Fighting Temptation

Luke 4:1-9

Lent

Always, the first Sunday in Lent, in the beginning of these 40 days of preparation for renewal and the resurrection celebration come Easter, the season begins with the Gospel story of Jesus’ wilderness experience and temptation. Jesus is fully human, just like me. Jesus was no longer a young man, according to longevity in his day; he was likely middle aged at 30. He had spent most of his work days as a builder, working with his hands. And he listened. He always listened; for the questions within, the questions of others; he listened to birds and watched farmers and herdsmen and women at work; he listened to the teachings of the elders and wonderers, to those oppressed and those disregarded. He listened for God. And the time came when he needed to shift. The listening led him to walk away from construction materials into building spiritual depth, using the common realities of life. Jesus got up, took steps toward following God’s call, claimed his baptism, and listened for the Spirit to tell him what to do.

“Full of the Holy Spirit”, perhaps on a spiritual high, having made a decision to step into new ways of being, the Spirit led him into solitude, into silence, into wilderness. It’s as old as any tradition in nearly all cultures, religions, and times periods; the vision quest, the transformative emersion into the sacred that redirects life’s purpose; a cleansing, a stripping away, a refiner’s firing. Full of the Holy Spirit, that same Spirit led Jesus into nothingness, emptiness, in order to look and listen to his inner being, and to be present completely to God.

The text says he was tempted for 40 days by the devil, the adversary. I wonder how he was tempted in those 40 days; tempted to walk out of the wilderness, tempted to go back to his old way of being, tempted to look for some distractions besides the silence of God, tempted to invite some friends to be with him to keep him company? Was he ever tempted to scream and shout at God, wondering what God was asking of him? Did he spend time with the wilderness Essene Community which included the early monastic mystics, seeking their wisdom and counsel with these temptations? I wonder if “the devil”, the adversary, was some figure outside of him or if the adversary was his own inner demons? Doesn't every fully human person have some?

The text says after the 40 days of being tempted by the devil, this adversary came to Jesus with these final 3 offers, suggestions, considerations. Not knowing what temptations filled the 40 days, we know that at the tail end, these 3 temptations completed his wilderness preparation for his new ministry. Being fully human, just like me, those 3 temptations are not just “spiritual” temptations, or tests that Jesus had to “pass”. These are human temptations for me, for each one of us, stepping foot on the spiritual journey, the human journey to and with God.

The text says “he ate nothing at all during those days, and when they were over, he was famished.” I’m not sure if he wanted to eat if there was even a source of food available in the wilderness. Was it his choice not to eat, was that part of the vision quest? Or were there simply no food sources to even consider it. Whichever it may be, he went without food for a long time, survived, and was famished. How easy it is to recall being away from the comfort food of home and long for the fragrance and savoring the taste of fresh baked goods or a good stew simmering.

I have not been to the desert, but I have been hungry. I have experienced emotional, communal, and spiritual wastelands and have been starving for assurance of love and friendship, for the confidence that God is present. I’ve been tempted to feel like a victim, and say “poor me”, knowing full well I chose this path. Famished, seeing only stones surrounding him, I image Jesus wishing those stones were fresh baked bread, to satisfy a hunger after accomplishing a 40 day fast. Like Jesus there is always the temptation to satisfy immediate needs, wants, wishes. Having perhaps “accomplished” a spiritual high of 40 days with God, why not turn the spiritual, God switch off and take time for self. “You deserve a break”. It’s here and now for the asking. Immediate gratification. I’ve worked so hard, I’ve earned a reward of some kind. “You know you want it.” Our advertisements today are full of the adversary’s language. And so for me, this temptation for a fully human Jesus, just like me, is the temptation to fill my own need. Is it bad to eat? To have some satisfaction? No. But simply put, Jesus resists the temptation to put his own interests first. If Jesus lived fully in love with God, seeking first the things of God, not making grand statements regarding personal ability or seeking first his own needs, then I need to follow his lead. If I am invited and encouraged to grow up in everyway into the full stature and measure of Christ, I need to turn away from my inner adversary that would encourage me to be self serving. Can I trust God to meet my needs, God, who has always provided before? Can I let go of making sure all my needs are met before taking the next step to follow God in this journey of life?

The devil led Jesus up. In Matthew’s Gospel says Jesus was led up “a very high mountain” where there was a vision of some sort displaying all the world’s kingdoms, all the nations. Here Jesus was tempted to have authority, power, and glory… if he would worship the devil, the adversary, who had the authority, the power, the glory to give to power-seeker and glory-mongers who came seeking them. There may be all kinds of interpretations about the significance of this temptation. We could spiritualize it and say it is about the Kingdom of God. Jesus response was simply that one must worship God and serve God only. So, to what degree am I tempted to worship and serve the powers that be? To what degree do I worship and serve and bow down to political, societal, economic, religious kingdoms, trying to please the adversary that demands attention away from God? Can I be in this world but of God’s realm, worshiping and serving God alone while engaged with various institutions that invite or insist on my allegiance. To what degree am I tempted to have power? Authority? Esteem? Glory? Who doesn’t want to stand on the podium and be recognized like a superstar, and international face? Even the Gospel stories suggest that faithful servants get their reward, even the last get to be first. There is a notion of glory; event the humbled with be exalted. We could easily slip on that temptation high slope of seeking power, glory, and have our own ego needs met, to be somebody big. Fantasy? Well, lots of folks have bought it, pursuing authority, power, fame and glory, giving into doing whatever necessary to get it. Miriam, serve God, no one else, not even yourself. Yes, perhaps serving God may be through institutions or other people, but focus is God. Worship God only, not the work, not the reward, the payoff, not what might be, and certainly not the inner adversarial mumblings.

Lastly, Jesus is taken to the pinnacle of the temple in Jerusalem, the rooftop of the holy of Holies, the sanctuary of God. At this location the devil quotes scripture, Ps 91:11&12. Hmmm. How often has scripture been quoted in adversarial ways, to manipulate, to confuse, to twist into saying whatever the speaker wishes it to say? How often has scripture been used to cause destruction? How often to be used contrary to God’s desire? How often are we tempted to hear the Word of the Lord in the sanctuary that could fit nicely with our own ambitions and use it and abuse it to fly off doing our own thing? “Well, it says in the Bible that….” And so we justify our actions with the abusive authority of scripture, saying, “Thus says the Lord…” OR, how tempting might it be to make a spectacle within the context of worship, drawing attention to oneself rather than to God? OR thinking of Jesus’ long ordeal of 40 days, being dirty, tired, hungry, how easy it may be for one to be discouraged and uncertain, wondering if God is really in this call and journey, being disillusioned. How easy it would be, discouraged and uncertain, to either bargain with God (“if you are in this then show me, prove to me you will provide and take care of me, I’m gonna jump now…”), or in depression find the temptation to end it all with a jump to death? Here is the temptation to give into abandonment of faith even in pursuit of certainties? Isn’t that what faith is, the assurance of things hoped for with out seeing, without certainty, without proof, living the mystery, living the questions? “Do not put the Lord your God to the test” says Jesus. Am I tempted to be the authority to test God’s promises? God’s providence? God’s love? God’s presence?

And so the devil left Jesus, having tempted him in every way humanly, and otherwise, possible…. “until an opportune time” it says. It implies that there were other occasions of temptation to come. Jesus had other temptations, other occasions of struggle with the adversary, just like me. The Good News is that Jesus is fully human, and knows my weaknesses in every way having been tempted, like me. Full of the Holy Spirit, led by the Spirit, in wilderness times of preparation and transition, of vulnerability to adversarial voices, he kept his focus, his intent on God, and so can I. There will be other times of trial, of testing, of temptation. There will be other times of disillusionment, temptations to be self serving, to seek grand results, to “make it big”, to gain recognition. There will be adversarial voices that suggest a need for God toshow some concrete certainty. There will be adversarial times of discouragement that may even carry death wishes. But here is the Good News. God was in Jesus, and is in me. God did not abandon Jesus, nor will God abandon me… or you. This journey with God is unknown, but it is certain to be with God, and that is enough. Seek God first, the realm of God first, the presence and wisdom and Spirit of God first, and everything else will be as it needs to be.

In Mark’s Gospel telling of Jesus’ ordeal in the wilderness it ends with, “and he was with the wild beasts; and the angels waited on him”. (Mark 1:13) I love that. He was where the wild things are, and the angels waited on him. Its okay. Be where the wild things are. Be aware of God’s messengers, God’s angels, God’s presence in the midst of the wildness. And be still. All will be well.