God didn't market Jesus

Have you ever wondered why God didn’t market Jesus? When He verified that “This is my son, in whom I am well pleased,” (Mk 1:11) He didn’t have Jesus take advantage of the timing by going around the town saying “I’m He, the one God spoke about . . . remember the thunder you heard down at the river? That was God bearing witness to me.” Instead, God sent His Son into the wilderness to be tempted and tested (Mk 1:12). It was more important to God that His Son become strong, and overcome, than that He become known.

When Jesus gave the parable about the workers in the vineyard, He personally brought men out of the marketplace to work in the harvest for Him (Mt 20:3 KJV). Yet there are teachers heaped upon teachers that tell us to use marketplace techniques to promote our ministries. And there are many Christians that wonder why, if they are indeed called by God to minister, they have such severe trials when they do so. These are two issues, though separate, that have a common beginning; God’s call on one’s life.

Jesus’ ministry began after two events; His baptism by John the Baptist, which signifies repentance, and His walk in the wilderness for 40 days. Now God, the Father verified that Jesus was His Son. Yet He did not seek to promote Jesus ahead of the time of His testing. Temptation and testing, trial and suffering were what proved the Son of God in the furnace of God’s purposes for His ministry. Jesus did not question this. He suffered Himself to be tested in every way as we are, and overcame His fleshly nature so that He could be our priest (Heb 2:16-18). He did not question God’s timing. We could think within ourselves “why don’t I capitalize on this moment (when God spoke at the river) and minister to those here so they can make the link that I am the Son of God? Even John verified that I am greater than he, so if I begin with my ministry now, the people will receive me.” If we inserted ourselves into Jesus’ situation, we would be tempted to “market” ourselves to our greatest advantage, justifying the error of our thinking with the belief that we seek to further God’s kingdom. Yet no one could further God’s kingdom as the Son of God except Jesus, and He went into His wilderness experience.

This leads us to the second issue; if we receive our calling and begin serving God, why aren’t we received and put in a place to further His kingdom? Ah, the testing! The fire that burns so hot we can barely stand it, in the wilderness where there is no one to hand us a cup of water. Do we follow God, or do we follow our own devices of promotion and setting ourselves in place? Will we submit to the trials, temptations, and testings so that we will stand strong in our ministries, or will we market ourselves? Every great man and woman of God has to pass through the 40-day wilderness test to become the one who ministers in the grace and power of God. This is a hard place to find oneself in, yet it yields great strength and we will have seasons of tremendous fruit-bearing if we submit to it. I’d like to encourage you today that, when you find yourself in the wilderness, know that it is an appointment of God for a very big and upcoming event. Yet, if we promote ourselves in the marketplaces of Christianity, we will find ourselves not ready for that event. Amen