Jesus Begins Ministry (Luke 4)

How did Jesus prepare for His earthly ministry? What was His message all about? Let’s look at Luke 4.

Did Jesus, filled with the Holy Spirit, speak in tongues or was He led into the wilderness? Was He thirsty after fasting or just hungry?

Then Jesus, filled with the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan. He was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, where he was being tempted by the Devil for 40 days. During that time he ate nothing at all, and when they were over he became hungry. (Luke 4:1-2)

What was the devil’s first temptation of Jesus in the wilderness?

And the devil said unto him, If thou be the Son of God, command this stone that it be made bread. And Jesus answered him, saying, It is written, That man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God. (Luke 4:3-4 KJV)

What was the devil’s second temptation of Jesus in the wilderness?

And he led Him up and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. And the devil said to Him, “I will give You all this dominion and its glory, for it has been handed over to me, and I give it to whomever I wish. Therefore if You worship before me, it shall all be Yours.” And Jesus answered and said to him, “It is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God and serve Him only.’” (Luke 4:5-8 LSB)

What was the devil’s third and final temptation of Jesus in the wilderness?

And he brought Him into Jerusalem and had Him stand on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down from here; for it is written: ‘He will give His angels orders concerning You, to protect You,’ and, ‘On their hands they will lift You up, So that You do not strike Your foot against a stone.’” And Jesus answered and said to him, “It has been stated, ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’” And so when the devil had finished every temptation, he left Him until an opportune time. (Luke 4:9-13 NASB)

Is this a good summary of the devil’s tactics, three broad temptations? Did John mention a similar threesome?

For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world. (1 John 2:16 NIV)

Where was one of the first places that Jesus began to preach?

Then Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee, and news of Him went out through all the surrounding region. And He taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all. So He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up. And as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read. And He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written: (Luke 4:14-17 NKJV)

What did Jesus quote from Isaiah in the synagogue?

The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free, and that the time [year] of the Lord’s favor has come. (Luke 4:18-19 NLT Isaiah 61:2)

What did Jesus say about the prophecy in Isaiah that shocked everyone?

He closed the book, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes of all in the synagogue were fastened on him. He began to tell them, “Today, this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” All testified about him, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth, and they said, “Isn’t this Joseph’s son?” (Luke 4:20-22 WEB)

Did Jesus give a wishy washy message or preach directly and forthrightly?

Then Jesus said to them, “Undoubtedly, you will quote this saying to me: ‘Doctor, heal yourself. Do here in your hometown what we’ve heard you did in Capernaum.’” He said, “I assure you that no prophet is welcome in the prophet’s hometown. And I can assure you that there were many widows in Israel during Elijah’s time, when it didn’t rain for three and a half years and there was a great food shortage in the land. Yet Elijah was sent to none of them but only to a widow in the city of Zarephath in the region of Sidon. There were also many persons with skin diseases in Israel during the time of the prophet Elisha, but none of them were cleansed. Instead, Naaman the Syrian was cleansed.” (Luke 4:23-27 CEB)