January 7, 2016: Day 4 – Matthew 4

Let’s start with Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness. As soon as he is proclaimed the Son of God he goes off by himself to prepare himself for the ministry that is to come. This is so crucial. Throughout Jesus’ life we see him withdraw from the crowds and go away, normally up a mountain, to pray and prepare. His public ministry which he is just about to start is bathed in prayer. Even out Savior doesn’t try to set out and do things without ascertaining the will of His Father and then pursuing the kingdom of God through that preparation. Notice that in each of the temptations: the desire for abundant provision, the quest for control, and the pursuit of power, Jesus responds to Satan with Scripture. Satan tries to lure Jesus once with Scripture for the second temptation, but it doesn’t work. Jesus was prepared and knew the Scriptures which provided him with the means to defend himself. What a great lesson for us.
Just a word on Satan, in the Greek it means literally adversary. I have addressed a couple times the development of the understanding of who Satan or the devil is and how John Milton’s book Paradise Lost has really been instrumental in our current understanding up and against the biblical approach. If you are interested in this topic then look up the times in Scripture that Satan or the devil is mentioned and I think that you will be surprised how few times it actually is.
Jesus not only survives the temptation but is then ministered to by angels. What a great way to get ready for what comes next!
Next in chapter 4 we find Jesus calling his disciples. Here he chooses fishermen who are busy at their trade. Simon and his brother Andrew are chosen, then other fishermen in James and John and promises that one day they will become fishers of men.
There is a parallel Scripture in Luke 5 that I encourage you to read because it matches this calling of the disciples with a miracle of Jesus by encouraging Peter to throw his net in a certain spot and sure enough he catches enough fish to fill two boats.
What we learn about Jesus here is that he took time to prepare himself for his ministry. Once that is done, then he chooses people to carry out the work that is before him. Jesus was not in any way a loner. Sure, he went off and prayed by himself, but he needed people around him to carry out His work. You see this especially in the Garden of Gethsemane when he tells his disciples to stay up with him just a little while longer.
I hope this day you see how you can prepare yourself in prayer and discipline for the work that God has laid out before you.