“And Jesus being full of the Holy Ghost returned from Jordan, and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness.” (Luke 4:1)
And so begins the story of the Temptation of Jesus. This is an absolutely rich teaching and there is a remarkable life lesson woven in the powerful words of the text. Note, it begins: “And Jesus, full of the Holy Ghost, returned from the Jordan, and was led by the Spirit for forty days in the wilderness, tempted by the devil.” And now dear ones, take note what the Holy Writ tells us thirteen verses later: “And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit into Galilee…”
Do you see it? Jesus went into the wilderness full of the Spirit. He came out of the wilderness still in the Spirit. Jesus remained in the Spirit, no matter what happened. To stay in the Spirit was the real issue Jesus faced in the wilderness. The wilderness did not offer three different temptations as we might have thought. It offered one. A single temptation: in the shape of different problems, to be sure, but a single testing nonetheless. The problems were in the area of His physical body (when He was hungry after a prolonged fast); in the area of His soul—His mind, emotions, will (in questions involving His work); and in the area of His Spirit (when He was offered a spiritual shortcut). For Jesus, the problems were all temptations. Each had a common denominator. Each tried, with its particular pressures, to lure Him away from the Spirit.
What does it mean to be “in the Spirit”? We must come to grips with this term. Paul says, we should “Walk in the Spirit”…(Galatians 5:16). John said that he was “in the Spirit” on the Lord’s day (Revelations 1:10). To be “in the Spirit” is to be in the flow of His vital life and power. To be “in the Spirit” is to become conscious, for a higher percentage of time, of God’s continuing presence in our lives. To be “in the Spirit” involves a quality of living, because the Fruit of the Spirit is growing: (Galatians 5:22, 23). To be “in the Spirit” is to exist in a different realm where blessings are not a surprise. No wonder Satan wanted to seduce Jesus away from being “in the Spirit.” All of the temptations he threw at Jesus were aimed at that same goal. It is the ultimate goal of Satan to ensure we do not remain “in the Spirit.”
Be blessed as you “walk in the Spirit.”
Pastor J. Amos Jones
