F O O T H O L D
READING
5 GET READY
PRAY Prepare my mind to hear
your word today, Lord God.
READ Mark 1:113.
THINK What does this passage
teach us about the Trinity: Father, Son and
Spirit?
FOCUS In order to get the
most out of the selections from Mark's Gospel
we will need not simply to
understand what is said, but to relive
the events and try to feel
the emotions and attitudes of the
people involved. This will
mean using our imaginations under the
guidance of the Holy Spirit not to add to God's word but to
bring it to life.
JOHN THE MESSENGER (18).
Jesus' coming was not something sudden
or unexpected. God prepared
people in a variety of ways. Isaiah
said many important things
about Jesus Christ long before he came.
This prophecy was originally
about God leading the Jews back
across the desert from
captivity in Babylon. But it also points
to John the Baptizer, the
herald of Jesus. John the Baptist spoke
directly about Jesus' coming.
Imagine the scene: John in his
rough cloak preaching to the
crowd and baptising some in the
river. Then Jesus came along.
JESUS THE SON (913). Jesus
had no need to be baptised for he had
no sins to confess, but the
sinless Son of God identified himself
with sinners. The Spirit,
like a dove, came down upon him and the
voice from heaven declared
who Jesus is. As if to test whether or
not what had happened was
genuine, Satan at once tempted Jesus.
Jesus dealt with Satan
directly and overcame him. (For greater
detail see Luke 4:112).
Jesus was tempted in just
the same way as we are (Hebrews 4:15).
How does that help us to
face temptation today?
PRAY Ask that you may know
Christ's power in all the temptations which
come your way.
