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This sermon was given on Oct. 13, 2019 and uses the account of Jesus Christ's temptation in the wilderness as recorded in Luke 4 to describe what the Spirit-led life involves. While the Bible clearly urges believers to be "Spirit-filled," that usually gives a little different connotation than to be "Spirit-led." In Christ's example, we learn that the Spirit sometimes leads us to situations in which the devil brings severe temptations against us.
Written Excerpts:
Luke 4:1-2 (NKJV) Then Jesus, being filled with the Holy
Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness,
2 being tempted for forty days by the devil….
Introduction: I imagine that most of us have heard numerous
sermons on the subject of the “Spirit-filled Life.” There are plenty of Bible
references that emphasize the necessity of being filled with the Holy Spirit
and to continue living in the Spirit. My message today will emphasize that same theme to a degree, but I want
to point out a little different angle than we might usually hear, which
prompted my title “The Spirit-led Life” (not “spirit-filled life”).
I don’t know if you think in the same mode that I often have, but
whenever I think of a Spirit-filled life, I generally think of accomplishing tremendous
exploits for God; winning stunning victories; and overcoming all types of
obstacles and troubles. I think of a life that remarkably demonstrates wisdom,
courage, love and power.
However, I think there is another side that we need to understand. It
is a perspective that we normally would classify as routine or average. More
than that, it involves struggles and spiritual battles. A truly Spirit-filled person isn’t supposed to struggle and get scarred
– so we think. With the help of God’s Spirit, I want to speak to you today about a
life that is LED by the Spirit into all kinds of situations we usually wouldn’t
consider being part of God’s plan and will for our lives.
For these lessons I want to direct your attention to the example of the
Lord Jesus as He was tempted in the desert for 40 days. As we look at this remarkable time of testing in the life of our Lord, I
want us to notice the role of the Holy Spirit in the life and ministry of
Jesus. (I’m going to be using the account in Luke.)
I. Anointed with the
Spirit
For the first role of the Spirit
we will go back a short time prior to the wilderness temptation. Let’s look a
moment at Jesus’ baptism.
Luke 3:21-22 (NKJV) 21 When all the people were baptized, it came to
pass that Jesus also was baptized; and while He prayed, the heaven was opened. 22 And
the Holy Spirit descended in bodily form like a dove upon Him, and a voice came
from heaven which said, "You are My beloved Son; in You I am well
pleased."
Because the Spirit is invisible, He must take bodily form for human
beings to see Him. In the OT we have various accounts where God appeared to men
in a “human” form. Here in the NT baptismal account, the Holy Spirit appears in the form
of a dove.
Why a dove? (Lenski) Luther
thinks this was done because of its friendliness, because it is without wrath
and bitterness, because the Spirit desires to show that he has no anger toward
us but is ready to help us to become godly and to be saved. Others point to
purity, innocence, and meekness as being symbolized by the dove. … We content
ourselves by saying that the dove-like form intended to convey the idea of the
graciousness of the Spirit.
Lenski goes on to explain: He who was conceived by the Spirit, now
receives the Spirit as a permanent gift for the ministry He is to perform. The
anointing of the Spirit is purely for His human nature since His divine nature
was always one with the Father and the Spirit.
The voice of the Father as the Spirit descends testifies, “This is my
beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.” This confirmation of the Father and the descent of the Spirit mark the
beginning of Jesus’ earthly ministry - anointed to “preach good news to the
poor, heal the brokenhearted, proclaim liberty to the captives, and opening of
prison to those who are bound.” (Is. 61:1)
II. Filled with the Spirit
Luke 4:1 (NKJV) 1 Then Jesus, being filled with the Holy
Spirit, returned from the Jordan…
After the baptism account recorded in chapter 3, Luke begins chapter 4
with the words, “being filled with the Holy Spirit…” Jesus was not only anointed by the Spirit and confirmed as the Son of
God, but He was filled with the Spirit to perform the ministry He had been
anointed for.
To be filled with the Spirit implies controlled by the Spirit, and
aided by the Spirit to accomplish God’s will, including miraculous signs and
wonders. Jesus, as a human being, is fully equipped by the fullness of the
Spirit to embark on the mission assigned to Him by His Father.
III. Led in the Spirit
Luke, as well as Matthew and Mark, describes the next event in the life
of Jesus being a severe time of testing in the desert / wilderness area.
Luke 4:1 (NKJV) 1 Then Jesus, being filled with the Holy
Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the
wilderness,
When we read the first half of the verse we may think, “Yes, the Son of
God has been confirmed and affirmed by the Father. He’s been anointed by the
Spirit descending upon Him, and now He is filled with the Holy Spirit to take
on the ministry tasks assigned before He ever came as a baby in the manger.”
But… the very next phrase in the verse brings a shocking reality. The
same Spirit that is filling Him is leading Him to the desert. The Spirit is bringing Him to the place of testing.
As I said back at the beginning of the sermon, whenever we think of a
Spirit-filled life, we generally think of accomplishing tremendous exploits for
God; winning stunning victories; and overcoming all types of obstacles and
troubles. We think of a life that remarkably demonstrates wisdom, courage, love
and power. But wait, the Spirit-filled life is a Spirit-led life and sometimes He
leads us to be tested. Sometimes He brings us into the wilderness where it
isn’t very easy to feel God’s presence. This is a reminder that walking with God and being led by His Spirit
isn’t always going to be times of glory and hilarity, but it will be getting
stretched to the limit or feeling the breath of Satan.
The wording here indicates that Jesus was being tempted (tested) during
the entire 40 days. It doesn’t seem to imply that He was intentionally fasting,
but simply that He hadn’t eaten. One writer says He had “no breathing spell”
during the 40 days so His mind was kept from even thinking of the wants of His
body. (Lenski) The three temptations we have recorded were probably the final three of
the entire 40-day period of temptations.
(Leon Morris, Tyndale Commentaries) Clearly, he faced questions like: What sort of Messiah was he to be?
Was he to use his powers for personal ends? Or for the establishing of a mighty
empire that would rule the world in righteousness? Or for working spectacular,
if pointless, miracles? He rejected all these for what they were, temptations
of the devil.
Some people may quote the words from the Lord’s prayer, “Lead us not
into temptation,” and say it goes contrary to this idea that the Spirit led
Jesus to be tempted. Jesus does instruct us to pray to not be led into temptation,
but that prayer like every other prayer we make must be made with the qualifier
– “not my will but Thy will be done.” Sometimes God leads us to the season of
testing to prove our loyalty and trust in Him.
Overview of the Temptations: (Adapted from Lenski’s Commentary)
1. Make stones from bread.
“If you are the Son of God…” – Casting doubt on what God had just said
about Him at His baptism. (Satan to Eve, “Has God said?”) God will allow us to be tested to show whether we really trust what He
has said.
Jesus’ Response: Man shall not live… - The devil’s suggestion to
mistrust the Father is met with a response showing the greatest trust. Man
shall live by every word of God. Jesus resisted the temptation to make stones into bread by emphasizing
the truth (from Scripture) that spiritual needs have priority over physical
needs. Yet, Satan is still too often successful in getting people to satisfy
physical needs before seeking to have spiritual needs met – to cater to the
flesh while their souls are malnourished.
2. Have all the world’s kingdoms.
(Lenski) The whole
proposition intends to appeal to the human nature of Jesus. Jesus can rule at
once like a god.… Yet the whole proposition is false through and through. Satan
does not bow to God in worship as Jesus is to bow to Satan. Satan has not
received the kingdoms from God, he rules them as the enemy of God, as a rebel
against God, as a usurper whom God is dethroning through Jesus. By this one act
of worship Jesus would also become a rebel against God and at the same time a
tool of Satan. The kingdoms, authority, and glory promised by Satan would
remain Satan's. The transfer would be a delusion. Instead of becoming a king
Jesus would become the slave of Satan.
The way in which Satan tried to buy Jesus is the way in which he bought
Eve: "Ye shall be as gods."
Just like Jesus, we will be tested to see what is the core of our
devotion – all the possessions and power the world can offer or loyalty,
devotion and obedience to God?
3. Prove God is protecting you.
Satan tempts Jesus to prove one Scripture by violating another. It is a mockery of humble trust to take one precious promise from God
and challenge God to see if He will do as He said He would, or act as I presume He must act in
order to prove that He keeps His word.
All lack of trust and all false trust are closely [related].
Both tempt and challenge God with their presumptions as to what he must really
do to keep his promises.
Jesus responded by using a verse that references the wilderness
experience in the Exodus from Egypt. The people “tempted” God by demanding that
He change the way He cared for them and do it the way they wanted.
We are often tempted to demand that God prove Himself and His care in
specific ways, but genuine trust in His nature and His heart allows Him to
decide just how He will demonstrate His care and protection. That doesn’t mean we don’t need to engage in spiritual warfare through
intercessory prayer to overcome the schemes of the devil.
IV. Empowered by the Spirit
After the temptations are over, Luke continues the describe the ongoing
ministry of Jesus (v. 14ff). According to John 1:35-4:1, there was a great deal
of ministry happening between the time of the baptism and temptations and the
return to Galilee that Luke mentions here in v. 14.
Luke 4:14 (NKJV) 14 Then Jesus returned in the power of the
Spirit to Galilee, and news of Him went out through all the surrounding region.
It is only the Holy Spirit who can give us power to continue in
ministry and witness after we have been sorely tested. We are often prone to think in the time of testing and immediately
after, “I surely need a fresh visitation of God’s Spirit after just coming through
this desert place under the attack of the enemy.” But, we need to remember that it is the Holy Spirit who led us into the
desert place and the Holy Spirit that carried us about and protected us during
the enemy attacks.
He hadn’t abandoned us and then shown up again to strengthen us
afterward. No, He has been with us the whole time and kept us from falling. He
gave us the ability to overcome all of the enemy’s temptations and tricks
intended to destroy us.
Conclusion:
We have talked about the various ways the Scripture describes the work
of the Spirit in the life of Jesus. We noted His anointing by the Spirit; His filling with the Spirit; His
being led by the Spirit and His empowerment through the Spirit. In all of these ways, the activity of the Spirit was crucial in the
life and ministry of Jesus. We too need the Holy Spirit. We received the Spirit when we were born
again and saved. But we also need to be filled up and keep on being filled with
the Spirit in order to be the kind of disciple and follower of Jesus that we
are called to be.
I hope everyone of us make it a regular practice to pray and earnestly
seek God for a fresh outpouring of His Spirit into our hearts and lives.
The closing song I’ve chosen is one that is not in our hymnals. It is a
song written by Keith Getty and Stuart Townend.
Holy Spirit, Living Breath of God
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