Reflective Bible Study

Continuing into the gospel of Matthew, following Jesus’ baptism, we learn that Jesus heads out to the desert for a very specific purpose. While it would make logical sense for Jesus to start rallying disciples immediately after launching His public ministry, this is not what happened. Instead, Jesus heads to the desert because that is where God’s Spirit led Him.

Let’s read what Matthew tells us about what happened. Our passage is found in Matthew, chapter 4, and we will read it from the Good News Translation. Starting in verse 1, Matthew tells us:

¹ Then the Spirit led Jesus into the desert to be tempted by the Devil. ² After spending forty days and nights without food, Jesus was hungry. ³ Then the Devil came to him and said, “If you are God’s Son, order these stones to turn into bread.”

⁴ But Jesus answered, “The scripture says, ‘Human beings cannot live on bread alone, but need every word that God speaks.’”

⁵ Then the Devil took Jesus to Jerusalem, the Holy City, set him on the highest point of the Temple, ⁶ and said to him, “If you are God’s Son, throw yourself down, for the scripture says,

‘God will give orders to his angels about you;
    they will hold you up with their hands,
    so that not even your feet will be hurt on the stones.’”

⁷ Jesus answered, “But the scripture also says, ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’”

⁸ Then the Devil took Jesus to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in all their greatness. ⁹ “All this I will give you,” the Devil said, “if you kneel down and worship me.”

¹⁰ Then Jesus answered, “Go away, Satan! The scripture says, ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve only him!’”

¹¹ Then the Devil left Jesus; and angels came and helped him.

In our passage, we read about three big temptations Jesus faced while alone in the desert. When we draw our attention onto these temptations, some really big themes begin to surfaces, and while we might not think we are capable of being tempted in the same way as Jesus was, it is very possible we experience these three types of temptations on a daily basis.

The first temptation Jesus faced was turning the stones into bread. At the heart of this temptation is the theme of using our resources for our own benefit. While we aren’t able to turn stones into bread like Jesus could have if He wanted to, I know I constantly face the temptation to use everything I earn for myself, my needs, and my wants. While Jesus needed and wanted bread, and while Jesus had the power to fulfill this need, He intentionally pushes back at this temptation knowing that self-service is not part of God’s character. Self-service is not a characteristic of God and we fall victim to this temptation when we place our own needs ahead of God’s desires for our lives.

The second temptation Jesus faced was jumping from the highest point in the temple. While I don’t know of any prophecies or traditions related to the Messiah appearing in this way, this act would have gotten the chief priests and religious leaders’ attention. The goal of this temptation is a self-focused goal on a social level. This temptation is one where Jesus does something to make the crowds look towards Him in a significant way.

But then we have a question: how is this temptation of getting people to pay attention to Jesus different from Jesus performing miracles and turning heads that way?

In the case of the miracles Jesus did, every miracle was aimed at helping someone else and providing an opportunity to praise God. If Jesus would have jumped from the temple, He probably would have had the protection Satan promised in the scriptures, but the act of jumping would have been a self-serving act because it wouldn’t have been a blessing to anyone else. Drawing the focus onto Himself is not part of God’s character, and when we do things to be looked at highly by others, we fall victim to this temptation.

The third temptation Jesus faced was worshiping Satan for a moment in order to avoid the ministry, mission, and ultimate destiny of Jesus’ life. The essence of this temptation is spiritual. This temptation offered Jesus an empty shortcut to achieve His goal, except that Jesus’ goal wasn’t dominion over every earthly kingdom at the height of its glory. Instead, Jesus’ goal is the hearts and minds of His people, and this is something only the cross can purchase.

While it appears on the surface like this third temptation is more Satan-serving than self-serving, the only reason to even consider this temptation is because of self-focused motives. Sometimes the road God has called us to walk is hard. Self-focused motives would opt for an easier path. Satan offers Jesus an easier path, but the cost of taking this easier path is too high a price to make it worth it. If Jesus had fallen for this temptation, He would have sinned, which would have made the sacrifice on the cross worthless, and it would have left those He came to save as lost in their sins. Jesus pushed back at the self-service-focused nature of this worship-based temptation. Jesus, like God, isn’t interested in self-service. Instead, Jesus came to serve and to give His life to save all of God’s people!

Tucked within these temptations are doubts Satan wanted to cast onto Jesus’ self-identity and onto the greatness of Jesus’ mission. Satan subtly counters God the Father’s clear claim at Jesus’ baptism that Jesus is God’s Son by challenging Jesus on this very point in the first two temptations. Each of these two temptations are framed using the opening, “If you are God’s Son”. Jesus was well aware of God being His Father, and He wasn’t going to let Satan cast doubt into His mind about this.

The last temptation was a subtle attempt to elevate Satan into the Godhead. If Jesus momentarily worshiped Satan, then that would elevate Satan to the status of God and Jesus would have broken the circle of the Godhead. Jesus didn’t fall for Satan’s trap in this temptation, or at any point during His ministry, and everything Jesus did brought glory to God the Father.

In all these temptations, Jesus pushed back at Satan using promises and statements from the scripture. When we face temptation, the best way for us to push Satan away is through challenging Him with God’s promises. God has promised to help us when we need help and when we are living in a way that brings Him glory, nothing will stop us from shining for Jesus!

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As I always challenge you to do, intentionally seek God first in your life. When Satan throws temptations your way, choose to push back with God’s Word and with God’s promises. Choose to lean on God for the strength to fight Satan’s tricks, traps, and temptations.

If you don’t know your Bible like you wish you did, be sure to intentionally, regularly pray and study the Bible for yourself, to learn what the Bible teaches first hand. While it is easy to depend on other people for Bible truth, if we do, we short-change our spiritual growth because we are only growing up to the level of those we are listening to. While this might not be bad, God wants to teach us more and He does this when we open up the Bible in prayer and study it for ourselves.

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or be tempted to leave where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!

As we continue in Luke’s gospel, I would love to be able to focus in on every event and detail Luke included surrounding Jesus’ birth, however, there isn’t enough time in our year dedicated to this gospel. Luke is the longest of the four gospels, and because of this, I have the challenge of deciding what doesn’t get included. Unfortunately, this means that it is time to jump into chapter 2 of Luke’s gospel even though there are at least two more podcast worthy passages in Luke chapter 1.

However, without getting bogged down focusing on what we must skip over, let’s instead focus on what we can learn as Luke transitions in to chapter 2. When looking at the popular Christmas passages of the Bible, almost every Christmas story begins with the passage we will be looking at, and oftentimes, the passage we will be reading is read in its entirety.

With this said, let’s look at Luke’s famous Christmas passage, and discover some things we can learn about Jesus’ birth now that we are intentionally looking at this event outside of the Christmas season. Our passage is found in Luke’s gospel, chapter 2, and we will read from the New American Standard Bible translation. Starting in verse 1, Luke tells us:

¹ Now in those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus, that a census be taken of all the inhabited earth. ² This was the first census taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria. ³ And everyone was on his way to register for the census, each to his own city. ⁴ Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the city of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David, ⁵ in order to register along with Mary, who was engaged to him, and was with child. ⁶ While they were there, the days were completed for her to give birth. ⁷ And she gave birth to her firstborn son; and she wrapped Him in cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

⁸ In the same region there were some shepherds staying out in the fields and keeping watch over their flock by night. ⁹ And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened. ¹⁰ But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people; ¹¹ for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. ¹² This will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” ¹³ And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, 
¹⁴ “Glory to God in the highest, 
And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased.”

¹⁵ When the angels had gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds began saying to one another, “Let us go straight to Bethlehem then, and see this thing that has happened which the Lord has made known to us.” ¹⁶ So they came in a hurry and found their way to Mary and Joseph, and the baby as He lay in the manger. ¹⁷ When they had seen this, they made known the statement which had been told them about this Child. ¹⁸ And all who heard it wondered at the things which were told them by the shepherds. ¹⁹ But Mary treasured all these things, pondering them in her heart. ²⁰ The shepherds went back, glorifying and praising God for all that they had heard and seen, just as had been told them.

This passage describes Jesus’ birth, the events leading up to this significant event, and the amazing details surrounding this easily overlooked point in history.

While Matthew’s gospel is the one to describe the wise men bringing gifts, and the young family’s escape to Egypt, Luke doesn’t let Jesus’ birth slip into the unknown pages of history. Luke describes the night Jesus was born starting like any night, except it may have been busier because of the census that was taking place. The night began relatively normally, and the only challenge leading up to this night was directly related to the census, since there was no room in the Bethlehem inn. While tradition holds that Jesus was born in a stable, a barn, a cave, or somewhere under the stars, the only hints of this is because there was no room in the inn, and because Jesus is laid in a manger, which is a trough that livestock eat from.

In my mind, this is a logical conclusion, since I don’t picture a host family bringing in a feeding trough to lay a brand new baby in.

This leads me to the amazing realization that Jesus, the destined King of the Universe, has the least glamorous entrance into this world as could be imagined. The only people likely present for this birth would have been Mary, obviously, Joseph, and perhaps a midwife or two. A cave or small barn would have given this event a little privacy, and because of this, Jesus’ birth gets the reputation and tradition of being in a stable.

The night Jesus was born could have been, and perhaps should have been, easily forgotten, if it were not for one event that God chose to include. While God could have woken the town up in any number of ways to get everyone present to take notice of Jesus’ birth, God decided to send an angelic choir to some people who would have been awake already, or perhaps at least most of them. While the shepherds in the fields outside of Bethlehem would have likely been planning on sleeping in shifts through the night, it was unlikely that this night contained much sleep for them.

Angels appeared to the shepherds, sing them a song, and commission them to find Jesus.

A skeptic might look at this event and doubt the details, not simply for the angel visit, or the choir’s song, but simply because it would be difficult to find one child born in a town full of travelers. However, at night, there likely would have been little noise or light, except for a few fires to keep those without homes or rooms in the inn warm. And it is quite likely that there may have only been one baby crying outside that night. From Matthew’s gospel, we know there were other young children in Bethlehem during that point in time, because after Herod sent his soldiers, all the babies were killed.

So why might God have picked shepherds to be the first to know about Jesus’ birth?

Part of me believes this is because the occupation of shepherd was one of the lowest on the social ladder, and because Jesus came to show God’s love to those society looked down on.

Also, I cannot escape seeing the symbolism in my mind that Jesus was destined to be like a shepherd for God’s people, and what better way to honor Jesus taking the role of Shepherd than to invite shepherds who were nearby and who were awake already.

Jesus coming into this world marked God stepping into our history in a big, personal way, and Jesus coming into this world helps us see just how much God loves us, and what God was willing to do to show us just how much He loves each of us!

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As I always challenge you to do, intentionally seek God first in your life and choose to believe in Jesus. If you ever doubt what God thinks of you, simply look at what Jesus came to this world to do for you! Satan would have you believe Jesus came for other people, that Jesus didn’t really come, or that Jesus isn’t what the gospel writers describe, but these temptations are lies from Satan to get you to ignore God.

Instead, choose to believe what the Bible teaches us about Jesus because what we can learn from Jesus is a picture of God and His love for each of us!

Choose to do this by praying and studying the Bible for yourself. While it is easy to drift through life believing the opinions of your friends, your relatives, or culture, don’t do this because God wants more for you than what you might even imagine. Discover what God thinks of you through the pages of His Word!

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, minimize or belittle where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!

As we continue moving into Matthew’s gospel, we’ll jump out of Jesus’ birth story and back in at His baptism. In Matthew’s gospel, as he shares what happened at Jesus’ baptism, we discover some amazing details. Matthew, Mark, and Luke all include Jesus’ baptism, but as you might have guessed, since we are in the Year in Matthew, we’ll be looking at Matthew’s version of this event.

Let’s read what happened using the New American Standard Bible translation. Matthew includes Jesus’ baptism in chapter 3. Starting in verse 13, Matthew tells us that:

¹³ Then Jesus arrived from Galilee at the Jordan coming to John, to be baptized by him. ¹⁴ But John tried to prevent Him, saying, “I have need to be baptized by You, and do You come to me?” ¹⁵ But Jesus answering said to him, “Permit it at this time; for in this way it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he permitted Him. ¹⁶ After being baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove and lighting on Him, ¹⁷ and behold, a voice out of the heavens said, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased.”

This event is fascinating in my mind because of a number of reasons. Looking at this passage, we could divide it into two parts, and we could creatively call these two parts the part before Jesus’ baptism and the part after His baptism.

In the first part, the part before Jesus’ baptism, we have a short discussion between Jesus and John the Baptist. When Jesus comes to be baptized by John, John rightly concludes that this event should happen in the opposite way. John knows that Jesus has no need of baptism because Jesus has no need of repenting and turning back to God in a visible way. We could frame this a different way by saying that Jesus did not have to die to a past sinful life and be raised up into a new life with God.

I wonder if Jesus’ response to John essentially says that Jesus wants to set an example for all people. In verse 15, Jesus tells John, “Permit it at this time; for in this way it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” I don’t think Jesus needed to become more righteous than He already was, but I do believe that Jesus wanted to use this event as an official opening to His ministry.

After being baptized, when Jesus comes up out of the water, it is amazing to picture the Holy Spirit descend on Jesus like a dove and to hear a voice from heaven from God the Father drawing attention to His Son.

At the start of Jesus’ ministry, we see all three members of the Godhead distinctly represented and celebrating this opening to Jesus’ ministry together. However, we also see something else.

In the act of being baptized, at the very beginning of Jesus’ ministry, we see a powerful picture of Jesus’ future death and resurrection which would mark the end of His earthly ministry. I wonder if one other reason Jesus wanted to be baptized was to give this subtle foreshadowing that His life was destined to be given up not many years later. While no-one else likely realized this at the time, I’m sure Jesus and the Godhead knew, and for us looking back on this, the connection is clear.

But in the act of being baptized, we see another, more subtle foreshadowing of Jesus’ ministry. In the very act of letting someone else submerge you into the water, you are placing your life in their hands. In this way, we see Jesus, at the start of His ministry, place Himself below humanity and Jesus places His life in John’s hands. For the purposes of this big idea, John represents all humanity. Jesus places His life in humanity’s hands.

The baptism event at the beginning of Jesus ministry is one place we see Jesus intentionally setting the stage for a ministry of service and selflessness. In the baptism event, we discover Jesus placing Himself below humanity and foreshadowing His upcoming sacrifice.

While some people might say that this is just a story that has little value for us today, I find it amazing that three of the gospel writers would include this event thinking it wasn’t relevant for those they were sharing it with. Some of those who want to dismiss this event likely feel that it is as unnecessary as John did when he pushed back at Jesus, wanting instead to be baptized by Him.

However, there is a huge lesson we can learn in Jesus’ baptism. Within this event, Jesus sets an example for each of us living today. Not only is this example the obvious example of being baptized as a way of showing our repentance and turning away from sin, but it is an example of how we should live and orient our lives.

The greatest temptation we all face is living our lives for ourselves. This temptation places ourselves ahead of others. Within Jesus’ baptism, and the example He set for us, we see Jesus living for others, placing others first. Jesus lived His life completely dedicated to bringing glory to God through helping those who were hurting. With rare exceptions, Jesus always stopped what He was doing to help someone who needed help, and regardless of the circumstances, if Jesus knew a miracle would bring glory to God, He didn’t hesitate helping where He could so that God would be glorified.

Jesus lived selflessly and He called us to be His representatives here on this earth. We are called to show Jesus’ selfless love to those around us!

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As I always challenge you to do, intentionally seek God first in your life. Choose to model Jesus and live your life in a way that helps others and brings glory to God. If you choose to align yourself with Christ, intentionally represent Christ as accurately as you can!

Also, continue praying and studying the Bible for yourself to learn and grow personally closer to God each day. While pastors, speakers, authors, or even podcasters can give you ideas to think about, take what you hear and read and test it against the truth of the Bible. While technology changes with time, the spiritual truths the Bible teaches are timeless, and they will survive past the end of this world.

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or give up on where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!

As we continue our year focusing in on Luke’s gospel, it seems a little odd in my mind to jump into the Christmas story, especially since last month, we both likely heard and were reminded of this amazing event. However, Luke’s gospel shares more about Jesus’ birth and childhood than any of the other three gospels, and some of these details are only included in Luke.

While I know it might seem redundant being reminded again of events in the Christmas story, especially when everything built up to our Christmas’ celebrating last month, I’ve found it is fascinating looking at many of the Christmas-time passages outside of the Christmas season. Looking at Jesus’ birth not during Christmas helps us see this event with new eyes, and new insights often stand out when we break out of our cultural routines.

With that said, our passage for this episode leads in to the birth of John the Baptist, who was Jesus’ forerunner in ministry. Let’s read from Luke’s gospel, chapter 1, using the New International Version. Starting in verse 5, Luke tells us that:

⁵ In the time of Herod king of Judea there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah; his wife Elizabeth was also a descendant of Aaron. ⁶ Both of them were righteous in the sight of God, observing all the Lord’s commands and decrees blamelessly. ⁷ But they were childless because Elizabeth was not able to conceive, and they were both very old.

Pausing briefly here, I think it is valuable for us to realize that Zechariah and Elizabeth were both righteous in the sight of God, they were obedient to God’s commands, but they were both childless. In the culture they lived, having children was one of the primary ways that God showed His blessing on a couple, and it seemed that Zechariah and Elizabeth, while being obedient and righteous, appeared to be punished by God because of their lack of children.

This didn’t just happen over a few years. Luke describes both spouses as being very old. This couple’s childlessness had lasted for decades, and they may have even resigned themselves to dying childless.

However, God had not forgotten them. Even when it looked as though God had forgotten them, He was actually setting the stage for something big He was getting ready to do. In our own lives, even though it may seem at times like God has forgotten us, it is possible He is really setting the stage for something big He is getting ready to do.

Continuing reading in verse 8, Luke then tells us:

⁸ Once when Zechariah’s division was on duty and he was serving as priest before God, ⁹ he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to go into the temple of the Lord and burn incense. ¹⁰ And when the time for the burning of incense came, all the assembled worshipers were praying outside.

¹¹ Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. ¹² When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear. ¹³ But the angel said to him: “Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to call him John. ¹⁴ He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth, ¹⁵ for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He is never to take wine or other fermented drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even before he is born. ¹⁶ He will bring back many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God. ¹⁷ And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the parents to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”

¹⁸ Zechariah asked the angel, “How can I be sure of this? I am an old man and my wife is well along in years.”

¹⁹ The angel said to him, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to tell you this good news. ²⁰ And now you will be silent and not able to speak until the day this happens, because you did not believe my words, which will come true at their appointed time.”

²¹ Meanwhile, the people were waiting for Zechariah and wondering why he stayed so long in the temple. ²² When he came out, he could not speak to them. They realized he had seen a vision in the temple, for he kept making signs to them but remained unable to speak.

²³ When his time of service was completed, he returned home. ²⁴ After this his wife Elizabeth became pregnant and for five months remained in seclusion. ²⁵ “The Lord has done this for me,” she said. “In these days he has shown his favor and taken away my disgrace among the people.”

In this event, three big things stood out in my mind, and we could also draw two conclusions about John’s life that we don’t often think of.

First, Luke’s gospel describes the very first way that God decided to step back into history. For centuries before this, it had seemed as though God was silent, and with Gabriel’s visit to Zechariah, God’s silence ended. It is powerful in my mind that the first person God chose to break His silence with was a priest serving in the inner room of the temple. While this wasn’t in the Most Holy Place in the temple, it would have been right outside the Most Holy Place, and Zechariah’s task was to burn incense on the alter that was just outside the curtain leading into the Most Holy Place.

While we often think that the first people God breaks the silence to after several centuries are the shepherds in the field on the night of Jesus’ birth, Luke tells us that there is more back story that is worth paying attention to, because the story really begins with John the Baptist.

Also in this event, it is worth noting that Zechariah doubted Gabriel’s message. Perhaps Zechariah simply wanted some additional assurance that this promise would be kept, or maybe Zechariah had hoped for a child for so long that he didn’t want to share the promise with Elizabeth and then be disappointed when something didn’t happen again.

While we often give Zechariah a bad reputation for doubting God, I don’t think it is unreasonable to have some reservations after it appeared as though God had said no to a child for decades of their lives.

The sign that Gabriel gave Zechariah seems like a punishment for Zechariah’s lack of belief, but I wonder if in this sign, we have the seeds of something amazing. After God had been silent for hundreds of years, we see a priest being struck silent for not immediately believing God’s promise. While Zechariah’s silence likely lasted less than a full year, it served as an amazing symbol for God being silent, before stepping into history in a big way through John the Baptist and ultimately through Jesus.

Zechariah’s silence also served as a sign for everyone present that God was doing something in their midst. Knowing Zechariah’s muteness was a sign leading forward to the birth of John, this should have been enough for those present to take note that John the Baptist would be a significant person in history.

Zechariah’s silence also gave Zechariah a clear, easy reminder that the angel Gabriel’s visit actually happened. Often times, it is easy for our brain to trick us into rationalizing or belittling something amazing or special that happens in our lives, and the clear temptation for Zechariah would have been to rationalize this away as a dream or a vision rather than a clear visit with a promise. The sign of muteness served as a reminder to Zechariah that God’s promise to him was real!

I believe God had planned for John to have older parents. With older parents, John may have begun his ministry after both his parents had died. This doesn’t seem very positive, but this detail frees John up to live in the desert and share a more challenging message about repentance than if John’s parents were alive. John’s parents being older and likely having died before John’s ministry also saves them the emotional anguish of their son being imprisoned and beheaded by Herod.

Everything in this event draws our attention onto the amazing truth that God has not forgotten His people, and that God keeps His promises and His Word!

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As I always challenge you to do, continue seeking God first in your life. Choose to accept and believe His promises and His Word. While we don’t always know when God’s promises will happen, we can be certain that they will come to pass.

Also, continue praying and studying the Bible for yourself to learn God’s truth and to grow closer to Him. Through prayer and study, we are able to open our hearts to God and learn the truths He has promised for His children in the world today!

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or abandon where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!