Year 2, Week 30, Day 1 Bible Reading Observations

Year 2, Week 30, Day 1

I have a brief observation for today’s reading of Matthew 4, Luke 4.

Today’s reading consists of parallel accounts that document Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness: “Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry” (Matthew 4:1-2) “And Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness for forty days, being tempted by the devil. And he ate nothing during those days. And when they were ended, he was hungry” (Luke 4:1-2). Both accounts emphasize Jesus’ state of physical hunger; but both accounts also the presence of the Spirit that was upon Jesus. Today’s reading also records the official start of Jesus’ public ministry. Matthew records the start of Jesus’ ministry as it began in Capernaum, after He left Nazareth: “Now when he heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew into Galilee. And leaving Nazareth he went and lived in Capernaum by the sea, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali” (Matthew 4:12-13). Luke records the start of Jesus’ ministry by describing what Jesus did before He left Nazareth: “And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up. And as was his custom, he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and he stood up to read. And the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me 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” (Luke 4:16-19, quoting from Isaiah 61). Luke provides the fuller context for Jesus’ move from Nazareth to Capernaum: “When they heard these things, all in the synagogue were filled with wrath. And they rose up and drove him out of the town…And he went down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee” (Luke 4:28-31).

One of the things that struck me from today’s reading was the focus of Jesus’ preaching: “From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matthew 4:17). This focus was also the focus of John the Baptist: “In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matthew 3:1-2). The kingdom was not only the message that Jesus’ preached, it was also the subject about which He taught: “And he went throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction among the people” (Matthew 4:23). Not to take anything away from Jesus’ purpose consisting of going to the Cross to die as a substitutionary sacrifice, it must also be understood that a vital purpose in Jesus’ life was to preach and teach about the kingdom: “I must preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns as well; for I was sent for this purpose” (Luke 4:43). Jesus was a teacher and preacher, and His subject matter located itself around God’s Kingdom. The mission of Jesus was to express, explain, and to establish God’s Kingdom. The rule of God that is already operational in the heavens was to now become—start to become—operational on earth: “Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:10).

The Kingdom of God, or as Matthew commonly states it, the Kingdom of Heaven, speaks of the realm where God’s rule is experienced. The phrase Kingdom of God and Kingdom of Heaven are not descriptive of two different things, but two ways of describing the same thing. Matthew, on occasion, will use the phrase, Kingdom of God, but most of the time, probably out of deference to the Jewish hesitancy of saying God’s name out loud, spoke of the Kingdom of Heaven. Kingdom of God points out that it is God who is ruling, while Kingdom of Heaven points to the realm from which God is ruling. Daniel reflects the preferred Jewish form: “And as it was commanded to leave the stump of the roots of the tree, your kingdom shall be confirmed for you from the time that you know that Heaven rules” (Daniel 4:26). Matthew, at times, will us Kingdom of God, perhaps where there is emphasis on a personal response to God (see Matthew 12:28; 21:31, 43; 19:24), as well as “my Father’s kingdom” (Matthew 26:29), “Your kingdom” (Matthew 6:10), and “His kingdom” (Matthew 6:33).

With the arrival of Jesus came the arrival of God’s Kingdom. Both John the Baptist and Jesus proclaimed that the Kingdom was “at hand.” The experience of life under God’s rule (and blessing) had come near, for Jesus, the King, had arrived. For with the arrival of Jesus, the enablement of the Spirit has also arrived in a special way: first, upon Jesus Himself; and second, after the ascension of Jesus, upon followers of Jesus (see Acts 1:8). We should notice the descent of the Holy Spirit on Jesus, at His baptism, becomes the key factor in the ministry of Jesus, such as during His temptation in the wilderness: “Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness”; “And Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness.” But the presence of the Holy Spirit was also the key factor in the public ministry of Jesus: “And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee, and a report about him went out through all the surrounding country. And he taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all” (Luke 4:14-15); and “He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me.” The current form of God’s Kingdom consists, in large part, of the work of the Spirit in the hearts of those who belong to Jesus: “Being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, he answered them, “The kingdom of God is not coming in ways that can be observed, nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or ‘There!’ for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you” (Luke 17:20-21).

What struck you in today’s reading? What questions were prompted from today’s reading?

Pastor Joe