God’s Son in the Wilderness
In Luke’s recounting of Jesus’s baptism at the Jordan River, a voice from heaven declares him to be the “beloved Son” (Luke 3:22). Furthermore, Luke’s tracing of Jesus’s human lineage goes all the way back to Adam, “the son of God” (Luke 3:38). Jesus’s status as God’s son has been confirmed by the voice from heaven and the genealogies of earth! So, it may seem strange that Jesus, God’s beloved Son, one who has just received the Holy Spirit, would find himself out in the Judean desert. Surely the beloved son of God should be somewhere else, accomplishing God’s mission on behalf of his people! Nevertheless, Jesus’s detour into the desert has its roots in the story of ancient Israel.
Luke’s characterization of Jesus as the Son of God might remind you of another son of God: Israel itself. When God was bringing Israel out of Egypt, he referred to his people as “my firstborn son” (Exod. 4:22). God led his firstborn son Israel through the Red Sea, out of slavery, and into the wilderness, where the Israelites journeyed under the leadership of Moses. Israel wandered for forty years before entering the land God had promised them. Here in Luke 4, we see this story being repeated in the life of Jesus. Jesus is baptized, receives the Holy Spirit, and immediately crosses the Jordan and enters the wilderness outside of Israel to be tested for forty days. The story of Jesus’s temptation is an Israel-shaped story. By sojourning in the wilderness and embodying the story of Israel, Jesus shows us that he is the true and faithful Son of God.
“If you are the son of God…”
During Jesus’s time in the wilderness, he’s confronted by the devil. Although Luke tells us that the devil tempted Jesus for that entire forty-day period (Luke 4:2), only three specific temptations are included in this story. First, the devil suggests that Jesus end his long fast (Luke 4:2) and instruct a stone to become some nourishing bread. If you’re familiar with other parts of the story of Jesus, you may know that Jesus does other miracles with food in the Gospels. Perhaps most famously, he turns water to wine (John 2:1–12) and multiplies bread and fish to feed his followers (Luke 9:12–17, Mark 8:1–9). Surely it wouldn’t be inherently wrong for Jesus to use his divine authority to feed himself. Where’s the conflict? Jesus is God’s son, after all! Why should God’s beloved Son starve when bread is only one word away?
It may seem like the devil is challenging Jesus with something trivial and unimportant. What’s the reason behind this angle of attack? The answer lies in Jesus’s response: “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone’” (Luke 4:4). Jesus is quoting Deuteronomy 8:3, where Moses is reminding Israel of God’s provision for them during their forty years of testing in the wilderness: “He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna … to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.” God wanted Israel to learn obedience and to persevere through their time of testing in humble reliance upon his divine provision. Israel didn’t do this perfectly but rebelled against God instead (Ps. 95:8–11).
In the end, this temptation isn’t about bread, but faithfulness. The devil wants Jesus to stand outside the provision of his Father, rely solely on his own power, and use a stone to get his bread, just like ancient Israel tried to do. Yet Jesus chooses to act in obedience and to rely on the goodness of God, even amid his own hunger.
Victory in the Wilderness
The devil tries two more times to convince Jesus to abandon his Father. First, he offers Jesus the glory of a worldwide kingdom. To obtain this power, Jesus must simply worship the devil instead of God (Luke 4:5–7). Second, the devil suggests that Jesus put his Father’s protection to the test and force angelic guardians to save him from a lethal fall (Luke 4:9–11). In response to each temptation, Jesus replies from Deuteronomy 6 and 8, reiterating that he’s God’s faithful Son.
Jesus replays the story of Israel and gives it a new ending: This divine Son isn’t a wandering nation of fallen people, but rather the Spirit-filled and sinless Messiah! Jesus, the embodiment of true Israel, endures the test and returns to the promised land as a victorious Son, now prepared to do the will of his Father. Jesus re-enters Galilee, this time empowered by the Spirit, and begins accomplishing the mission he was sent to carry out (Luke 4:14–15). Israel’s story is about to change.
This article is an excerpt from our bible study on the Gospel of Luke. You can order the full bible study here.
- What does it mean to live a life of Christ-imitating discipleship?
- What did Jesus set out to accomplish on behalf of God's people?
- How does the Holy Spirit help us to follow Jesus and serve others?
- What does it look like to faithfully follow Jesus in the midst of suffering?
The story of Jesus isn't anything new for most Christians. That familiarity can make it easy to forget that the stories recorded for us in the Gospels aren't just good information, but are essential for our lives as Christians. According to the Gospel of Luke, we need to hear the story of Jesus's mission of liberation again and again. The message of Luke's Gospel is meant to shape us into the image of Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit. This Bible study will help us encounter the story of Jesus afresh so that we can confidently live the life of discipleship.
