The Holy Spirit Empowered Jesus

REAL CHANGE // TRADEMARK CHURCH

THE HOLY SPIRIT EMPOWERED JESUS

At the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry, he stood in the synagogue on a certain day, opened the scroll to that day’s reading, Isaiah 61:1–2, and read this aloud:

“The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”—Luke 4:18–18

Just prior to this scene, Jesus had been baptized by John the Baptist, where the Spirit rested on him (see Luke 3:22), then Luke 4:1 describes that he was “full of the Holy Spirit” as he was led by the Spirit into the wilderness for 40 days of prayer and fasting, which is where he was also tempted by the devil. So in the span of just a few verses, the Holy Spirit is described as being both on Jesus and in Jesus. There is a difference between the two! The idea of Jesus being full of the Holy Spirit was in the context of being led by the Spirit into the wilderness, fasting, praying, and overcoming the temptations that the devil threw at him. In this context, we see the Holy Spirit empowering Jesus from within to overcome. In essence, the Holy Spirit is in Jesus for Jesus.

Luke 4:14 then mentions that after the testing “Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit.” The power was released after the testing. His time of testing proved that he wasn’t going to use the power of the Spirit foolishly or flagrantly. Jesus had all access to the power of the Spirit, but not once in his life did he use it childishly or selfishly. This is the definition of gentleness. (See Galatians 5:22–23).

Then in verse 18, Jesus practically announces the beginning of his ministry, while reminding them obliquely (by quoting the prophet Isaiah), that the Holy Spirit is on him for healing others and setting them free. What this is saying is that the Holy Spirit is on Jesus for others.

So we see in Luke 4 that the Holy Spirit is in Jesus for Jesus and on Jesus for others. Remember, Jesus was completely obedient to the Father. He reminded his disciples that he only did what he saw the Father doing, (see John 5:19), and he only said what he heard the Father saying (see John 12:49). Though fully man, he was also fully God and filled with the Holy Spirit, able to conquer the enemy, heal the sick, raise the dead, and set the captives free because of the Holy Spirit who rested on him.

He spelled all this out before he did one miracle. He gave credit to the power of the Holy Spirit who was on him. He lived his life in deference to God the Father and God the Holy Spirit.

There is so much more we could say about the Holy Spirit—who is represented in both the Old and New Testaments in various ways such as water, oil, and fire. You can spend the rest of your life getting to know this Person of the Trinity and never reach the end of it!

What have your past experiences with the Holy Spirit been like?

What have your past experiences with others who have approached you about the Holy Spirit been like?

If the Holy Spirit just brought to mind any negative thoughts or feelings about others, take a moment to choose to forgive and release them. Please don’t let others’ perceptions of God limit your approach to him! Instead, pray and ask him to show you who he really is.

Do you have any fear associated with allowing the Holy Spirit to fill you, to lead you, to even take control of your daily life? If so, ask Holy Spirit where the root of that might be.