Matthew 3 presents John the Baptist as the forerunner of Jesus, preparing the way for His ministry. Part of this preparation involved John baptizing Jesus. At His baptism, Jesus receives the Holy Spirit to empower and lead Him. The first thing the Holy Spirit leads Jesus to do is to go into the wilderness to be tempted by Satan.
Why did the Holy Spirit lead Jesus to be tempted by Satan?
There are many reasons Jesus is led into the wilderness to be tempted, but Hebrews 4:14-16 tells us Jesus was tempted so He could sympathize with our weaknesses.
Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
Isn’t it comforting to know that our Savior knows what we are going through when we are being tempted? He knows exactly what we are experiencing, what we are going through, because He too was tempted.
So the next time you are facing temptation, know your Lord and Savior understands what you are going through. Since He understands, we can come to Him in our time of need. We don’t need to be ashamed. Instead we need to reach out to Him, asking Him to help us face our temptation.
Question for Reflection
- Do you feel you can draw near to Jesus when you are tempted, or do you feel ashamed and push Him away?
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