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What happened in the wilderness?
During our Sunday Dinner and Conversations in 2009 we have been reflecting on accounts from the life of Jesus. The stories as told by Luke have given us varying perspectives on, “Who is the God who journeys with us?”. In the first chapter Luke emphasizes the humanity of Jesus- he spends more time than other gospel accounts on Jesus’ birth. We first get a hint that Jesus is not just another guy when Jesus encounters John the Baptist in the wilderness. John the Baptist had been stirring people up- challenging the status quo- to become followers of God.
Luke writes that the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove descended on Jesus and a voice from heaven said, “This is my Beloved Son.” The supernatural meets the natural. Curious. This event marks the beginning of Jesus’ public life. He begins teaching, healing and leading for all to see. Then something peculiar takes place, again apparently on account of the Holy Spirit, Jesus is led into the wilderness by himself for 40 days. In the wilderness, full of the holy Spirit, Jesus is tempted by the devil.
During Jesus time in the wilderness he is stripped off all physical comfort, food and he is tempted to power, infulence and spectacular display of power. Jesus’ loyalty to God and commitment to the way of God was tested. Jesus resisted.
In the wilderness Jesus’ vision for his public life is clarified. Luke records that after his time in the dessert he was again filled with the Holy Spirit and began teaching in the synagogues.
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”
The way of Jesus and God’s work of transformation doesn’t play with control, authority, spectacular displays of power. Jesus lived a new way- subversive, integrated and relational.
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