In the last blog, we started talking about lessons that can be learned in the wilderness. We began by looking first at the Israelites, trying to discern how their experiences shaped them. One message that that came through loud and clear was – God never abandoned them on their journey – He never left them alone; He was always with them.
I would like to continue looking at the lessons Jesus might have learned from his time in the wilderness:
Strengthen us for the journey –
Jesus was ready to embark on a ministry path that would be extremely difficult. God knew that he needed time to prepare for everything that Satan was about to throw his way.
Prepare us for ministry –
Satan tried to derail Jesus by offering him authority over the kingdoms of the world if he would just bow down & worship him. But Jesus knew what God’s plan was and He was only going to follow that plan – even though the road would be difficult and would only come through His own sacrifice on the cross.
I love how we see the power of Scripture! It was Jesus’ primary defense against Satan. He used it to fight each of Satan’s temptations. Jesus had God’s Word written on His heart!!
Remind us of our identity and our purpose –
Jesus had just heard God say, “This is my dearly loved Son, who brings me great joy.” – Jesus knew His identity. He knew his purpose – to worship the Lord and serve only Him.
It’s so easy to lose sight of who we are when in the middle of chaos.
We must depend on God –
Jesus quotes “ People do not live by bread alone; rather, we live by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.”(Deut. 8:3) Now we have a flashback to the Israelites who were dependent on God – not bread. I find it especially powerful knowing that this is spoken by Jesus – “the bread of life”.
Jesus was dependent on God – the Giver & Sustainer of life.
“Jesus, in His humanity, had to trust God’s provision rather than using His power to produce bread for Himself. He understood firsthand both the challenge and the comfort of what He’d soon teach in the Sermon on the Mount: “Do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. … Your heavenly Father knows that you need them all” (Matt. 6:25, 32). We can trust, then, that the solution He gives us when we are tempted to worry—“Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” (Matt. 6:33)—is the same one He relied on.” (Truth for Life – 40 Days in the Wilderness)
We must hang in there –
We must persevere. Jesus did not give up – in the wilderness or during his entire ministry.
God continually walks beside us –
Jesus was led into the wilderness by the Spirit – the Spirit walked with him. Jesus trusted God to take care of him.
So many lessons – and enough wilderness to be able to put them into practice! Your keys for wilderness survival are to find refuge in God’s presence.
“Come close to God, and God will come close to you.” James 4:8
