Immediately the Holy Spirit compelled Jesus to go into the wilderness. He was there for forty days, being tempted by Satan. He was out among the wild beasts, and angels took care of him.
Mark’s Gospel has always reminded me of a second grader telling a story. It’s full of truncated sentences, and skips from one big event to another, skimming over details that I’d like to hear. Today’s reading from the pre-mission trip devotional is a perfect example.
We are in the first few verses of the first chapter of Mark, and already Jesus has been born, John the Baptist has made his fiery entrance, and Jesus is baptized by John. All of that in 11 verses. The appointed readings relay that the Spirit has sent Jesus out into the wilderness. In the subsequent 7 verses, John’s arrested, and Jesus calls his disciples. Whew!
I imagine that these stories, or actually just bullet points from Mark’s Gospel, are just brief highlights of much deeper and richer narratives. The two verses appointed for today make it sound like Jesus was sent out into the wilderness, hung out with wild beasts, but was protected by angels. And while I’m sure that’s true, there is much much more to the story, right?
Why was Jesus sent out to be tempted? Was it like tempering metal, to make it stronger? To see what this new man-God would do in his mortal body?
This morning, I’m thinking about the being tempted or tested in the wilderness. It seems like any given day could feel like a wild-beast-in-the-wilderness test. And I absolutely believe I’m not alone in that wilderness. The question is whether I can respond in a way that portrays that I’m not alone, that I believe I’m loved and protected.
As I imagine the upcoming trip to Guatemala, I don’t believe I’ll actually be confronted by wild beasts. And I don’t think my going is a cosmic satanic testing. But I do think that in all circumstances, I might be tested or tempered. My challenge is to rise above that, and respond as if God’s providence is at work. Because it is.
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