The Desert
Matthew 4:1 - Jesus Led Into the Desert
Why me, Lord? Why now? Why did this [insert whatever negative, horrible, or extremely difficult experience] happen to me?
—
Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted.
The Greek verb used here for “led up” - anēchthē - is in the passive tense.
Matthew is showing us that in Jesus’s humanity, He was actively receptive to the Spirit’s leading. And for forty days, He was attacked by the enemy.
The definition of the root verb means either to conduct; to lead or convey up from a lower place to a higher.
What does this mean for us?
Sometimes life brings us into the “wilderness,” those seasons of intense suffering or deep interior dryness.
These times can include fierce struggle with our vices, great loss, and the harassments of the enemy.
“…as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.” (Ps 63:1)
—
Why me, Lord? Why now?…
Because this broken and fallen world is not our permanent home.
And in the deep mystery of God’s redemptive plan, in order to convey up from a lower interior place to a higher, we must allow ourselves to be led up by the Spirit into the wilderness.
Trusting that in His divine plan, even the greatest suffering will be redeemed.
Onward and upward,
Ted
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