Thrown into the Wild - Mark

Mark is known as the Gospel of Action.  He cuts to the chase and gives us the fact. 

Mark 1:11 (ESV) And a voice came from heaven, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.”

What a beautiful moment for Jesus.  The Father bragging on Him.  The Spirit descending on Him for empowerment.  The people witnessing this momentous occasion of edification and glorification.

Then the very next verse:

Mark 1:12 (ESV) The Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness.

I learned from my Seminary professor, this word, "drove" in the Greek can be translated "thrown" - it's a forceful driving, not a light or incidental push.  The Spirit descends on Jesus and immediately drives Him into the uncomfortable region of the wild.  

Mark describess it further:

Mark 1:13 (ESV) And he was in the wilderness forty days, being tempted by Satan. And he was with the wild animals, and the angels were ministering to him.

Jesus is prepped for His public ministry in a most auspicious way.  Right after baptism, its into the wild at the behest of the Spirit.  Why?

Jesus is the true and better Moses.  He's going to pass the tests the Israelites failed in the wilderness.  For forty days Jesus is going to TRUST the Father's plan, even when it's uncomfortable and inconvenient and painful.  Where Moses struck the rock in anger, Jesus is going to refuse the rocks to be miraculously made into bread. This is how Jesus is going to defeat sin.  By trusting the Father's plan through the toughest times of life.

Where the Israelites moaned and failed, and cried out and complained.  Jesus succeeded victoriously. 

What does this mean for us?

We have someone who knows how to completely trusted God living IN US!  He knows God's ways are the best ways.  He knows God can miraculously provide when everything around us is dry and barren.  And He's interceding for us to make it a reality in our life.

It also means that sometimes our greatest tests will come right after our greatest triumphs.  That trusting God's Word over your life involves ALSO trusting God's TIMING over your life.  Think of it.  God speaks to Jesus, "You are my Son, I'm well pleased with you.  Now, off you go to the longest trial of your life!"  

What would we do?  We would plead for God to speed up the process, right?  "I don't want this testing, Lord, take me out of it!"  Or "Why this? Why now?"  Or, "I really don't need this waiting period, I'm ready, God you said it, I'm good to go to the top, let's move!" 

And yet Jesus exemplifies for us that only when we can completely TRUST GOD can we fully WORK WITH God.  That's where the power lives.  In complete confidence that God has our best intentions in mind.  That while we may be in the wild, God is at work IN US.

What is God asking you to trust Him through right now?  What area has he led you into where you are powerless to fix?  How is God asking you to trust Him now?

PRAYER:

Father, I know the area where I need to trust you.  You have brought me to a place where I can't fix it.  I need your help.  I ask you for the ministering angels to come, the Spirit to speak, the Word of God on which we can live to be the voice in my head and heart.  And help me to do what is hard, because it is what you want.  In Jesus Name.