February 17, 2013
© 2013
I.
Lent is a 40 day space between recognizing Jesus as God among us after
Epiphany and rejoicing in his resurrection on Easter. We seek spiritual renewal
and listen for God with greater attentiveness. What is God saying in the
spaces?
A.
Our nation, if not much of our world, is in an uncomfortable space
between an economy of abundance and of scarcity, between the rivalries of
superpowers and the decentralized threats of terrorism from many angles.
B.
Personally we are always living in the spaces between stages of family
life (marriage, birth of children, school age, adolescence, adulthood, empty
nest, children-in-law, grandchildren). Stages of career and job. Stages
preparing for the prime of life and declining from our prime. The spaces of interruptions
longer than times of stability.
C.
In this interim time, this congregation is in the space between
pastors, the familiar and the unknown. The space between ministry as we’ve done
it and as we will do it.
II.
Luke 4:1-13 tells how Jesus was tested by the devil in the space
between his baptism and starting his ministry. The Holy Spirit descended on him
at his baptism so he could begin.
Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned
from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness,2where
for forty days he was tested by the
devil. He ate nothing at all during those days, and when they were over, he was
famished. 3The devil said to him, “Since
you are the Son of God, command this stone to become a loaf of bread.”4Jesus
answered him, “It is written, ‘One does not live by bread alone.’”5Then
the devil led him up and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the
world. 6And the devil said to him, “To you I will give their glory and
all this authority; for it has been given over to me, and I give it to anyone I
please.7If you, then, will worship me, it will all be yours.” 8Jesus
answered him, “It is written, ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.’”
9Then the devil took him to Jerusalem, and placed him on the
pinnacle of the temple, saying to him, “Since
you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here, 10for it
is written, ‘He will command his angels concerning you, to protect you,’11and ‘On
their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against
a stone.’” 12Jesus answered him, “It is said, ‘Do not put the Lord your God
to the test.’” 13When the devil had finished every test, he departed from him
until an opportune time.
A.
The 40 days of Lent are modeled after Jesus’ 40 days in the wilderness.
Sundays are not counted, and call us back to resurrection joy. The 40 days of
Lent also remind us that Moses was on Mt. Sinai for 40 days receiving the Law,
and the Israelites were 40 years in the wilderness.
B.
If you were following along in Luke 4, you may have noticed I said Jesus
was “tested” not “tempted.” The word can mean “tempt” but much more often means
“test.” The devil was not trying to trick Jesus into a sin as much as testing
to expose him as disqualified for his redemptive ministry. I also said “since you are the Son of God” not “if you are.” The devil was not trying to
get Jesus to prove he was the Son of God. He knew that. He was testing for what
he would do as the Son of God. Luke used the Greek word diabolos from which we get devil. When we talked about Job in October,
you may remember the Hebrew word hasatan
from which we get Satan. The idea was a prosecuting attorney bringing
accusations. That is what the devil was doing here. Testing to see if Jesus would
take a shortcut on his mission.
C.
Jesus’ testing warns us not to take shortcuts on our journeys as his
disciples.
III. Neither Matthew nor Luke
report what happened during Jesus’ 40 days in the wilderness, but they do describe
these 3 tests that kept coming, which prepares us for the tests we expect.
A.
To turn a stone to bread was not just about satisfying Jesus’ immediate
hunger but an attempt to get Jesus to use his power as a magic shortcut to his
ministry of meeting human needs, such as hunger. A careful reading of all the
Gospels clearly shows that Jesus typically hid his miracles and met a need
rather than proved a point. The offering of the first fruits we read from Deuteronomy
26 were not a ritual to curry God’s favor but a practical way to meet the needs
of the aliens, widows and orphans who were weak and poor. Instead of a magic
shortcut to address the needs of people today, Jesus calls us to lifelong
justice and compassionate generosity as his disciples.
B.
Though Jesus knew that God is sovereign over the universe, he did not
dispute the devil’s claim to the glory and authority of the kingdoms of the
world. He refused the shortcut offered by the devil. To worship was not just to
kneel and say some worship words, it would have been to adopt the devil’s means
of maintaining worldly glory and authority: the force and violence of political
and military power. As we read in Romans 10, renouncing worldly power may feel
weak, but God assures us that “no one who believes in him will be put to shame.”
C.
Central to Jesus’ mission was forming a band of disciples through whom
the Holy Spirit would build the Church. The devil suggests the shortcut of a
spectacular leap from the Temple pinnacle that would surely attract a crowd.
Jesus knew the difference between testing God and trusting God. He refused the
shortcut of instant results and stayed with the long term plan of making
disciples. While they may be legitimate tools, multi-media worship with
contemporary music, wiz bang advertising and electrifying preaching are not
shortcuts to evangelism and church growth that build disciples. As we read in
Romans 10, God’s long-range plan is for us to confess with our mouths that
Jesus is Lord. Word of mouth may seem slower than mass media, but it is God’s
solid way.
IV. If we are listening for the
voice of God in the space of Jesus’ test between his baptism and ministry, what
can we hear that will help us avoid shortcuts on our journeys as his disciples?
A.
Jesus’ answer to each test was a word from Scripture – all three of
them from Deuteronomy 6, 8. Maybe you feel you don’t know enough Scripture.
Count on God to give you what you need to recognize a shortcut and choose the
path of discipleship. But don’t be complacent. Commit to a lifetime of continuous
learning the Bible, not just the information but get so saturated with it that
it changes you and becomes you. I love Abba Poeman’s image. A stone is hard and
water is soft, but a stone can be shaped by repeatedly dripping water on it.
Our hearts are hard and scripture is soft but by repeatedly exposing our hearts
to God’s Word, they are shaped to match the heart of Jesus.
B.
The Holy Spirit descended on Jesus at his baptism. He was full of the Holy
Spirit when he went to the wilderness to be tested. After the testing, he was
filled with the power of the Holy Spirit when he returned to Galilee to start
his ministry. In January and February we focused on the Holy Spirit.
Sensitivity to the nudges of the Holy Spirit will steer us away from shortcuts.
Openness to the gifts and power of the Holy Spirit will give us the ability and
fortitude for the journey of discipleship.
C.
When we refuse the devil’s shortcuts, we are committing to the path of
patience. Instant maturity is an oxymoron, but just getting older doesn’t
necessarily produce maturity. That requires awareness and discipline. Lent is
an opportunity to awaken our awareness of God and renew our spiritual
discipline. As I’ve said before: Bible, prayer and worship with God’s people. Whatever
you have chosen for a Lenten discipline, the persistence it requires is
certainly less than Jesus’ 40 days in the wilderness. Like training camp for
athletes, those 40 days were preparation for Jesus’ ministry. Our Lenten
disciplines are not an end or goal in themselves but are preparation for
ministry of meeting human need, building an outpost of the reign of God as a
congregation, inviting people to become Jesus’ disciples by word of mouth.
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