At the end of Genesis, yesterday, we saw Joseph full of faith looking forward to the time when his descendants would take his bones back to Canaan . Today as we start Exodus, four centuries later, they are still in Egypt
Many centuries later, God’s promised blessing is reaching its climax as Jesus, “full of the Holy Spirit”, goes into the wilderness to be tempted by the Devil (Luke 4:1-2). He shows us what is possible for the Spirit-filled person, as he resists the Devil’s temptation. The Devil tries to get him to misuse his power: “If you are the Son of God…” (Luke 4:3, 9) but Jesus answers with Scripture about how people should live. He is resisting the Devil as an obedient man filled with God’s Holy Spirit. He returns to Galilee “filled with the Holy Spirit” (4:14). In the synagogue in Nazareth we see that not only is he a Spirit-filled man, but also the One whom the prophets said would bring Good News, sight, freedom and the Lord’s favour! (Luke 4:18-20, quoting Isaiah 62:1-2)
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