Anyone have ideas to share on the theme of the temptation to mis use one's spiritual gifts? Manzel
Manzel,
Check out Matthew 7:15-23. It is particularly powerful in the paraphrase "The Message" Hope this helps. -FreeMan
FreeMan,
My research tells me that the "scripture" quoted in Matthew 4:7 does not exist in the Old Testament. That doesn't mean it doesn't exsist in 'spirit,' but those exact words are not in the OT (which I could remember which commentator said that). I do, however, like the interpretation in The Message.
Thanks to whomever it was that mentioned "The Cultural World of Jesus." I ordered all three cycles from Amazon.com (sorry, Frank, Cokesbury doesn't carry them). The comments about this week's lesson are very, very helpful.
Manzel, at this point I'm working on the temptations not to mis-use my gifts, but to use them for my own purposes, not God's purposes. Like when I want a growing, thriving, spirit-filled congregation so I can show MY good works. . . .
Just Thoughts.
RevJan
It is so interesting to me that Jesus fasts for a "long time" before the tempter comes to him. As we begin our Lenten disciplines- whatever they might be-they are only a precursor, something to get us "ready" to be tempted more fully. Did Jesus know that he was preparing to be tempted or was he just preparing to begin his ministry??
VJ
Feb 14, 1999
RevJan,
Just a first posting by a new-guy-local-pastor, but my Bible notes that Matthew 4:7 is taken from Deuteronomy 6:16, "Do not test the Lord your God as you did at Massah." This is not accurate? I'm not really picking a fight so much as I am learning how to post. I'm also trying to prepare a sermon (like everyone else, I'd guess!). While this is a great resource, does anyone have any recommendations for favorite sermon-prep websites that are helpful?
Many thanks,
Michael
Yes, at the end of 40 days we are dizzy with a choice, either to betray, deny, abandon the Christ or to go with him to calvary.
tom in ga
wow, verse one is really powerful. It is the spirit who leads Jesus into the wilderness to be tempted. How does that fit with "Thou shall not tempt God"? Is tempting a bad thing, always? Why would we need to pray, as Jesus taught us, "Lead us not into temptation"? Manzel
That beautiful song, On Eagles Wings, has a line in it "he will bear you up.....lest you dash your foot against a stone" Manzel
As a United Methodist who just moved last July, I'm wondering why the lectionary passage skips the move of Jesus to a new home!!! "He left Nazareth and made his home in Capernaum." Odd how no one ever preaches on that one!! Wonder if the move was the result of the Supreme Bishop's appointment!!!!! On a more helpful note, I've just "seen a great Light" for the weeks of Epiphany; I'm focusing Lenten preaching on our sitting "in the region and shadow of death." Martin Marty's book titled something like the "Winter of the Heart"--I'm away from the shelves--has been helpful in preparation. (In doing so arises the question "Do some of us have wintry kinds of personalities or is there a wintry kind of spirituality" in Lent?" Apologies to Marty as book isn't before me!) It is important to remember in this sacred territory that depression lurks in many who listen to our preaching. We can focus on the winter of the heart with relevance and great hope, but we must never drive our worshipers to deeper sadness. rev'n in PA
All of these temptations seem to hinge upon the word "if"; If you are the son of God... How much of our temptations hinge upon the clearity and confidence about who we really are? (and confidence about God's plans for our life) Manzel p.s. this reminds me of a song by Paul Simon, Loves Me Like a Rock; "and the Devil would call my name.. and I'd say now who do you think you're fooling? I'm a consecrated man.. and my Momma loves me, she loves me like a rock.
He knew it was not right. Why he could hardly say, but it could not be right. Jesus had been fasting for forty days and forty nights. As he finished his fast in the desert wilderness and began home, Satan stopped him, and said, “Well, look who’s coming! If it isn’t the Son of God, the Prince of Peace, King of Kings and Lord of Lords. You look hungry. No problem Jesus. Hey, just take one of these stones and make it into bread. You can do it. Feed the hungry. That’s what you’re here for, isn’t it?” That is what Jesus had come for, according to all the predictions and prophesy - to feed the hungry, to provide bread for all who hungered, to be a real prophet. Get started with the ministry and the miracles right away. Why wait to feed the 5000? Let’s start right from the beginning. It was really tempting. Can you imagine how hungry you get after 40 days and 40 nights? But it could not be right. It was hard to say why, but it could not be right, even if that was the expectation of the whole society of the Messiah, the chosen one. Instead of turning stone into bread, Jesus turned to Satan and quoted Scripture to him, “One shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’ The temptation was a temptation to be a prophet in isolation, for his own uses rather than for the mission of liberation, to use God rather than to be used by God. It was very tempting, but Jesus says, ‘No, I’m listening even now for the word of God.’ He was saying “I will not follow yesterday’s will of God. But only that which is right today.’ David in Philly
The "thing" about Satan is that his questioning makes you dizzy, confusing you and making you unsure. You began on a particular path, you leave that path because you 'think' or 'feel' you must. Satan challenges Jesus as he does Adam and Eve: No God did not say you would die, but that you will become like him. What did he say, I don't remember, I am confused. If you are the Son of God ... etc. We are tempted in our strengths and not our weaknesses. We are most dangerous in our strengths ... it is here where we will fall the hardest. Satan seeks to undermine our relation to God, others and ourselves, by trying to out smart us ...
tom in ga
Does the forty days in the wilderness by Jesus in some sense "relive" the forty years in the wilderness by Isreal? ( Does the baptism which precedes the wilderness journey by Jesus in some sense "relive" the crossing of the Red/Reed Sea by Moses and the Hebrew fathers?) If there is a recapitulation of Hebrew history in the autobiographical life/frame (spiritual journey) of Jesus, then what meaning and relevance do each of the temptations have for Jesus, his disciples, and us? In what sense isare our individual spiritual journeys rooted in the journey of the covenant people of God? Are these questions relevant to the renewal of the Church as we enter the future (2000 and beyond)? PaideiaSCO in LA
Michael,
Your posting is fine. It may just be semantics among commentators. Mine may not consider it a direct quote because of the "at Massah" phrase. Like I said, I can't quite remember which one I read it in! That's why I read as many different commentators as I can, and come here because more people on DPS read more different things . . . It's late, I'm not making much sense.
PaideiaSCO,
My "Life Application Bible Commentary" on Matthew says: "The number forty brings to mind the forty days of rain in the great Flood (Genesis 7:17), the forty days Moses spent on Mount Sinai (Exodus 24:18), the forty years of Israel's wandering in the wilderness (Deuteronomy 29:5), the forty days of Goliath's taunting of Israel prior to David's victory (1 Samuel 17:16), and the forty days of Elijah's time of fear in the wilderness (1 Kings 19:8). In all those situations, God worked in his people, preparing them for special tasks."
Also, Barclay says something about the Greek word for tempted meant "test." He says it was a test for Jesus to see if Jesus WOULD obey God's will. I'm thinking of something along the lines of how we need some obedience back in our lives these days. I think obedience got a bad rap when people began to discover that children who were being abused had been taught to unquestioningly obey adults. Now, however, even God is not obeyed. Also thinking of Susanna Wesley's letter to John in which she said she "counted as cruel" those who allow their children to get habits they know must later be broken. She went on to say that learning obedience to your parents (or whoever) is training for learning to obey God. Then we have Wesley's quadrilateral: Scripture, Tradition, Reason and Experience. Can these be used as guidelines for obedience?
Just Thoughts
RevJan
P.S. Michael, e-mail me grant@eosinc.com
Hello All DPSers!
Been a while... been busy getting tempted in my strengths like Tom in GA pointed out.
I have a feeling that is probably where we are tempted the most frequently, and harder. Because we all have a tendency to say we do not need to work on those anymore. We see our weaknesses, or trhe ones that we think are not so bad as temptations. Maybe the two extremes are where we are really tempted. You know in the places we know we are good, so we quit working on them and lose that edge and also in the places where we feel like such a failure that we refuse to work on them - even when God is compelling us into the wilderness to work on the issues.
This Lent I am focusing on Journeys in each of the AM Celebrations and Signs of a True and Living Faith based out of the Revelation - where John addresses the seven churches. They are being developed hand in hand so that the church can usnderstand the interconnectedness of how in reaching out we reach up. You see we have grown complacent - thinking that we can grow spiritually and numerically without risking anything. Fact is that it is one of those temptations that we all face - to be concerned with institutional survival and not growing in Spirit and Love. We all think we "do" church well, but in reality it is probably the place we are tempted the most. To just sit and consolidate and not worry about those others that need us.
Which temptation is the body of Christ facing today? Is it the temptation to use the Y2K issue to build a false sense of the church - emergency procedures? Are we willing to fly in the face of the scare and temptation to use it to build the church and teach some sound doctrine? I see this as a temptation that many of our fellow pastor's have fallen to. It is easy - I am sure I will fall for something - I have before. Where is our armor ready?
Greg in Nashville
Greg! I am glad you are back . I've missed you, brother. Preacherlady
I'm thinking of memorizing the gospel and holding a pitchfork while I say the Devil's part.
Karl T. Dalager Austin, Minnesota
I am wondering about linking Jesus' temptation back to his baptism (and ours) and the various voices we hear and how to discern them. Whose voidid Jesus hear as he came out of the waters of baptism? Was that the same voice he was hearing in the desert? How did he discern the difference, particularly given that the words of the devil were quotations from scripture. I suspect that the discernment process for Jesus wasn't easy, as it isn't easy for us. Mart the Rev Ashburton New Zealand
I am wondering about linking Jesus' temptation back to his baptism (and ours) and the various voices we hear and how to discern them. Whose voidid Jesus hear as he came out of the waters of baptism? Was that the same voice he was hearing in the desert? How did he discern the difference, particularly given that the words of the devil were quotations from scripture. I suspect that the discernment process for Jesus wasn't easy, as it isn't easy for us. Mart the Rev Ashburton New Zealand
We (I and the various church committees of our parish) have decided this year not to emphasize the "heaviness" of Lent. Repentance has two sides, as the Augsburg Confession notes, a dying to sin and a rising to new life. We are going to emphasize the "new life." I have been focusing lately on the Evangelical doctrine of salvation: we can declare ourselves "saved", as they do, even though we're not yet in heaven. And "there is no condemnation for those who are saved." "He raised us up with (Christ) and gave us a place with Him in heaven.", etc. In the emphasis on new life I am going to sress our closeness to God and the joy and peace that is ours because of God's great love for us, his forgiveness of our sins and the way he takes care of us so that "all things turn out for good for those who love God." Out of this emphasis I hope will come a strengthening of their relationship with God and out of that will come good works. Our Social Concerns committee has suddenly sprung back to life with a lot of plans for involvement in many areas of social needs, and this could be the outlet for their deepened relationship.
As for the Gospel on the temptations, I think I will point out how much like us Jesus is and He can be our model for our deepened relationship with God. Joe from Maine
Matthew does a good job of helping us relate Jesus to Moses, but I was reading this text in light of the Genesis text for this week and see some real relationships there. I like the contrast of Adam and Eve in Paradise and Jesus in the wilderness, yet in both places they are tempted. And it seems to me that they are tempted with the same "temptation" that is to give up their humanity, to become like God. Are we all not tempted to do the same? I am thinking of posing this to my congregation and talk about how Jesus choses to stay with/in his humanity despite the cost or consequences. Any one with further suggestions of how/where to go with this line? Deke of the North
I haven't had a chance to read through all the contributions, but wanted to respond to Manzel's opener about misusing spiritual gifts. In a lectionary discussion group several years ago we arrived at the point of recognising that temptation doesn't just strike at our point of weaknes and vulnerability (e.g. hunger, tiredness) It also comes at our point of strength. The temptation is often to misuse our strength and personal power (inc. spiritual gifts) for the wrong reasons e.g. self-gratification. This seems to have been the case with Jesus in the wilderness.
Oops. The post about being tempted about our strengths was from me. Forgot to sign!
Chris from Oz
Karl: Consider this. If you represent Satan with a pitchfork then people will likely remember this passage every time they are tested by a man holding a pitchfork. How about, instead, sticking an old hollowed-out TV set over your head? Or...
pHil
rev'n in PA, I like your theme of winter for Lent. Lent is one of my favorite seasons of the church calendar because of the "wilderness" experience. There is a lot of introversion in me. And being in the "winter " of my years, if I was a member of your congregation, I would be grateful for how God has lead you. I like the idea of going with a theme for these 40 days. Because of my congregations enjoyment of hymns, I have chosen the theme "When in our Music God is glorified"(UMH#68). I will be examining the 5 Psalm passages in Lent, to see how God will speak to us individually and collectively as a congregation. I hoping some more of you will look at the Psalm passages, so I can dialogue. Title for this week is "When in our Music God forgives us" It will be interesting to me how I will be led to connect Jesus successful bout with the devil, and him not "yielding to temptation" with the psalm passage where the worshiper is led not to hide is iniquity. I have just begun my study
Shalom
Pasthersyl
Dear Friends,
I read a book recently "Transitions" by William Bridges (Addison-Wesley Pub.) that made a passing reference to Jesus' 40 days in the wilderness as being a part of a transition time in his life.
That got me thinking, and it made some sense to me - or at least it put some of the familiar interpretations in a new context for me. The wilderness (a period of struggle and questioning) occurred after his baptism and before his public ministry. It was a part of an ending of one phase in his life and the opening up of another. It was a period of trying to figure out just who he was as God's declared "Son" and just what it meant to be God's beloved "Son" and what kind of messiah he would be. It was in part an identity crisis - or at least a part of an identity formation - for him.
I can relate to that - both to the "transitions" in life and to the accompanying "struggles" it involves. I have been in my current parish 12+ years and I am in transition, too. I am working through whether that means moving or changing some things about what and how I "do" things where I am. There certainly are all kinds of "temptations" that accompany "transition" moments in life.
The book - and the context of Jesus' wilderness experience being a time of transition in his life - has intrigued me. I recommend the book for others who find themselves in some sort of "transition" in life, too, and wonder if these connections spur any thoughts by others of you?
Grace and Peace, Jerry in MN
Where do we go? We go to the Rock! We go to the stone that the builders rejected. That is what we say we do anyway. BUT....
We really don't go there. We have this desire - craving for control. We have this want to look and act dignified. Shh... lets not talk about difficult issues - might make someone uncomfortable. We shy away from honest and open discussions about social issues of today, because we have been tempted - to do the easy thing. SO we do not talk about the Abortion issue - unless we are so staunchly against it that we can't see any other side to the discussion. We shy away from discussing the Gay and Lesbian Equal Rights issues and our concepts of sexuality in general, because it is innappropriate for the pulpit... maybe that is why we have such a high divorce rate - we stick our heads in the sand and refuse to talk open and honestly - because the tempter has said that it will offend someone. Whatever the issue that we discuss in our churches, we need to be completely open and honest about it. Only with that will God be able to change the world. ONly with that will we get past our temptation to just sit and give answers, maybe to questions that no one is asking.
Where is out temptation this day? Why do we succomb - probably has nothing to do with the devil made me do it. Maybe just timid hearts and souls and the fear that the church is not strong enough to take frank talk. Even I have fallen to this temptation and we all will again, but grace is there to lift us up and carry us to that next place.
In Christ's Love and Service, Greg in Nashville
The postings by Deke of the North & Chris from Oz pose an interesting question for me. In looking at the Genesis & Matthew passages, I wonder: Is it more difficult to resist temptations when one is full/affluent (the Garden) than when one is empty/poor (the Wilderness)? This could speak volumes to the people in our North American, predominantly affluent congregations.
Rick from SC
Hi all, first time to post, though I've been benefiting from your thoughts for a year. hope my thoughts are as helpful as yours. Does it seem odd that Jesus does not send the devil away until after the third temptation? I wonder about the temptation to be tempted. I'm playing with the idea of the moth flying too close to the flame. The light (don't push the metaphor in the dark/light direction) is tempting, the warmth it offers is comforting, but get too close and you go down in flames. Thanks again for your faithfulness to this site, and thanks to you Frank.
RevJDI
Here's an interesting question. Why is Jesus led out to the wilderness to be tempted? What's the plan or rationale?
My guess is that it has something to do with being fully human...relating to us in every aspect. I can't believe noone has brought in Hebrews 2:17-18.
"17 For this reason he had to be made like his brothers in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people. 18 Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.
John near Pitts.
I see Satan here as a used car salesperson (sorry) who uses the little tricks of the trade to get the customer into the show room. There's a trick where the seller tries to control the situation, the potential buyer is asked leading questions...get the person to say yes a lot...ask the customer to come into the show room to pick up literature, look at details etc. The salesperson will then walk away expecting the customer to follow...hey, we don't want to be impolite customers and most follow.
Satan is trying to control the situation, in a sense trying to get Jesus to say yes...to go along with him. Satan here is trying to lead Jesus. When we start taking the lead of Satan I think we all know where we'll end up.
You can dance with the devil or dance with the Lord...it's just that the devil will fool you into thinking that you're leading.
John near Pitts.
Greg in Nashville -- missed you!
For Michael-
This is my favorite sermon prep site -- by far. It sometimes takes more time than just a pass through the commentaries and some bouncing around inside my head -- but i find it incredibly valuable. Sometimes you will have nothing worthwhile to say, and sometimes you will give us manna for the journey, and sometimes a whole banquet. But here i find kindred spirits on the journey, fighting the same demons, seeking the same God. I've gotten great insight here and from time to time great insights I did not want that pierced my soul.
Beyond DPS, a good overall site is Sermon & Sermon - Lectionary Resources, managed by Richard Fairchild.
http://www.rockies.net/~spirit/sermon.html
Aloha & Welcome!
HW in HI
Welcome, newcomers; welcome back, Greg: I missed you!
From my lectionary study group: both Mt. & Gen. texts deal with the temptation to take shortcuts... Don't we all have great shortcut stories, where we ended up spending hours lost, or back where we started again? There are no shortcuts to the kin-dom; the road to "yes" is "no" ... Fred Craddock says (I think this could be adapted to a more general statement) "If you take shortcuts in your sermons,the congregation will hear the crumbling of your soul in the background." Isn't that exactly what happened to Adam & Eve, and what Jesus perhaps narrowly missed?
What are the shortcuts that we try to take to the kin-dom? The lottery (If I win I'll give it all away, I swear!) ... hatred and violence (in the name of justice, we've GOTTA lock 'em up) ... what else?
Might be worth looking at Romans text for solution/celebration: death is in charge because of human sin, but "those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness exercise dominion in life through ... Christ."
Blessings - Kay
Rev. Jan, In Interpretation Commentary on Matthew Douglas Hare writes that the scripture refers to three Deut. texts. The first one is Deut. 8:2-3, the second from Deut. 6:16, and the third from Deut. 6:13-14. They correspond to the three temptations. Hope this is helpful. Rev D. in BG
Another thought... "if" probably means "since." The Adversary (Satan)is not questioning Jesus' status, the Adversary is testing Jesus to see if Jesus will misuse his newly proclaimed title, Son of God. Since this pericope follows the baptism of Jesus, here is another thought. Many who are baptized believe they are immune to temptation. A teen-ager I baptized last spring said she wanted to be baptized so that she wouldn't sin any more and all of her sins would be washed away. Well, just because we are baptized doesn't mean the temptations go away. Jesus proved that. Temptations and bad things still happen to good people. But Jesus was faithful in the temptations. That is our call. As I crumbled about taking a walk today (my Lenten spiritual discipline) I suddenly realized, if I am tempted to give up on such a small task... 15 minutes out of my day... how am I ever to stand faithful in the difficult temptations of life. Rev. D in BG
If I am really organized when I am preparing dinner, I will also set out on the counter what we are having for dessert. A plate of fruit, cookies, etc. It seems that no matter how appealing the dinner might be, if my five year old spots that plate of dessert, she will barely touch her dinner. Her eyes, her mind, her heart are set on that dessert. Dessert, no matter what, has to be more delicious than what comes first. Setting that plate out is always a mistake. I guess Adam and Eve were not all that different from my five year old. Here they were in a beautiful garden, there were many trees from which to take their food, but the most appealing tree was the very one that God told them to stay away from. And they ate the forbidden fruit. Jesus was also tempted. Satan tempted him with a plate of God-like qualitites. Here you can have all of these now and skip what lies ahead for you. It must have been mighty tempting. But unlike Adam and Eve, Jesus did not bite. He stayed with his hunger, his humanness (thanks to Deke of the North for this thought), his obedience to God. I was out for a walk tonight. Trying to shake off a dark mood that has settled over me for the last several days. Funny how just last week I was on top of the world, thanking God for the sense that everything was together in my life, I felt useful as God's vessel, I felt like a good parent, content, happy... In the garden. A week later, I am in the desert ruminating on a plateful of grievances: how people have hurt me, the mistakes I have made. It is a temptation to stay there, letting my mind and heart feel cold, blaming others, blocking out God. But I felt as if God was calling me to pray as I walked. Let me in. I will help. Forgive. Let go. Out of this time of darkness, something new is is coming. Times in the desert prepare us for ministry to others. When I sit with someone who is down, I will be less apt to judge, to run away. Jesus did not run from his humanity. He did not skip the hard parts. His hands are outstretched to us, to all, and they are not holding an apple, but a welcome into the garden of life. Thank you for your help, ideas and questions. Darlene
There is a country song (By Sawyer Brown I think) that talks of taking the dirt road instead of taking the easy paved road.
Our problem most usually is not that we are tempted to do some evil or shady thing. It is most usually that we see something that is worthy and want get it without all of the work. We want it handed to us on the silver platter. Maybe taking the easy way to a place is the greatest temptation we will ever face.
Greg in Nashville
The Genesis passage piped my thinking about the "go for it power" of Adam and Eve to be like GOD which took us all out of the garden and here in Matt. is the story of Jesus saying NO! to the seduction of POWER to be like God and in him we have a SAVIOR from the sin of A & E. Is this going anywhere? Wm.
Intriqued by the reference to the Paul Simon song and Jerry's comments about identity. Whether translated "if" or "since" The tempter strikes at the point of identity. Who is Jesus and how will he use his power. It get's clarified in the wilderness and Jesus names a particular path - service over self-interest - but the entire journey to Jerusalem seems to be a development of his oun understanding of his identity.
My wilderness times do seem to bring me face to face with questions of identity, who am I, what is my purpose and how will I use my power. Hard to sort out sometimes which is the voice of the tempter and which is the voice of the angel. (maybe only the tempter quotes scripture!) MaryS
Greg in Nashville wrote "It is most usually that we see something that is worthy and want get it without all of the work."
To which I say "Amen!".
A week or so ago I wrote about the tension, the bouncing back and forth that I experience, between legalism and sloppy, cheap grace.
Greg's post reminds me of those times when I'm in my sloppy, cheap grace mode.
It's when I want justice without judgment, forgiveness without repentance, mercy without seeking it and maybe even salvation without submission that I, like WM, am trying to be God rather than being Godly.
Those are the temptations I must turn away from daily. I think it has everything to do with the dilution or diminishing of the cost of God's grace.
I think it goes back to understanding the price of God's journey to the cross, why it is that Lent is sacred, why we ought to sacrifice (give up or take on) those things that point us back to that journey.
So that the sloppiness of our perspective of Grace is cleaned up and our focus becomes the sacrificial love of God in His Son by the increase of His Holy Spirit in us.
Rick in Va
RevJDI Welcome to DPS. Annie Dillard in her book "Holy the Firm" has a wonderful image of a moth flitting close to the flame of candle, back and forth, until it gets caught in the wax, and can't escape. Quickly the moth's body burst inot flames. Buut at the same time its body soaks up the wax, so it becomes another wick for the candle.
John in PA
Received this from a friend... Thought it worthy of passing on:
Give up complaining. . . . . . . .focus on gratitude. Give up pessimism. . . . . . . . . become an optimist. Give up harsh judgements . . .think kindly thoughts. Give up worry. . . . . . . . . . . . . trust Divine Providence. Give up discouragement. . . . .be full of hope. Give up bitterness. . . . . . . . . . turn to forgiveness. Give up hatred. . . . . . . . . . . . . return good for evil. Give up negativism . . . . . . . . .be positive. Give up anger. . . . . . . . . . . . . .be more patient. Give up pettiness. . . . . . . . . . .become mature. Give up gloom. . . . . . . . . . . . . .enjoy the beauty that is all around you. Give up jealousy. . . . . . . . . . . .pray for trust. Give up gossiping. . . . . . . . . . .control your tongue. Give up sin. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . turn to virtue. Give up giving up. . . . . . . . . . . hang in there!
This devotional came from the following web site. http://www.kbvm.com/lentp.htm
Rick in Va
Just getting started this week and haven't had time to read all yet.
heard in one place that these temptations were actually "good" things - so often it is good things that we get caught up in and get in the way of our putting God first or actually become our gods. a story related to that i read was about a visiting motivational speaker being shown around a college campus. as they were walking the speaker noticed a room marked "prayer chapel" and realized that his host was not planning to stop there. The speaker opened the door, and there was all kind of junk stored in the room. the host , rather embarrassed said, " we used that room as storage last summer, and we haven't cleaned it out yet." the speaker, was a bit offended at first, but then realized the room was a parable of his own life. he had been so busy traveling around, "motivating" others, that his own life had become cluttered and his prayer time squeezed out. - don't know about you, but this is a biggie temptation for me.
another thought i had on thsi was from a song with the refrain, "please God, make it easier" - Lent is that time of year that reminds us taking it easier is not the way to go - that we must have discipline in our life, and that is not easy, but takes us where God wants us, and there we find peace.
many blessings to you all, rachel
Earlier, Manzel noted that the Spirit led Jesus into the wilderness. I seem to remember reading a book which stated that the wilderness was seen as the abode of demons and the devil. Wilderness was outside of civilization, outside of cities and human community, outside of the walls which keep people safe.
Jesus' going to the wilderness was a retreat, a chance to reflect on the HUGE experience of his baptism, a chance to ponder what it meant to be proclaimed God's Son, and a chance to get his head around the "how this is going to look" questions that were going around in his head (hence the specific temptations that the Tempter confronted him with).
I can't help but also wonder if this excursion to the devil's home ground was also, in some way, a throwing down of the gauntlet. The only way to figure some things out is to "jump in" to the middle of the fight.
Just thinkin' out loud in cyberspace!
Rick in Canada, eh?
More thoughts on the "wilderness."
Jesus was crucified "outside the city gate." See Heb 13:12-13 "Therefore Jesus also suffered outside the city gate in order to sanctify the people by his own blood. Let us then go to him outside the camp and bear the abuse he endured."
An interesting parallel, no? Jesus suffered outside as he was tempted outside. And he calls us to take up our cross and follow him outside the (church) walls which keep us safe...
Most of us, and most of our listeners, will want words of comfort from this passage, so we/they can feel better about our-/them-selves when we/they are tempted. Too bad for us! Instead, we are issued a call to mission!
Hmmm....
Rick in Canada, eh?
Here's the introduction to my sermon. It's as far as I've gotten.
When Jesus was in the wilderness, the Devil gave him his personal, undivided attention, because Jesus was God's champion. This was like a cosmic duel, the battle of the titans. If the Devil won, the world would be his. If Jesus won, the world would be his. So the devil came at Jesus with guns blazing, offering the most tempting temptations to sin that any human being has ever been offered. But even more than that, Jesus received every temptation known to man, concentrated in those 3 temptations. Hebrews 4:15 says: "We have [a high priest] who in every respect has been tested as we are, yet without sin." First Jesus was tempted by greed; secondly by fame (or self-glorification); and thirdly by power. I'm convinced that all human temptations can be subsumed under one of these three headings.
Jim from B.C.
Lent 1 is about falling and rising, about sin and its remedy, about the first and the second Adam, about disobedience and obedience, etc. It is about the recapitulation of Adam in Christ. John Cassian, early desert father, says that the three temptations deal with gluttony (Adam and Eve - the fruit; Jesus stones into bread); Vainglory ("You will be like God" / "Through yourself down"; and about Pride (can't remember Adam's / All these kingdoms will be yours.) What I like about Cassian is he is a primitive reflector on the Biblical Passages, and draws us almost unconsiously into the mystery of this day.
tom in ga
Dear Friends,
Peter Gomes, (Harvard Divinity School) in "Proclamation 6" has some interesting things to say about this text: 1) "Baptism does not immunize one from temptation or from Satan - quite the contrary, it raises ones consciousness. ... At Baptism our troubles are only beginning." (I think that's true, but I don't say that often when I meet with parents before a baptism or with adults who seek to be baptized. Baptism gives us an identity as God's children that we end up struggling with - yet also drawing comfort and power from - throughout our whole lives.) 2) Gomes says: "Our conflict with the devil can't be managed on our own or with our our resources. .. We are tempted to do the right thing for the wrong reason or the wrong thing for the right reason. .. It is often our virtues not our vices that will be the focus of our toughest temptations. (That, it seems, is why temptation is so difficult for me to perceive. It often seems so right - how can it possibly be wrong? That's also why I dare not make Jesus' struggle in the wilderness too simple or simplistic or cut and dried for myself or for the members of my congregation. Jesus' identity as God's Son was indeed at stake and was being formed here - as is my own identity as God's child constantly being tested and formed in my own temptations.) 3) Gomes says: Jesus knew the scriptures and used them. ... He knew the devil had been at work before and that the Bible is the record of such encounters and provides counsel on how to cope. (That's why Bible study and reflection is so important for us all. Yet I - like many of my congregation - am tempted to think I know it well enough already or I find I neglect it too often apart from Sunday text studies.)
The Lenten season is not merely an academic exercise. It is about real life. Grace and Peace, Jerry in MN
I am wondering if 'the tempter' is different from Satan in the story? Does evil come in different folks to Jesus to us?
Somtimes injustice, prejudice, uneasiness comes in the cloths of 'religious folk' who push some from the pew because their son is gay, divorced, Hispanic, and maybe even just because....
Phil in KS
Something is coming to me here....it started with the temptations, and Gomes' statement that we often do the right thing for the wrong reason.
Jesus was tempted to "cut to the chase" and provide bread for the world's hunger by turning the stones into bread. Ironically, Jesus himself became Bread for the world's hunger.
I'm a bit more foggy on the other two -- help, anyone? Jesus is tempted to throw himself from the spire of the temple, to cheat death to prove who he was without a doubt to the religious leaders of his time. These religious leaders ultimately rejected him and begged that he be crucified. Ironically, Jesus is the greatest religious leader of all time.
Then Jesus is tempted with secular power -- he is shown the splendors of the world. The secular powers of the world buckled to the people's demands that Jesus be crucified because Jesus wouldn't play the game and give Pilate an "out" ("you say that I am"). He is crucified under the sign, "King of the Jews" and now in almost every country of the world Jesus is worshipped as King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
Preacherlady
rev'n in PA The verses about Jesus moving to a new home were part of the pericope for Epiphany 3!
IN Ron
Satan,s temptations of hunger.We hunger for so-much. Satan's temptations of power. We want power. Satan's temptations of pain. How do we respond to pain?
I think that the most important message of this scripture is that Jesus was a human. A human with all the physical limitations of any man, even though, blessed with a realization of his heavenly link to God, the Father. In all that he did, he was human, he felt human pain at the cross, human feelings of being forsaken by the One that sent him. He died as a man to save our human souls, and he arose as a victor, having survived the tribulation of mans injustice to man. The fasting, the temptations are a testoment to his humanity.
Gordy New York
I am thinking of a song I heard on the radio yesterday. I think the singer is Jewel, but I'm not sure:
"I'm all out of faith; I am cold and I am shamed lying naked on the floor."
That's wilderness! More Adam and Eve and GenX than Jesus' 40 days -- but still the wilderness. How often do we find ourselves "all out of faith"? Eventually, of course, we have to get up off the floor and get dressed, but how do we find the faith to go on? When the things we need to go on are not there -- whether what we need is spouse, or job or friendship or the love of the church?
Just wondering.... (I know, it's Friday, and I better stop wandering in the wilderness of sermon-writing and write one. How do you find the faith to write a sermon when you're all out of ....)
HW in HI
As usual, we are "tempted" to read the story not as a story, or metaphor, but as a newspaper account. I’m approaching it with a focus that is less on Jesus’ victory but on the REAL HUMAN PAIN he went through to become an "anointed one." And the following is my "call to worship" this Sunday.
"We are what we think. All that we are arises with our thoughts. With our thoughts we make the world. Speak or act with an impure mind and trouble will follow you, As the wheel follows the ox that draws the cart.
We are what we think. All that we are arises with our thoughts. With our thoughts we make the world. Speak or act with a pure mind and happiness will follow you as your shadow, unshakable.
In this world hate never dispelled hate. Only love dispels hate. This is the law, ancient and inexhaustible. You too shall pass away. Knowing this, how can you quarrel?
How easily the wind overturns a frail tree. Seek happiness in the senses, Indulge in food and sleep, And you too will be uprooted.
The wind cannot overturn a mountain. Temptation cannot touch he who is awake, strong, and humble, who masters herself and minds this law.
However many holy word you read, However many your speak, What good will they do you If you do not act upon them?"
(The Dhammapada, 1 -- selections)
Hmmm...makes me wonder if Jesus ever "met" the Buddha. We’ll never know, but sure would give us some new fire for our Lenten ashes, and the Narrow Way, if not broader, would at least provide some more company.
--Barry in OH
Preacherlady, for #2 ... how 'bout the one who was tempted to let himself be thrown from the spire, became the one who was lifted up that all people might be drawn to him...? Kay
Re. the pitchfork idea, I always remember a scene from that great movie of a few years back called Broadcast News. In it, Jane, a talented young television news producer falls for Tom, the new reporter who has been hired because of his looks rather than his nonexistent journalistic skills. Her best friend, Aaron, himself a brilliant news reporter, tries to dissuade her from seeing Tom. Aaron says to Jane, "You see, Tom, while being a very nice guy, is the devil...what do you think the devil's going to look like if he's around?...no one's going to be taken in by a guy with a long red pointy tail...no, he will be attractive, he'll be nice and helpful...he'll just bit by bit lower our standards where they're important." Remember, the snake was subtler than all the other creatures that the LORD God made.
forgot to sign that last post-- Tom from NH
It occurs to me that there are two kinds of wilderness experience. Sometimes we just find ourselves in the wilderness. It just shows up, due perhaps to sadness, loss, grief, depression, illness or personal disaster. A man being told he has three months to live. Sometimes we choose wilderness. We get a Lent thing going, and we fast or whatever, we willingly enter the wilderness. Adam and Eve were flung into the wilderness. Jesus just walked right in!
HW in HI
Nice comments, all- I think the characteristics of temptations is that they appear so good. And if we are not careful, we can give in to them, or rationalize about their goodness. Satan hits Christ where he lives-Here at the beginning of his ministry, what kind of Saviour will he be? One who thinks of his own physical needs first, one who will be a attract people with fancy useless miracles, one who will receive the world the easiet way possible. I am struck by the fact that Satan was correct with the last one, The world did not follow Christ. we are still strugglling to allow Christ to be Lord in our own little worlds, our own lives. STAN 1st when he has been going through a spiritual exercise of fasting, food is the temptation. What's the harm? 2nd
Boy, I should have proofread a little clearer. I had started one thought, moved to another and thought I had deleted the old one. Sorry STAN
Jesus led to temptation.
Toying with the idea that Jesus went to the wilderness more as preparation for ministry, if so maybe a point to lift up is that amidst our prepartion, Satan and temptation can still find us, yet imagine how Jesus would have struggled with temptation if he did not have the relationship with God that he had developed over the 40 days of contemplation and conversation with God. Temptation seems to come in so many ways, attaching our weakness, lifting our strength, and tempting our human frailty. Is it not true that we will only stand the test of temptation if we have a close relationship with god, led by the spirit.
Interim Joe
How can we tell that we are being tempted? When we believe we have our situation under our control. When the road ahead looks easier than the road we've traveled. When we receive praise. When we believe we have enough time, energy and/or money as long as we don't offer to do more, share what energy we have left, or give away the wealth we've been saving.
Are these right? Do you have some more?
Brian in Buffalo
It seems to me that there is a paralell to these temptations in 1 John 2:15, "the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life". These are perennial probelms for us all until we achieve that state described in Matt. 5:48. Would we be wrong in saying that this is a three-part paradigm: (1) baptism or reception into the kingdom; (2) temptation or testing; and (3) being useful into the kingdom of God (being good for "something".))
"This is a test. This is only a test!" We hear this on the radio and then we dismiss it as not really important, not something to get alarmed about. But when the Spirit of God says, "This is a test! This is really a test!" We better be listening. We better pay attention. We better pray. Because God is going to do something through us, but first we are going to have to survive the wilderness. Then what God wants to us use us for will be credible, because it has come about through the crucible of testing and prayer and communion with out Lord. Stan in No. Wis.
Testing is something like the game of basketball. The ball gets bounced around a lot before it gets to go through the hoop. Ever get that same feeling?
Stan in No. Wis.
I went around the house today asking people what their personal temptations are that they struggle with but no one could answer me. I am really aware of my temptations - to cheat on my husband, to drink and party all the time, to talk too much, to collect too much stuff. Everyone has their own personal temptations but if we are not aware of them we won't know the devil when he comes. The challenge to my congregation is to be aware. Kelly in Alberta
Kelly,
I would like to suggest another possibility. Perhaps in your question, your people heard the footsteps of God in the garden (see OT reading), and were ashamed, so they hid themselves behind a fig-leaf girdle called "not knowing."
I don't think we necessarily have to be able to "name the specific temptation," for us to be aware that were are tempted, OR that we are lost. For many, I think it's that feeling of emptiness, that lack of direction or purpose that so many are experiencing these days, their/our awareness of our running around shopping for the latest ANYTHING to fill the hole in us, which is a pretty clear indication that they are aware of their own "tempted-ness," and their own "fallen-ness."
Seems to me our job as desperate preachers is not to increase those feelings of alienation from our creator, but to proclaim with everything in us that God has bridged that gap, that God cares, that God knows and forgives anyway, and invites us again to walk in the cool of the day with our Saviour.
Rick in Canada, eh?
Talk about being all out of faith, did anybody watch Stephen King's "Storm of the Century?" King's promise of a battle between good and evil in which God enters the discussion for once prompted me to make the six hour commitment. But there did not seem to be much faith in God exercised. Least of all on the part of the minister! Did I miss something Stephen?
I'm surprised the show hasn't appeared in this discussion given the demonic nature of the central character, Andre Linoge (Legion).
Maybe that's King's point. We see our faith as useless. We "weakly resign to the evils we deplore."
pHil
A few more demonic thoughts before the morrow —
On Satan:
A summory symbol — for the many forces that blur, distract, confuse, our ability to detect the way God is attracting us - to union with him and to mission.
A figure of transition — dizziness begins with alientation, a desire taking possession of my knowing, my willing, my doing. A seduction — we do not begin with evil, we find it.
A spirit of self-centeredness — as against God centeredness — offering us objects in which to lure us, by way of attraction or repulsion.
tom in ga
I know this is a little late to be throwing out, but I wanted to say that I agree with Rick in Cananda, eh?. In fact, I would take it a little further.
I agree that we do not need to "name our temptation." What we need to do is keep our eyes on God. When God is the focus of our lives, we are better able to resist temptation.
When we are not focused on God, we tend to hide behind our fig leaves to run after the temptations. It's hard to rationalize when one desires to follow God in all one does.
Brandon in CA
Jerry in MN... all the contributions I have read tonite are very helpful in interpreting this passage, but yours is the one I needed. Thank you! The theme I wil be using is transition. I am new at this little church in central NY which is at a point where it needs to make decisions and choices about direction and our mission. This idea will help me to show them that Jesus also had times in His life when decisions and choices needed to be made, and His example can guide us. Thank you,
JanetK in NY
After the texts from the last few weeks: what kind of fast do I require? Do justice, love mercy and walk humbly with God. (paraphrase)
It occurred to me today that the clothes of righteousness we received from Jesus are work clothes! And they are meant to be worked in!
My college pastor once gave a sermon about Lenten fasting - that the purpose of fasting was to be life-giving, not just deprivation for self-punishment's sake. But life-giving for me and for others. It meant ADDING, not just TAKING.
And so the clothes of righteousness we are given are work clothes!
Tigger in ND
I think I will connect this with other temptations that confronted Jesus throughout his ministry. Not only was he tempted in the desert, but think about how he was tempted to lead an uprising (O.T...davidic style Messiah), tempted to save himself (at the cross), tempted to have a booth built on the mountain after the transfiguration, and so on. Jesus' ministry as always challenged by temptations as is the ministry of the church...as we all face in our faith journey. Lent is a time to "name" our temptations and our weaknesses, eh? - Francis
And yet a few weeks ago on Oprah a young boy who had been heralded as a hero by Oprah for an act of bravery that saved another boy in his community was ridiculed by his friends so much about his "goodness" that he committed a crime and then killed himself. This is what our young people face. This is what we often face. The younger generation, especially, does not want to be known as a "goody-two-shoes". Being bad is good. Temptation doesn't kill - they think - it's fun. Jesus just wasn't a risk-taker - that's why he didn't succomb to the temptations of the devil. Little do they know - that's why we've got to preach...
Tigger in ND