“Then Jesus left the Jordan, full of the Holy Spirit, and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness for forty days to be tempted by the devil.” (Luke 4:1-2)
“After the devil had finished every temptation, he departed from him for a time. Then Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news about him spread throughout the entire vicinity.” (Luke 4:13-14)
Throughout my years of ministry, I’ve often heard Christians complain that God doesn’t use them as much as they’d like to be used. I’ve known Christians who have become Holy Spirit conference junkies, deeply desiring a powerful healing or deliverance ministry. Others have driven themselves crazy, striving for a teaching, preaching, media, or practical ministry that would impact hundreds of thousands or millions of people for Jesus.
“Why won’t God use me (the way I want)?”
Well, that’s their first problem – the way I want.
That aside, I get it. I’ve lamented that way, too. I’ve served as a pastor in a small, thirty-member rural church when my contemporaries saw explosive congregational growth of hundreds not twenty miles away. “What’s up with that, Jesus?” often walked through my thoughts.
First, how the Lord uses us is up to Him, not us.
Second, the desire to be used in service to our Father’s kingdom is good and comes from the Lord Himself. However, the “how” is up to Him. (See Number 1.) We must be content if we cooperate with the Lord and follow the Spirit’s leading.
Finally, we must demonstrate faithful responsibility in doing what the Lord tells us. As for what kind of impact it will have, well, that’s up to Jesus. The Apostle Paul knew this well. “What then is Apollos? What is Paul? They are servants through whom you believed, and each has the role the Lord has given. I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So, then, neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth.” (1 Corinthians 3:5-6, italics author).
In case you missed the italicized words, growth is up to God.
That said, another principle has been ringing my bell lately. It’s related to the scripture, “From everyone who has been given much, much will be required; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, even more will be expected” (Luke 12:48).
Do you ever wonder why Jesus walked in the incredible authority and power He did, healing every disease, casting out every demon with a word, and working great miracles to His Father’s glory? Check out how expansive Jesus’ ministry was.
“Now Jesus began to go all over Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people. Then the news about him spread throughout Syria. So they brought to him all those who were afflicted, those suffering from various diseases and intense pains, the demon-possessed, the epileptics, and the paralytics. And he healed them. Large crowds followed him from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and beyond the Jordan” (Matthew 4:23-25, italics author).
Although Jesus focused on bringing the good news of God’s kingdom to His fellow Jews (Matthew 15:24), His ministry was indeed an international one and a mighty one at that. But Jesus couldn’t physically reach the whole world because He was limited to a human body, albeit glorified. Also, He would be in heaven, interceding for His followers. He assigned His earthly teammates to complete His assignment to “make disciples of all nations…teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you” (Matthew 28:19-20). Jesus also said that in His name, His people would “drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes; if they should drink anything deadly, it will not harm them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will get well” (Mark 16:17-18).
Well, that certainly sounds exciting. So, why aren’t we seeing those kinds of spectacular and attention-getting signs through believers right now, especially in the Western nations? It certainly happened in the days of the Book of Acts. Why not so much today?
I like what the late Jamie Buckingham once said about why signs, miracles, and wonders were happening more frequently in third-world nations than in the Western world. He said that in the third world, those manifestations create faith. In the Western world, spiritual manifestations breed skepticism.
Truth.
But I think there’s another reason, one that’s much more painful, illustrated at the start of Jesus’ earthly ministry.
Jesus’ baptism was His presentation to the people of Israel as their Messiah. Long teaching short, the phrase, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well-pleased” (Matthew 3:17; see Psalm 2:7) is covenant language of a king affirming his relationship to his vassal king. In Psalm 2, the Lord speaks of David, whom He gave to the Israelites as His choice for their king. In Matthew’s account, the words show that the Father (King) has introduced Jesus (His Servant-King) to His people (the Jews).
Did Jesus launch into His kingdom ministry immediately after His public introduction? Nope. After being filled with the Holy Spirit, Jesus was led by the Holy Spirit into the Judean wilderness of the Jordan Valley to be tempted. Why did the Father allow His Son to be tempted? Temptation reveals who we are, specifically, whether God can trust us to remain faithful to Him despite our human desires that demand to be satisfied, even if it means violating the Father’s will.
Did Jesus succeed in resisting temptation and remaining faithful to His Father? You bet! And right after that, Jesus returned from the Wilderness “in the power of the Spirit” (Luke 4:14, italics author) to begin His mission.
Did you catch the crucial progression? Filled, then led, then empowered by the Spirit. Jesus proved through His wilderness temptation that He could be trusted to stay riveted to His Father’s will. This commitment was the cornerstone of His ministry. Jesus only spoke His Father’s words and did what His Father did (John 14:10, 5:19). In other words, Jesus was an extension of the Father and a perfect representation of the Almighty Sovereign. As such, Jesus could be entrusted with His Father’s authority and power to do His Father’s work.
Here’s the principle ringing in my head: For those whom God trusts, great things can be entrusted to them.
Jesus’ temptation proved His character, so character precedes power. Character leads to trust, which leads to being entrusted with more extraordinary things like authority and power.
What kind of parent would give a loaded gun to a four-year-old? A dead one. Seriously, no sane parent would be so foolish. However, what about the parents of a teenager who has proven himself to be responsible and trustworthy by taking a gun safety class and training through supervised range time? No worries. Why? For those whom the parent trusts, great things can be entrusted to them.
Why was David given such a wondrous kingdom, so much so that it became known as Israel’s Golden Age? Because God trusted him. Why were so many heroes of the Bible given spectacular anointings to achieve the Lord’s work? Because God trusted them. Why was the Son entrusted with absolute authority and power? Because His Father trusted Him absolutely.
Perhaps one reason why so many Christians today aren’t doing great things for the Lord with significant authority and power is because the Lord doesn’t trust us.
Why give a believer powerful gifts if they don’t have the character to use them responsibly or correctly? I’ve seen terrible damage done to congregations by believers who don’t have the character to control themselves or act responsibly. Imagine what would happen if they suddenly were given great authority and power. The temptation toward abuse is like The Lord Of The Rings, where already powerful characters – Gandalf and Galadriel – are offered the One Ring of Power, built to force all people into submission. Gandalf and Galadriel, though tempted, refused because they knew they didn’t have the internal fortitude to resist the power the ring would bring to bear upon them.
Perhaps the Body of Christ in the Third World does remarkable things for the Lord because He trusts them. Maybe the Western church’s impact is pathetically weak because He doesn’t trust many of us.
For those whom God trusts, great things can be entrusted to them.
So, is our weak and pitiful condition hopeless? Certainly not! Look at how Peter betrayed Jesus’ trust and how Jesus restored him. Peter’s reinstatement came with repentance and recommitment. Only a few weeks after Peter’s restoration, the Spirit’s power flowed through him to heal a man who was lame from birth. In Jesus’ name (i.e., under Jesus’ authority), Peter pulled the man to his feet, and a creative miracle happened (Acts 3:6-8), just like his Lord and Master had done before (John 5:8-9).
How do we change? How do we prove ourselves trustworthy to our Lord?
Character before power. We must prioritize the Fruit of the Spirit before the Gifts of the Spirit. No, I didn’t say the Fruit of the Spirit instead of the Gifts of the Spirit. Our Father expects us to have both. Don’t be surprised to see your gifts intensify as we grow in godly character. I can vouch for that.
Soak in God’s word. The Lord’s words reveal His will and voice. Explaining why He taught in parables, Jesus said, “For whoever has, more will be given to him, and he will have more than enough; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him” (Matthew 13:12). Put differently, for those who have God’s word and are open to receiving wisdom and understanding from Him, the more our Father will reveal His word to them. Those who refuse will lose even what they think they have heard.
Live submitted to Jesus. Jesus is the source of our authority. Period.
Cooperate with the Spirit. The Holy Spirit is our only source and conduit for God’s power. Remember, Jesus was filled first and then led. Jesus was endowed with power only after proving His trustworthiness to His Father by resisting the temptation to do things on His own.
Remain trustworthy. King Saul lost his anointing and service to God by failing to remain trustworthy. King Solomon set the stage for the Israelite kingdom’s schism and eventual fall because he failed to stay faithful to the Lord. Those who have failed God did so often due to unfaithfulness. The good news is through Jesus, we can return and be restored, but it frequently requires additional discipline.
Be responsible with what you’ve been given, great or small. “From everyone who has been given much, much will be required; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, even more will be expected” (Luke 12:48). Use it or lose it. Right?
Ask and leave the how up to the Lord. Above all, remember that God gives the growth.
Do you want to see the Lord move more impactfully through you? Become the person whom the Lord trusts greatly.
For those whom God trusts, great things can be entrusted to them
Shining the Light of God’s Truth on the Road Ahead
Pastor Jay Christianson
The Truth Barista, Frothy Thoughts