Rev’d Peter Balabanski
Lent 1C – Luke 4 1-15
Today we saw Jesus subjected to temptations that attack mutual dependence – the trust and faithfulness we need in each other; the temptations we face that attack our life as a community, and our life with God. Today, we saw Jesus confront three of these temptations after he’d been fasting for forty days in the wilderness. At his baptism, God told Jesus, ‘You are my Son, the beloved; I am well pleased with you.’ Jn 3.22 This didn’t start Jesus’ public ministry though. First, the Spirit led Jesus in the wilderness for forty days of solitude, fasting and temptation.
Today, after those forty days, we hear the devil’s sneering taunt, challenging the now famished Jesus to prove God’s words true; ‘If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become a loaf of bread.’ Jn 4.3 God’s declaration about Jesus as his Son is challenged. Prove it mister! What’s this got to do with us?
I must say this one hits me hard. I can have the most fabulous experience of God’s strength and presence in my ministry one moment, and then the very next, I’m tempted to imagine it may have had something to do with my skill or ingenuity. And without sensing the movement, I’m duped into wondering – Could God have done it without me? And then where’s the logical next step? Poor God is so busy. Could I do this even without God? CRASH!!! I’m lost in a spiritual wilderness with only the fruits of self-delusion and self-importance to eat.
Temptation is false food. These days, we’re bombarded with images of people who are happy, fulfilled, successful, popular, secure and attractive. The implication is that they’ve got that way because they drink some particular high-sugar, high-caffeine drink or eat some particular salty, oily food. The further implication is that we can be the same as them if only we consume this sugary, oily, salty stuff too. In fact if you eat this, wear that, drive one of those or live there, with just the power of your money you can create a whole new self – not to mention a whole new admiring fan club.
The advertising industry has stopped simply telling us of the existence of a product. Instead they make us the product that’s being sold – or at least, an image of us. We will suddenly be the type of people we never dared dream we could be: attractive, confident, successful, powerful – once we’ve tried this life changing junk food. This is what the serpent did to Eve and Adam in the garden – you’ll be like God if you eat this. In fact, God will be redundant if you eat it, because you’ll become gods yourselves. Think of it – you; a god. Just take a bite. It’s what we just saw the devil try on Jesus in the wilderness; ‘If you’re the Son of God, come on, fulfil your destiny with a do-it-yourself dinner. The power is all inside you anyway, so it must be okay. It’s meant to be!’ Jesus refuses the temptation of false food.
Temptation of a false God complex. Never doubt the rightness of your perceptions or your motives. That was number two for Jesus today: ‘All this could be yours; rule it; fix up all the problems from a position of strength. You know it’s what they expect of you. If that’s how they want it, can that be so bad? It’ll all go so much more smoothly like that.’ But no; we’re going to watch Jesus do it the hard way over the coming months. He’ll do it from the position of a servant, not a ruler. Depending on God and others reminds us we don’t know it all.
Temptation is also to manipulate; and that’s number three for Jesus today. Jump off this pinnacle of the Temple and force God’s hand: make God keep the promise to send angels to save you. Imagine the public-relations coup that would be with the whole religious establishment watching on! Every time Jesus refuses; he chooses to rely on God’s provision, to respect God’s sovereignty, to believe in God’s love – he chooses to be one of us; to depend on others; to show us that it’s possible to be a frail mortal and still be real, loveable and loved, for all our faults.
False Bread. When we’re tempted to insist on self-reliance – on being independent – it cuts us off from each other. Particularly, it closes us off from love: God’s love, and other people’s opportunities for showing us love. Dominion. When we seek to control through our power, it insults God and demeans everyone else involved – as if this world is more ours than theirs. Manipulation. And when we test God to see if our Creator cuts the mustard – we also demean our community, like any shabby sociopath would.
Jesus shows the alternative to each of these temptations. This man, who never wrote a book, has shown with his life, his humility, his companionship, his love and his vulnerability that we are made for community, and that community is built on respect, service and humility – in a word, Love. Amen