Gospel – Luke 3-4

Last week we read about the two extraordinary births.  Today, we witness the extraordinary start of their ministry. When the time came, John the Baptist and Jesus did not waste a moment.

John knew his job was to prepare the way of the Lord and preached a baptism of repentance.  Jesus quoted from Isaiah (Isaiah 61:1-2) to declare his ministry of preaching the gospel to the poor and proclaiming the acceptable year of the Lord.

We have read today’s passages many times.

Bible Passage:  Luke 3-4

The version of the Bible we usually read is the New King James Version.  And that is a good version to use especially when we are doing Bible Study.

But since today’s passage is rather familiar – I thought maybe you would like to try and read a paraphrase version of the Bible called ‘The Message’.  This version uses contemporary language and the translator seeks to keep the language fresh, current and understandable. Try it…

Bible Passage – ‘The Message’ Version:  Luke 3-4

Now focusing back on today’s passage, did you glean any new insights or lessons?

Fact is I read this passage a few days ago.  And while not exactly a blank, I did not exactly gain any new perspective or lessons from the passage.  After all – I have read these passages since I was a young boy and heard countless lessons about them.

But my God is forever merciful.

Last night during the prayer in Church I wept.  They were not tears of joy.

They were tears of shame, sorrow and regret.

In the sermon last night, Pr Simon Chin had encouraged members to have the right heart in praying for the Holy Spirit.  The right heart is one that has faith, is humble and submissive and most of all holy.

As I was pondering over this in prayer, the 3 temptations of Jesus came to mind.

Do You Pass The Test?

Whenever we talk about the 3 temptations of Jesus, we relate this to the lust of the eyes, lust of the flesh and the pride of life (1 John 2:16).  And truly – all these are not of the Father but is of the world.

And what moved me deeply was this.  I hope I can express what I truly feel in a way that you will understand.

Before Jesus started His ministry – He had to face these 3 temptations from Satan.  He had before Him a great and glorious task set for Him by His heavenly Father.  And He was all eager to get started but before that could even begin, Satan was there to try and throw a spanner in the works.

But Jesus passed all these tests with flying colours.  He did not even give the devil the slightest chance to sway Him.

Boom!  Boom!  Boom!  Off went the devil with his tail between his legs.  No chance!  Not when Jesus knew the Scriptures and His Father intimately.

And then He started His work.

Recently I have many aspirations for the Lord.  There are many areas of Church work which I want to be part of and feel that I can contribute.

But when there is a desire to do God’s work – the devil would often try and destroy it before it even gets off the ground.  And the age old temptations that he threw at Jesus all those years ago are still being hurled at us today.

And as I prayed about the work that I wanted to do for Him and thought about this, I realised that many times in the past, my aspirations for the Lord have ended up as broken dreams simply because I have failed to pass the tests that Jesus overcame.

I had allowed the lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh and the pride of life to hinder me and distract me from doing my duty to God.   Instead of glorifying Him, I ended up as another failure – one who did not trust and believe enough in the Word of God to overcome the temptations of the evil one.

There are times where I allowed pride to get the better of me.  There are times where material comfort stopped me from going the extra mile to help a fellow brethren.  There are times where anger prevented me from sharing a kind word.  There are times…. I find it difficult to even continue now as I think of the past… and present.

So the point I am trying to get across is this:  We will face with temptations especially when we want to work for God and do the very things He commissions us to do. Because the devil is never happy for us to get involved in God’s work.

But Jesus has already given us the example that these temptations can be overcomed.

And the next time when we aspire to do something for the Lord – just be wary of these 3 strategies of the devil to throw us off the tracks.

The foundation of our defence is the Word of God.

Please pray for me as I strive to do His work according to His will.

And also pray for ourselves as we seek to serve Him.

In other words.. let’s all pass the tests!