tt. 2:1-12). These wise men were an occasion to cite the prophecy of the location of Jesus' birth, and the flight to Egypt was another occasion to cite two more prophecies, including His return from there (2:13-23).
All three of the synoptic gospels describe Jesus' immediate removal to the wilderness following his baptism (Matt. 4:1-11, Mark 1:12-13, Luke 4:1-13). There He was tempted, resisted the temptations, and proved Himself superior to the best Satan could do. If there were a single original document this event with Jesus' baptism was certainly part of it, since baptism and resisting the devil ("and he will flee from you." James 4:7) were early tenets of the Christian faith. However, early gospel records may be assumed to have had the same respect as that accorded the records of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John: preservation and duplication. We do know that these stories must have been part of the fellowship and "breaking of the bread" the early Christian church commemorated "from house to house" Acts 2:46-47. With a sudden addition of 3,000 members (2:41) and 5,000 later (4:4) these stories must have been told many times by the apostles and o
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