October 19, 2020

Luke 4:1-2
And Jesus being full of the Holy Ghost returned from Jordan, and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness,
Being forty days tempted of the devil. And in those days he did eat nothing: and when they were ended, he afterward hungered.

In the last devotion on these versed I talked about how the Holy Spirit Lead Jesus to a place of testing. Today I want to focus on Luke 4:2.
Jesus was full of the Holy Spirit, meaning the Holy Spirit had full control. He not only led Jesus to the wilderness, but also to a place of lack. The verse says “And in those days did he eat nothing:” Jesus was led by the Holy Spirit to do this. Why did the Holy Spirit lead Jesus to fast for 40 days? Jesus had no sin to confess, nothing between Him and the father. While there could be many answers to this question, I want to point out one thing Jesus was demonstrating.
There is a connection between biblically fasting and God doing incredible things. Throughout scripture fasting has been shown to get Gods attention. Nehemiah fasted, Ezra fasted, Isaiah fasted, Esther fasted, Daniel fasted, Paul fasted. All of these examples preceded God doing incredible things. None of these compare to what Jesus was about to do. Fasting shows us how dependent we are on God. It also shows us how much we need His help. In our lives and our nation do we realize how much we need and are dependent of God? In my generation in the United States most have never experienced lack of true necessities. With the crumbling spiritual heritage of our nation, there is no greater need in our nation for people filled with the spirit of God. It comes with a cost. Do we really want God to heal our nation? We can prove it before God by fasting and praying.

Jacob Jarriel