2026 Reading Plan Reflections - Day 48

"At once the Spirit forced Jesus out into the wilderness. He was in the wilderness for forty days, tempted by Satan. He was among the wild animals, and the angels took care of him.”Mark 1:12-13 CEB

“At once.” “Right away.” “At that very moment.” "Immediately."
Welcome to the Gospel of Mark.

From the start, Mark moves with urgency. There’s no long genealogy. No extended birth narrative. No lingering introduction. The action starts, and it doesn’t slow down.

In the first twenty verses alone we see: Prophecy fulfilled in John the Baptist, John pointing beyond himself to Jesus, the Father and the Spirit affirming the Son’s identity, Jesus driven into the wilderness, temptation, and the calling of the first disciples.

The foundation is laid quickly. The kingdom has arrived. And it is advancing. This pace won't slow until Mark gets to Palm Sunday, so get used to it.

Tempted — Yet Without Sin
In light of recent conversations around sin and sanctification—especially as we understand them within the Church of the Nazarene—my attention was drawn to the temptation of Jesus today.

Mark writes, "the Spirit forced Jesus out into the wilderness. He was in the wilderness for forty days, tempted by Satan."

Scripture also tells us, in Paul's second letter to the Corinthian churches, “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21).

Jesus was tempted. Jesus did not sin. That’s the hinge point of our theology of hope. If temptation automatically produced sin, then Jesus could not be both fully human and sinless. The fact that He was tempted—and yet remained without sin—tells us something vital about both His nature and ours.

Some of our Christian brothers and sisters operate from the assumption that daily sin is inevitable—that we must sin in word, thought, and deed every day. In that framework, temptation becomes almost automatic failure. Once the thought comes, the fall is assumed.
But if temptation equals sin, then how do we account for Jesus?

If Jesus was fully human and genuinely tempted, and yet without sin, then temptation itself cannot be sin. Temptation is an opportunity. Sin is a choice. This is where hope begins.

The Hope of Holiness
Our theology has always insisted on this: grace does more than forgive. It transforms. The same Spirit that descended on Jesus now lives within believers. The same power that sustained Jesus in the wilderness sustains us in our daily lives.

We do not claim sinless perfection through human effort. We do not deny the reality of struggle. But we also refuse to lower the bar of grace to match our weakness. Through the cleansing blood of Christ and the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit, we believe real freedom is possible. Not theoretical freedom. Not someday-in-heaven freedom. Spirit-empowered obedience here and now.

Mark wastes no time announcing the kingdom. And he wastes no time showing us what kind of King Jesus is—one who faces temptation head-on and walks out faithful.

Separate temptation from sin. When temptation comes, don’t immediately spiral into shame.
Pause and say (out loud if you need to): “Temptation is not sin.”
Name it. Don’t own it. Jesus was tempted. The presence of a pull does not equal failure. If that were true, the enemy would have the win. Remember, we embrace a theology of hope...

Slow down the “Immediately” in your own heart. Mark moves fast, but our obedience often requires a deliberate pause. When we feel the impulse—anger, pride, lust, impatience, defensiveness—it is important that we don’t act “immediately,” except to take those thoughts captive. Take one breath. Pray one sentence: “Holy Spirit, strengthen me.” Sanctification looks like one surrendered moment at a time.

Examine what you’ve assumed about sin. Do I believe obedience is actually possible? Have I lowered my expectations of grace? Do I excuse what the Spirit wants to cleanse?

Holiness is not self-improvement. It is Spirit-empowered surrender. But it is real.
If Jesus (fully God and fully human) resisted, then resistance is possible.

Strengthen before the wilderness moments. Jesus didn’t enter temptation disconnected. The Spirit had just descended. The Father had just affirmed Him.
How are you preparing? Daily Scripture? Prayer before pressure? Accountability relationships? We have to train for the race...

Show up, say yes, submit, and surrender. 

Father, thank You that temptation is not the end of the story. Thank You for a Savior who was tempted and did not sin. Cleanse our hearts. Let Your Spirit shape our desires until obedience becomes delight. Amen.