Jesus and the Beasts

Why did the beasts in the desert not eat Jesus when he went out there for forty days? Go back to the Noah story. Wild, flesh eating beasts were taken onto the ark. What did they eat? During the storm, the Spirit-filled Kingdom of God ruled in the ark. Everyone, including the animals, sensed a bond with one another. No one hungered for food. I mean, where would you get food for all those animals for 40 days? Certain "natural" tendencies, i.e. to destroy one another in order to survive, was suspended. With sin being destroyed in the storm outside, grace ruled within the ark. The wild animals remembered. Humans forgot. God gave the rainbow to remind all that even when the storm might look at its worst, the sun will shine on everyone.

Now Jesus goes into the desert, driven there by the Spirit. The Spirit is with him and the Kingdom once again reigns. The wild beasts remember instinctually. No one needs to eat. All sit in peace with one another. Jesus experiences the Kingdom in what is thought to be the home of Satan, the scary desert. Jesus went into the desert with a world view focused on his people. In those forty days, he experienced a sense of the kingdom that is for all, even the wild beasts. He comes out of the desert a Son of Man for all people. No one is outside the promise of the covenant Love of God. And we say beasts are dumb animals!