FIRST SUNDAY IN LENT

Cycle “C”: Luke 4, 1 – 13

Introduction: We will never be tempted beyond what we can endure. There may be a tempter but we also have a protector. As the English mystic wisely noted: “God did not say, ‘you will not be troubled, you will not be tempted, you will not be distressed.

But he said, ‘You will not be not be overcome.’” There is no sin in temptation – we can find ourselves entertaining the most outrageous thoughts, fantasies and desires, and feel depressed, not that we would so such things but that even we could think them!

Homily: The key word in today’s Gospel is “temptation”, a word not to be taken lightly. In one of his plays, Oscar Wilde has the main character saying, “I can resist anything but temptation.” That may sound flippant, but at least he admits that resistance is associated with the idea of temptation. We sometimes feel drawn to what seems immediately attractive and momentarily satisfying, ignoring what is of lasting value. At times it takes hard and painful decisions to keep on the right road. When we’re struggling with such moments, we can be assured that Jesus Christ experienced the same. Satan’s temptations were real, with a most beguiling subtlety. Clearly they struck at Jesus at a time of extreme physical vulnerability. Jesus could not shrug them off easily; his resistance entailed personal cost.

Now it is useful to note that, apart from the temptation in the wilderness, Jesus was tempted at other moments of his life; in fact, right up to the time of his crucifixion, to the limits of human endurance, when the rabble shouted, “Come down from the cross and we shall believe in you.” Jesus would not satisfy their cheap curiosity. King Herod to whom he was sent by Pontius Pilate during his trial also tempted him. There was Herod, sitting on his throne, surrounded by his prize collection of idiots of the first water ! They wanted Jesus to perform some magic and then be sent back to Pilate with a recommendation. Jesus did not so much as breathe a word in that putrid atmosphere. Again, you probably recall how his family tried to bring Jesus home when they sensed danger for him. So also Peter who stood in his way and was roundly rebuked, “Move out, you Satan !”

The common thread running through all these temptations was the enticement to walk away from the mission entrusted to him by his Father, to take back his obedience to his Father’s command. Turning the stone into bread to satisfy his hunger, leaping from the Temple top in a flamboyant display, seeking authority over earthly kingdoms  -  none of these squared with God’s intent for our salvation. To have succumbed would have made his utterly obedient self-giving on the Cross totally ineffective. As always, yielding to temptation would have had unforeseen and serious consequences. Jesus counters the devil’s lies with three crystal clear answers straight from the book of Deuteronomy.

We men and women, baptised though we are, will continue to be pulled by the fancy of bodily or earthly pleasures, but shall we count God’s word as more important ? We shall feel arrogant and self-sufficient, ambitious and dominating, but shall we acknowledge God as supreme and his will as our way of life ? We crave for human praise; shall we bargain with God and “tempt” him in order to win recognition for ourselves ?  We are faced with so many choices in life. It is in choosing and deciding that we reveal who we are and what we stand for. Our answers will tell of the quality of our faith in Christ tempted, sacrificed and raised.

A John Ruskin tale may help. A certain woman possessed an exquisitely lovely handkerchief. One day by accident she stained it with a large mark. She was disconsolate. John Ruskin the artist took that cloth from her. He incorporated that blot into a wonderfully intricate design with his paints. And the handkerchief became more exquisite. Surely what John Ruskin did with that babushka God can do with our souls if only we allow him.

We are all standing at the starting line. The whistle marking a fresh Lent has just been blown. We are determined to blow Satan out of our lives once and for all time.

PRAYER: Charles Kingsley, reformer, poet and novelist (1819 – 1975; 56 years)

Lift up our hearts, O Christ, above our false shows of things, above laziness and fear, above custom and fashion, up to the everlasting Truth which is thee thyself; so that we might live joyfully and freely, the faith that thou art our king and our saviour, our example and our judge; and that, so long as we are loyal to thee, all will be well with us in this world and in all worlds to come, O Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen

Scripture: Luke 4:1-13 (NRSV)

Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness is a strange story to 21st century ears.

He is 30 years old. He has just been baptized by his radical cousin John, despite John’s protest that Jesus does not need this practice of ritual cleansing. Jesus insists on joining other ordinary Jews who, through baptism, want to mark their identity and align their lives with God’s vision for the world.

Then a dove descends; a voice announces Jesus’ special status as God’s son.

So Jesus goes to the desert alone for a 40-day fast. A vision-quest.

He is on the brink of an astonishing three-year ministry. But before he can pour himself out to others he must first plumb the depths of his own soul.

I recall a discussion among college friends 40 years ago about Jesus’ preparation for ministry. He didn’t go to college, someone said; he fasted in the desert. That statement was only partially true.

In the desert, Jesus experiences three temptations, each more intense than the last. Three times Jesus deflects the temptation with a scripture applied creatively and with authority. He has been reading, pondering and discussing scriptures since before age 12. Now Jesus draws on those years of learning in his time of need. He is able to reject comfort, security and control as motivators for his life. Instead he will embrace risk, vulnerability and suffering for a cause much larger than himself. He will trust in God, the source of his identity and allegiance.

In the 40 days of Lent, may we each confront our own temptations to pursue comfort, security and control. May we draw on today’s scripture to deflect and transcend those temptations.