Jesus Ministry in Relation to the Holy Spirit

The Bible is unapologetically Trinitarian, that is to say, from Genesis 1:1–2 to John 1:1, the Triune God is presented very clearly. And, in Jesus’ ministry, Dr. Luke drives home the close relationship between the Son of God and the Spirit of God, especially here in Luke 4.

Some seven hundred years before Jesus’ birth, the prophet Isaiah wrote of various purposes for the Messiah’s anointing. Dr. Luke quotes Isaiah 61:1–2 in Luke 4:18–19. (By the way, Christ means anointed one.)

Following His baptism in Luke 3, Jesus left the region of the Jordan River full of the Holy Spirit and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness for forty days to be tempted by the devil. (Luke 4:1–2) With each temptation, the devil twisted the Scripture and, unsurprisingly, as Jesus responded to each temptation He quoted Scripture in its proper context.

Following His temptations, Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Holy Spirit. (Luke 4:14) Three times in fourteen verses, Dr. Luke connects the ministry of the Holy Spirit with the ministry of Jesus. Jesus never aFred independently. Throughout His ministry, He relied on His Father and the Holy Spirit for everything. And, when we read through the book of Acts, we’ll see how the early believers followed this same pattern.

As Jesus went into the synagogue on the Sabbath, He was handed the Isaiah scroll. Finding the Isaiah 61 passage, (there were no chapter or verse markings at this time) He read it and then made an astonishing proclamation—that this Scripture was fulfilled in Him. (v. 21) This statement evoked two simultaneous responses from the audience: They were amazed by His gracious words, yet also asked, “Isn’t this Joseph’s son?” This was a roundabout way of saying, “Isn’t this the kid who lives up the block? What does He know?” This would not be the last time, though, that the Lord’s words divided His audience, nor would it be the last that they sought to kill Him for them. (vv. 28-30)

Application

Each of us is regularly tempted by the devil. I talked about Jesus’ temptations on February 2, and I highlighted the fact that being tempted is not sin. Please refer back to that devotional for some encouraging words concerning temptation.

As we follow Jesus in our walk and individual ministries, we must follow His examples of dependence on our Father and the Holy Spirit. He depended on the Holy Spirit for victory over temptation by effectively wielding the Sword of the Spirit. And, it was in the power of the Holy Spirit that He followed Isaiah’s prophecy to speak of His own anointing by the Holy Spirit.

Jesus was very relatable. He was tempted in every way that we are, yet He did not sin. (Hebrews 4:15) (We’ll return to this passage from Hebrews on October 24.) No, Jesus was not tempted with every temptation we are, but He was tempted in every way as we are. And, Jesus’ response to the devil’s temptation gives us a pattern to follow: To face and fight temptations from the place of being full of and led by the Holy Spirit.

© Copyright 2026 Craig Beaman