Temptation
/Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. - Matthew 4:1
When the Sunday gospel is about Jesus’ temptations in the wilderness, you know Lent has arrived. It is a story that will seem to follow us all season, as we continually face the way the world tempts us away from the love of God, and how we are called to respond as faithful people. It’s worth noting the three clear responses that Jesus gave to the tempter in this dramatic story as inspiration for the journey.
One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God
I love to be comfortable as much as the next person. It is not great to feel overly hungry or cold or wet or anxious or afraid or any number of other discomforts. I used to have a seminary professor that would often remind us, however, that comfort is not a Christian value. Jesus rejects the tempter’s offer of comfort, saying that the gift of life does not depend on our comfort. The gift of life comes from God alone.
Do not put the Lord your God to the test.
I have an adolescent kitten at home, and she is very good at testing limits. We don’t want her on the kitchen table, but not an hour goes by that she doesn’t try going up on it again. Will they shoo me off this time? How about this time? How about now? This is not how a mature cat behaves, and it’s no way for us to act with God, either. As faithful people, we know the commandments. There is no amount of testing that will change them.
Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.
Bob Dylan wrote a great song called “Gotta to Serve Somebody.” In it, he lists all kinds of people who do all sorts of things in life. But whoever you are, he sings, “Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord. But you're gonna have to serve somebody.” There are so many things to worship in this world. So many things to serve. Make sure you don’t waste your time on foolish (or harmful) idols. Worship and serve God alone.
After forty long days of fasting and silence, Jesus is pretty clear in his concise answers to temptation. To get to that place of spiritual strength requires effort, discipline and faith. Lucky for us, Lent is the perfect time to re-commit to a new or deeper spiritual practice, so that by the time Easter arrives, we’ll have discovered some new words of our own for asserting our trust and faith when the tempter shows up on our doorstep..
Hope to see you at the Ash Wednesday service tonight to start your Lenten journey. And I hope you’ll be able to join us on Sunday, when Bishop Hirschfeld will be with us for the first Sunday of Lent. Remember to bring something special to share for our potluck brunch with him if you can!
