The Foundation of New Eden: The Beginning of Jesus Ministry

Introduction

            Adam’s one task was to guard the garden (Gen 2:15). His ultimate mission was to expand the territory of Eden over the whole earth (Gen 1:27-28). Instead of guarding the garden from dragons, Adam let one in. Not only did Adam permit the serpent into the garden, he also trusted the serpent instead of God. So, Satan dominates the world like a tyrant. But God promised that one day a man born of woman will crush Satan under His feet (Gen 3:15). It’s no surprise that God sends Jesus first thing to face Satan. Jesus faces Him as the New Adam to bring New Eden here in the wilderness. Jesus is the New Joshua, who after crossing the river Jordan comes to invade Satan’s territory. He comes to expand the kingdom of heaven into the dark places and even toward the prince of Darkness himself.

My main point today is that Jesus begins His ministry by spreading the Kingdom of Heaven into the territory of darkness. I have divided the sermon into two parts. In the first part covering Jesus’ temptation in verses 1-11, Jesus Prevails against the Devil. In the second part covering Jesus’ ministry in Galilee in verses 12-25, Jesus Invades the Darkness.

Jesus Prevails against The Devil (Matthew 4:1-11)

Last week, we saw at Jesus’ baptism the Holy Spirit descend on Him (3:16). Today, a few verses later the Spirit leads him to the wilderness to be tempted by the devil (4:1). While in the wilderness, Jesus fasted for forty days and became hungry (4:2). The forty days of fasting in the wilderness alludes to Moses and Elijah fasting for forty days. These occurrences of fasting occurred alongside confrontation of evil (Deut 9:9,11; 1 Kings 19:8).  

After His forty days of fasting, the Devil comes to Jesus with his first temptation (4:3). Notice the first temptation questions what God said at the Jordan River. God the father declared Jesus was His son (3:17). Now the Devil questions God’s declaration. “If you’re really God’s beloved son, tell those rocks to become bread.” Satan puts Jesus in the same place as Israel after crossing the Red Sea. Israel grumbled over not having the food they were accustomed to eating in Egypt. They missed their Egyptian barbecue and Nile picknicks. They wished they were killed by the plagues of Egypt instead of hungry in the wilderness. So, God provided them meat and manna (Ex 16:1-21). But where Israel grumbled over lack of food, Jesus shows Satan His true food. He quotes Deuteronomy 8 where Moses commanded to Israel to trust God, not to test Him. So, Jesus rejects Satan’s first temptation by trusting in God.

Then the Devil transported Him to the Temple in Jerusalem (4:5). Again, Satan questioned if Jesus were the Son of God. This time Satan ups his game by quoting Psalm 91:11-12 (4:6). Here, the psalmist says God will send His angels to protect those who trust in Him. Now, the Devil uses this promise to tempt Jesus to question God. Satan basically says, “Hey, God says if you trust Him, He will send angles to keep you from falling. See if it’s true. Jump!” But again, Jesus quotes from Deuteronomy 6. Here, He alludes to the time Israel tested God in Massah. Later in the wilderness, Israel began to complain of thirst. This time they grumble to the point of threatening to kill Moses. So again, God provided what they asked for and gave them water (Ex 17:1-7). Moses named that place Massah, which means testing. By alluding to Massa, Jesus essentially says, “God’s promises are meant be trusted, not tested.”

For the third temptation, the Devil took Jesus to a high mountain, showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory (4:8). Here he tells Jesus, “If you bow down and worship me, I will give you these kingdoms and their glory (4:9).” Here, Satan tempts Jesus with glory before the cross. God sent Jesus to rule and reign over heaven and earth afterHis death on the cross. When Israel grew tired of waiting on Moses to return from the mountain, they bowed down and worshipped a golden idol (Ex 32). Satan tempts Jesus similarly. “Hey, you don’t have to wait for glory or even suffer for it, just bow down to me and I’ll give it to you now.” But Jesus responds from Deuteronomy (6:13; 10:2) and rebukes Satan. “Go Satan! My purpose is to love and serve God. You’re barking up the wrong tree.” Then Satan obeys Jesus’ command and leaves (4:10). It also says that angels came and ministered to Jesus, proving the promise made in Psalm 91, the Psalm Satan quoted in the second temptation, is still true. God sends angels to protect the faithful.

In Deuteronomy 8:1-3, Moses tells Israel that God led them through the wilderness to humble them and test them. The test was to see what was in their hearts—obedience or disobedience. Jesus is a new Israel. When Israel grumbled for lack of bread, Jesus trusted God’s promises. When Israel tested God for lack of water, Jesus trusted God’s promises. When Israel turned to idols for a quick fix, Jesus continued to trust God’s mission. Jesus is a new Israel. Jesus is also the New Adam. Where Adam was to protect the Garden in Eden from dragons, Jesus entered into the dragon’s cave to tell him his time is running out. Where Adam was to wait and failed, Jesus waited and succeeded. He does not side with the Devil, like Adam. Instead, Jesus rebukes him. Jesus is our example. He defeats Satan in the wilderness, not with His divine power and authority, but with His trust in His father. Adam was made a little lower than the angels (Ps 8:5), but God has appointed the New Adam above the angels and they serve Him (Heb 1:14).

So how should we apply this first half of Matthew 4. First, remember grumbling and complaining are not virtues. Gratitude is a virtue. But grumbling and complaining are sins (Phil 2:14-18; James 5:9). Jesus shows He is a better Israel by trusting what God gives, not grumbling about it. We live in a time when it’s fashionable to complain. Women complain about their husbands on TikTok. Men grumble about their bosses over lunch. Especially for Christians, it’s fashionable to complain about church. In Ephesians 4, Paul says that when Jesus ascended into heaven, He gave gifts to men (Eph 4:8). Among those gifts are pastors to equip and build up the church (Eph 4:11-12. This means Pastor Hansen is a gift sent from heaven to you. His ministry of word and sacrament are gifts with Jesus’ fingerprints on it. Satan prowls around like a hungry lion, looking for sheep who want to do things their own way. That’s why God provides shepherds to protect a flock (1 Pet 5:1-9). The ministry of our pastor, the shepherding from the elders, the service and care from the deacons, these are all God-given, heaven-sent, blood-bought gifts for you. God gives good gifts! God knows the officers in this church are imperfect—He still sent them to you because He loves you. So, the question comes down to this—Do you trust God? If so, thankfully receive what He gives.

Second, God does not tempt anyone to sin (James 1:13). Satan tempts our passions and our sinful passions crave the temptation (James 1:14). However, God sends us out into a world filled with devils, not to be overcome by them, but to continue trusting Him in their midst. God may place us in the wilderness filled with dragons, but He does not put us there so we will become dragon food. He puts us there so we can become dragon fighters. When the Lord brings us into a time of wilderness, He does so to reveal what’s in our hearts. When the doctor gives you the diagnosis, when you lose your job, when you go through a time where all you touch turns to ash in your hands, God is there. And He is there for you to trust. But devils are also there tempting you to just give up. When God sends you trials where you feel like dying, He does so to make you more like Christ. Through each trial, test, and temptation, God makes you more like Jesus. During your first trip in the wilderness, it seems like the Devil won. But if God keeps sending trials your way, and you continue trusting in Him, your continued trust in God proves God is still preserving you. A laundry detergent advertisement doesn’t prove the greatness of the product by showing a before and after of already-clean clothes but clothes with grass and wine stains on them. Likewise, God demonstrates His faithfulness through turning trials into triumphs. The only way to die to your old self is to die by faith. But remember our God is in the business of raising the dead. So, walk into your wilderness seasons by faith trusting the Lord to crush Satan under your feet.

Jesus Invades the Darkness (Matthew 4:12-25)

Jesus withdrew North after hearing that John was arrested (4:12). Jesus left Nazareth and settled by the sea of Galilee(4:13). He went to Galilee to fulfill the prophecy in Isaiah 9 that those in darkness will see a great light. Galilee is mentioned five times in the OT. The first two times are in Joshua, and its just in passing (Joshua 20:7, 21:32). The third occurs when King Solomon gave King Hiram of Tyre the land of Galilee for a gift and Hiram said it was a worthless gift (1 Kings 9:10-13). The last times are when the Assyrians conquered Galilee taking it’s people into exile (2 Kings 15:29) and repopulated it with Gentiles (2 Kings 17). So, in the OT, Galilee was afterthought, a disappointment, and a Gentile settlement. Jesus, The true king of Judah will not begin His Kingdom in the bright city of Jerusalem, but in dark and dirty Galilee. As God turned to the Gentiles to provoke Israel to jealousy (Deuteronomy 32:16-21), so will Jesus make His base of operations in Galilee, not Judea.

During this time Jesus began preaching to repent for the kingdom of heaven is here (4:17). As Jesus was walking by the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and Andrew casting their net into the sea (4:18). He told them, “Come here after me, and I will make you fishers of men (4:19).” In the OT, prophets speak of Gentile nations invading the promised land and fishing for men to capture and imprison them (Jeremiah 16:16; Amos 4:2). God punished rebellious Israel by sending fishers of men. Now Jesus is recruiting His own fishers of men to invade Satan’s territory and take men alive. Where the old judgment took men into exile, this judgment takes men out of exile and into the kingdom of heaven.

Andrew and Peter immediately left their nets and followed Jesus (4:20). Continuing his stroll around the sea, He saw two other brothers, James and John, sons of Zebedee in the boat of Zebedee, mending their nets (4:21). Like Andrew and Peter, James and John immediately left their boat and father and followed Jesus (4:22). Jesus went throughout all Galilee teaching in the synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, healing every disease and sickness among the people (4:23). And the report about Him spread throughout all Syria. The people brought Him all the sick, those suffering with disease, pain, demoniacs, epileptics, and paralytics. Jesus healed them (4:24). Large crowds followed Him from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and from beyond the Jordan (4:25).

The trust in God that Jesus displayed in the wilderness, He calls His disciples to display in their daily lives. As Elijah called Elisha to stop plowing and follow Him, Jesus tells Peter and Andrew (1 Kings 19:19-21). If you follow Jesus, your vocation, time, family, friends, dog, lawn mower, your serving spoons and shoes belong to Jesus. This doesn’t mean we give everything away or we fasten crosses onto all our stuff. It simply means we walk humbly before God eager to obey Him.

The good news of the kingdom is that the king is here. God is here so repent. He heals, restores, and remedies. The kingdom of heaven is the fulfillment of what Adam lost—heaven and earth in harmony. The kingdom of heaven is here now on earth because Jesus rules and reigns from heaven (Matthew 28:18-20). Jesus fulfills the original plan of Adam: spread the boundaries of Eden. Make the wilderness a garden.

Conclusion

During Jesus’ most excruciating trial—His crucifixion—He again heard demonic taunting to question God. The mob and the chief priests surrounding the cross said, “if you’re truly God’s Son, get off that cross. Let’s see if God will save you (Matt 27:39-43).” What they didn’t know was that His suffering on the cross was the purpose of His anointing (Ps 2:1-2; Acts 4:25-26). They didn’t know that God the Father would vindicate Jesus as His Son three days later when Jesus walked out of His tomb (Ps 2:7; Acts 13:33; Heb 1:5; 5:5). But the only way for Jesus to walk out of His tomb was to first die. Death then resurrection. In Jesus’ greatest trial, the wilderness of the cross, He disarmed the tyrant-Prince, the Devil (Col 2:14-15). He descended to this lowest of low so that He could rise to highest of heights. After His resurrection and on the top of another mountain in Galilee, Jesus told His followers that He has all authority in heaven and earth (Matt 28:18). He now sits in heaven until the Church, His body and bride, finish spreading the kingdom of heaven over all the earth and Satan is crushed under our feet (Matt 28:19; Rom 16:20). This is how we defeat Satan—by following Jesus to the cross with Satan under our feet.

Your final charge is this: God gives good gifts. Receive them with thanksgiving. Hold on to them with faithfulness. Repent of your grumbling and excuses. Savor the bread of Christ’s body when it’s given to you. Be humbled that our King shares His chalice with you. Sing loud so that you will give courage to your brother fighting His dragons. And most of all, enjoy your calling as Christ’s body and eagerly find ways to love His body in the days ahead.

In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.