Daily Devotion for March 5 - Luke 4:1 - 2

 

Verse

Luke 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."

Meditation

Jesus does not enter the wilderness by accident; He is led there by the Spirit. His baptism has just declared Him to be the beloved Son, but now He faces testing. For forty days, He endures hunger, solitude, and the assaults of the devil. Israel, too, was tested in the wilderness, but they failed, grumbling and doubting God's provision. Jesus, however, stands firm. His hunger does not weaken His trust, His suffering does not shake His obedience. The devil comes, but he finds no foothold. Where Adam yielded to temptation in a garden of plenty, Christ resists in a barren wilderness. Where Israel fell in unbelief, Christ remains faithful. His victory here is not for His own sake but for ours. He overcomes the tempter so that we, in Him, might also stand firm. When we face trial, we are not alone—our Savior has gone before us, and in His triumph, we find our strength.

Old Testament

Exodus 34:28 – "So he was there with the Lord forty days and forty nights. He neither ate bread nor drank water. And He wrote on the tablets the words of the covenant, the Ten Commandments."

Just as Moses fasted on the mountain while receiving God’s law, Jesus fasts in the wilderness, preparing to fulfill the law perfectly.

Collect

O Lord, who led Your Son into the wilderness to triumph over temptation, strengthen us in our trials, that we may trust in Your Word, resist the evil one, and find our refuge in Christ, through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

Hymn Verse

“O Christ, You walked the road
Our wandering feet must go.
You faced with us temptation’s power
And fought our ancient foe.” (LSB 424:1)