Matthew 4: 1-11 Marianne Niesen March 13, 2011
The baptism had just happened. Jesus had come to his cousin John at the Jordan River. We see it as a moment of commitment for Jesus - much like it must have been for the others who approached John asking for the ‘baptism of repentance.’ John was getting people ready for God’s inevitable intervention in human affairs. That clearly seems to be what John expected. Little did John or the others gathered there know that the quiet unassuming Galilean from Nazareth was what God had in mind. A little fire, a little brimstone, a little of God getting even by somehow smiting the Romans - but . . . Jesus? Matthew tells us that Jesus was ‘led by the Spirit’ into the wilderness where he spent 40 days being tempted. That’s a long time - and a lot of tempting. And, since Jesus was alone in the desert, we really don’t know exactly what happened out there. The temptation story is an attempt at understanding the kind of preparing that Jesus faced out there. And he needed preparing because life as he knew it changed drastically. From obscurity to baptism to isolation in the desert - and out to the world: Jesus’ time facing his desert temptations was like a refiners’ fire. Jesus was formed and re-formed for his mission.
You will hear many interpretations of the meaning of these three ‘refining’ temptations. Here’s yet another . . . in the first temptation, Jesus was tempted to misuse power. He rejected the temptation by acclaiming that there was more to life than bread - or, more accurately - physical comfort. Having everything you want when you want it. There are higher values of decency and integrity. The second temptation was to gain popularity the wrong way - by showing off and drawing attention to himself. Again, he rejected that temptation, refusing to buy into the very real possibility of becoming the central attraction in a grand scene. And then, the third temptation - to enter into a partnership, an alliance with the ‘wrong kind of folks’ - it was the temptation to ‘sell one’s soul,’ - to compromise one’s values. Instead, he affirmed, we’ll do it my way - God’s way. Not with violence but with a relentless commitment to right relationships, justice and peace. You see, in the desert, in those temptations, Jesus got really clear about how he would intervene in history, the kind of movement he would lead and the kind of movement he would reject. He would not buy into the popular expectation that God’s intervention in world affairs would be a violent one. (The devil was in that detail!)
So Jesus, led by the Spirit, faced the temptations that would form him. His desert sojourn was a powerful time for him which is precisely what I suggest to you that the season of Lent can potentially be for us. A time to allow ourselves to be led by the Spirit to examine who we are and where we’re going. And, frankly, our temptations, rather than being stumbling blocks can actually help us with this. The season of Lent is a time for us not to avoid temptations. It is rather an opportunity to face them, to name them and to claim something of who we are called to be in the midst of them. In other words, temptations can actually help us.
It was Lily Tomlin who said . . . “I’ll tell you a secret: Adults don’t know what they want to do for a living. That’s why they’re always asking kids what they want to be when they grow up. They are looking for ideas!” [1] I’m not sure that’s entirely true but the fact is that we are always in the process of growing up – and, growing up gracefully at any age requires something of us – like courage, determination, a good sense of humor and a willingness to stop and assess things. It is no accident that the story of the temptation of Jesus – which led directly to his claiming of his mission and work in life (a kind of growing up) - took place in the desert, away from the everyday stuff. To really grow up requires that we too do the hard work of going to the desert from time to time – not so much a literal desert as the desert of the heart and soul. We all need times to look at the things that entice us, enthrall us, cajole and capture us and ask – are these things helping me become the person I am meant to be? Where am I being led?
Temptations are often found in those enticing, enthralling, cajoling, capturing things. They are not necessarily bad. There are lots of good enticing things out there that we use everyday - like cell phones and computers and endless activities and awesome ski hills and great vacations and big cars and sought after promotions and the newest appliances and on and on . . . And they can all be used for good or for ill. Do cell phones help us our keep us from ever being present anywhere? Do computers make life easier or do we lose ourselves in a sea of endless information? Do we need the biggest, the newest, the best or do we need to examine boundaries and appropriate use of resources? Temptations abound. They teach us things. Some lead to goodness and grace and growth. Some do not. The question is . . . what are our temptations are where are they leading? Are we becoming the people we are called to be? Determining the answer to those questions takes time. We tend to be quite good at avoiding such reflection. Thus, we are invited to ‘do’ Lent. To take stock of where we are and make corrections if needed. We’re challenged in Lent to let the Spirit of God lead us, just as Jesus was led.
Facing his own temptations, Jesus formed a ministry that would change the world. Rather than changing stones into bread thus making a name for himself, he chose to use his power to empower others. You feed them he told his disciples. Rather than a violent smiting of the powers-that-be or a comfortable ministry among the well-off and well-spoken, he chose to eat with sinners and touch lepers and heal those who had no right to be healed and that put him in direct conflict with those who ran things in his world. Rather than a life lived within the boundaries of acceptability, he challenged systems of oppression wherever he found them. Neither Romans nor religious leaders liked what they saw and so they had him killed. The choices he made as he faced his temptations formed him and such choices will form us as well. May the Lenten desert challenge us as it challenged Jesus. May we allow ourselves to be led by the Spirit into our wilderness. And may we emerge from this Lent clearer about the things we value and the lives we want most to live.
Now you may wonder how on earth I am going to make the transition from temptations to the members of our Haiti Mission Team who will share some of their experiences with us today. For me, the connection is simply this…as you listen to their stories and experiences, allow yourself to be tempted. Sometimes, our problem is not with the temptations to which we succumb but with the temptations to do good that we ignore. Not everyone can go to Haiti. But we can all do something to make the world better.
Don Skillman, Gregg and Wendy Wheeler, Dee DeYong and Dawn Barnes share their experiences and learning from the mission trip to Haiti.
Let us pray . . .
Gracious God, lead us into this Lenten season and tempt us:
Tempt us with visions of greatness that lead us to serving others
Tempt us with hopes for peace that compel us to work for justice.
Tempt us with dreams of power that inspire us to empower others.
Tempt us with opportunities to choose forgiveness over getting even,
Love over fear and grace over grudges.
Tempt us that we might live the lives for which we long. Amen.
