by Pastor John Boone
“Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the desert, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil.” Luke 4:1-2
We know from scripture that the devil is like a roaring lion, looking for whom he may devour. He is ever on the hunt. One of his methods of attack is through temptation and he looks for opportunities in which to unleash this most subtle of attacks. He had his perfect opportunity with Jesus when Jesus was led by the Holy Spirit into the desert to fast and be alone for forty days. That’s a long time to be without fellowship and without food.
How was Jesus able to resist forty days of temptation by the devil himself? Because Jesus was “full of the Holy Spirit”, and the Holy Spirit continually revealed the truth of God’s Word to Him in the midst of the temptation. Rather than allowing His natural feelings of hunger and loneliness to dictate His response to the devil, Jesus determined that the truth of God’s Word would remain the basis for His reactions. In other words, what Jesus saw and felt took a back seat to what God’s Word says.
Jesus didn’t choose to go into the desert, but rather the Holy Spirit had led Him there. Are you in a desert right now? Does everything around you seem lifeless, dry and hard? If so, you are not there by accident. God is training you in the midst of your desert experience to depend on the Holy Spirit and to stand firm on the truth of His Word. Proverbs tells us to “Lean not on our own understanding…” That’s when our desert training bears fruit. “Resisting the devil” means to not give into his lies and deception, but rather lean on what God has said no matter how bleak, stark and dry your current situation is.
After this experience, Luke records in the very next verse, “Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit.” Standing strong on God’s Word in the face of difficulty releases the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives. The desert experience may be dry, but God is working in us through difficult experiences to stand strong on the truth of His Word and in the power of His Holy Spirit. The same Holy Spirit who was in Jesus is in you to help you to overcome whatever the devil may throw at you!
