When you start a new job or a new role there is often a time of preparation and induction. Before his public ministry begins Jesus is sent by the Spirit for a time of testing (v 12). Matthew and Luke give us more details about some of the tests he faced (Matthew 4:1–11; Luke 4:1–13). But here Mark is content to tell us that he spent 40 days in the wilderness, being tempted by Satan. It seems that it was somehow necessary for Jesus to recognise his priorities before his ministry could begin in earnest.

In his baptism Jesus received the resources to face this time of testing. Heaven meets earth as the Holy Spirit descends like a dove on Jesus and a voice from heaven tells him that he is God’s beloved Son (v 11). Jesus faced the test of the wilderness reassured, equipped and ready. And notice, God’s ‘angels attended him’ (v 13).

Amazing as it may be, when we become Christians we are adopted into his family and receive the same Holy Spirit: ‘Because we are his children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, prompting us to call out, “Abba, Father”’ (Galatians 4:6, NLT).

Lord Jesus, we bow in worship before you, whose sandals we are not worthy to untie.

Today we read of the inauguration of Jesus Christ’s ministry. He comes from his home in the north, that backwater of Palestine, and meets the crowd that has come from the south. He submits to his cousin and identifies with all the ordinary people as he is baptised. Here he is loved and affirmed and encouraged by his Father in an experience that Mark seems to indicate was for his eyes alone.

If we did not know the story, what would we expect to happen next? Surely not what we read in verse 12. This is not what happens after an inauguration. We expect an appearance before crowds, in the capital, with recognition by people of high standing. Instead, the Spirit took Jesus aside for a period of deprivation and testing. The 40 days recalls the period Elijah spent in the desert with the ravens feeding him (40 days is a long time to be without water: did the ‘angels’ of verse 13 somehow supply Jesus with food and water?) and also recalls the time when the children of Israel wandered in the wilderness for 40 years. Mark doesn’t mention Jesus’ specific temptations; we are presented instead with a man struggling alone with the elements and wild animals. Already we are being invited to meet someone who is radically different from others. Jesus knew that he would encounter Satanic opposition to his ministry. Instead of drawing his strength from the adulation of crowds, he withdrew and faced the challenges head on, alone, ahead of time.

Perhaps we should see in Mark’s description of Jesus’ experience in the wilderness something that recurs in the Gospel. The Greek word translated ‘tempted’ also means ‘tested’. Satan intended to harm, but God ‘intended it for good’¹ and Jesus emerged from this period in the wilderness strengthened for ministry.

Notice how Mark emphasises the time both John and Jesus spent in preparation. Do you have challenges ahead? How are you preparing for them? 

¹ Cf Gen 50:20