Sermon Index
March 10, 2019, Lent 1 C
Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the desert, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing during those days, and at the end of them he was hungry. The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread.” Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man does not live on bread alone.’”
The devil led him up to a high place and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. And he said to him, “I will give you all their authority and splendor, for it has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to. So if you worship me, it will all be yours.” Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve him only.’”
The devil led him to Jerusalem and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. “If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down from here. For it is written: ‘He will command his angels concerning you to guard you carefully; they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’” Jesus answered, “It says: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’” When the devil had finished all this tempting, he left him until an opportune time.
P: This is the Gospel of our Lord.
C: Praise to you, O Christ.
Jesus was in the wilderness and was tested by the devil for 40 days. Today is now about 40 days before Good Friday and Easter, and during this time the devil will be tempting and testing us also, and often in similar ways.
In Luke Chapter 4 there are three temptations or testings: to change stone into bread, to worship the devil and to leap off the roof of the temple. Jesus is tempted to relieve his suffering from hunger by a miracle that benefits only himself, to relieve his suffering on the cross by simply becoming the servant of the devil, or to relieve his suffering by a suicide jump which may or may not be saved by the angels. To turn stones to bread was not a temptation to sin. After all, the first miracle of Jesus was to turn water to wine. Rather, than “temptation,” “testing” is a better word. Perhaps the devil himself was not sure about Jesus and wanted to test Jesus to see if he was really “the Son of God.” Or perhaps the devil wanted make Jesus begin to doubt whether he was the Son of God by testing his miraculous power, testing his loyalty, and testing his trust in God the Father. The temptation would be for Jesus to doubt that he was the Messiah Christ Savior. The temptation would be to gain the world, not by suffering and dying on the cross, but by simply worshiping the devil.
We are often like the devil. We test Jesus all the time. We want to make sure that he is our Savior. Is he really the Son of God? Can he change stones into bread? When I am hungry, can he give me a sandwich? When I am out of money, can he put cash into my bank account? When I am tired, can he give me strength? If I am in danger, will he protect me? If I jump or fall off a cliff, will he send angels to save me? We know the miracle stories in the Bible, but will he do a miracle for me? If he is the Son of God, will he help me when I am in the wilderness of this world, lonely, hungry, desperate, and confused? Why does he not help all the innocent people who suffer sickness and cancer and oppression and disasters like earthquakes and tsunami and war and terrorism? Why do bad things happen to good people? The love of God is being tested. Jesus is being tested. Is he really the Almighty Son of God?
Or maybe the temptation to us is to give up on Jesus. Our faith is tested; we are tempted not to believe in God. We may think that he will not help us, and so we will have to make our own bread out the stones. We will have to work for our salvation. If we cannot trust God, then when in danger we give up on God and do not pray to Him. We may be tempted to worship the devil, that is, to gain the world and luxury and power through sinful methods. Sin is worshiping the devil; it is following the devil as our master rather than following the Lord God.
When the devil tempts us Christians, it is more than just trying to make us commit a sin. The devil tempts millions of people to do bad things. But when it comes to Christian believers, he does not care about shoplifting or hitting someone or cursing. The devil’s target is for us to test our relationship with God. The devil said to Jesus, “If you are the Son of God, turn these stones into bread.” He says to us, “If you are a son or daughter of God, wait and see if God will turn the dead stones of your life into living bread.” “If you are a child of God, why did you shoplift or cheat or hurt someone? Do you think God will forgive you? Do you think God cares for you? Do you think God will protect you? You are not really a child of God, or you would not sin. You are not really a child of God because you are worshiping the devil and the things of this world.” In other words, the devil is testing our faith. He is making us doubt God. He is leading us to disbelief, despair, and damnation.
The Gospel reading finishes with these words: “When the devil had finished all this tempting, he left him until an opportune time.” For Jesus there would be more temptations and testing. In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus knew the sufferings that he was about to undergo. Perhaps the devil was offering him the temptation to escape. But Jesus prayed, Luke 22:42, “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.”
When he was on the cross, like when tempted by the devil, Jesus was mocked. People said, Luke 23:35, “He saved others; let him save himself if he is the Christ of God, the Chosen One.” 36 The soldiers also came up and mocked him. They offered him wine vinegar 37 and said, “If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself.” … 39 One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: “Aren’t you the Christ? Save yourself and us!”
The temptation is to escape. It is a test of faith and trust in God. Even for Jesus. And so we know that Jesus understands our situation. He understands when we are tempted. He also understands when we fail. He knows we need a Savior, a Redeemer that forgives our sin and rescues us from the hand of the devil.
Sometimes when we Christians know that we have sinned we become sad or ashamed about it, and so we doubt our salvation and doubt whether God can love or forgive us. Therefore, as a conclusion, I want to read to you the advice of a great preacher to his congregation long ago. This is what St. Paul wrote to the congregation in Rome. It is today’s Epistle Reading.
EPISTLE LESSON: Romans 10:8b–13 [Believe and Be Saved]
The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart,” that is, the word of faith we are proclaiming: That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved. As the Scripture says, “Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame.” For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
L: This is the Word of the Lord.
C: Thanks be to God.
Amen.
Michael Nearhood, Pastor
Okinawa Lutheran Church