Verse 2 says the Lord fasted forty days and forty nights. These forty days and forty nights were a time of testing and suffering (Deut. 9:9, 18; 1 Kings 19:8). The newly anointed King was led by the Spirit to fast such a period of time that He might enter into His kingly ministry.
The first test was in the matter of human living, in the matter of making a living. Our relatives and in-laws, especially those of the older generation, are always concerned about how we shall make our living. They may say, “It is all right to love the Lord, but do not love Him in a foolish way. You must consider your need to make a good living.” When in 1933 I was burdened by the Lord and led of Him to leave my job, my in-laws said, “You have a good job. You are making excellent money to take care of your family and to help others. You can speak on Sunday and hold meetings at night during the week. Why must you quit your job? Many are looking eagerly for such a job, but have no opportunity to get it. But you are leaving. We wonder how you will be able to make a living. We don’t know how you will take care of your wife and children.” I did not listen to their advice, and they could not discourage me from leaving my job to serve the Lord full time. A number of times my in-laws even sent their little daughter to sneak into our kitchen to see if we had food to eat. They were worried that we might be starving. The matter of our living touches us deeply, and even the Lord Jesus was tested regarding it.
The Lord was led to fast for forty days and forty nights. After these forty days and forty nights, He was physically hungry, and the tempter came to Him and said, “If You are the Son of God, speak, that these stones may become loaves of bread” (v. 3). To this proposal the Lord replied, “Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out through the mouth of God” (v. 4). Many Christians think that because the Lord was fasting during this time He did not eat anything. However, this word reveals that while the Lord Jesus was fasting, He was eating. Physically He was fasting, but spiritually He was eating.
Here we see an important principle. In the Lord’s ministry and economy, if we do not know how to lower our physical demands and take care of the spiritual demand, we are not qualified for His ministry. In order to be qualified in the Lord’s ministry, we must be tested. We must lay down our physical requirements. A good living, good food, good clothing, and proper housing are all secondary. Eating spiritual food is primary. Immediately after His baptism, the Lord Jesus was led into a situation where He could declare to the whole universe that He was not for the physical need, but that He would take care of the spiritual need only. For forty days and forty nights, He forsook all physical food, forgetting the physical requirements. However, He took care of the spiritual need. Although He did not eat to nourish His physical body, He ate a great deal for the nourishment of His spirit. Satan was absolutely wrong in thinking that the Lord Jesus was not eating during those days in the wilderness. While He was fasting from physical food, He was partaking of spiritual food. This is the test in the matter of our living.
Many wives have not been able to withstand this test. Every wife is very concerned about her security. The wives desire to have good food, clothing, and housing. In other words, they desire a good living. This has posed a problem to many brothers. Although these brothers had a heart to take the way of the church, their wives were not willing to follow them because there was no guarantee of a good living. Many of us can testify that, when we first began to take the way of the church, our wives said, “What about our future? What about our living? What about our food, clothing, and housing?” This is a test we must face if we would take the way of the church and go the way of God’s economy.
The first test we must pass is the test regarding our living. We must care for the spiritual food more than for the physical food. Whether we live or die is secondary. We only care that our spirit is fed, that our spirit feasts on the Word of God, on God Himself.
Some pastors, missionaries, and Bible teachers saw the way of the church and had a thorough talk with me about it. However, realizing that this way is narrow, they were concerned about what would happen to their living if they went this way. The wives of many of these dear ones simply did not agree that their husbands should take this narrow way. They knew their standard of living would be lowered if their husbands went the way of the church.
Forty-five years ago in China, this way was truly narrow, and we were daily on the test concerning our living. Time after time just one dollar kept some of us from having nothing to eat. In order to take this narrow way, we had to live by faith in God. Although it was very difficult, we lived by faith for many years. I can testify that we feasted on God and His Word during those testing days when our standard of living was greatly lowered. Our experience was the same as that of the Lord Jesus in the wilderness. He neither chose to go to the wilderness nor did He go there by His own preference. He was led there by the Holy Spirit. Likewise, we were led by God into the wilderness of the church life. Fifty years ago, the church was truly in the wilderness. Nearly every day we were tested concerning what we would eat that night. But that was the time we enjoyed feasting on the Word of God. On the one hand, we did not have very much physical food to eat, but on the other hand, we did feast on the rich Word.
The principle is the same today in the church life. In taking the way of the church, the first test we shall encounter is that of lowering our standard of living. This is the test in the realm of our physical living. Everyone who takes the way of the church will be tested in this matter of his daily living. We shall be tested to show to the whole universe that our concern is not for physical food, but for spiritual food. During those days in the wilderness, Jesus was not concerned for His physical food, but for His spiritual food. He was fasting physically, yet He was eating the Word of God. In the wilderness He did not live by bread alone; He lived on the Word of God.