The holy spirit in jesus

THE HOLY SPIRIT IN JESUS
EDITED BY GLENN PEASE
Luke 4:14 14Jesusreturned to Galileein the power of
the Spirit, and news about him spreadthrough the
whole countryside.
BIBLEHUB RESOURCES
Pulpit Commentary Homiletics
The GalileanMinistry
Mark 1:14, 15. Parallelpassages:Matthew 4:17; Luke 4:14, 15
J.J. Given
I. HIS PREACHING BEGAN IN GALILEE. Though our Lord's public
ministry may be regarded as having commencedat that Passoverat
Jerusalemto which reference has been already made, yet his public
appearance as a preacher was in Galilee. The place, the date, the subject are
all distinctly marked by St. Peterin the tenth chapter of the Acts, at the
thirty-seventh verse, as we read, "Thatword which God sent unto the
children of Israel, preaching the gospel[goodtidings] of peace by Jesus Christ
(he is Lord of all) - that saying ye yourselves know, which was published
throughout all Judaea, beginning from Galilee, after the baptism which John
preached."
II. A FAVOURABLE FIELD. Now commence our Lord's labours among the
towns and villages of Galilee - a sphere of operationof the most promising
kind at that period. Of the four provinces of Palestine in the time of Roman

rule, while Judaea was south, Samaria central, and Pereea east, Galileewas in
the north. Originally it comprehended only a limited circle or circuit, as the
name Galil imports, round Kedesh-Naphtali, including the twenty towns
which Solomon gave to Hiram, but it grew into much largerdimensions till it
included the four northern tribes, Asher and Naphtali, Zebulun, and Issachar,
embracing an oblong twenty-five miles from north to south and twenty-seven
from eastto west. It was divided into Lower and Upper Galilee;the former
district consistedmainly of the plain of Esdraelonor Jezreel, and the latter,
containing the district betweenthe Upper Jordan and Phoenicia, was called
Galilee of the Gentiles because of its mixed population - Greeks, Arabs,
Phoenicians, as wellas Jews. This northern province of the Holy Land in the
days of our Lord was studded with towns and even cities, had a thriving
population, and abounded in hives of busy industry. Speaking of our Lord
selecting this district as the scene of his labours, the late DeanStanley says, "It
was no retired mountain-lake by whose shore he took up his abode, such as
might have attracted the Easternsage orWesternhermit. It was to the
Roman Palestine almostwhat the manufacturing districts are to England.
Nowhere, exceptin the capital itself, could he have found such a sphere for his
works and words of mercy." The husbandman that tilled the fields, the
merchantman that traded in the towns or villages, the fisherman that plied his
craft on the waters of the lake, and labourers standing in the market-place, -
all these and many such abounded in this populous region; and while easily
accessible,and willing to wait on our Lord's ministry, they were more free
from prejudice - less bigoted and less exclusive than their brethren of the
southern province.
III. THE DISTRICT POINTEDOUT IN PROPHECY. Ancient prophecy had
marked this regionout as that where gospellight would shine most brightly.
These northern tribes, Zebulun and Naphtali, had soonestsunk into idolatry
through the influence of their idolatrous neighbors, the Phoenicians, onthe
west, and had suffered sorestfrom Assyrian invaders from the east, mostof
them having been carried captive by Tiglath-pileserand their land repeopled
in large part by strangers. The prophet, however, in order to console andin
some measure compensate, foretolda goodtime coming in Isaiah9:1, 2, which
rightly rendered reads thus: "There shall not hereafterbe darkness in the

land which was distressed;as in the former time he brought to shame the land
of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, so in the time to come he bringeth it to
honor, even the tract by the sea [i.e. the westernshore], the other side of
Jordan [the easternside], Galilee of the nations [i.e. district north of the sea].
The people that walkedin darkness have seena great light: they that dwell in
the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined." Thus
henceforth the scene of the Saviour's ministry lies by the Jordan, the Lake of
Gennesaret, andin Galilee of the Gentiles -
"What went ye out to see
O'er the rude sandy lea,
Where statelyJordan flows by many a palm,
Or where Gennesaret's wave
Delights the flowers to lave
That o'er her westernslope breathe airs of balm?
"Here may we sit and dream
Over the heavenly theme,
Till to our souls the former days return;
Till on the grassybed,
Where thousands once he fed,
The world's incarnate Makerwe discern."
IV. THE SUBJECTS OF OUR SAVIOUR'S PREACHING. The precursor
had been imprisoned in the castle ofMachsaerus,some nine miles eastof the
DeadSea, in the district of Persia;but the Prophet himself takes up the work.
Thus it ever is. God buries his workmen, but carries on his work. The great
theme of the Baptist, as we have seen, was repentance and correspondent
reformation, yet with faith implied. The theme of repentance was resumed by
Jesus, but with the other doctrine of faith not implicitly but explicitly taught.
The doctrine of faith now comes into prominence - the doctrine of faith, and

that not merely have credence or simple assentto the goodnews, but faith in -
reliance on the gospelas the greatand only means of safetyand salvation. He
proclaims, moreover, the advent of Messiah'sreign. That critical epochhad
now come;that greatestera in all human history had arrived.
V. DIFFERENCEIN THE USE OF TWO SYNONYMOUS TERMS. The
kingdom is usually calledby St. Matthew the "kingdomof heaven," and not
"kingdom of God," lestthe latter expressionmight confirm the Jews, for
whom in the first instance the evangelistwrote, in their erroneous
apprehension of it as a greatkingdom of a worldly and temporal kind, as by a
Hebrew idiom the name "God" is joined to anything excessivelygreator
extremely grand; thus, we read of the "river of God," of "the cedars ofGod,"
and other similar expressions. BySt. Luke, on the other hand, it is calledthe
"kingdom of God" and not the "kingdom of heaven," lestthe Gentiles, for
whom this evangelistspeciallywrote, should misapprehend the expressionas
countenancing localdivinities, as they were accustomedto gods and goddesses
of different localities or quarters of the universe, such as Naiads, Nereids,
Dryads, Hamadryads; gods of the oceanand of rivers; deities of the ethereal
and infernal regions. This kingdom had been foreshadowedby Daniel in his
vision of the greatworld-powers. - J.J.G.

Biblical Illustrator
And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit into Galilee.
Luke 4:14, 15
The higher spiritual life
H. W. Beecher.
Jesus returns to Galilee in the powerof the Spirit. This is full of interest in
every way.
1. As bringing up the question of Christ's Divinity. Can One who is Divine
receive augmented powers? EspeciallycanHe from another co-equalSpirit?
To this inquiry it may be replied that Christ's life on earth was the Divine
circumscribed. The power of the Spirit that restedupon Christ brought forth
no new elements, but it brought out the Divine elementpreviously existing.
2. Interesting as a study of the life of Christ, it becomes evenmore so in its
connectionwith ourselves — with the whole sphere and operationand
possibilities of the human mind. A like experience will be traced in the
apostles'lives. At the time of His death they were very little advanced, except
in personalaffection for Him, beyond Nicodemus, or other devout and
spiritually-minded Jews. He had told them to stay in Jerusalemuntil some
greatchange should come upon them. And He declaredwhat that change
should be — power from on high; the powerof the Holy Ghost. And then
came the Pentecostalexperience.
3. We find traces in the early Church to show that there were those who
receivedthis specialpowerover and above mere ordinary endowments.
4. In every age there have been those to whom these disclosures have been
made, pre-eminently the case with John Wesley, who laboured years, as he
regardedit, in bondage, and at last came out in the power of the Spirit.
5. Lastly, many now living are distinctly conscious thatthis same impulse, this
same clothing of extraordinary power remains on earth. Men's faculties are

telescopic.Usedin their lower state they are, as it were, undrawn cut. They
are capable of being brought to a condition in which they will be a hundred
times more than in their ordinary condition. The consciousness ofthis
transcends all other evidences of the Divine life. APPLICATION: Many of
you are longing for the renewalof life. Here is the instrument of your power.
This is what you need; this is what we all need — that higher life which comes
by the Spirit of God.
(H. W. Beecher.)
The powerof the Holy Ghost
H. W. Beecher.
There was no greatnatural capacity in Harlan Page;and yet he was an
apostle;and his life has quickened the lives of tens of thousands since he has
been gone. Being dead, he yet speaks.But he had the Holy Ghost rising upon
him. There are men who say but little; and yet they give you anew ideal. They
shine as stars in the heavens. And there can be no accounting for it, excepton
the ground of the dynamic influence of spiritual life and spiritual power in
this world. There are men who stand in the centre of circles, and all rise up
and callthem blessed;and nobody can tell why, exceptthat they bring heaven
near, and bring invisible things near, and gain faith, and strengthen their
moral tendencies, and see God, and have the powerto reflectwhat they see
upon other persons. It is these men who have the higher region of their soul
enlightened by the Spirit of God, that do the most for other men; that setaside
scepticism, that convince the unconvinced, that penetrate the unconverted
through with a new and eternalsense, both of their lacks and of their
possibilities and hopes. It is these men who are joined together, and who
receive their powerof life and of working from God, that, after all, are the
lights of the world.
(H. W. Beecher.)

Effects of the indwelling of the Spirit
Lightning Flashes.
Dr. Daniel Steele says, " Soonafter Dr. Finney's conversionhe receiveda
wonderful baptism of the Spirit which was followedby marvellous effects. His
words uttered in private conversation, and forgottenby himself, fell like live
coals onthe hearts of men, and awakeneda sense ofguilt which would not let
them rest till the blood of sprinkling was applied. At his presence, before he
opened his lips, the operatives in a mill beganto fall on their knees and cry for
mercy, smitten by the invisible currents of Divine powerwhich went forth
from him. When, like a flame of fire, he was traversing westernand central
New York, he came to the village of Rome in a time of spiritual slumber. He
had not been in the house of the pastor an hour before he had conversedwith
all the family, the pastor, children, boarders, and servants, and brought them
all to their knees seeking pardon, or the fulness of the Spirit. In a few days
almost every man and womanin the village and vicinity was converted, and
the work ceasedfrom lack of material to transform, and the evangelistpassed
on to other fields, to behold new triumphs of the gospelthrough his
instrumentality."
(Lightning Flashes.)
Spiritual power
Lightning Flashes.
Dr. Steele mentions another case, not, however, so wellknown in this country
as that of ProfessorFinney. He says, "Another rare instance of extraordinary
spiritual power is that of FatherCarpenter, of New Jersey, a Presbyterian
layman of a past generation. A cipher in the Church, till anointed of the Holy
Ghost, he immediately became a man of wonderful spiritual power, though of
ordinary intellect, and very limited education. In personaleffort, hardened
sinners melted under his appeals and yielded to Christ. Once in a stage-coach
going from Newark to New York, he found six unconverted men and one
believer his fellow-passengers. He began to present the claims of Jesus, and so

powerfully did the Spirit attend the truth, that four were convertedin the
coach, and the other two after reaching New York. At his death it was stated
that by a very careful inquiry it had been ascertainedthat more than ten
thousand souls had been converted through his direct instrumentality.
(Lightning Flashes.)
STUDYLIGHT RESOURCES
Adam Clarke Commentary
Returned in the power of the Spirit - Εν τῃ δυναμει του πνευματος, In the
mighty powerof the Spirit. Having now conqueredthe grand adversary, he
comes in the miracle-working energyof the Spirit to show forth his power,
godhead, and love to the people, that they might believe and be saved. He who,
through the grace ofGod, resists and overcomes temptation, is always
bettered by it. This is one of the wonders of God's grace, that those very things
which are designedfor our utter ruin he makes the instruments of our
greatestgood. Thus Satanis ever duped by his ownproceedings, and caught
in his own craft.
Copyright Statement
These files are public domain.
Bibliography
Clarke, Adam. "Commentary on Luke 4:14". "The Adam Clarke
Commentary". https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/acc/luke-
4.html. 1832.
return to 'Jump List'

Coffman's Commentaries on the Bible
And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit into Galilee:and a fame went
out concerning him through all the region round about. And he taught in their
synagogues, being glorified by all.
And a fame went out concerning him ... These verses are the Lukan summary
of the fame that came to Jesus at the beginning of his ministry. It is not related
how many synagogueshe visited, or how many towns and villages received
him. A typically Lukan summary, this passagesets the stage for a more
detailed accountof the dramatic synagogue meeting in Nazareth, where Jesus
announced himself as the Messiah, and the villagers respondedby trying to
kill him, such events being relatednext in Luke's Gospel.
Glorified of all ... This doubtless included the recognitionby many that Jesus
was indeed the Christ, a recognitionthat came at the very beginning of
Christ's ministry, as more fully evident in John. Ash pointed out that "Luke
recordedthree miracles showing that Jesus did have messianic power. They
are found in reverse order to the temptations."[15]
ENDNOTE:
[15] Anthony Lee Ash, op. cit., p. 83.
Copyright Statement
James Burton Coffman Commentaries reproduced by permission of Abilene
Christian University Press, Abilene, Texas, USA. All other rights reserved.
Bibliography
Coffman, James Burton. "Commentary on Luke 4:14". "Coffman
Commentaries on the Old and New Testament".
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/bcc/luke-4.html. Abilene
Christian University Press, Abilene, Texas, USA. 1983-1999.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible
And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit,.... Of which he was full, and by
which he was led into the wilderness, and had combated with Satan, and had
got the victory over him; and by virtue of which, he entered on his public
ministry, wrought miracles, and taught with authority. A like way of speaking
is used by the Targumist, on Micah3:8. I am filled, ‫ףוקתב‬ ‫חור‬ ‫,האובנ‬ "with the
powerof the spirit of prophecy", from before the Lord. Moreover, this phrase
is used, to show that his return
into Galilee, where he had been brought up, and from whence he came to
John at Jordan, did not arise from a natural love to his country, and a fond
desire of being there again;but was owing to the powerful impulse of the Holy
Spirit, which was in him, and moved him to return thither; where he was to
begin his ministry, and work his miracles, and so fulfil a prophecy of him, in
Isaiah9:1 see Matthew 4:12.
And there went out a fame of him through all the regionround about:
throughout all Galilee and Syria, Decapolis and Judea; see Matthew 4:23, the
report of his doctrines and miracles, was spreadfar and near; and on account
of them, he became the subjectof the common talk of people every where,
who highly applauded and commended him for them.
Copyright Statement
The New John Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible Modernisedand adapted
for the computer by Larry Pierce of Online Bible. All Rightes Reserved,
Larry Pierce, Winterbourne, Ontario.
A printed copy of this work can be ordered from: The Baptist Standard
Bearer, 1 Iron Oaks Dr, Paris, AR, 72855
Bibliography
Gill, John. "Commentary on Luke 4:14". "The New John Gill Expositionof
the Entire Bible". https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/geb/luke-
4.html. 1999.

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
Luke 4:14-32. Jesus entering on His public ministry, makes a circuit of Galilee
- RejectionatNazareth.
Note. - A large gap here occurs, embracing the important transactions in
Galilee and Jerusalemwhich are recordedin John 1:29-4:54, and which
occurredbefore John‘s imprisonment (John 3:24); whereas the transactions
here recordedoccurred(as appears from Matthew 4:12, Matthew 4:13) after
that event. The visit to Nazarethrecordedin Matthew 13:54-58 (and Mark
6:1-6) we take to be not a later visit, but the same with this first one; because
we cannot think that the Nazarenes,afterbeing so enragedat His first display
of wisdom as to attempt His destruction, should, on a seconddisplay of the
same, wonder at it and ask how He came by it, as if they had never witnessed
it before.
Copyright Statement
These files are a derivative of an electronic edition prepared from text
scannedby Woodside Bible Fellowship.
This expanded edition of the Jameison-Faussett-BrownCommentary is in the
public domain and may be freely used and distributed.
Bibliography
Jamieson, Robert, D.D.;Fausset,A. R.; Brown, David. "Commentary on
Luke 4:14". "Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible".
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/jfb/luke-4.html. 1871-8.
William Godbey's Commentary on the New Testament
JESUS GOES TO GALILEE

Matthew 4:12; Mark 1:14; & Luke 4:14. “And after that John was castinto
prison, Jesus came unto Galilee.” Having entered upon His official
Messiahshipby purifying the temple at the Passover, and preachedto the
multitudes gatheredon the Temple Campus during the greatnational feast;
delivered that wonderful discourse to Nicodemus at night, the Apostle John
bearing witness;and having wrought many miracles of which we have no
specification;after the Passover, going out into the country north of the
metropolis, He continues to preachand work miracles, His disciples baptizing
the people, John the Baptist preaching in Enon near by, so that
intercommunication betweenthe audiences springs up, all observing that
while Jesus is rapidly rising and magnetizing the multitudes, John is waning,
— a crisis supervenes, resulting from the arrestof John the Baptist by Herod
Antipas, the son of Herod the Great, and king of Galilee and Perea.
Immediately after this, Jesus leaves Judea, andgoes awayto Galilee,
apparently because ofJohn’s arrestand imprisonment lest a similar fate shall
overtake Him, and thus interfere with the work which He came to do. We see
many judicious precautions adopted by Him at different times in order to
prevent the interruption of His ministry till His work is done,
Copyright Statement
Text Courtesyof BibleSupport.com. Used by Permission.
Bibliography
Godbey, William. "Commentary on Luke 4:14". "William Godbey's
Commentary on the New Testament".
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/ges/luke-4.html.

People's New Testament
Returned. After the Temptation. Forthe events before the return, see
Matthew 4:12.
In the powerof the Spirit. Full of Divine strength since his victory over Satan.
To conquer evil always lifts to a higher power.
Copyright Statement
These files are public domain and are a derivative of an electronic edition that
is available on the Christian ClassicsEtherealLibrary Website.
Original work done by Ernie Stefanik. First published online in 1996 atThe
RestorationMovementPages.
Bibliography
Johnson, BartonW. "Commentary on Luke 4:14". "People's New
Testament". https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/pnt/luke-4.html.
1891.
Robertson's WordPictures in the New Testament
Returned (υπεστρεπσεν — hupestrepsen). Luke does not fill in the gap
betweenthe temptations in the wilderness of Judea and the GalileanMinistry.
He follows the outline of Mark. It is John‘s Gospelalone that tells of the year
of obscurity (Stalker)in various parts of the Holy Land.
In the powerof the Spirit (εν τηι δυναμει του πνευματος — en tēi dunamei tou
pneumatos). Luke in these two verses (Luke 4:14) gives a description of the
GalileanMinistry with three marked characteristics(Plummer): the powerof

the spirit, rapid spreadof Christ‘s fame, use of the Jewish synagogues.Luke
often notes the powerof the Holy Spirit in the work of Christ. Our word
dynamite is this same word δυναμις — dunamis (power).
A fame (πημη — phēmē). An old Greek word found in the N.T. only here and
Matthew 9:26. It is from πημι — phēmi to say. Talk ran rapidly in every
direction. It assumes the previous ministry as told by John.
Copyright Statement
The Robertson's WordPictures of the New Testament. Copyright �
Broadman Press 1932,33,Renewal1960. All rights reserved. Used by
permission of Broadman Press (Southern BaptistSunday SchoolBoard)
Bibliography
Robertson, A.T. "Commentary on Luke 4:14". "Robertson'sWord Pictures
of the New Testament".
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/rwp/luke-4.html. Broadman
Press 1932,33. Renewal1960.
Wesley's ExplanatoryNotes
And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit into Galilee:and there went out
a fame of him through all the region round about.
Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit — Being more abundantly
strengthenedafter his conflict.
Copyright Statement

is available on the Christian ClassicsEtherealLibrary Website.
Bibliography
Wesley, John. "Commentary on Luke 4:14". "JohnWesley's Explanatory
Notes on the Whole Bible".
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/wen/luke-4.html. 1765.
The Fourfold Gospel
And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit into Galilee1:and a fame went
out concerning him through all the region round about2.
GENERALACCOUNT OF JESUS'TEACHING. Matthew 4:17; Mark
1:14,15;Luke 4:14,15
And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit into Galilee. "Powerofthe
Spirit" here means its manifest "use" to perform miracles, rather than its
presence, influence, or direction. Jesus was always under the influence and
direction of the Spirit, but did not previously perform miracles.
And a fame went out concerning him through all the region round about. The
miracles of Jesus and the manner in which he taught causedthe people to
glorify his name.
(Luke 4:14,15
Copyright Statement

is available on the Christian ClassicsEtherealLibrary Website. These files
were made available by Mr. Ernie Stefanik. First published online in 1996 at
The RestorationMovementPages.
Bibliography
J. W. McGarveyand Philip Y. Pendleton. "Commentaryon Luke 4:14". "The
Fourfold Gospel". https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/tfg/luke-
4.html. Standard Publishing Company, Cincinnati, Ohio. 1914.
John Trapp Complete Commentary
14 And Jesus returned in the powerof the Spirit into Galilee:and there went
out a fame of him through all the regionround about.
Ver. 14. In the power of the Spirit] Without which the word is preached to no
purpose. Cathedram in coelo habet, qui corda docet, saith Augustine. It is
with the word and spirit, as with the veins and arteries;as the veins carry the
blood, so the arteries carry the spirits to quicken the blood.
Copyright Statement
Bibliography
Trapp, John. "Commentary on Luke 4:14". John Trapp Complete
Commentary. https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/jtc/luke-4.html.
1865-1868.

Expository Notes with PracticalObservations onthe New Testament
Our blessedSaviour being thus fitted and prepared by his baptism and
temptation for the executionof his ministerial office, he now enters upon the
greatwork of preaching the gospel, and St. Luke here declares the first place
he preached at, namely, Nazareth; and the first text he preachedupon, Isaiah
61:1
Observe 1. The place where our Saviour preachedat; he bestowedhis first
sermon upon Nazareth, the place of his conceptionand education. For though
Christ was born at Bethlehem, yet he was bred and brought up at Nazareth;
there he had his poor, but painful education, working on his father's trade,
that of a carpenter. This prejudiced the Jews againsthim, who lookedfor a
sceptre, not an axe, in the hand of him that was born King of the Jews. Our
Saviour's short and secretabode at Bethlehem, and his long and public living
at Nazareth, occasionedhim to be called Jesus ofNazareth; yet some
conceivedit was a nick-name, fastenedby the devil upon our Saviour, that he
might disguise the place of Christ's nativity, and leave the Jews at a greater
loss concerning their Messiah. Sure it is, that this name, Jesus ofNazareth,
stuck upon our Saviour all his life; and at his death was fixed by Pilate on his
cross. Yea, afterhis ascension, suchas believed on were called, The sectof the
Nazarenes, orthe followers of Jesus ofNazareth.
Observe, 2. The text which our Saviour preachedupon at Nazareth:he takes
it out of the prophet Esaias, The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, and he hath
anointed me to preach the gospelto the poor. Luke 4:18 That is, God the
Father hath poured forth his Holy Spirit without measure upon me, in all the
gifts and gracesofit, to fit and furnish me for the work of a mediator; and
particularly, to preach the gospelto the poor in spirit, and to such as are poor
in outward condition also, if meekenedand humbled with the sight and sense
of their sins. To bind up the broken-hearted; that is, to comfort them with the
glad tidings of the gospel. To preach deliverance to the captives: to let such
sinners know, who were slaves to sin and Satan, that a Deliverer is come, if
they be willing to be delivered by him. To preach the acceptable yearof the

Lord: or to proclaim a spiritual jubilee in which Godproffers pardon of sin
and reconciliationwith himself upon the terms of the gospel.
Learn hence, 1. That God stirreth up none to take upon them the office of the
ministry, whom he hath not fitted and furnished with gifts for the regular
discharge of it.
2. That Christ himself did not undertake the office of a mediator, but by the
ordination of God the Holy Spirit: The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, and he
hath sent me to preachthe gospel.
3. That no creature, angelor man, could perform the office of a mediator, but
only Christ, who was consecratedto that office by an anointing from the Holy
Spirit without measure: The Spirit of the Lord hath anointed me.
4. That the preaching of the gospelis the greatordinance which Christ himself
made use of, and recommendedto his apostles and ministers, for enlightening
blind sinners, for comforting broken hearts, and for delivering captive souls
from the slaveryand dominion of sin and Satan: He hath sent me to preach
the gospelto the poor, to heal the broken-hearted, to publish deliverance to
the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind. What enemies than are they
to the souls of men who have low and mean thoughts of this high and
honourable ordinance of God, the preaching of the everlasting gospel, which is
the powerof God unto salvation?
Observe, 3. The behavior of our Saviour's auditors, the men of Nazareth,
under his preaching: their eyes were fixed, and their minds intent, upon him,
and upon what was spokenby him: The eyes of all that were in the synagogue
were fastenedupon him: not closedwith sleep, nor gazing about upon others;
but fixed upon Christ the preacher.
Fixing of the eye is a greathelp to the attention of the ear, and the intention of
the mind; a fastenedeye is a mean to help us to a fixed heart; as a wandering
eye is both a sign and cause of a wandering heart. O that our hearers would
imitate our Saviour's hearers under the word! They fastenedtheir eyes upon
him, as if they meant to hear with their eyes as wellas with their ears:and yet
we have cause to expecttht curiosity rather than piety causedthis their

attention; seeing, as you will find, Luke 4:29 that these very persons, who out
of novelty were ready to eathis words, soonafter out of cruelty were ready to
devour the speaker:For they thrust him out of the city, led him to the brow of
the hill, and would have casthim down headlong.
O blessedSaviour, what wonderis it that the persons of thy ministers are
despised, and their doctrine neglected, whenthou thyself, the first preacherof
the gospel, andfor thy first sermon at Nazareth, wert thus ignominiously
treated!
Observe, lastly, how Christ conforms to the ceremonies ofthe Jewishdoctrine,
who, in honor of the law and the prophets, stoodup when they read them, and
according to custom, sat down when they explained them. And although the
synagogualworshipwas then loadenwith rules and ceremonies ofhuman
invention, and also the lives and manners both of priests and people were
much corrupted, yet both our Saviour and his disciples went to the synsgogue,
as members of the church of Nazareth, every sabbath-day, joining with them
in the public worship.
From whence we may reasonablyinfer, that such Christians as do quietly and
peaceablycomply with the practice of the church in whose communion they
live, in the observationof such indifferent rites as are used by her, actmost
agreeable to our Saviour's practice and example.
Copyright Statement
Bibliography
Burkitt, William. "Commentary on Luke 4:14". ExpositoryNotes with
PracticalObservations onthe New Testament.
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/wbc/luke-4.html. 1700-1703.

Greek TestamentCriticalExegeticalCommentary
14.]ἐν τῇ δ. τ. πν., in the power of that full anointing of the Spirit for His holy
office, which He had receivedat His baptism: and also implying that this
powerwas used by Him in doing mighty works.
Here the chronologicalorderof Luke’s history begins to be confused, and the
first evident marks occurof indefiniteness in arrangement, which I believe
characterizes this Gospel. And in observing this, I would once for all premise,
(1) that I have no bias for finding such chronologicalinaccuracy, and have
only done so where no fair and honestmeans will solve the difficulty; (2) that
where internal evidence appears to me to decide this to be the case, Ihave
takenthe only way open to a Commentator who would actuprightly by the
Scriptures, and fairly acknowledgedand met the difficulty; (3) that so far
from considering the testimony of the Evangelists to be weakenedby such
inaccuracies,I am convinced that it becomes only so much the stronger(see
Prolegomena to the Gospels).
These remarks have been occasionedby the relation of this account, Luke
4:14-30, to the Gospels ofMatthew and John. Our Luke 4:14-15 embrace the
narrative of Matthew in ch. Luke 4:12-25. But after that comes an event
which belongs to a laterperiod of our Lord’s ministry. A fair comparisonof
our Luke 4:16-24 with Matthew 13:53-58 and Mark 6:1-6, entered on without
bias, and conducted solelyfrom the narratives themselves, surely can hardly
fail to convince us of their identity. (1) That two such visits should have
happened, is of itself not impossible; though (with the sole exceptionof
Jerusalemfor obvious reasons)our Lord did not ordinarily revisit the places
where He had been rejectedas in our Luke 4:28-29. (2) That He should have
been thus treated at His first visit, and then marvelled at their unbelief on His
second, is utterly impossible. (Stier, in the 2nd ed. of his Reden Jesu, says,
with reference to the above position of mine, “To this we give a very simple
answer:It was at their persistence in unbelief, after their first emotion and
confusion, after His continued teaching and working of miracles, that He
wondered.” But it may fairly be rejoined, is there any signof this in the
narratives of Matt. and Mark? Is it not a forcing of their spirit to suit a
preconceivednotion?) (3) That the same question should have been askedon

both occasions,and answeredby our Lord with the same proverbial
expression, is in the highest degree improbable. (4) Besides, this narrative
itself bears internal marks of belonging to a later period. The ὅσα ἠκούσ. γεν.
εἰς τὴν καφαρν. must refer to more than one miracle done there: indeed the
whole form of the sentence points to the plain fact, that our Lord had been
residing long in Capernaum. Compare too its introduction here without any
notification, with its description as πόλιν τῆς γαλ. in Luke 4:31, and the
separateness ofthe two pieces will be apparent: see further remarks in the
notes below.
Here howeveris omitted an important cycle of our Lord’s sayings and doings,
both in Galilee and Jerusalem;viz. that containedin John 1:29 to John 4:54
included. This will be shewnby comparing Matthew 4:12, where it is stated
that our Lord’s return to Galilee was afterthe casting of John into prison,
with John 3:24, where, on occasionofthe Lord and the disciples baptizing in
Judæa, it is said, John was not yet castinto prison: see note on Matthew 4:12.
φήμη]The report, namely, of His miracles in Capernaum, wrought ἐν τῇ δυν.
τ. πν., and possibly of what He had done and taught at Jerusalematthe feast.
Copyright Statement
Bibliography
Alford, Henry. "Commentary on Luke 4:14". Greek TestamentCritical
ExegeticalCommentary.
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/hac/luke-4.html. 1863-1878.
Heinrich Meyer's Critical and ExegeticalCommentaryon the New Testament
Luke 4:14. Comp. on Matthew 4:12; Mark 1:14. The public Galilaean
ministry of Jesus begins, Luke 4:14 forming the introduction, after which, in

Luke 4:15 ff., the detailed narrative follows. Schleiermacher, Schr. d. Luk. p.
50, arbitrarily, and contrary to the analogyof the parallels, says:that Luke
4:15 f. was the conclusionof a document which embracedthe baptism, the
genealogy, andthe temptation.
ἐν τ. δυνάμ. τοῦ πν.] invested with the powerof the Holy Spirit: “post
victoriam corroboratus,” Bengel.
καὶ φήμη κ. τ. λ.] and rumour went forth, etc., not anticipating what follows in
Luke 4:15 (de Wette);but it is the rumour of the return of the man who had
been so distinguished at his baptism, and had then for upwards of forty days
been concealedfrom view, that is meant.
καθʼὅλης κ. τ. λ.] round about the whole neighbourhood, Acts 8:31; Acts
8:40.
Copyright Statement
Bibliography
Meyer, Heinrich. "Commentary on Luke 4:14". Heinrich Meyer's Critical
and ExegeticalCommentaryon the New Testament.
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/hmc/luke-4.html. 1832.
Johann Albrecht Bengel's Gnomonof the New Testament
Luke 4:14. ἐν τῇ δυνάμει τοῦ πνεύματος, in the power of the Spirit) Being
strengthened[the more] after His victory.— φήμη, a fame) Men felt [in His
speaking]the powerof the Spirit: see Luke 4:15 [and this, even before that He
exhibited in that region so many miracles as He subsequently performed.—V.
g.]

Copyright Statement
Bibliography
Bengel, JohannAlbrecht. "Commentary on Luke 4:14". Johann Albrecht
Bengel's Gnomonof the New Testament.
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/jab/luke-4.html. 1897.
Matthew Poole's EnglishAnnotations on the Holy Bible
Ver. 14,15. BothMatthew and Mark make the occasionofour Saviour’s going
into Galilee to be his hearing that John was castinto prison. But certainly
Matthew and Mark speak of a secondgoing into Galilee, and mean by it
Galilee of the Gentiles, which was in the jurisdiction of Philip, the brother of
Herod Antipas. Else one might admire, why Christ should go into Galilee
upon hearing that John was castinto prison; that had been for him to have
thrown himself into Herod’s mouth, before that his time of suffering was
come;but it should seemthat after his temptations, he first went to
Capernaum, where he did not stay many days, John 2:12, and then to
Nazareth, which was his own country. But others think that all the evangelists
speak of a secondgoing into Galilee, which I cannot agree if Nazarethwere
within that Galilee which was called the Lower Galilee, and was within the
jurisdiction of Herod Antipas, who was the tetrarch of Galilee, and the man
that had imprisoned John, and afterwards causedhim to be beheaded.
And he taught in their synagogues:he had the reputation of a prophet, which
procured him that liberty of speaking in all those places, where the Jews
celebratedtheir public worship;
being glorified, that is, admired and honoured, of all.
Copyright Statement

Bibliography
Poole, Matthew, "Commentaryon Luke 4:14". Matthew Poole's English
Annotations on the Holy Bible.
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/mpc/luke-4.html. 1685.
Justin Edwards' Family Bible New Testament
In the powerof the Spirit; under his powerful supports, and amid the displays
of his influence.
Copyright Statement
Bibliography
Edwards, Justin. "Commentary on Luke 4:14". "Family Bible New
Testament". https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/fam/luke-4.html.
American Tract Society. 1851.
Cambridge Greek Testamentfor Schools andColleges
14. καὶ ὑπέστρεψεν ὁ Ἰησοῦς. St Luke here omits that series ofoccurrences
which is mainly preserved for us by the Apostle who recordedthe Judaean
ministry—St John; namely the deputation of the Sanhedrin to the Baptist
(Luke 1:19-28), and his testimony about the baptism of Jesus (29–34);the call
of Andrew and Simon (35–43);of Philip and Nathanael(44–51);the First
Miracle, at Cana, and visit to Capernaum (Luke 2:1-12); the Passoverat
Jerusalemand first cleansing of the Temple (Luke 2:13-25);the secretvisit of

Nicodemus (Luke 3:1-21); the baptism of the disciples of Jesus, and the
Baptist’s remarks to his disciples (Luke 3:22-36). St Luke has already
mentioned by anticipation the imprisonment of John the Baptist (Luke 3:19-
20), which probably hastenedthe return of Jesus to Galilee;but St John alone
preserves the deeply interesting revelation to the Woman of Samaria, and the
preaching among the Samaritans (John 4:4-42). This must have occurred
during the journey from Judaea to Galilee mentioned in this verse.
εἰς τὴν Γαλιλαίαν. This district was the starting-point and main centre of our
Lord’s ministry: see Acts 10:37, “which was published throughout all Judaea,
and beganfrom Galilee.” Luke 23:5, “He stirreth up the people, beginning
from Galilee.” Forthe order of the narrative from this point to Luke 9:51 see
the introductory analysis. It is not possible to arrange this sectionof the gospel
(Luke 4:14 to Luke 9:50) with reference to the gathering and deepening
opposition as Ritschl does. It is rather to be divided with reference to the
gradual development of the work in Galilee. Godetdivides it into four cycles:
1. 4:14–44. To the call of the first Disciples.
2. 5:1–6:11. To the nomination of the Twelve.
3. 6:12–8:56. To the first mission of the Twelve.
4. 9:1–50. To the departure of Jesus forJerusalem.
Copyright Statement
Bibliography
"Commentary on Luke 4:14". "Cambridge Greek TestamentforSchools and
Colleges".https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/cgt/luke-4.html.
1896.

Whedon's Commentary on the Bible
PERIOD THIRD.
THE PREPARATORYMINISTRY, Luke 4:14 to Luke 6:11.
Historical Synopsis (Vol. 1,) § 19-§ 34.
From the temptation Jesus returns to the Jordan, receives John’s attestation,
and thence taking his first journey to Galilee, performs his first miracle at
Cana, and then fixes his residence at Capernaum.
He soongoes to his first PassoveratJerusalem, cleansesthe temple, discourses
with Nicodemus, and departing into easternJudea, baptizes coordinately with
John. But upon hearing of John’s imprisonment he retires a SECOND TIME
through Samaria (passing Jacob’s well)into Galilee. While thus in Galilee the
first visit to Nazarethtakes place, which Luke is about to narrate. The main
events of this interval are omitted by Luke.
§ 23. JESUS RETIRES TO GALILEE AFTER JOHN’S IMPRISONMENT.
Matthew 4:12; Mark 1:14; John 4:1-42.
14. And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit—From this field of battle
Jesus returned to John at Jordan (John 1:19) to receive from him the full
acknowledgment, by the power of the Spirit, of being the Messiahand atoning
Lamb.
Jesus returned—From the wilderness of the temptation.
Into Galilee—Onhis first journey; Luke omits the visit to John at the Jordan.
Copyright Statement
Bibliography

Whedon, Daniel. "Commentary on Luke 4:14". "Whedon's Commentary on
the Bible". https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/whe/luke-4.html.
1874-1909.
Schaff's Popular Commentary on the New Testament
Luke 4:14. Returned, from Judea. See Matthew 4:12; Mark 1:14. The return
was after John had been put in prison, and (according to Andrews) after he
had been opposedin Judea (see John5).
In the powerof the Spirit. With the victory overSatan new spiritual poweris
contrasted.
A fame, etc. In consequence ofHis teaching (Luke 4:15), or His miracles.
What had previously occurredat Jerusalem(according to John’s account)
would occasionsucha fame; indeed the brief narrative implies many things
not mentioned here.
Copyright Statement
Bibliography
Schaff, Philip. "Commentary on Luke 4:14". "Schaff's PopularCommentary
on the New Testament".
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/scn/luke-4.html. 1879-90.
The Expositor's Greek Testament

Luke 4:14. ὑπέστρεψεν, as in Luke 4:1, frequently used by Lk.— ἐν τῇ
δυνάμει τ. π., in the power of the Spirit; still as full of the Spirit as at the
baptism. Spiritual powernot weakenedby temptation, rather strengthened:
post victoriam corroboratus, Bengel.— φήμη (here and in Matthew 9:26),
report, causedby the exercise ofthe δύναμις, implying a ministry of which no
details are here given (so Schanz, Godet, J. Weiss, etc.). Meyerthinks of the
fame of the Man who had been baptised with remarkable accompaniments;
Hahn of the altered transfigured appearance ofJesus.
Copyright Statement
Bibliography
Nicol, W. Robertson, M.A., L.L.D. "Commentary on Luke 4:14". The
Expositor's Greek Testament.
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/egt/luke-4.html. 1897-1910.
E.W. Bullinger's Companion Bible Notes
power. Greek. dunamis. App-172.
there went out a fame, &c. In Luke (as in the other Gospels)only those events
are selectedwhich tend to illustrate the specialpresentationof the Lord and
His ministry. Compare the commencing events of each: Matthew 4:13. Mark
1:14. Mark 4:14-30, and John 1:19-43. Forthis fourfold ministry, see App-
119. Thus this first period commences andits subject, as stated more precisely
in verses:Luke 4:43, Luke 4:44.
fame = report. Greek. pheme. Not the same word as in Luke 4:37.
of = concerning. Greek. peri. App-104.
through. Greek. kata. App-104.

Copyright Statement
Bibliography
Bullinger, Ethelbert William. "Commentary on Luke 4:14". "E.W.
Bullinger's Companion bible Notes".
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/bul/luke-4.html. 1909-1922.
The Bible Study New Testament
Then Jesus returned to Galilee. Forthe events before the return, see note on
Matthew 4:12. And the power of the Holy Spirit was with him. He had
conquered Satanin the Temptation. Conquering evil gives new strength.
Copyright Statement
Bibliography
Ice, Rhoderick D. "Commentary on Luke 4:14". "The Bible Study New
Testament". https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/ice/luke-4.html.
College Press, Joplin, MO. 1974.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers
(14) Returned in the powerof the Spirit.—The phrase, which meets us again
in Romans 15:13, indicates a new phase of the life of the Son of Man, a change
from its former tenor as striking as that which passedover the Apostles on the

day of Pentecost, whennew powers of thought and utterance were developed
which had before been latent.
END OF STUDYLIGHT RESOURCES
Biblical Commentary
(Bible study)
Luke 4:14-21
EXEGESIS:
LUKE 4:14-44. THE OVERTURE TO LUKE-ACTS
Luke’s accountof Jesus visit to the synagogue atNazarethis basedon Mark
6:1-6 (as is Matthew 13:54-58), but there are significant differences that
transform Luke’s accountinto a different story with a different purpose.
• Luke moves the Nazareth synagogue storyto the beginning of Jesus’
ministry, immediately following his baptism (3:21-22)and temptation (4:1-
13). He does so for emphasis. Verses 14-44 serve as a paradigm (model) for
Luke-Acts. Like an overture to a musical work, they introduce themes on
which Luke will expand later, telling us what to expectfrom Jesus and the
early church. In particular, Luke emphasizes Jesus’empowermentby the
Holy Spirit (v. 14), the importance of his teaching ministry (vv. 15-30), and his
miracles (vv. 31-44).
• Luke adds the quotations from Isaiah. These verses announce the nature of
Jesus’ministry and set the tone for Luke-Acts. Jesus’preaching in Luke has a
different emphasis than in Mark, where he says, “The time is fulfilled, and the
Kingdom of God is at hand! Repent, and believe in the GoodNews” (Mark
1:15). In Luke’s version of this synagogue story, Jesus doesnot callpeople to

repentance. However, he will have much to say about repentance elsewhere in
this Gospel(5:32; 13:3, 5; 15:7; 16:30;17:3; 24:47).
• Then Luke adds the favorable mention of the widow at Zaraphath (1 Kings
17:8-16)and Naamanthe Syrian (1 Kings 17:8-16;2 Kings 5:1-19)—righteous
Gentiles of the Old Testament(vv. 22-30). This emphasizes, atthe beginning
of Jesus’ministry, God’s openness to Gentiles. This favorable mention of
Gentiles offends the hometown crowdand leads to an attempt on Jesus’life—
preparing us, at the beginning, for the continuing opposition to Jesus and his
eventual crucifixion.
• Then Luke tells of the exorcismof a demon (vv. 31-37)and healings at
Simon’s house (vv. 38-41)—miraclesthat complement his teachings.
• Then Luke tells of Jesus proclaiming goodnews in the synagoguesofJudea
(vv. 42-44)—thus forming an inclusio (a bracketing that marks the beginning
and ending of a section)with the Nazarethsynagogue story(vv. 16 ff.). Green
points out another inclusio—vv. 16a and 30—Jesus’entry into and departure
from Nazareth(Green, 208).
In summary, this sectionre-emphasizes Jesus’empowermentby the Spirit (v.
14; see also 1:35;3:22; 4:1). It then introduces his teaching (vv. 15-30)and his
miracles (vv. 31-44), the two primary components of his ministry prior to his
Passion. It introduces his concernfor the vulnerable (vv. 18-19)and his
openness to Gentiles (vv. 24-28)—themesthat will permeate this Gospel. His
short sermon at Nazareth(vv. 18-21)thus serves as his mission statement—
given further impetus by his comment at the end of the chapter, “I must
preach the goodnews of the Kingdom of God to the other cities also. Forthis
reasonI have been sent” (v. 43).
LUKE 4:14-16ab. JESUS TAUGHT IN THEIR SYNAGOGUES
14Jesusreturned in the powerof the Spirit into Galilee, and news about him
spread through all the surrounding area. 15He taught in their synagogues,
being glorified by all.
16abHe came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up. He entered, as was
his custom, into the synagogue on the Sabbath day,

Verses 14-15 serve as a transition betweenJesus’temptation and his
appearance in the Nazarethsynagogue.
“Jesus returned in the powerof the Spirit” (v.14a). Luke has told us that
Jesus was conceivedby the Holy Spirit (1:35)—and that Zechariah, filled with
the Holy Spirit, prophesiedof Jesus that God “has raisedup a horn of
salvationfor us in the house of his servant David” (1:69)—and that the Holy
Spirit rested on Simeon as he held the baby Jesus in his arms and praised God
for allowing him to see God’s salvation(2:27-30)—andthat the Spirit
descendedon Jesus athis baptism (3:21-22)—but he now deems it important
to remind us once again that Jesus’ministry is Spirit-powered.
“into Galilee” (v.14b). Galilee, the northernmost province of the Jewish
people, has been at the forefront of this Gospelfrom the beginning. It was in
Galilee that the angeltold Mary that she had found favor with God and would
bear a son whom she would name Jesus (1:26ff.). Josephand Mary went from
Nazarethof Galilee, where they were living, to Bethlehem to be enrolled in the
census (2:4ff.). Joseph, Mary, and Jesus returned to Galilee after Jesus’birth
(2:39). Luke tells us that Herod was the ruler of Galilee (3:1).
Galilee is significantbecause of its insignificance. Jesus did not grow up in
Jerusalem, the centerof Jewishlife and religious practice. Instead, he grew up
in Galilee, the hinterlands, a place where many Gentiles live—a nowhere place
as far as the religious elite are concerned. He will carry out the major portion
of his ministry in Galilee. Luke will note that the womenwho observe Jesus’
crucifixion and burial are from Galilee (Luke 23:49;23:55).
“and news about him spread through all the surrounding area” (v. 14c). This
is the first of severalreports of people being amazed by Jesus and his growing
fame (4:32, 36-37;5:15; 7:17; 9:43).
“He taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all” (v. 15). Jewishworship
takes place at the Jerusalemtemple and at synagogues in eachcommunity.
Temple worship focuses onritual and sacrifice;synagogue worshipinvolves
prayers, scripture readings, and teaching. For most Jews, temple worship is
something that they experience, at best, a few times a year. Many Jews can
only hope to make one Jerusalempilgrimage in their lifetime. Local

synagoguesmeettheir need for regularworship. The synagoguesplacedless
emphasis on ritual and more emphasis on teaching spiritual values.
Synagoguesstronglyinfluenced early Christian worship.
This verse makes it clearthat Jesus’ministry was well underway before he
visited his boyhood hometown synagogue in Nazareth. We don’t know which
synagogueshe had visited or what he had taught, but a comment later in this
sermon tells us that he has done impressive work in Capernaum, his
hometown as an adult (4:23).
“He came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up” (v. 16). Matthew tells
us that, early in his adult life, Jesus moved from Nazarethto Capernaum
(Matthew 4:13), so his visit to Nazarethis just that—a visit. However, it is the
visit of a hometown boy made good. Some people will be proud of him—
others curious—others dismissive or jealous.
“He entered, as was his custom, into the synagogue onthe Sabbath day” (v.
16a). Luke establishes Jesus’deeprootedness in Jewishreligious tradition and
his faithfulness to the synagogue and Sabbath observance. The centerof
Jewishworship historically was the temple in Jerusalem. However, during the
Babylonian Exile and the Diaspora (the geographicalscattering ofthe Jews),
Jews establishedlocalsynagoguesso that they might worship regularly. While
the emphasis of temple worship was animal sacrifice, synagogue worship
focusedon teaching and prayer.
“as was his custom” (v. 16a)is a phrase pregnant with preaching possibilities.
With the circumcision, purification and presentationin the temple (2:21-24)
and the annual visits to the temple (2:41-51), Luke has establishedthat Mary
and Josephwere observantof Jewishreligious traditions. They surely raised
Jesus from infancy in the synagogue, connecting him with Jewishtradition in
a way that made the synagogues a natural starting place for his ministry.
Their faithfulness in raising Jesus within this tradition helped to shape the
person that he was, and is an important part of our salvationhistory.
Jesus’lifetime immersion in the synagogue has alreadypaid dividends.
Earlier in this chapter, Jesus was tempted in the wilderness. He responded to
the tempter, “It is written!” He had learned the scriptures in the synagogue,

and they became his swordand shield when confronted by the devil. There is
an important lessonhere. All of us have wilderness experiences, whether
temptation, grief, or some other adversity. Wilderness experiences seldom
telegraphtheir coming—we cannotexpect a week to prepare. Their outcome
will depend on the state of our readiness at the moment that the challenge
comes. In some cases, ourvery lives—spiritual and physical—will be at stake.
Mary and Josephprovide an excellentmodel for us to follow in raising our
own children. Parents who bring newborn babies to worship in plastic infant
carriers do a goodwork. They come to church againstthe odds, because it is
not easyto getthemselves, the baby, and the necessaryparaphernalia ready
for church. During worship, the baby will sometimes distractthe mother.
Parents are tempted to ask if it is worth it, but great oaks from tiny acorns
grow. Parents who worship regularly give their children greatfaith-
advantage. The baby who becomes accustomedto church in infancy is likely
to enjoy strong faith as an adult.
LUKE 4:16c-19. THE SPIRIT OF THE LORD IS ON ME
16c and stood up to read. 17The book of the prophet Isaiah was handed to
him. He opened the book, and found the place where it was written,
18“The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
because he has anointed me to preach goodnews to the poor.
He has sent me to heal the brokenhearted,
to proclaim release to the captives,
recovering of sight to the blind,
to deliver those who are crushed,
19andto proclaim the acceptable yearof the Lord.”
“and stoodup to read. The book of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him” (v.
16c-17). This is our oldest detailed accountof synagogue worship. The
language would be Aramaic, the language of ordinary Jewishpeople during
Jesus’lifetime. A portion of the Torahwould be read in Hebrew, and a

Targum or explanation would be given in Aramaic, followed by a reading
from the Prophets with explanation. Other elements of worship would include
the recitationof the Shema (Deuteronomy 6:49), the EighteenBenedictions, a
psalm, and a benediction (Evans, NIBC, 73; Bock, 88;Stein, 155)
There is some question whether Jesus follows a lectionaryor selectshis own
text. There is some evidence that the Law is read in a cycle, but that the
reader chooses the reading from the Prophets (Gilmour, 90). “He…found the
place where it was written” (v. 17) sounds as if Jesus chooseshis ownreading.
In the synagogue, there is no professionalclergy. The president of the
synagogue invites someone to comment on the scriptures. While the people are
more biblically literate than most churchgoers today, most commentary
would probably be rote recitationof lessons learnedin synagogue school.The
main question would be whether the readerwill getit right. The main
suspense would be whether someone will have to correcthim. When Jesus
speaks, itis a very different experience, becausehe speaks with authority
(4:32).
“The Spirit of the Lord is on me” (v. 18a;see also v. 14). Jesus quotes
primarily from Isaiah61:1-2. The phrase “recovering ofsight to the blind” is
not quoted directly from the Old Testament, but appears to be inspired by
Isaiah35:5 or 42:7. The phrase, “to deliver those who are crushed,” is from
Isaiah58:6. Jesus omits Isaiah 61:2b, which speaks of“the day of vengeance
of our God,” because the emphasis of his Nazareth homily is salvation, not
judgment. Judgment will come later.
“he has anointed me” (v. 18). Jesus was anointedat his baptism, where the
Spirit descendedupon him like a dove and the voice from heaven said, “You
are my beloved Son. In you I am well pleased” (3:22).
“to preachgoodnews to the poor” (v. 18b). Is Jesus talking about spiritual or
economic poverty? He is almost certainly talking about outsiders, people of
low status, vulnerable people—whethertheir problems stem from economic
poverty or other causes. Jesus has a mission to the poor, the captives, the
blind, and the oppressed, categoriesthat indicate the breadth of his concern
for people in need.

“to proclaim release to the captives” (v. 18c). Luke illustrates what this means
by the first of Jesus’miracles in this Gospel—the cleansingofa man possessed
by a demon (vv. 31-37). While we tend not to believe in demons today, we are
confronted daily with stories of demonic behavior.
Captives would also include people imprisoned for debt, another outgrowthof
poverty.
“recovering ofsight to the blind” (v. 18d). In this Gospel, Jesus will restore the
sight of blind people (7:21-22;18:35-43), and will also tell prideful people to
“ask the poor, the maimed, the lame, or the blind” to come their banquet table
(14:13).
Jesus’interestis not limited to physical sight, but encompassesspiritual vision
as well (6:41-42;7:44; 8:16; 9:27; 10:23;11:33; 12:54-56;17:22;21:27-31).
Later, Jesus will give Saul/Paulhis mission—“to opentheir eyes, that they
may turn from darkness to light and from the powerof Satanto God, that
they may receive remissionof sins and an inheritance among those who are
sanctifiedby faith in me” (Acts 26:18—alsowritten by Luke). The emphasis in
that verse clearly has to do with spiritual vision.
“to proclaim release to the captives” (v. 18e). Is it too much to say that only
those who have experiencedoppressioncan fully appreciate whatit means to
be free? Archbishop DesmondTutu who grew up under apartheid in South
Africa says, “There’s nothing ever to equal being free. You can’t put a money
value to being free, to be able to wake up in a country and not have to say, ‘Do
I have my pass on me?’ ‘Am I allowedto go there?’ ‘Can I take my children
to that school?'” He tells of walking past a playground with his daughter and
having to stop her from playing on the swings. She would protest, “But there
are other children there.” He says, “You got quite sick having to say, ‘Yes,
there are other children there, but they are not quite children like you'”
(Tunku Varadarajan, “The Archbishop,” The Wall StreetJournal, Dec. 30-
31, 2006).
“and to proclaim the acceptable yearof the Lord” (v. 19). Isaiah wrote these
words originally as encouragementfor Jewishpeople in exile. The salvationof
which Isaiah spoke is now to be found in Jesus (Fitzmyer, 533).

The acceptable yearof the Lord could refer to the Jubilee year. The Torah
requires Jewishpeople, every sabbath year, to let their land lie fallow, to
forgive debts, and to free slaves (Exodus 21:1-6;23:10-11;Deuteronomy15:1-
18). The Jubilee year is a sabbath-sabbathyear—seventimes sevenyears. The
Torahrequires Jewishpeople, in the Jubilee Year, to return ancestrallands to
their historic owners (Leviticus 25:8-17). With this requirement, God showed
his concernfor people at the lower end of the economic spectrum. These
provisions are designedto reduce the disadvantage of the poor—to insure that
the wealthycannot accumulate all the land and consolidate allof the power. It
is a provision that should gladden the hearts of anyone in need, but “the year
of the Lord’s favor” suggeststhat the opportunity is time-limited. They/we
must acceptgrace while it is available.
These Isaiahverses give Jesus his commission—his missionstatement—his
guiding beacon. Isaiah61 is a servant song, and proclaims that the Messiah
will bring relief to the disenfranchised. It is also the church’s commission.
Throughout Luke-Acts, we will see Jesus andthe church bringing goodnews,
proclaiming release, restoring sight, and freeing the oppressed. It is also our
commission. Jesus calls his church to love the unlovely and to serve the
undeserving. It is not a comfortable discipleship.
The goodnews is not the exclusive possessionofthe poor, the blind, and the
oppressed. Theywill, however, hearthe Gospelmore gladly than others,
because they have much to gain and little to lose. The status quo has no hold
on them. The rich, the powerful, and those who perceive themselves to see
clearly, will not be nearly as receptive. They will, in fact, be the ones who kill
Jesus. In this Gospel, Jesus willspeak often about rich people (1:53; 6:24;
12:16-21;14:12-13;16:1-9;16:19-31;18:18-25;19:1-10;21:1-4). With the
exceptionof Zacchaeus (19:1-10), suchreferencesare negative. Jesus will
warn:
“Forit is easierfor a camelto enter in through a needle’s eye,
than for a rich man to enter into the Kingdom of God” (18:25).
As we read these words from Isaiah, we must remember that poverty,
captivity, and blindness have both physical and spiritual dimensions. It is bad

to have an empty wallet, but worse to have an empty soul. Captivity is
terrible, but Bonhoefferand others have shown that it is possible to remain
free in the midst of horrific confinement. Athletes and actors, struggling to
free themselves from drugs, manifest true slavery. Helen Keller was blind
from infancy, but her words and actions demonstrate a clearvision that sees
to the very core of life.
These verses from Isaiahhold promise, not only for the poor, but also for all
Jewishpeople. Roman soldiers are garrisonedin their land to insure that
Roman law is honored and Roman taxes are collected. The Jewishpeople are
not in a position to chart their own course or to determine their own destiny.
With regard to political power, the nation is poor, captive, and oppressed.
They desperatelyneed the salvationthat Jesus promises.
However, the people of Nazareth will reject Jesus’gospelbecause his vision
extends to Gentiles as well as Jews (vv. 22-30). Jesushas come to restore the
sight of the blind (v. 18), but the people of Nazarethinsist on preserving their
narrow vision.
LUKE 4:20-21. TODAY, THIS SCRIPTURE HAS BEEN FULFILLED
20He closedthe book, gave it back to the attendant, and satdown. The eyes of
all in the synagogue were fastenedonhim. 21He beganto tell them, “Today,
this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”
“and sat down” (v 20). In the synagogue service, people would stand to read
the scriptures and sit to teach.
“Today, this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing” (v. 21). Jesus’
preaching begins with the word “Today.”
• Today the Spirit of the Lord is upon me.
• Today I bring goodnews to the poor.
• Today I proclaim release to the captives and recoveryof sight to the blind.
• Today I let the oppressedgo free to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.

This is one of the world’s shortestsermons, but it packs lots of punch. The
people of Israelhave waited for centuries for the fulfillment of promises that
God made throughout their history, beginning with Abraham (Genesis 12:1-
3). Now Jesus declaresthat the wait is over—thatthe day has come—thatthe
promises are fulfilled—that salvationis nigh! This is indeed goodnews (v. 43).
The fulfillment of this scripture beganwith the life, death, and resurrectionof
Jesus but continues in the life of the church today. All over the world, the
church is bringing goodnews to the poor, proclaiming release to the captives,
helping the blind to recovertheir sight, helping to free the oppressed, and
proclaiming the year of the Lord’s favor (vv. 18-19). Whether championing
human rights or providing relief funds for hurricane victims or drilling a well
for the people of a primitive village or training indigenous people for ministry,
the church is helping Jesus to fulfill what he identified in these verses as a core
part of his mission.
SCRIPTURE QUOTATIONSare from the World English Bible (WEB), a
public domain (no copyright) modern Englishtranslation of the Holy Bible.
The World English Bible is basedon the American Standard Version (ASV)
of the Bible, the Biblia Hebraica Stutgartensa Old Testament, and the Greek
Majority Text New Testament. The ASV, which is also in the public domain
due to expired copyrights, was a very goodtranslation, but included many
archaic words (hast, shineth, etc.), which the WEB has updated.
Luke 4:1-14
Listen to this sermon
This is the secondmessage in our new series on the Holy Spirit. Last Sunday
we talked about John 3:8 and how the Holy Spirit is the wind—invisible,
unpredictable, uncontrollable. He comes and goes as he wishes;no one can
control his movements. He alone cangive life to the spiritually dead. He alone
can bring us the new birth we all need. Without the Holy Spirit, no one will
ever come to Christ, and without the Holy Spirit we cannot live the Christian

life. When we pray for revival, we are asking the Holy Spirit to blow upon us
in a new and powerful way. We ended the service last Sunday on our knees, as
hundreds of people came forward to kneelat the front of the sanctuary,
asking Godto renew the powerof his Spirit in our midst.
This Sunday we take the next step by looking at the work of the Holy Spirit in
the life of the Lord Jesus Christ. That’s a huge topic so we will confine
ourselves to the events surrounding the temptation of Jesus in the wilderness.
As we study the story, keep in mind that Luke presents the Lord Jesus as the
perfect man and the model we should follow. In order to fully understand
what happened in the wilderness, we need to start before the temptation and
continue after the temptation. Our focus is not on the devil but on the Holy
Spirit and the role he played in the life of Christ before, during and after the
temptation. Five words summarize what happened.
I. Obedience
Our story begins with an actof obedience. Luke 3:21-22 tells us that “whenall
the people were being baptized, Jesus was baptized too.” Matthew 3:13-15
tells us that his baptism was an actof righteousness. He fulfilled the Father’s
will by publicly identifying himself with the nation of Israel. By submitting to
baptism, even though he had no sins to confess, he took a stepof obedience
that said to the people, “I am one with you.”
II. Assurance
While Jesus was being baptized, two extraordinary things happened. First, the
Holy Spirit descendedupon him in the form of a dove. Second, the Father
spoke from heaven with words of divine approval: “You are my Son, whom I
love; with you I am well pleased” (v. 22). The entire Trinity is revealedat this
point: Jesus as the Son of God, the Holy Spirit descending like a dove, and the
voice of the Father. What greaterassurance couldthere be that Jesus is truly
the Messiah?

III. Testing
Immediately following the story of the baptism, Luke inserts a lengthy
genealogythatstarts with Jesus and goes back to “Adam, the sonof God” (v.
38). Then we come to the story of the temptation (Luke 4:1-11). So the order
in Luke’s gospellooks like this:
Baptism
Genealogy
Temptation
Luke inserts the genealogybecausehe wants to demonstrate that where Adam
failed in his greattest in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3:1-6), Jesus will now
decisivelydefeat the devil.
The first Adam failed.
The secondAdam succeeded.
The one true “Sonof God” will now square off againstthe archenemy of the
universe. As the text reveals, it won’t be a fair fight. Jesus utterly defeats the
devil at every turn.
IV. Power
After the time of testing is over, Luke 4:14 tells us that Jesus returned to
Galilee “in the powerof the Spirit.” As news about him spread from town to
town, “everyone praisedhim” (v. 15). However you wish to explain it,
something happened to Jesus in the wilderness. He not only defeatedthe devil,
he returned from his victory in the powerof the Spirit.
V. Freedom

He now goes to the synagogue onthe Sabbath in his hometownof Nazareth.
Standing up, he beganto read from Isaiah 61:1, “The Spirit of the Lord is on
me because he has anointed me” (Luke 4:18). After finishing the reading, he
makes an audacious (and entirely true) claim in verse 21, “Todaythis
scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.” At first they loved his gracious words
(v. 21), but later they tried to throw him off a cliff (v. 29). From Nazareth, he
went to Capernaum, a fishing village on the northern edge of the Sea of
Galilee. When he spoke on the Sabbath to the people, “Theywere amazed at
his teaching, because his messagehad authority” (v. 32).
I thought about what word to use for this final stepin the story and I couldn’t
quite make up my mind. The word “boldness” came to mind, as did the word
“certainty.” I settledon the word “freedom” because it seemedto encapsulate
the fullness of Jesus’ministry. Becausehe is moving in the powerof the Holy
Spirit, he is completely free to speak the truth with boldness and without fear
of what men might do to him.
Stand back and look at the sequence for a moment:
Obedience … Assurance … Testing … Power… Freedom
Luke makes it clearthat these things happened in a certain order because
Jesus is modeling for us what it means to live in close connectionto God. He
obeys and the Spirit descends. The Fatherspeaks profound words of
assurance. Immediatelyhe is led into the wilderness. He comes out of that
ordealin the power of the Spirit. His freedom to speak the truth with
authority endears him to many people and enrages others.
Two Wrong Assumptions
Let’s focus for a moment on his temptation. Luke 4:1 mentions the Holy Spirit
twice:“Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by
the Spirit in the desert.” The word “led” has the idea of being led by the hand.
In a parallel passagein Mark 1:12, a different Greek word is used that means
to “drive,” which is why some translations say that the Spirit “drove” Jesus
into the wilderness. It doesn’t mean that Jesus wentunwillingly, but it does

indicate that this showdownwith the devil does not happen by accident. We
should think of it this way: The Spirit led Jesus to the wilderness, through the
wilderness, and out of the wilderness. There was nevera moment when he left
Jesus. Evenin his weakenedcondition physically, Jesus had the Holy Spirit
upon him as he facedthe devil. This conclusivelyrefutes two wrong
assumptions often made about the temptation of Jesus:
Wrong Assumption #1:That Jesus agonizedgreatly over the temptations of
the devil. But the text does not read that way. The devil tempted him and
Jesus immediately defeated him eachtime with the Word of God. Jesus did
experience true agonyof soul much later in the Garden of Gethsemane as he
contemplated the terrible costof bearing the wrath of God for the sins of the
world. That was true agony. The wilderness was true temptation, but Jesus
did not agonize. It was as if he said to the devil, “Hit me with your best shot,”
and then, “Is that all you’ve got?” Thoughphysically depleted by his 40 days
of fasting, he brushed the devil aside the way a dog brushes awaya flea.
Wrong Assumption #2:That the devil was in control of the whole situation. A
cursory reading of the text might lead you to that conclusion. But the context
makes it clearthat the Spirit intentionally led Jesus into the wilderness in
order to do battle with the devil. Jesus did not shrink from this desert
warfare. Nordo I believe the devil welcomedit. The devil prefers to work
behind the scenes through secondarycauses. Bygoing into the desert, Jesus
flushed out his adversaryand made him “fight like a man.” Thus exposed, the
devil was easilydefeatedby the Son of God.
Take a moment to compare verse 1 with verse 14.
Jesus was “full of the Spirit” when he went into the desert.
Jesus came out of the desert“in the power of the Spirit.”
Something happened to Jesus as a result of his victory over the devil. The
Holy Spirit’s powerbecame evident and obvious in his life in a new way. In
thinking about this, it helps to remember that Jesus was truly human. If Jesus
as a man could grow in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and man

(Luke 2:52), then as a man he could grow in his experience of the Holy Spirit.
I freely admit this is a mystery we cannotbegin to understand, but Luke
wants us to know that Jesus wentinto the desertfull of the Spirit, and he came
out of the desert in the powerof the Spirit. Both before and after, he was fully
possessedby the Spirit and fully led by the Spirit, but having defeatedthe
devil, the Spirit’s power became very pronounced in his life. It is the
difference betweentruth understood and truth expressed. As a man, his life
had new impact upon the people (they all praised him) after his victory over
the devil.
But should this surprise us? Is not this our experience as well? When we face
temptation successfully, when we refuse to lowerour standards, when we say
no to sin and yes to righteousness,whenwe refrain from evil words that we
are tempted to say, after we have passedthe fiery trial, do we not come out of
that experience with new confidence? Years ago I read a little poem that
speaks to this point:
Here is a fact
That should help you fight a bit longer:
The things that don’t kill you outright
Just make you stronger.
Why We NeedTemptation
That leads me to a crucial principle we all need to learn. God uses temptation
to release spiritual powerin your life. Martin Luther once remarked that in
making a minister of God, three things are required:
Meditation … Prayer … Temptation

The first refers to meditation on the Word of God. The secondis self-evident.
But what does he mean by “temptation?” Does he mean that we should go
looking for the devil in order to pick a fight with him? No, not at all. But
neither should we run from our spiritual battles. No one can evergrow
spiritually without facing strong temptations. I’m using the word
“temptation” as synonymous with “trial” because the Greek word canbe
translated both ways. Temptationto most of us means a solicitationto do evil.
But any trial can become a temptation if we give in to our anger, if we lose our
temper, if we break our promises, if we compromise our values, if we trade in
our integrity, if we hide like cowards insteadof standing up for what we
believe. You could say it this way: The same event will often be both a
temptation and a trial. What God gives to us as a trial or a test, Satanalmost
always uses as a temptation. The very same event may be both a trial and test
to you and also a temptation from Satan. God uses it to accomplishone thing
in your life and Satanat the very same time is working through that event to
try to accomplishsomething diametrically opposite. Very often God allows a
trial to come for a positive purpose, but Satantries to co-opt it for his own evil
reasons. The temptation of Jesus offers a clearexample of this principle. We
know that the devil came to Jesus in the wilderness, tempting him to turn
awayfrom the path of obedience to his Heavenly Father. Luke 4:1 tells us that
“Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordanand was led by the
Spirit in the desert.” Who did the leading? The Holy Spirit. Who did the
tempting? The devil. Is there a contradiction here? Not at all. Did God know
what was going to happen when he sent his Son into the desert? Yes, he did.
He intended from the beginning to demonstrate that his Sonwould not yield
to Satan’s blandishments. Was God tempting his own Son? No, he wasn’t.
Was God putting his Son in a place where his Son could be tempted by the
devil? The answerto that must be, yes.
How Trials Become Temptations
That is an amazing thought. At this point we need to think carefully and
clearly. I do not believe that God everdirectly solicits his children to sin. I
don’t believe that because the Bible specificallydenies it. But it is also true

that from time to time God allows his children to go into a place where they
will face severe temptations from Satan. Is God responsible for the severe
temptation? No, he’s not. He does the leading; Satan does the tempting. From
God’s point of view it’s a test. From Satan’s point of view it’s a temptation.
We see this pattern occurring in every area of life. God sends a trial and Satan
turns it into a temptation. Let’s suppose a child of God contracts a deadly
sickness. Couldthat sicknessbe a testing from God? Yes, it could. It almost
always is a testing from God to purify motives, to cause the child of God to
look awayfrom the things of earth to the things of heaven, and to turn the
eyes of the child of God back to the Lord. Many goodthings are accomplished
through sickness in the life of the believer. Does Satanwork through sickness?
Yes, he does. And through that very same sickness Satanwill be working to
tempt you to despair, to anger, to bitterness, and ultimately to turn awayfrom
the Lord. What God intends for your spiritual goodis the avenue Satan uses
to pull you down.
Or suppose you lose your job. You say, “Could that be from God?” Yes, it
could. If you lose your job, could God have a better purpose in mind for you?
Yes, and he often does. He may have a better job for you. He certainly wants
to build some spiritual characterin your life. You may have fallen in love with
the things of the world to the point where those goodthings have become an
idol to you. In that case,it is goodfor you to lose a goodjob. And during that
trial from God, Satanwill tempt you to anger, despair and discouragement.
It works the other way just as well. Let’s suppose you geta promotion and a
nice raise in salary. Now you are better off financially than you’ve everbeen.
Can a promotion be a trial from God? Absolutely. Prosperityis often a trial
or testing from God to see how you will handle his blessings. Prosperityought
to make us more generous towardthe needy. Having more ought to open our
eyes to those who have less than we do. But that same prosperity often makes
us greedy, selfish, and blind to the less fortunate.
Let’s take the case ofa businessmanon the seventh day of a long trip. He
checks into his motel room, tired and lonely. On top of the televisionis one of
those boxes where they bring in those movies rated X or XX or XXX. The

man knows that he has no business pushing that button. But when he’s alone
and spiritually disoriented, he feels a strong urge to watchone of those
movies. Does Godknow the box is there? Yes, he does. Did Godallow his
servant to go into that room? Yes, he did. Is it a test? Yes, it is. And if the man
passes the test he will be strongerspiritually because he said no. Is it a
temptation? Yes, it is. It’s a temptation to reachover and touch that box and
give in to lust.
Two Conclusions
Those are just a few examples of how something God intends as a means of
building you up is also used by Satanas a means of temptation to pull you
down. I draw two conclusions from that fact. Conclusionnumber one is this—
Testings and trials are a normal part of the Christian life. They are part of
God’s curriculum for you. He puts difficult choices in front of you every day
so that by following him and by trusting him in those circumstances you
become stronger. Your faith becomes confirmedand you become an example
to other people of victory over the world, the flesh and the devil. There’s
nothing you cando to escape the trials of life—nothing at all. In the Schoolof
Grace, Goddoesn’t offer a “No Trials” degree program. All of us will be
testedmany times in many ways.
Conclusionnumber two—A trial becomes a temptation when we respond
wrongly. That which was sent into our life in order to make us strongeris that
which actually tears us down and makes us weaker when we respond in the
powerof the flesh. What God means for good, Satanmeans for evil. The
Christian hangs in the balance betweenthe tests and the trials from the
Heavenly Father and the perversions of Satanas he twists that which God
gives us and whispers in our ear, “Go ahead. Go ahead. Go ahead.”
Could this be the reasonwhy the biblical writers did not sharply distinguish
what we want to keepseparate? We separatetrials and temptations as if they
are far, far apart. The biblical writers had no problem using the same word to
mean trials in one verse and then using the very same word to mean
temptations just a few verses later. They understood what we have forgotten.

Everything goodcomes from God, and everything he gives us is ultimately for
our goodand his glory. He does not sin nor does he solicit us to sin. But
hidden inside every trial is the seedof a temptation that Satanuses to harvest
a crop of evil in our lives.
If Jesus was the Sonof God, why did the Father put him in the position of
being tempted by the devil? Considerthis sequence:
He was led that he might be tested.
He was tested that he might be prepared.
He was prepared that he might be empowered.
We Can’t Stay on the Mountaintop Forever
The same thing happens to you and me. From the high point of his baptism,
Jesus was led into the desertof temptation. God never intends that we stay on
the mountaintop of spiritual ecstasy. Mountaintops are exciting places. From
the mountaintop, you can see vastdistances. On the mountaintop, you can feel
the fresh air blowing across your face. On the mountaintop, you have no
worries. The mountaintop is a place of joy, fulfillment, certainty, and a place
of spiritual refreshment. Sometimes a worship service canbe a spiritual
mountaintop for us. Often we come to a mountaintop at a camp or a retreat or
on a vacation or at a happy moment of victory in our lives.
Thank God for the mountaintops. If we didn’t have them, life would be almost
unbearable.
But you can’t staythere forever. Sooneror later, you’ve got to go down from
the mountaintop into the valley of trouble. That’s where the people are.
That’s where life must be lived. That’s where you face your problems and
learn to look to Godfor solutions. That’s where you prove the reality of your
faith before a watching world. You have to go down into the valley because

that’s where the desert is. And the desertis where the Holy Spirit will lead
you sooneror later. And if you try to stay on the mountaintop of spiritual
excitement too long, the Holy Spirit will gently take you by the hand and lead
you down into the valley and on into the wilderness of temptation. And if he
can’t gently leadyou, he’ll getbehind you and give you a swift kick, and you’ll
slide off that mountaintop and go tumbling down into the valley.
Mountaintops are fun but we can’t stay there forever.
We’ve all gotto go into the valley and into the wilderness soonerorlater.
The Spirit himself will leadus there.
And most of us will go back to the wilderness many times.
When I said that last sentence onSunday, severalpeople said, “Amen!” rather
loudly. This is a truth learned the hard way. I think a few Christians spend so
much time there, they feel like they’ve earned a “Wilderness MeritBadge.”
But we’ll all spend some time in the wilderness whether we like it or not.
There is no other path to spiritual power.
So what do you do if you find yourself in the wilderness? Rememberthese
three truths:
A. You are not there by accident.
B. You are not there alone.
C. You will not be there forever.

When God’s purposes in your life have been accomplished, the Spirit will lead
you out of the wilderness, and you will come out strongerin your faith than
when you went in.
The Wilderness is All About God!
It was necessaryfor Jesus to go into the wilderness. It is necessaryfor us also.
Think of it this way. The wilderness isn’t a fun place to be. You always end up
feeling alone and exhausted. You may not fast for 40 days, but you will often
come to the end of all human resources.And you will feel like giving in and
giving up. You will wonder why God has abandoned you. Nothing will make
sense;all will seem confusing. But do not despair.
Stand your ground.
Remember the promises of God.
Cling to the Lord.
Do not turn back to the old way of life.
Do not give in to your emotions.
Lean on your brothers and sisters in Christ.
God never leads us into the wilderness in order to destroy us. He intends the
time of testing to make us stronger. Think of what you find in the desert:
Victory is here!

Holiness is here!
Spiritual growth is here!
The Holy Spirit is here!
Jesus is here!
Odd as it may seemto us, when we are most filled with the Holy Spirit, we are
most likely to be led into the wilderness. So stand your ground and do not give
up. Remember that life is all about God. It’s not about you.
The wilderness isn’t about you. It’s all about God.
Your temptations are not about you. They’re all about God.
Your spiritual journey isn’t about you. It’s all about God.
Life isn’t about your dreams, your agenda, your hopes, your ideas, or your
plans. Life is all about God’s dreams, God’s agenda, God’s ideas, and God’s
plans. It’s his kingdom we’re praying to come, not ours.
So stand strong in the moment of temptation, trusting that God will give you
what you need when you need it.
Stand Up for Jesus
In 1858 a mighty revival sweptacross Philadelphia. So vast was the impact
that it was calledthe “Act of God in Philadelphia.” No leaderwas more

prominent in that move of God than a 29-year-oldEpiscopalminister named
Dudley Tyng. Fora few years he had served as the rectorof the Church of the
Epiphany, but a group of disgruntled church members dislikedhis bold
preaching and casthim out. With a few followers he organizedthe Church of
the Covenant. When the revival broke out, Dudley Tyng begana series of
noonday talks for men. On March 30, 1858, he addresseda group of 5,000
men at the largestpublic hall in Philadelphia from Exodus 10:11, “Go now ye
that are men, and serve the LORD” (KJV). During his talk, he came to a
climactic point, raised his right arm and declared, “I would rather have my
arm removed at the stump than to fail to declare God’s Word to you.” At the
close ofhis talk, 1,000 men gave their hearts and lives to Jesus Christ.
The next week he visited a farm outside the city. Fascinatedby a mule-drawn
corn thresher, he reachedout to pat the mule. As he did so, the sleeve ofhis
jacketgotcaught in the cogs and his arm was badly mangled, severing the
artery and doing severe nerve damage. Severaldays later doctors amputated
his arm, but it was too late. Infection setin and he quickly declined. Before he
died on April 19, he spoke to a group of family and friends gatheredaround
his bed. Knowing he would soonbe in heaven, he exhorted them with these
words: “Standup for Jesus.” Thenhe added, “Go back to the church and tell
them to always stand up for Jesus.” Whenthose words were repeated at the
funeral, they made an enormous impact on George Duffield, a friend of
Dudley Tyng, and the pastorof Temple PresbyterianChurch in Philadelphia.
The following Sunday he preached a memorial in honor of his fallen colleague,
taking as his text Ephesians 6:14, “Stand firm then, with the belt of truth
buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place.” At
the end of his message, he recited a poem he had written basedon Dudley
Tyng’s final words. The words were later printed and put to music, eventually
becoming one of our best-loved gospelsongs.The first verse goes like this:
Stand up, stand up for Jesus, ye soldiers of the cross;
Lift high His royal banner, it must not suffer loss.

From victory unto victory, His army shall He lead,
Till every foe is vanquished, and Christ is Lord indeed.
But it’s the third verse that catches ourattention. Now that you know the
story, you’ll never hear the same way again:
Stand up, stand up for Jesus, standin His strength alone;
The arm of flesh will fail you—ye dare not trust your own.
Put on the gospelarmor, eachpiece put on with prayer;
Where duty calls or danger, be never wanting there.
My brothers and sisters, the battles we face are not ours. They are the Lord’s.
He fought and won the battle with the devil 2,000 years ago.
He was led by the Spirit into the wilderness.
He came out in the power of the Spirit.
The same thing will happen to you and me if we will trust in him. Believe that
God is at work in your life. Believe that God is at work in your trials. Believe
that God is at work in your temptations. Believe that God is at work in your
family. Believe that God is at work in your life.
Believe and you will see the victory. Stand firm. Stand strong. Fearnot. Stand
up for Jesus in the powerof the Spirit and victory will be yours. Amen.
unknown

Luke 4:14-30 – The Popularity Context
By Jeremy Myers
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Jesus’preaching & popularity (Luke 4:14-15)
Isaiah’s prophecy fulfilled (Luke 4:16-21)
The positive response ofthe people (Luke 4:22)

“Prophets are never popular” (Luke 4:23-27)
From praise to the precipice (Luke 4:28-30)
Everybody wants to be popular.
“Notme,” you say. Yes, even you. Oh, maybe you don’t want the public fame
and popularity that many are seeking aftertoday – having your name on
billboards, and on magazine covers. But even still, you do want to be popular.
If you are married, you want to be popular with your spouse. You want your
spouse to pick you over other things. If you have children, you want to be
popular with your children. You want them to like you. And beyond that, you
have a certain circle of friends that you want to fit in with and be popular
among. If you love horses, you want to be knownby other horse lovers as the
one to go to for advice and ideas on raising and training horses. If you love
gardening, you want to be popular among other gardeners as the one who has
a greenthumb and knows how to get the ripest, reddest tomatoes.
I don’t care who you are, there is somebody you want to be popular with.
Now, being popular is not necessarilya bad thing. Wanting to be popular is
not a bad thing. But we must always watchvery carefully who we are trying
to be popular with, and what we are doing to become popular. To keep
popularity in context, we must always focus on being popular with God first
and foremost. We must always please him above everybody else. We must
make sure that we do what He wants the way he wants it done rather than do
what people want the way they want it done. Whateverwe do, think or say, it
doesn’t matter too much what other people think about it. The only thing that
really matters is what God things. We should always be asking ourselves one
question: “Am I being faithful to God?”
Jesus is the perfect example of this. He setout in His earthly ministry to please
God rather than men. Previously in Luke, we lookedat Luke 4:14-15. There
we learned about Christ’s first year of ministry, and during that time, He did
gain some popularity. But now, in Luke 4:16-30, Jesus puts that popularity in
context. In Luke 4:16-30, Jesus’popularity with people comes into conflict

with His popularity with God, and so Jesus has to make a choice betweenthe
two.
This all begins to develop in Luke 4:14-15. We lookedatthese two verses
earlier, but just for context, let us look briefly at them again. We see in Luke
4:14-15 Jesus’preaching and popularity.
1. Jesus’preaching & popularity (Luke 4:14-15)
Luke 4:14-15. 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.
As Jesus went about preaching in the power of the Spirit, we see in these
verses that news of Him spreadand He was being glorified by all. Jesus was
gaining in popularity because ofHis teaching. People were talking about him
over dinner. Rather than talk about what was happening on their favorite
televisionshow, they were talking about what Jesus was teaching. People
wanted to be with Him. They wanted to hear Him. He was gaining quite a
following. He was growing in popularity.
Now remember, Luke 4:14-15 summarize a whole year of ministry. During
that year, Jesus had performed some miracles, he miraculously fed a lot of
people, he healedsome others, he preachedsome parables in the countryside,
and as we read there in Luke 4:15, He taught in their synagogues. Everyweek,
Jesus couldbe found in a localsynagogue, a localchurch, teaching the Word
of God to those who had gatheredto hear it. It is all of these things together
that gainedHim His popularity, and it will be all of these things which will
later make enemies for Him also. But it is His preaching that makes enemies
the quickest. Everybody loves a goodmiracle. You’ll bring in the crowds for a
free meal. Interesting stories and parables never offended anybody. But when
you open up the Word of God and teachit, when you state the
uncompromising, simple and clearmessageofGod’s Word, when you preach
the Bible, people begin to get upset. This is what happened with Jesus.

On this particular Sabbath, He goes to His home town of Nazarethto preach
the Word, and He preaches a messagefrom the book of Isaiah. He tells them
that this prophecy from Isaiahis fulfilled in Him.
2. Isaiah’s prophecy fulfilled (Luke 4:16-21)
Luke 4:16. So He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up. And as
His customwas, He went into the synagogue onthe Sabbath day, and stoodup
to read.
Luke 4:16 says that it was His custom to go to the synagogue onthe Sabbath
to teachthe Word. The synagogues, youremember, were like a Jewish
church. They only needed ten men to faithfully attend and support a
synagogue in order to start one, so nearly every town had at leastone
synagogue. Some ofthe larger cities had quite a few synagogues.Forexample,
Jerusalemhad over 400 synagoguesatthe time of Christ.
The main purpose of the synagogueswas forthe educationof the people in the
truths of God’s Word. When they gathered, they basicallydid only two things,
they prayed and they taught the Bible. They gathered at leastthree days a
week – on the Sabbath, which is Saturday, and then also after work on
Monday and Thursday. The goalof all three meetings was to teachthe entire
Word of God. On the Sabbath, they taught the Bible in such a wayso that the
Pentateuch, which is what we callthe first five books of the Bible, was taught
straight through every three and a half years. Generallythe selectionforthe
day was divided up into at leastsevensections, andeachpassage wasassigned
to a different men.
During the service, the man would stand up and read the text, then sit down
and explain the text. And as I said, there would be at leastseven of these
sermons. You say, “Theymust have been short, if there were sevensermons.”
No, actually, they didn’t have short sermons, they had long services. The
Sabbath day was for rest and reflecting on God’s Word. And so, the services
could take up much of the day. Now sometimes, if they had time, along with
the study of the Pentateuch, they might take some time to study additional

passagesofScripture that were relatedto the passages fromthe Pentateuch
they had studied that day.
This is why Jesus, whenHe teaches onthis Sabbath, is teaching from Isaiah.
Look at Luke 4:17-19.
Luke 4:17-19. 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:
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me,
BecauseHe has anointed Me
To preach the gospelto the poor;
He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted,
To proclaim liberty to the captives
And recoveryof sight to the blind,
To set at liberty those who are oppressed;
To proclaim the acceptable yearof the Lord.”
Jesus sermontext comes primarily from Isaiah61:1-2. Now this was certainly
not the whole text that Jesus taught from that day. But Luke records here the
highlights, or maybe the portion of the text Jesus focusedonthe most. Jesus
taught from this passage andexplain to the people in Nazareth what he came
to do. The six statements in this passagevery aptly summarize Christ’s
earthly ministry and what He came to do. In the Hebrew, which Jesus was
reading from, the word Messiahmeans “the anointed one.” And so when
Jesus reads of the anointing in the first part of verse 18, that is a clear
reference to the Messiah. The restof verse 18 and on into 19 tell us six things
that the Messiahwould focus on.
First, To preach the gospelto the poor. The Gospel, the goodnews is that God
has provided a Saviorfrom sin, and that those who believe in Jesus Christ will
be delivered from death, and given eternallife. The reference to the “poor” is

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