Public Ministry⤒🔗

¹Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the desert, ²where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing during those days, and at the end of them he was hungry.

³The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread.”

⁴Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man does not live on bread alone.’’”

⁵The devil led him up to a high place and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world.  ⁶And he said to him, “I will give you all their authority and splendor, for it has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to. ⁷So if you worship me, it will all be yours.”

⁸Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve him only.’’

⁹The devil led him to Jerusalem and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. “If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down from here. ¹⁰ For it is written:

            “‘He will command his angels concerning you

                        to guard you carefully;

¹¹         they will lift you up in their hands,

                        so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’’”

¹²Jesus answered, “It says: ‘do not put the Lord your God to the test.’”

¹³ When the devil had finished all this tempting, he left him until an opportune time.   Luke 4:1-13

After his baptism Christ begins his public ministry. We read that “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” (4:1,2). Christ is put to the test, as once Adam and Eve were in paradise. Christ will have to stand firmly where Adam fell deeply. This is how it begins. The beginning of Christ’s ministry is marked by severe diabolic temptation. Please note, however, that at no time does the devil have free reign. He is a creature and remains under God’s sovereign power.

Before going into details on the various temptations, we note here that their chronological sequence is different in Matthew and Luke. But, again, there is no principle difference. Luke places the temptations after Jesus had fasted for forty days, when Christ’s resistance will be the least. The devil likes to attack with brutal force when we are at our weakest. So I follow the order now as given by Luke.

Satan Opens an Alternative Way←↰⤒🔗

While the temptations are each very different, there is a common thread. Satan is powerful but his methods are often the same, well-tested and greatly successful. I want to show you first the common thread. We can summarize Satan’s approach as being consistently the same: there’s got be a different way that is much easier and far more pleasant than God’s way.

There is another way. God’s way is difficult and unnecessary. Actually this was also Satan’s method in the Garden of Eden: there’s got to be another way. Why should you not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil? Why suffer and grovel. Come on, stand up, and change your lot! Take your life into your own hands.

Temptation # 1: why fast and suffer hunger, while you can easily turn these stones into bread! Come on, and do it!

Temptation # 2: why suffer and even die for the splendor and authority of this world, while I am ready and willing to give everything to you! We’ll make a good team, just acknowledge me as King of the world, and it’s all yours. Come on, and do it!

Temptation # 3: If you want to be recognized as the Son of God, you don’t need the cross to get the crown. All you have to do is jump off this temple’s roof and the angels will sweep you up and gently set you down. Everyone will recognize you as the Son of God. Come on, and do it! Make a grand entry. Jump and all Jerusalem will see that you are the Son of God!

Each is a different temptation. But they come down to the same thing: don’t do it God’s way, but do it your way, do it the world’s way, do it the devil’s way and you’ll get there much easier and much faster.

To be our faithful Saviour, Christ will have to make it very clear from the beginning that he will do all things only as God has decided. There is no other way than God’s way. Our Saviour will keep this line until the very end.

The Three Temptations←⤒🔗

Having seen the common thread in these temptations, we can now look at some of the particulars. In the first temptation the devil challenges Christ’s basic, personal identity. “If you are the Son of God…” (4:3). He repeats this in the third temptation, “If you are the Son of God…” (4:9).

Is Satan serious? Does he not know that Jesus is indeed the Son of God? Of course he knows. Did not the devil’s co-workers scream out against him?  In Luke 4:33 - 36, we read, “In the synagogue there was a man possessed by a demon, an evil spirit. He cried out at the top of his voice, “Ha! What do you want with us Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are – the Holy One of God! [you are the Messiah!] ‘Be quiet!’ Jesus said sternly. ‘Come out of him.’”

The devil knows that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, the Holy One of Israel. In the first temptation Satan challenges Christ to show that he is the Son of God by changing stones into loafs of bread. It is simply ridiculous that Jesus has to go hungry.

Notice that the Lord Jesus answers each diabolical challenge by pointing to the Scriptures. “It is written…” (4:4, 4:8, 4:12).The only way to keep the devil at bay is by knowing and doing God’s Word. “It is written” means that the answers have been given once for all. They never change.

The quotation which the Lord uses in response to the bread issue is taken from Deuteronomy 8:3. There Moses reminds Israel that God gave them manna that was good for only one day “to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD”. Jesus says, “Don’t quote the Bible out of context. People need food to live, yes.  But this does not allow them to act against God’s will. Be faithful and God will provide upon his time and in his way.

The second temptation contains an outright fallacy. The devil shows Christ “all the kingdoms of the world”. Then he says: “I will give you all their authority and splendor, for it has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to” (4:6).

This is simply not true. We do not find anywhere in Scripture that the entire world has been given to Satan. Satan took charge of the world by way of Adam’s sin (Genesis 3). God let Satan have this world as judgment upon our sin. But God never relinquished his power and authority over the earth and its inhabitants.

Still, our Lord Jesus Christ calls him the prince of this world. But he adds: he has no hold on me (John 14:30). It can be said in a sense of all people that Satan has a hold on them by way of our sinfulness. But this is not so with Christ. So though Satan’s claim to the world is false, yet he does exercise much authority over it and wreaks havoc within it.

It is not without reason that the Bible warns us that “Woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has gone down to you! He is filled with fury, because he knows that his time is short” (Revelation 12:12).

“All you have to do is worship me” (4:7); the devil wishes to be acknowledged as God. But Jesus again points to the Scriptures, “It is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve him only.’” (Deuteronomy 6:13). Worshiping the devil, Jesus will become an enemy of God and cease to be our Redeemer. But there is no way that Christ will do this. Satan is again faced with the truth and power of the Word of God.

Satan has twice been thwarted by the Word of God. In the third temptation he also comes with a Scripture passage. The devil leads him to Jerusalem and has Jesus stand on the highest point of the temple. Then he plays his final hand, “If you are the Son of God… throw yourself down from here.  For it is written: “‘He will command his angels concerning you to guard you carefully; they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’” (4:10, 11)

The devil also knows what is written. He will use Scripture for his own benefit and try to confuse us¹. The only way to correct a wrong use of Scripture is by comparing Scripture with Scripture. Satan quotes from Palm 91, a psalm that speaks of God’s protection of those who worship the LORD and says: go ahead. You can avoid the cross and take the crown by a magnificent show of glory!

But Jesus answers by quoting Deuteronomy 6:16 “Do not test the LORD your God as you did at Massah.” The name “Massah” means trial or temptation in the original Hebrew. It is often combined with the name Meribah, which means “testing”. The account of what happened is found in Exodus 17 which describes how the Israelites complained for lack of water. Moses asked them, “Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you put the LORD to the test?”

Why would Jesus jump from the pinnacle of the temple to prove that he is the Son of God?  He knows who he is! Why put God to the test as if God needs to demonstrate that Jesus is truly the Son of God? When Jesus enters his public ministry he does so in full and absolute trust that he is indeed the Son of God.

In Matthew 4:10, it is written that Jesus at that time also rebuked Satan: Away from me, Satan! And the devil indeed left him. In Luke 4:13 we read, “When the devil had finished all his tempting, he left him until an opportune time.” That does sound ominous.

For this is not the end of confrontation between Jesus and Satan. Throughout his ministry our Lord will have to face demons. He will be overcome with suffering in the Garden of Gethsemane. There will be extreme satanic attacks when he is nailed to the cross. Satan leaves because he is told to go. But he always returns. He bides his time, if not today, then perhaps tomorrow.

Our Lord had to face the influence of Satan among the ranks of his disciples. When Jesus began to speak about his suffering and death to his disciples, “Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, ‘Never, Lord!’ he said. ‘This shall never happen to you!’” We can understand Peter’s concern. But Jesus says to him, “Get behind me, Satan. You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men.” (Matthew 16:22, 23) In every way, even through close confidants, the devil sought to bring Jesus off the path of obedience and righteousness. Satan wanted to keep Christ from the cross. When that backfires he tried to destroy Christ on the cross. But throughout much of his ministry the confrontation with Satan was more indirect yet always unabated.

Paradise Restored in Principle?←⤒🔗

In Mark 1:13 we read that after the temptations are over and Satan has left, Jesus “was with the wild animals, and angels attended him”. Matthew makes a similar remark, at least about the angels ministering unto the Lord.

These are remarkable words. That Jesus was with the wild animals does not mean that he was in danger. It reminds us of Adam and Eve’s relation to the animals, governing, not being threatened. This reminds that through Christ’s ministry Paradise is restored, once again opened to God’s children.

In Genesis 3:24 we read that Adam and Eve were banished from returning to Paradise. God placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life. There the angels acted as deterrence. But here things are restored: Jesus was with the wild animals and angels ministered unto him.

Paradise was not hereby literally restored. The Garden of Eden is passé. But the way to living with God and his angels in a renewed creation where also wild animals live peacefully with man and with each other has been decisively opened.

In this way the prophecy of Isaiah was fulfilled, and I will quote in entirety these impressing and encouraging words,

The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and lion and the yearling together; and a little child shall lead them. The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie down together. The infant will play near the hole of the cobra, and the young child put his hand in the viper’s nest. They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.                                                                             Isaiah 11:6-9

We learn here that Paradise has been restored, and the way is open for God and men, and angels and animals to live together as never before on the new earth.

Jesus Rejected at Nazareth (Luke 4:14-30)←⤒🔗

¹⁴Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news about him spread through the whole countryside. ¹⁵He taught in their synagogues, and everyone praised him.

¹⁶He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. And he stood up to read. ¹⁷The scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written:

¹⁸            “The Spirit of the Lord is on me,

            because he has anointed me

            to preach good news to the poor.

            He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners

            and recovery of sight for the blind,

            to release the oppressed,

¹⁹         to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

²⁰Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him, ²¹and he began by saying to them, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”

²²All spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his lips. “Isn’t this Joseph’s son?” they asked.

²³Jesus said to them, “Surely you will quote this proverb to me: ‘Physician, heal yourself! Do here in your hometown what we have heard that you did in Capernaum.’”

²⁴“I tell you the truth,” he continued, “no prophet is accepted in his hometown. ²⁵I assure you that there were many widows in Israel in Elijah’s time, when the sky was shut for three and a half years and there was a severe famine throughout the land. ²⁶Yet Elijah was not sent to any of them, but to a widow in Zarephath in the region of Sidon. ²⁷And there were many in Israel with leprosy in the time of Elisha the prophet, yet not one of them was cleansed—only Naaman the Syrian.”

²⁸All the people in the synagogue were furious when they heard this.  ²⁹They got up, drove him out of the town, and took him to the brow of the hill on which the town was built, in order to throw him down the cliff.  ³⁰But he walked right through the crowd and went on his way. Luke 4:14-30

Nazareth (Luke 4:14-30)←⤒🔗

In Luke 4:13-15 we find a general introduction to Jesus’ ministry. After having withstood diabolical temptation and having come out of that experience victoriously, we read that Jesus returned to Galilee “in the power of the Spirit”. Galilee always remained central to Jesus’ ministry, even though much of it takes place in Jerusalem.

It could be that these two verses are a general introduction to Jesus’ ministry in Galilee when many still marvelled at his work (9:43). In Luke 9:51 we read that Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem where he meets with more hostility and opposition. Here in the beginning of his ministry in Galilee he is still a celebrity guest and speaker in the synagogues. But we also read that Jesus was from the beginning rejected by the people of Nazareth, his home town.

The chronological order of this event at Nazareth in Luke is somewhat different than in Matthew and Mark. But the accounts are otherwise basically the same. Greijdanus²suggests that the rejection in Nazareth is placed first by Luke because it generally typifies how poorly he was received. We should note that what happens at Nazareth pretty well sums up how Christ’s ministry will generally be esteemed. It will go from initial amazement to subsequent admiration and ultimate rejection.

Chris in the Synagogue←⤒🔗

We read in verse 16 that on the Sabbath Jesus goes into the synagogue “as was his custom”. We note that Jesus hallowed the Sabbath day and went to worship God in the synagogue. This was his custom and belonged to his way of life. If our Lord Jesus Christ did this faithfully as mandated in the Law, we are without excuse when we skip church.³

We find in the verses 16 and 17 that Christ was the reader and speaker for that gathering. Perhaps Jesus was asked to read and preach on that day. After all, he was a local boy who made good. The custom was that when Scripture was read, the reader stood. When the reader preached or taught he sat down. Jesus is given the scroll of Isaiah and he finds the place in Isaiah 61:1, 2 where the Messiah is presented as being especially anointed by the Holy Spirit.

We are probably not far off the mark when we suggest that this may have been a familiar and beloved passage of those who regularly attended synagogue. The initial reaction of the hearers was that they spoke well about Jesus gracious words.

The origin of the synagogue is not clear, but it is an institution from the time after the Exile⁴ The synagogue probably came in the place of the temple, although no sacrifices were brought in the synagogues. It was a place of prayer and teaching. Elements of the synagogue service have been carried over to the Sunday liturgy of the Christian church. The synagogue service consisted mainly of the following elements: the Shema (Hear, O Israel), the Tefillah (prayers), the Berechah (blessings), and the Kadish (doxology). For those who wish to know more about the synagogue liturgy, there is ample literature.

The passage that Jesus read was a recognized Messianic message. The “year of the Lord’s favor” was the Year of Jubilee when prisoners and slaves were set free, debts were cancelled, and ancestral lands restore to the true owners.

When the Lord said to them, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing” (4:21), the people in the synagogue were still enthused. Indeed, everyone agreed that it was time for the great Messianic era to be revealed. The people were amazed that someone who had grown up among them spoke such fine words.

But this attitude changed quickly when the Lord said to them, “Surely you will quote this proverb to me: ‘Physician, heal yourself! Do here in your hometown what we have heard you did in Capernaum.’”(4:23). The people of Nazareth indeed expected the Lord to show them great signs and wonders! After all, he came from Nazareth and he should not forget his roots or bypass the people he had grown up with. There is in their attitude (which the Lord felt clearly) a sense of entitlement and an expression of haughtiness: you owe us! You cannot do great works in Capernaum, and then put us to shame. This is simply not done.

The Jews in Nazareth were eager to see Christ’s miracle power. Would Christ be able to do it, or would he fail when it came to the crunch? Physicians may be good at healing others, but when those close to him need help, they are often powerless. Note that in the last part of this chapter Luke recounts many instances of great healing. His credibility was not at stake; Nazareth’s incredulity needed to be unmasked.

No Prophet is Accepted in His Hometown←⤒🔗

Sometimes we think that God owes certain people. Is God obligated to certain people? Of course not! In fact, God’s turning away from Israel and going to the Gentiles is rather telling. The Lord then refers his hearers to the many widows and lepers in Elijah’s time but Elijah was sent to a widow of Zarephath near Sidon and to Naaman the Syrian, both outsiders and enemies of Israel. The people of Israel were under judgment. And so are the people of Nazareth who curiously gathered to see what Jesus would do in their midst.    

The words of Christ, “I tell you the truth… no prophet is accepted in his hometown” are a devastating analysis. The expression “I tell you the truth” (literally a double “Amen”) can be translated as follows: “listen carefully, this is a serious matter…”

It is a sad commentary on the human condition. “He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him” (John 1:11). Is this a matter of jealousy? Is it true that familiarity breeds contempt? Perhaps that is some of it. But here it is a matter of refusing to accept God’s Word. Once people develop their own religious system, it is hard to get them on a different track.

By using the examples of Elijah and Elisha our Lord makes clear that if Israel rejects the true prophets of God, he will go to the Gentiles to do his work there, just as prophets before him had done. No one has exclusive, inalienable rights. The people of Nazareth considered this to be an affront and they were deeply offended.

Throw Him Down the Cliff←⤒🔗

The people in the synagogue at Nazareth were furious when they heard that God had sent his prophet Elijah to the Gentiles and not to them. They did not understand their own scriptures which they read Sabbath after Sabbath. Were the Israelites not after all the chosen and entitled people of God? How dare he compare them to the people of Ahab and Jezebel’s time? They were deeply offended.

En masse they all got up, surrounded Jesus, and drove him out of the town. Jesus could not escape because he was tightly surrounded by an angry mob, eager to dispense divine justice. They pushed him ahead, and he was most likely hit and kicked, physically abused.

There were not a few who disagreed with Jesus’ statements. Everyone was simply furious. An uncontrollable anger took hold of them, and they acted as one. Not one person spoke up for him.

There were around Nazareth many high cliffs and deep valleys. The people’s purpose was to throw him down from one of the steep cliffs. Christ would most certainly plunge to his death.  They could leave him there and let the animals clean the carcass.

This was undoubtedly for the Lord Jesus a great disappointment and a cause of deep personal pain. These people were not strangers, but they were his contemporaries. They knew him and he knew them! They had grown up together. If Nazareth rejected him in this furious and resolute manner, what would the inhabitants of other towns do?

The Lord Jesus is not about to be killed, yet. We read in verse 30, “But he walked right through the crowd and went on his way.” How did he dare walk through such an angry mob? Of course, he is the Lord! As he moved through the people, the crowd simply split. They had fury but no power to stop him.

But there is another matter here also. Jesus knew exactly what God’s plan was. His time had not yet come. He would die, no doubt about it, not in Nazareth but on Golgotha, just outside of Jerusalem. Then he would face the bitter and shameful death of the cross.

The Ministry of Healing Continues←↰⤒🔗

³¹Then he went down to Capernaum, a town in Galilee, and on the Sabbath began to teach the people. ³²They were amazed at his teaching, because his message had authority.

³³In the synagogue there was a man possessed by a demon, an evil spirit. He cried out at the top of his voice. ³⁴"Ha! What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, - the Holy One of God!"

³⁵“Be quiet!” Jesus said sternly. “Come out of him!" Then the demon threw the man down before them all and came out without hurting him. ³⁶All the people were amazed and said to each other, “What is this teaching? With authority and power he gives orders to evil spirits and they come out!”  ³⁷And the news about him spread throughout the surrounding area.

³⁸Jesus left the synagogue and went to the home of Simon. Now Simon’s mother-in-law was suffering from a high fever, and they asked Jesus to help her.  ³⁹So he bent over her and rebuked the fever, and it left her. She got up at once and began to wait on them.

⁴⁰When the sun was setting, the people brought to Jesus all who had various kinds of sickness, and laying his hands on each one, he healed them.  ⁴¹Moreover, demons came out of many people, shouting, “You are the Son of God!” But he rebuked them and would not allow them to speak, because they knew he was the Christ.

⁴²At daybreak Jesus went out to a solitary place. The people were looking for him and when they came to where he was, they tried to keep him from leaving them.  ⁴³But he said, “I must preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns also, because that is why I was sent.” ⁴⁴And he kept on preaching in the synagogues of Judea. Luke 4:31-44

Christ’s Ministry in Capernaum←⤒🔗

It is said about Christ’s stay in Nazareth that the Lord did “not do many miracles because of their lack of faith.” (Matthew 13:58) Mark puts it in stronger terms, “He could not do any miracles there, except lay his hands on a few people and heal them. And he was amazed at their lack of faith”. (Mark 6:5) The question has been raised whether he “could” not do miracles or “would” not.

Of course Christ could do whatever he wanted. He is omnipotent. Human rejection of Christ does not limit Christ’s ability. The text means that it is difficult to work miracles in a hostile environment. Jesus wanted to show his displeasure. And therefore he held back. But Christ did heal a few sick people. Our Lord was not willing to perform any more miracles there because of the complete lack of faith which amazed him.

As if to counter any wrong conclusions about Christ’s abilities, Luke writes that Jesus performed many healings and exorcisms in Capernaum. People there were amazed at his teaching and authority (4:36, 37).

In the synagogue at Capernaum there was a man possessed by a demon, an evil spirit. The addition “an evil spirit” means that this demon was particularly foul, a formidable opponent. This demon caused mental illness, physical distress, and spiritual enslavement. The man was totally possessed. When this man saw Jesus, he cried out with a loud voice: “Ha! What do you want to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are- the Holy One of God.”(4:33, 34) This is a Messianic title.

We read that the people in Capernaum were amazed at his teaching because his message had authority. The word that is used for authority means that it has power in itself[⁵. Authority means that the Word is effective. The Word was powerful and the people could not escape its truth. Mark adds that Christ’s teaching had authority “not as the teachers of the law.” (Mark 1:22). The Jewish teachers used to deliver long discourses on which rabbi had the proper explanation of a certain law. Quotations were ample and lengthy.⁶.But Christ simply read God’s word and explained it.

Christ Versus the Demons←⤒🔗

In the latter part of Luke 4, the emphasis lies on Christ’s many healings in Capernaum. The point which I now want to stress is that the demons often vociferously identified Jesus. The demons know exactly who he is. It is rather remarkable that this demon says, “I know who you are- the Holy One of God.” (4:34). Notice that the demon first speaks in the plural: what do you want with us? The entire demon world is on the alert, for they know exactly who Jesus is.

When this demon screams out, identifying Jesus as the Holy One of God, the Lord says sternly, “Be quiet! Come out of him”. The same is said at the conclusion of the chapter (4:41), “Moreover, demons came out of many people shouting ‘You are the Son of God’ But he rebuked them and would not allow them to speak, because they knew he was the Christ”.

Why was this so? Should the Lord not be happy that at least some will acknowledge who he is? Well, he does not need nor want recognition from the devil and his demons. Christ proves who he is by what he says and does. It is part of his suffering that demons seek to unmask him while his people come to reject him. The danger is also present that some of the people connect his work with Beelzebub. The Jewish leaders did, in fact, do so. “It is only by Beelzebub, the prince of demons, that this fellow drives out demons” (Matthew 12:24).

Christ does not want the recognition of his enemies. James writes that the demons know who Christ is, and adds: they shudder (James 2:19). He wishes that his own people will confess him as their Saviour, the Holy One of God, on the basis of his words and works. Therefore he rebukes the demons sharply and muzzles them: Be quiet! Meanwhile, all of this is very distressing for our Lord.

After this rebuke the demon can no longer speak. What he does do is throw “the man down before them all” (4:35). This is the only way he can still show his ugly power. He humiliates his victim to the last moment. But the man was not injured. All demons are under Christ’s power. It becomes evident that here is a new ministry. “News about him spread throughout the surrounding area.” (4:37)

Personal Ministry: Peter’s Mother-in-law←⤒🔗

After having been involved with the crowds for some time, our Lord retreats and goes to stay for a while in Peter’s home (4:38, 39). We know that Peter was married (1 Corinthians 9:5 specifically mentions this) and we read that Peter’s mother-in-law is sick. Only Luke, the physician, mentions the high fever and this means that she was seriously ill.

They asked Jesus to help her. I lift this passage out for a moment to make clear that Jesus was not only focused on massive crowds but that he also gives personal attention and pastoral care to one person, who in this case is Peter’s mother-in-law.

It is important to note this. The disciples also had family members who sometimes had very specific needs. What good is it if Jesus can heal others but fails to meet the needs of his personal community? We read that Jesus “bent over her and rebuked the fever”. Undoubtedly this is a very tender scene, and we see the love and power of our Lord Jesus Christ.

But there is something else to note here as well. We read about Peter’s mother-in-law being healed and at once, “she got up…and began to wait on them” (4:39). It was not a small group of people that gathered in Peter’s house. Peter’s mother-in-law, now being healthy, begins to participate in Christ’s ministry by serving food and drink. She does not sit back to review the situation and gather her wits around her, but she immediately gets involved. She has her own place in the history of the church, but this history includes all the faithful work done by women in the service of the Lord.

We read that when the sun was setting “the people brought to Jesus all who had various kinds of sickness, and laying his hands on each one, he healed them.” Luke specifies that this happened while the sun was setting, because it had been Sabbath, and people were allowed to carry burdens only after the Sabbath was officially over. I mention this because the Sabbath observance will later become a breakpoint in Jesus’ relations with the Jewish leaders.

A Solitary Place←↰⤒🔗

We read that at daybreak Jesus went to “a solitary place”. “Daybreak” is rather early; the sun was creeping over the horizon. Our Lord more often needed to go to a solitary place. The work of preaching and healing is physically and spiritually a demanding task.  This passage shows us that Jesus was not some “superman” who never needed restoration. Mark writes that Jesus went to a solitary place to pray. This can be found more often in the Gospels. Our Lord always sought and received strength from his heavenly Father.

But the crowds came looking for him and found him. We read that “they tried to keep him from leaving them”. We find, then, that our Lord makes clear, “I must preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns also, because that is why I was sent” (4:43). This is an important addition.

Christ is never the Saviour of one region, but he was sent for all the people of Israel. And that is what he did, “And he kept on preaching in the synagogues of Judea” (4:44). While Christ in his early ministry stayed mostly in Galilee, Luke uses the word “Judea”. This may be the name that the Romans used for the entire region of the Jews.

Questions←↰⤒🔗

1. Why is Jesus “tested” before he begins his public ministry?
2. What is the “method” of tempting that Satan always uses?
3. What is the meaning of the word “diabolos” or devil?
4. How does Christ unmask Satan’s lies? What does this mean for us today?
5. Why did the people of Nazareth reject Jesus? Did he himself not cause the people to become incensed?
6. How was Jesus able to walk away through the crowd of people in Nazareth? What does this tell us about trials?
7. Why is it important to note that Jesus did many miracles at Capernaum after leaving Nazareth?
8. Why did the Messiah not want the evil spirits to recognize him publicly?
9. Why did Christ often go to a solitary place to pray? What is the importance of this for us?
10. How should we in our lives today find and battle the influence of demons?