Encounters and Reflections Aligned to the Book of Matthew. A LENTEN JOURNEY~The Temptation of Jesus -Read Matt Ch 4. and "Into a New Life-40 years." p.g. 37. Book: Encounters and Reflections by A. O. Brown.

 
Jesus is led into the Wilderness.
 
“Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the Devil.  After He had fasted 40 days and 40 nights. He was hungry.  Then the tempter approached Him…”  Matthew 4 v1-2 (HCSB)
 
Led into the wilderness!  This is hardly the picture of peace and harmony painted in the verses of Psalm 23.  “He leads me beside quiet waters, He restores my soul.”    Wilderness is defined in Webster’s Dictionary as: 
 
1a(1): a tract or region uncultivated and uninhabited by human beings
 
3a: a confusing multitude or mass : an indefinitely great number or quantity.
 
b: a bewildering situation
 
 
Uninhabited by human beings, a lonely place.  Confusing, indefinitely great number, a bewildering situation.  A situation that is overwhelming and bewildering.  The situation doesn’t make sense.   
 
Jesus was led into a wilderness.  Have we been led into a wilderness at any point in our lives?
 
The good news is He was not meant to remain there.  The title in my Bible says: “The Temptation of Jesus.”  In other words this can be regarded as a “testing period” for Jesus.
 
“In the Bible the word temptation primarily denoted a trial in which man has a free choice of being faithful or unfaithful to God.” (Encyclopedia .com).
 
There is a lot that is revealed to us in this Biblical text.  Jesus the Christ defends His position with reference to what is written in the Bible.  In the midst of this “stand-off” I can only imagine what is taking place both in the natural and the spiritual.  Jesus in His human state is currently hungry and weak and at the same time He is in the midst of spiritual warfare.  Hungry and depleted of food yet filled with the truth of scripture and clear about the conviction of who He is and what He holds as truth.  A truth that was written down as a reference and standard for all to see and know.
 
“Then the Devil left Him, and immediately angels came and began to serve Him”  Matthew 4 v11 (HCSB)
 
It sounds like a round was completed.  The Lord ends the fight and sits in His corner, like a boxer, and the angels attend to Him.
 
“Ministry in Galilee, The First Disciples, Teaching, Preaching, and Healing.”  These headings highlight the journey that Jesus begins once He has conquered this wilderness experience.
 
Jesus fasted Forty days and nights.  The number 40 is used significantly in the Bible during times of testing and trials that have the potential to elevate one’s faith. Another example is the 40 year period of Israel’s disobedience leading to wandering in the wilderness.
 
“These forty years the Lord your God has been with you.  You have lacked nothing.” Deut. 2 v 7.
 
During this Lenten season we can certainly reflect on God’s faithfulness in our lives. 


Blog written By Annette O. Brown.  3/3/20