Jesus and the Holy Spirit

Starting with the baptism of Jesus in the Jordan River, the Holy Spirit has become a prominent partner of Christ and his mission. Luke recalls that while Jesus was yet wet and still praying, the Spirit of God descended from the sky - in the appearance of something like a dove - and rested upon the Son of God. It's at this point, says Luke, that Jesus began his ministry. And so what is the first thing the Spirit does with Jesus? Lead him into the wilderness of Judea - a harsh and wretched place to dwell for any length of time.

It's interesting to note that, according to the text, Jesus was "full of the Holy Spirit" - this indicates something more than the experience of the OT saints, for them the Holy Spirit rested upon them only. For Jesus, the Holy Spirit has not only come upon him, but come inside him as well - Jesus is full of the Spirit of God. And this Spirit of God leads Jesus into the wastelands outside of Jericho.

Once Jesus completes his time of testing with the devil, he walks out of the desert ridges and makes his way north to the cooler hills of Galilee. But notice what Luke says of Jesus - he is now not only full of the Holy Spirit, but is now coming in the power of the Holy Spirit. There is something electric about him, a surging energy, a vibrancy, a readiness to pour himself out. As the story goes, Jesus starts teaching in the synagogues much to the delight of all those in attendance. Being a brilliant man, Jesus has a strategy for what he is doing, and he is preparing the people for his reading of Isaiah 61, which connects him with the Spirit of God.

The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me,
because the LORD has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim freedom for the captives
and release from darkness for the prisoners,
to proclaim the year of the LORD's favor...

Jesus ends up almost getting killed for his instruction following the synagogue reading of this text. So Jesus leaves his hometown of Nazareth and goes a couple of miles over to the town of Capernaum and starts teaching there. Interestingly, the people remark at the authority with which he taught - they were amazed and inspired. Hmmmmm....

In the stories that follow, we see more implications of Jesus being full of the power of the Holy Spirit of God: Jesus demonstrates power and authority over evil spirits and is able to throw them out of the afflicted people; Jesus is also able to heal people of all kinds of sicknesses. Jesus taught and healed through the power of the Holy Spirit of God - and people were amazed, were healed, were inspired.

Jesus refers to his actions as proclamation of the good news of the kingdom of God. His work in the Spirit resulted in good news - but his work was more than just about making people happy. His work in the Spirit was about revealing reality about the way and rule of God in the world. When God shows up as King, he makes things right, he confronts evil and defeats it, he heals and restores, and he reaches out to all who will reach out to him. This is good news indeed.

To think what God could do these days with a church full of the power of the same Spirit of God...