The Spirit compelled Him that His next task was immediately at hand. In this, Jesus is exemplifying a picture of the life God desires in the child of God who is now governed by the Spirit. We are to be in such intimate communication with his Spirit that we sense the urgency, caution, and inspiration He is conveying to us at any given moment.
In modern times with so many distractions in life, this is seldom really cultivated in Christians today. We are almost forced to concentrate our attention on what’s going on at work, getting kids to school or camp, medical bills and insurance claims, term papers, dealing with difficult in-laws, etc. When our head hits the pillow at night we are in no mood to be asked what the Holy Spirit said to us today.
Yet this is the life anticipated by Jesus and the Father. So much of the nettling and vexing in life could be intercepted and dealt with if we were listening first and acting second.
The main problem is that this takes cultivation and patience. We must learn how to sense and comprehend His voice among all the other voices in our lives. And most people just don’t have the patience or the time to do this. Plus, there is the reticence of falling into the category of folks who hear things others don’t hear. Telling someone that God told you such and such gets a suspicious look these days. So we find ourselves weighing the truth about what God is recommending against the way we wish others to see us.
13 And He was in the wilderness forty days being tempted by Satan;
So it is clear here that the temptation would not be just on the mountain in the three things Satan says to Him at the end of this period. Jesus will be tempted even along the way in terms of the difficulties of privation, those of climbing and scaling the terrain of the mountain, the worries about water, etc. (Not that He would worry, but the temptation is there to worry.)
And we must keep in mind that the Son is condescending to live in a mortal body with all its limitations. Every impediment, the need to rest at intervals, the ache in the muscles would all be temptations to human irritation and anger when He certainly knows how easy this ascent could have been otherwise.
But the question of greater importance is why He was subjected to Satan’s temptation at all. Was there really a need? Both persons involved knew the end of the story – that He was the Son of God in whom no sin would be found, that He would be victorious.
Some offer that this was done as another instance of exemplifying how the believer should handle such things, and to show that Jesus had real humanity that could be tempted. The theological issue is the need to combat the idea that Jesus was a phantom, not a real person, or that His contact with spiritual power placed Him outside the realm of an example for us. It was important that the world know ”He was tempted in all things” such as we.
Another observation is that of Satan and how much he knew or to what degree he was self-deceived. The example-for-us explanation almost makes Satan merely a player in a scene that is more important to others than the players themselves. But if Satan was inwardly self-deceived despite knowing the outcome of his evil labors, then there is need that the scene be played out for real. Satan needed yet another dose of reality about the Person of Jesus as Son of God.
and He was with the wild beasts, and the angels were ministering to Him.
The mention of wild beasts is to highlight the fact that Jesus was really a good distance away from human remedies. It emphasizes the privation of the journey. That the angels ministered to Him should not be understood as feeding Him to withstand the period. This is made clear by His fasting for the forty days. It could easily include the provision of water when needed. Fasting did not exclude water.
But the interesting element of this is the close association with the whole realm of the angels, even in this rather mundane activity of walking out in the wilderness and climbing into the hills. That there was a whole entourage of those beings with whom He had been well-acquainted in His existence before the Incarnation gives us a marvelous picture and expectation of a completely different world just beyond ours, in which God and His angels are regular fixtures.
12 Immediately the Spirit impelled Him to go out into the wilderness. 13 And He was in the wilderness forty days being tempted by Satan; and He was with the wild beasts, and the angels were ministering to Him. (Mark 1:12-13)
2 And after He had fasted forty days and forty nights, He then became hungry. 3 And the tempter came and said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread." 4 But He answered and said, "It is written, `MAN SHALL NOT LIVE ON BREAD ALONE, BUT ON EVERY WORD THAT PROCEEDS OUT OF THE MOUTH OF GOD.' " 5 Then the devil took Him into the holy city and had Him stand on the pinnacle of the temple, 6 and said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down; for it is written, `HE WILL COMMAND HIS ANGELS CONCERNING YOU'; and `ON their HANDS THEY WILL BEAR YOU UP, SO THAT YOU WILL NOT STRIKE YOUR FOOT AGAINST A STONE.' " 7 Jesus said to him, "On the other hand, it is written, `YOU SHALL NOT PUT THE LORD YOUR GOD TO THE TEST.' " (Matthew 4:2-7)
5 And he led Him up and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. 6 And the devil said to Him, "I will give You all this domain and its glory; for it has been handed over to me, and I give it to whomever I wish. 7 "Therefore if You worship before me, it shall all be Yours." . . 10 Then Jesus said to him, "Go, Satan! For it is written, `YOU SHALL WORSHIP THE LORD YOUR GOD, AND SERVE HIM ONLY.' "
13 When the devil had finished every temptation, he left Him until an opportune time. . . 11 and behold, angels came and began to minister to Him. (Luke 4:5-7, Matthew 4:10, Luke 4:13, Matthew 4:11)
_____________________________________________________________
Commentary
Mark 1:12-13
12 Immediately the Spirit impelled Him to go out into the wilderness.
The Spirit compelled Him that His next task was immediately at hand. In this, Jesus is exemplifying a picture of the life God desires in the child of God who is now governed by the Spirit. We are to be in such intimate communication with his Spirit that we sense the urgency, caution, and inspiration He is conveying to us at any given moment.
In modern times with so many distractions in life, this is seldom really cultivated in Christians today. We are almost forced to concentrate our attention on what’s going on at work, getting kids to school or camp, medical bills and insurance claims, term papers, dealing with difficult in-laws, etc. When our head hits the pillow at night we are in no mood to be asked what the Holy Spirit said to us today.
Yet this is the life anticipated by Jesus and the Father. So much of the nettling and vexing in life could be intercepted and dealt with if we were listening first and acting second.
The main problem is that this takes cultivation and patience. We must learn how to sense and comprehend His voice among all the other voices in our lives. And most people just don’t have the patience or the time to do this. Plus, there is the reticence of falling into the category of folks who hear things others don’t hear. Telling someone that God told you such and such gets a suspicious look these days. So we find ourselves weighing the truth about what God is recommending against the way we wish others to see us.
13 And He was in the wilderness forty days being tempted by Satan;
So it is clear here that the temptation would not be just on the mountain in the three things Satan says to Him at the end of this period. Jesus will be tempted even along the way in terms of the difficulties of privation, those of climbing and scaling the terrain of the mountain, the worries about water, etc. (Not that He would worry, but the temptation is there to worry.)
And we must keep in mind that the Son is condescending to live in a mortal body with all its limitations. Every impediment, the need to rest at intervals, the ache in the muscles would all be temptations to human irritation and anger when He certainly knows how easy this ascent could have been otherwise.
But the question of greater importance is why He was subjected to Satan’s temptation at all. Was there really a need? Both persons involved knew the end of the story – that He was the Son of God in whom no sin would be found, that He would be victorious.
Some offer that this was done as another instance of exemplifying how the believer should handle such things, and to show that Jesus had real humanity that could be tempted. The theological issue is the need to combat the idea that Jesus was a phantom, not a real person, or that His contact with spiritual power placed Him outside the realm of an example for us. It was important that the world know ”He was tempted in all things” such as we.
Another observation is that of Satan and how much he knew or to what degree he was self-deceived. The example-for-us explanation almost makes Satan merely a player in a scene that is more important to others than the players themselves. But if Satan was inwardly self-deceived despite knowing the outcome of his evil labors, then there is need that the scene be played out for real. Satan needed yet another dose of reality about the Person of Jesus as Son of God.
and He was with the wild beasts, and the angels were ministering to Him.
The mention of wild beasts is to highlight the fact that Jesus was really a good distance away from human remedies. It emphasizes the privation of the journey. That the angels ministered to Him should not be understood as feeding Him to withstand the period. This is made clear by His fasting for the forty days. It could easily include the provision of water when needed. Fasting did not exclude water.
But the interesting element of this is the close association with the whole realm of the angels, even in this rather mundane activity of walking out in the wilderness and climbing into the hills. That there was a whole entourage of those beings with whom He had been well-acquainted in His existence before the Incarnation gives us a marvelous picture and expectation of a completely different world just beyond ours, in which God and His angels are regular fixtures.