Advent Devotional: The Gospel of Lukeનમૂનો

*Written by Kermit Xing

In chapter 4, Luke wrote how Jesus responded to the temptations from Satan in the wilderness (1 to 13), how Jesus responded to the rejection from people in Nazareth (14 to 30), and how Jesus responded to the expectations from people in Capernaum (31 to 44).

1. Jesus obeyed the Law when he was tempted.

When Satan tempted Jesus, Jesus was full of the Holy Spirit, answering Satan with three verses in Deuteronomy, and ‘Deuteronomy’ means repeated laws. Jesus obeyed the Law by doing what was written in Deuteronomy, by holding fast to the Holy Scripture. We can see this when Jesus repeatedly said, “It is written, it is written, and it is said.” But here I want us to notice that not only did Jesus quote the Scripture, Satan did it too. So, we need to know that Satan is familiar with the Scripture, but he completely twists it to his advantage.

Satan took these two verses (Psalm 91:11–12) out of context. Psalm 91 aims to encourage us to live in God’s dwelling place, which is himself, the Most High. But here, Satan wanted Jesus to throw himself down. In verse 14, the original meaning of the word ‘protect’ means ‘to set high.’ You see, we should aim to fully understand the Scripture in Truth so that we don’t fall for the enemy’s lies.

Jesus quoted Deuteronomy 6:16: “You shall not put the LORD your God to the test, as you tested him at Massah.” Massah is a place Moses named in Exodus 17 because the people of Israel tested the LORD by saying, “Is the LORD among us or not?”.

In Psalm 91:9-10, we see the main idea of this. We believe that because we have made the LORD our dwelling place-the Most High, who is our refuge, no evil shall be allowed to befall us, no plague come near our tent. This begins with our faith in God, leading us to do what he commands with boldness.

If we apply what the Israelites did in Exodus 17 and Satan in Luke 4, we will question our identity as God’s children, doubt whether God is among us or not, and won’t believe God will protect us. So first, we doubt God’s ability and willingness to protect us, which then leads us to test God, and that is against God’s Law.

Satan quoted the Scripture to test God; Jesus quoted the Scripture to obey God.

2. Jesus fulfilled the Prophets when he was doubted.

Although people in Nazareth spoke well of Jesus and marveled at the gracious words that were coming from his mouth after Jesus told them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” But they didn’t know who Jesus actually was, asking, “Is not this Joseph’s son?” meaning that they could not believe Jesus was the ‘me’ in Isaiah’s prophecy.

Jesus knew what was in their hearts, saying, “Doubtless you will quote to me this proverb, ‘“Physician, heal yourself.” What we have heard you did at Capernaum, do here in your hometown as well.’” The proverb “Physician, heal yourself” is not even a proverb in the Old Testament. It’s a saying in Jewish culture, but people in Nazareth wanted to quote it in their hearts because they wanted Jesus to perform miracles to prove that he was able to do what’s in the prophecy:

to proclaim good news to the poor,

to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind,

to set at liberty those who are oppressed,

to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.

They could not see that the prophecy was about the kingdom of heaven, or the fact that the Word became flesh was ‘the good news,’ or that ‘the liberty’ was to be set free from sins, or ‘the sight’ was to recognize Jesus is the Lord. They were familiar with the Scripture but did not understand the Word. What’s ironic is that when Jesus told them the two stories in the Old Testament of how Elijah and Elisha did not perform miracles in their hometowns, people in Nazareth stopped speaking well of Jesus and stopped marveling at the gracious words of Jesus. They had a 180-degree turn and became angry with Jesus, proving that what Jesus said, “no prophet is acceptable in his hometown,” is correct.

3. Jesus persisted with His purpose when he was asked to stay.

Like people in Nazareth, people in Capernaum were also astonished at his teaching. They became amazed because of his power over unclean spirits and his ability to heal people. They probably realized that Jesus could solve all their health problems. Verse 42 says that the people sought Jesus and came to him and would have kept him from leaving them, but they didn’t know Jesus’s purpose, which was to preach the good news of the kingdom of God. This is another example of people not recognizing who Jesus Christ was. People in Capernaum seemed ignorant because they did not know Jesus’s purpose, and their only goal might have been to be healed physically. They were supposed to recognize Jesus from the Scripture and ask about the good news.

What’s surprising is that the demons knew who Jesus was – “the Holy One of God, the Son of God,” but the people who heard his teaching and witnessed miracles did not know who Jesus was. But Jesus knew his purpose and persisted with this purpose to preach the good news of the kingdom of God, to call his disciples, and to forgive sins. And that we will read in the next chapter. Let’s pray!

Let’s pray: Dear Heavenly Father, we thank you for this chapter and for letting us know this part of Jesus’s life on earth. Thank you that you sent your beloved Son, Jesus Christ, who obeyed the Law that we should have obeyed but couldn’t; who fulfilled the Prophets to let us know he is the anointed one; who persisted with his purpose so that we can hear the good news. Lord, I pray and ask you that all whom Jesus has died for can come to you through Jesus, can recognize who Jesus is, can see the kingdom above, can understand your Holy Scripture, can remember our identity in Christ, and persist with our purpose of being on earth, and can live a life to glorify you. God, be with us and help us apply what we have learned today. Set us on high with you. In Jesus’s name, we pray. Amen.

Reflection Questions:

1. Why do we quote the Bible? Are we like Satan to take the verses out of the context to use them for our own desires, or are we like Jesus to obey his commands when we are tempted?
2. What should we do when our identity is challenged? How do we deal with people who don’t know Christianity? How do we live with cultural proverbs, idioms, and sayings?
3. What do we ask God for? Do we want God to help us with what we want, or do we hope God can use us to accomplish what God wants? Do we remember the purpose of our life?