“Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.” – Matthew 4:1

From a casual look, our meditation verse today wouldn’t sit well with the theology many people have been taught since Sunday School.

Surely, why would the Holy Spirit lead the Son of God into the wilderness so as to be tempted by the devil yet we always pray that He “lead us not into temptation”?

However, the verse doesn’t say that the Spirit led Jesus into temptation; it says the Spirit led Him into the wilderness to seek God for 40 days and then at the end of that period the devil came to tempt Him when He was hungry.

Now, if Jesus, the Son of God who came from the Father, was led by the Spirit of God, much more do we need to be led by the Spirit.

One of the important roles of the Holy Spirit is to lead the people of God.

In John 16:13, Jesus told His disciples; “But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own, but will tell you what He has heard, and He will declare to you the things that are to come.”

Romans 8:14 says; “For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God.”

The Holy Spirit leads in different ways; indeed, He might even lead you not to do what appears to be the right thing like preaching the Gospel in a certain situation.

This is clearly shown in Acts 16:6-7.

It says; “When [ Paul also and Barnabas] had passed through the Phrygian and Galatian region, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia; and after they came to Mysia, they were trying to go into Bithynia, and the Spirit of Jesus did not permit them.”

It is not clear what means the Holy Spirit used to ‘forbid’ them but the apostles got the message clearly.

The next verse says Paul later got a vision in the night of a man in Macedonia asking them “to come and help us.”

Straightaway, they headed to Macedonia, which culminated in the founding of the Church of the Philippians.

Our lives, ministries, work, etc, would be a whole lot better if we were led by the Holy Spirit.

Would you like to be led by the Holy Spirit?

Earnestly pray for the leading of the Holy Spirit.

Regularly withdraw from the world’s noise to seek the Holy Spirit’s presence and guidance.

May we always repeat David’s prayer: “Show me Your ways, Lord, teach me Your paths. Guide me in Your truth and teach me, for You are God my Savior, and my hope is in You all day long.”

Make it a habit to regularly study and meditate on the Word of God so as to understand God’s character, will, and ways.

Stay in touch with other Spirit-filled people for fellowship and connection.

Do your best to act on the guidance and instructions you receive from the Holy Spirit, even if they don’t seem to make sense at the moment.

The Holy Spirit will not strive!

May 2025 be the year of being led by the Holy Spirit, daily! Amen