When Faced with Trials
March 9, 2025 Lent 1
“Wilderness was the wild place, the waiting place, the place of preparation. It also connected then, as it does now, to very basic spirituality: a place to grapple with God, a place to learn dependence on nature and its provisions, a place of extremes or contrasts, of wild beasts and desert. It is the Lenten space par excellence” (Sermons.com, William Loader). Jesus is tested in the wilderness as he begins his ministry. His wilderness experience marks the beginning of our Lenten journey, as we prepare for the great gift of love which was Jesus’ death and resurrection. Listen for words from our psalm spoken to Jesus by the great tempter. READ Luke 4:1-13.
President Reagan once said that middle age is when you’re faced with two temptations, and you choose the one that gets you home by nine o’clock (Sermons.com, Ronald Reagan). Amen?
The story is told of four high school boys who couldn’t resist the temptation to skip morning classes. Each had been smitten with a bad case of spring fever. After lunch they showed up at school and reported to the teacher that their car had a flat tire. Much to their relief, she smiled and said, “Well, you missed a quiz this morning, so take your seats and get out a pencil and paper.” Still smiling, she waited as they settled down and got ready for her questions. Then she said, “First question–which tire was flat?” (Sermons.com). A bit of humor is good, before we dig into trials and temptations.
We have all gone through times of testing – times which tried our patience and tested our faith. Christians are not immune from troubles. We are tested and face trials all the time. The question is how do we deal with our temptations? Looking at the gospel I see three lessons from Jesus’ temptation with the devil. Jesus was guarded by the Holy Spirit, scripture helped him respond to temptation and Jesus remained centered in God.
Let’s remember Jesus was completely depleted, wandering in the wilderness, having not eaten in 40 days, so he was vulnerable to testing. “These temptations are not garden variety but targeted on this vulnerable Jesus as Son of God” (Working Preacher, David Schnasa Jacobsen).
Did you notice who sent Jesus into the wilderness and who filled Jesus? The Holy Spirit. So Jesus’ temptation is embedded with the Spirit. Jesus having just been baptized with the Holy Spirit, descending upon him like a dove, is claiming his identity as God’s Son and more importantly for us, his baptismal identity. Twice the devil questions Jesus’ identity with words “if you are the Son of God” turn these stones into bread, or have the angels rescue you. So when Jesus is tested, he leans into his Spirit-anointed vocation, harkening back to his baptism and God’s claim on his life. When we are tested, we can lean into our baptismal identity as well. We are not alone, but we have the Spirit of God surrounding us when we feel like the world is testing us.
“The story is told about a little boy named Bobby who desperately wanted a new bicycle. His plan was to save his nickels, dimes and quarters until he finally had enough to buy a new 10-speed. Each night he asked God to help him save his money. Kneeling beside his bed, he prayed, ‘Dear Lord, please help me save my money for a new bike, and please, Lord, don’t let the ice cream man come down the street again tomorrow.’
Jim Grant in Reader’s Digest told about someone else who faced temptation. An overweight businessman decided it was time to shed some excess pounds. He took his new diet seriously, even changing his driving route to avoid his favorite bakery. One morning, however, he showed up at work with a gigantic coffee cake. Everyone in the office scolded him, but his smile remained nonetheless. ‘This is a special coffee cake,’ he explained. ‘I accidentally drove by the bakery this morning and there in the window was a host of goodies. I felt it was no accident, so I prayed, ‘Lord, if you want me to have one of those delicious coffee cakes, let there be a parking spot open right in front.’ And sure enough, the eighth time around the block, there it was!’
All of us know what it is to enter the wilderness of temptation. Temptation is part and parcel of the human condition” (Sermons.com, Lee Griess, Taking The Risk Out Of Dying).
Secondly Jesus responded to temptation with scripture, with the lessons he knew from God and the Hebrew Bible. When tempted to turn a stone into bread something very attractive because he was famished, he quotes, “One does not live by bread alone.” It would be like us repeating the 23 Psalm when we were tempted to fear death. Whether it is a loved one’s death or our own mortality, saying the words, “The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want; he makes me lie down in green pastures, He leads me beside still waters, he restores my soul” gives us comfort and strength. It reminds us of our faith and our relationship with God and helps us deal with temptation.
Finally, Jesus remains centered in God no matter what the devil was enticing him with, kingdoms, power or glory. Led by the Spirit and claiming his baptismal identity as the Son of God, Jesus remained centered in God.
In tough times however, we are tempted not to believe in God. Edward Markquart tells the story of when “Old Man Lunde was alive so many years ago. (He) remembers him telling about the Depression in the 1930s and the dust storms of North Dakota. (He) remember how Al Lunde was broke and didn’t have a dime to his name. Al, his wife and kids moved out to the Pacific Northwest, and Al’s face stuck into my face, as his finger wagged at my eyes, ‘And where was God in all of that?’ Al was still mad at God for what happened to him in the Depression. The years passed, and his wife, Cora, ultimately had a stroke. As she came closer to death, Al was wrestling with loneliness and depression. He was again angry with God and again wagged his finger into my face, ‘How could a good God do something like this to my wife, Cora?’ …
How nice it would be if the primary temptations of life had to do with ice cream (or coffee cake), but the temptations of life have to do with the gut issues of life such as the temptation not to believe in God. The temptation not to believe that God knows your name. The temptation to not believe that God counts the numbers of hairs on your head. The temptation not to believe that God is good. The temptation to not believe that God is watching our every action and is close to us” (Sermons.com, Edward F. Markquart). When we are tempted let us remain centered in God.
In closing I want to share one final story. “Harry Emerson Fosdick was one of the greatest American preachers of (the last) century. (He preached a sermon entitled ‘Shall the Fundamentalists Win?’ where he rebutted each of the so-called ‘fundamentals’ on rational, historical, and biblical grounds. He introduced liberalism and rallied the church to ‘be a fountainhead of a better social order.’) (Yet) few people knew that as a young seminary student he reached the breaking point after working one summer in a New York Bowery mission. He went home and was overcome by deep depression. One day he stood in the bathroom with a straight razor to his throat. He (was tempted to take) his own life. And then — and then he heard his father in the other room calling his name, ‘Harry! Harry!’ It called him back. He never forgot it. It was like the voice of God calling him.
So I want to remind you today that in those times when you are in the wilderness, trying to find your way through, and when temptation comes and offers you the wrong answer, the wrong choice then you remember that God has called your name: ‘This is my beloved son, my beloved daughter, in whom I am well pleased.’ And, you remember that because God has called your name He will see you through” (Sermons.com, Thomas A. Pilgrim, The Man From Galilee). Amen.
