LUKE 4
    Luke 4:1 "And Jesus being full of the Holy Ghost returned from Jordan, and was led by the Spirit into the
wilderness,"
    Jesus had just been baptized in the Jordan River by John the Baptist. The Holy Ghost had descended on Him at His
baptism. We see, here, that He was full of the Holy Ghost. Jesus was led by the Spirit of God into the wilderness. The
Spirit leading Jesus into the wilderness was so that He could face all the temptations of life. We see in Hebrews 2:17-
18, that this temptation would be so that He could better understand our temptations and be more sympathetic.
    Luke 4:2 "Being forty days tempted of the devil. And in those days he did eat nothing: and when they were
ended, he afterward hungered."
    "Forty", throughout the Bible, is symbolic of time of testing, Forty days and nights it rained on Noah. Forty days and
nights Moses was on the mount to receive the Ten Commandments. Forty days and nights Goliath challenged Israel
before David accepted the challenge. Forty days and nights the children of Israel searched out the promised land and
wandered 40 years in the wilderness to compensate for their 40 days of unbelief. Mothers were purified after giving
birth to a son on the 40th day. Jesus ministered 40 days and nights after resurrection to the time He was carried away
into heaven. There are so many other 40's such as David. Saul, and Solomon each reigned 40 years. We, also, see that
Jesus fasted completely. A fast consists of total separation from worldly things. Food and drink are just a part of a fast.
Jesus didn't drink juice or anything to sustain Him. This fast was total. At the end of this fast, He was hungry.
    Luke 4:3 "And the devil said unto him, If thou be the Son of God, command this stone that it be made bread."
    Just as the old devil asked Eve. "Did God say?"; he says to Jesus here. "if thou be the Son of God". He tries to plant a
doubt. He spoke to Jesus' weakness at the moment, because we just read that Jesus was hungry. Jesus could command
the stone, and it be made bread; but He didn't. Whether the devil was standing there in visible form or not. We cannot
tell. In fact, it really doesn't matter the temptation is real. He will and does do that to us, also, if we will listen.
    Luke 4:4 "And Jesus answered him, saying, It is written, That man shall not live by bread alone, but by every
word of God."
    Jesus is very smart. He answers the devil with the Word of God. He says, "It is written". Jesus is the Bread, He is the
Word, He is the Life. He is really saying that you have to have Jesus to have life. Eating from the Holy Bible, the Word
of God, every day is much more important than physical food. If you do without physical food, the worst thing that can
happen to you is your body will die; but if you do not consume the Word of God. Your spirit will die. God fills our
inner man when we read His Word.
    Luke 4:5 "And the devil, taking him up into an high mountain, shewed unto him all the kingdoms of the
world in a moment of time."
    This possibly is just trying to tempt Jesus to receive the world as His possession without going by the way of the
cross. Jesus does have a desire to have all the people of the world to follow Him. The Lord Jesus knew that He would
rule the world. When He returns, He will be Lord of lords and King of kings.
    Luke 4:6 "And the devil said unto him, All this power will I give thee, and the glory of them: for that is
delivered unto me; and to whomsoever I will I give it."
    Adam turned his power over to Satan when he and Eve sinned in the garden, Satan does have power on the earth but
it is limited. Jesus defeated him on the cross. We as Christians have power over Satan in the name of Jesus. People who
are not believers cannot use Jesus name to fight the devil.
    Luke 4:7 "If thou therefore wilt worship me, all shall be thine."
    This is the biggest lie ever told. The devil has no reason to ever tell the truth.
    Luke 4:8 "And Jesus answered and said unto him, Get thee behind me, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt
worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve."
    The very first of the Ten Commandments tell us that the Lord God is the only being to be worshipped. Jesus answers
the devil each time with a Scripture. God's plan was for Jesus to rule over all the world, everything above the earth, and
everything under the earth. Self-denial and sacrifice by Jesus would win Him rule. He rules over Satan, as well. At the
name of Jesus, every knee shall bow. Philippians 2:10 "That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in
heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;" Philippians 2:11 "And that every tongue should confess that
Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."
    Luke 4:9 "And he brought him to Jerusalem, and set him on a pinnacle of the temple, and said unto him, If
thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down from hence:"  
    Luke 4:10 "For it is written, He shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee:"  
    Luke 4:11 "And in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone."
    This Scripture that the devil was quoting from is found in Psalms 91:10-12. It is given not only to Jesus, but to His
followers, as well. Psalms 91:10 "There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling."
Psalms 91:11 "For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways." Psalms 91:12 "They shall
bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone." You see, the devil knows the Word of God. Usually
when he quotes it, it is like this Scripture; he misquotes it. He changes a word here and there. Satan brought Jesus to the
temple of God for this temptation. He tells Jesus, if you are who you say you are, show me. Jesus doesn't need to prove
anything to the devil. The devil's pride was what got him into trouble, and he thought Jesus would surely be weak in
this area as well.
    Luke 4:12 "And Jesus answering said unto him, It is said, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God."
    Even though we know for sure God is taking care of us, we should not do something foolish to prove it, Jesus, in
these temptations, was tempted as we are tempted and yet without sin. He overcame the devil. He always overcomes the
devil. The devil is no match at all for Him.
    Luke 4:13 "And when the devil had ended all the temptation, he departed from him for a season."
    This temptation was actually every type of temptation. The devil went away defeated. Even in Jesus' weakest
moment, He is stronger than the devil. The devil can't win so he leaves.
    Luke 4:14  "And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit into Galilee: and there went out a fame of him
through all the region round about."
    In Matthew 4:11, we find that as soon as Jesus was through being tempted that angels came and ministered to Him.
Luke skipped that and went right into the power of Jesus' walk. We see that Jesus' Spirit was powerful on the return
into Galilee. The power of His ministry and miracles spread fast.
    Luke 4:15 "And he taught in their synagogues, being glorified of all."
    It was not possible to hide His power of the Word from the people. His preaching was powerful. His teaching was
not in His synagogue but theirs. When they heard Him, they were overwhelmed and glorified Him.
    Luke 4:16  "And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into
the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read."
    Hebrew children were allowed to go to synagogue at 5 years old. Hebrew boys, after completing Bar Mitzva at 12,
were expected to attend as an adult would. In the synagogue, it was the custom to stand and read from the Holy books.
Jesus had already been attending, and his fame as a preacher had spread; so it was natural for Him to be the one to read.
Nazareth was the town Jesus had lived in as a boy and was well known in this area.
    Luke 4:17 "And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the
book, he found the place where it was written,"
    This is the book of Isaiah. The head of the synagogue would bring the book out to be read. It appears that it was not
turned to the Scripture Jesus intended to give, so He (Jesus) found the place He wanted to read from. The Scripture He
was about to read was in Isaiah 61:1 "The spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to
preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives,
and the opening of the prison to them that are bound;" Isaiah 61:2 "To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and
the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn;"
    Luke 4:18 "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor;
he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the
blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,"
    Luke 4:19 "To preach the acceptable year of the Lord."
    Jesus, in this reading of the Scripture from Isaiah, is showing that this Scripture is fulfilled. Jesus, in just a few
words, tells what His ministry on this earth will be. Jesus is filled to overflowing with the Spirit. He has the fullness of
God. Jesus truly brings the gospel message to the poor; to those rejected by the world. He laid His hands on the sick and
they recovered, He opened blind eyes, He raised the dead, He even went into hell itself and preached. His miracles were
so numerous and so great, all the books in the world could not contain them. He truly fulfilled this Scripture in Isaiah to
the fullest.
    Luke 4:20 "And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all
them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him."
    When Jesus spoke, people marveled. He spoke with such authority. It was as if there was a supernatural drawing
when the Lord Jesus spoke.
    Luke 4:21 "And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears."
    Jesus very boldly tells them that He is the fulfillment of this Scripture.
    Luke 4:22 "And all bare him witness, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth.
And they said, Is not this Joseph's son?"
    Jesus' Words were so overwhelming that these people could not believe their own ears. They ask each other. "Isn't
this the carpenter's son that lives down the road here? We saw Him grow up like our own children. How could He be
the fulfillment of this Scripture?" They are still believing that Joseph is Jesus' Father. They are looking at the flesh, and
not the Spirit. Even today, nearly 2000 years later, the world still says, "This cannot be God, He was just a man".  Jesus
was and is in fact God the Son.
    Luke 4:23 "And he said unto them, Ye will surely say unto me this proverb, Physician, heal thyself:
whatsoever we have heard done in Capernaum, do also here in thy country."
    We see people here who truly believe they know this carpenter's son and believe that this could not possibly be
Messiah. They believe Him to be mad. Jesus will later on say that a prophet is not without honor except in his own
country and in his own house. Those around Him, who knew Him, instead of asking Him for their healing will say heal
yourself. Capernaum also, was too close to home. Many did not believe there either, even though He did many miracles.
    Luke 4:24 "And he said, Verily I say unto you, No prophet is accepted in his own country."
    Luke 4:25 "But I tell you of a truth, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elias, when the heaven was
shut up three years and six months, when great famine was throughout all the land;"
    Luke 4:26 "But unto none of them was Elias sent, save unto Sarepta, a city of Sidon, unto a woman that was a
widow."
    Jesus is telling them that just as all those widows in Elijah's time did not get help because they did not have faith, it
would be that way here. To receive a miracle you must have faith. This woman of Sarepte received Elijah into her
home, and God miraculously fed them the whole time. Great miracles and great faith go hand in hand. There is no faith
here, and there will be no great miracles because of it.
    Luke 4:27 "And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Eliseus the prophet; and none of them was cleansed,
saving Naaman the Syrian."
    Naaman came to Elisha to be healed of leprosy, and Elisha told him to wash in the Jordan River seven times, He did,
and his leprosy was gone. It is a great story in Second Kings 5, beginning with verse 3. Read all the way to the end of
the chapter. There are many lessons. One of the most important of lessons is that healing is not for sale.
    Luke 4:28 "And all they in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath,"
    They were filed with wrath, because Jesus was saying unto them, "Oh, ye of little faith". Jesus was telling them that
they could not receive anything of God because of their cold hearts. They only saw Jesus as Joseph's son.
     Luke 4:29 "And rose up, and thrust him out of the city, and led him unto the brow of the hill whereon their
city was built, that they might cast him down headlong."
    Throughout the Bible, people who were thought to be false prophets were taken to a high hill outside the city and
thrown off to kill them. Jesus was so well known that they could not believe He was Messiah, because He grew up
around them and was known as Joseph's son.
    Luke 4:30 "But he passing through the midst of them went his way,"
    No one could hold Jesus, if He didn't want them to. He disappeared right in the middle of them.
    Luke 4:31 "And came down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and taught them on the sabbath days."
    Capernaum is where Peter lived. It was on the banks of the sea of Galilee. Much of Jesus' ministry took place right
here on the edge of the Sea of Galilee. The people at Capernaum were not very receptive of Jesus. They never did
accept Him as Messiah.
    Luke 4:32 "And they were astonished at his doctrine: for his word was with power."
    The astonishment was because they thought of Him as the carpenter's son. His word was powerful. Jesus is the Word.
(St. John 1:1)
    Luke 4:33  "And in the synagogue there was a man, which had a spirit of an unclean devil, and cried out with
a loud voice,"
    Demonic spirits cannot stand to be in a holy place. This is why this spirit cried out. However, these evil spirits can
dwell in a man.
    Luke 4:34 "Saying, Let us alone; what have we to do with thee, thou Jesus of Nazareth? art thou come to
destroy us? I know thee who thou art; the Holy One of God."
    These demons recognize Jesus because they lived in heaven with Him before they followed Lucifer. They had been
angels in heaven, and when they chose to follow Lucifer, they became demons. Jesus was the Word of God in heaven.
They know that they will be thrown into the lake of fire because of their decision to follow  Lucifer. They also know
that Jesus is the Judge of the world, and He is the one who will send them there. They know He will destroy them. They
do not know when. That is why they say. "art thou come to destroy us?" Revelation 12:9 "And the great dragon was cast
out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceive the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his
angels were cast out with him."
    Luke 4:35 "And Jesus rebuked him, saying, Hold thy peace, and come out of him. And when the devil had
thrown him in the midst, he came out of him, and hurt him not."
    Jesus spoke directly to this unclean spirit. This demon had to come out of the man, because it had to obey Jesus'
command. This demon, in one last effort to destroy the man, cast him to the ground; but Jesus does not allow him to
hurt him.
    Luke 4:36 "And they were all amazed, and spake among themselves, saying, What a word is this! for with
authority and power he commandeth the unclean spirits, and they come out."
    Their amazement is because their leaders are not able to cast out demons. They cannot believe that a mere man can
cast out a demon. A "mere" man CANNOT cast out a demon. They thought of Him as Joseph's son, not as Messiah.
Jesus' power is greater than any they have ever experienced, and they cannot justify in their mind how this can happen.
Their problem is that they have no idea who Jesus is.
    Luke 4:37 "And the fame of him went out into every place of the country round about."
    This is so fantastic that word of this miracle goes all over the land. It is the talk of the country.
    Luke 4:38  "And he arose out of the synagogue, and entered into Simon's house. And Simon's wife's mother
was taken with a great fever; and they besought him for her."
    Simon is Peter. Peter's home is right by the side of the sea of Galilee. The synagogue was less than a mile from where
Simon's house was. This Scripture lets us know that Peter had a wife. Peter's mother-in-law had a high fever, and they
were trying to find Jesus to lay His hands on her to heal her.
    Luke 4:39 "And he stood over her, and rebuked the fever; and it left her: and immediately she arose and
ministered unto them."
    This was not a gradual healing, but a miracle healing which happened instantly. She was better so fast that she got up
and ministered unto Jesus and the disciples.
    Luke 4:40  "Now when the sun was setting, all they that had any sick with divers diseases brought them unto
him; and he laid his hands on every one of them, and healed them."
    These divers diseases just mean that all manner of illness was healed by just one touch of the hand of Jesus. It doesn't
say that some were healed, it says every one.
    Luke 4:41 "And devils also came out of many, crying out, and saying, Thou art Christ the Son of God. And he
rebuking them suffered them not to speak: for they knew that he was Christ."
    This is an involuntary act upon the demon's part. This is telling everyone that Jesus is Messiah. the Anointed One.
They knew who He was, because they had been in heaven with Him before they fell. Light always does away with
darkness. These demons (darkness) had to go when they came in contact with the Light. Jesus is the Light of the world,
so His presence did away with the presence of these evil ones (darkness). If it is dark in a room and you turn the light
on. darkness is gone. You cannot turn on the dark and do away with light. That is what happened here; Light did away
with darkness. Jesus rebuked them for telling. The people were not ready to hear that Jesus was Messiah.
    Luke 4:42 "And when it was day, he departed and went into a desert place: and the people sought him, and
came unto him, and stayed him, that he should not depart from them."
    Jesus left, but to no avail. The people followed Him and stopped Him from leaving. They did not want Him to leave.
they wanted to benefit from His miracles.
    Luke 4:43 "And he said unto them, I must preach the kingdom of God to other cities also: for therefore am I
sent."
    He does not want to leave this group who wants Him to stay, but He knows His ministry is for everyone; and He
must carry his message to all the known world. His call is not for one people, but for everyone.
    Luke 4:44 "And he preached in the synagogues of Galilee."
    Preaching was what He was really all about. Wherever there was a synagogue He preached. Salvation for the human
race is His desire.