First Sunday of Lent
Luke 4:1-13 NKJV
Then Jesus, being filled with the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, being tempted for forty days by the devil. And in those days, He ate nothing, and afterward, when they had ended, He was hungry. And the devil said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.” But Jesus answered him, saying,
“It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.’”
Then the devil, taking Him up on a high mountain, showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. And the devil said to Him, “All this authority I will give You, and their glory; for this has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I wish. Therefore, if You will worship before me, all will be Yours.” And Jesus answered and said to him,
“Get behind Me, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.’”
Then he brought Him to Jerusalem, set Him 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 shall give His angels charge over you, to keep you,’ and ‘In their hands they shall bear you up, lest you dash your foot against a stone.’” And Jesus answered and said to him,
“It has been said, ‘You shall not tempt the Lord your God.’”
Now when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from Him until an opportune time.
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Filled with the Spirit, led into the wasteland,
Jesus was driven to know Satan’s schemes;
Israel had failed forty years on the desert sand,
They, in their hunger, had grumbled and screamed.
Jesus instead turned his forty-day fast into
Days of obedience, redeeming the past.
“Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.”
Led by the Spirit, to prove His divinity,
Jesus went into the wilderness dark;
Satan engaged Him by tempting to jealousy,
“Show yourself famous, be great, leave your mark.”
Israel had chased other gods in the wilderness;
Jesus, instead, proved the glory of faithfulness.
“You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.”
Satan attacked in a way so familiar,
Seeking to cause in our Lord fear and doubt;
Tempting our Lord to engage in self-questioning,
Wondering, “What is my time here about?”
Jesus, exhausted, was filled with the Spirit, and
Turned evil promptings to great victory.
“You shall not tempt the Lord your God.”
Fill us, O Lord, with your Spirit of holiness,
Fill us, O Lord, with the mind of our Lord;
May we be faithful as Jesus was faithful,
May we live daily obeying your Word.
At the Name of Jesus
If you have found this meditation helpful, take a moment and give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Corinthians 4.15).
