The Shepherd’s Voice

Readings for Sunday, February 21^st
Deut 26:1-11
Rom 10:8b-13
Lk 4:1-13

Questions About Life – The Shepherd’s Voice from Good Shepherd Lutheran Church on Vimeo.
Download The Shepherd’s Voice – Sermon Video (.mp4)

What kind of questions do you have about life? Do you have questions about temptation after reading today’s gospel? Do you have questions about evil, where does it come from, why does it exist? What does it mean to test God?

Our gospel text this week is a fun text to work with because it seems limitless in terms of addressing life’s significant issues. This seems like a perfect text for the first Sunday in Lent since it has a forty day window of temptation and potential failure. Does this text replicate our Lenten journey?

I think it was the 3rd or 4th Sunday in January when I briefly referred to this text as one of hunger, holiness, and height text. Here we see Jesus, filled with the power of the Holy Spirit being led into the wilderness for forty days to be tempted by the devil.

Right away our modern minds say, tempted by the devil, there is no such thing as the devil! The devil is a figment of man’s imagination. We quantify evil or put the blame on someone else when we speak of the devil. What do you think is encompassed by the term devil here?

The specific word devil, Διάβολος (Diabolos) is found about 36 times in the NRSV NT and much of the time the word is used or it’s spoken by that rascal, that rabble rouser we refer to as Jesus. Sometimes, Paul or John use it too, but much of the time it’s used by Jesus or in conjunction to something Jesus is doing or talking about in a story or parable. Our politically correct, 20th century tongue has a hard time saying devil and even when we say it we have misconceptions about what it really means.

It’s sad to say, but in many main-line denomination churches the word has almost been outlawed because it’s so politically incorrect, kind of like the word sin. Unfortunately, this includes some ELCA Lutheran churches as well. We have become a society that is often determined to be so politically correct, so non-judgmental that we have lost our way when it comes to knowing the difference between good and evil.

The word devil in our context means slanderer, Satan, demon, wicked person according to the Greek word being used here. If we choose to not acknowledge the word devil here then it’s only logical that we are ignoring Jesus. When you ignore what he says, you ignore that he exists, because he used the term, not only here but elsewhere in scripture. Matt 4:1-11, 13:39, 25:41, John 6:70, 8:44, 13:2 – just a few instances of the word. As you are reading the gospels take note of how often the word devil or Satan appears.

If you ignore the devil, you do so at your own peril. If you disbelieve that a devil exists, at least the way it’s used here in our text, than you are also questioning whether evil exists.
So the first major question you must ask yourself today is do you believe evil exists? Jesus seems to believe it, why don’t you? Just remember evil is not a thing, it’s something that’s done, an action.

From that context we see there is a conflict between good and evil. Jesus acknowledged it. In Jesus’ wilderness experience he said no to temptation. What are we doing today in our own lives, are we saying no to temptation? For Jesus it seemed easy, but what does real life look like?
Many years ago, in 1170 C.E. a man by the name of Thomas Becket then the archbishop of Canterbury, said no to King Henry II when it came to collecting taxes from poor landowners and who worked on church lands. Becket and the King were even friends when this disagreement started. In fact it would have been an enriching experience for Becket to have just said yes, it was tempting, but he said no.

One night when Becket was saying his prayers in the cathedral he was murdered. His slayers were soldiers of King Henry II. They first demanded that Becket obey certain demands of the king, but again Becket refused, and the knights hacked Becket to death with their swords, right on the steps of the altar.

Becket refused to be a yes man, refused to live by bread alone and give in to the wishes of the king, and he paid the ultimate price. In our world when we give in to temptation it’s often more subtle and our death is more delayed. We do what’s called a slow fade.

After Becket’s death, Becket’s tomb became a place of pilgrimage for the faithful. And four years later, King Henry himself came and did penance there, to pacify both his conscience and his people. Because of Becket’s faithfulness to God in the face of opposing claims from the throne, the church later declared Becket a saint. In death there was final victory.

Isn’t this a bit like Jesus own experience. He says no to temptation, but is crucified in the end. Our second big question then is why doesn’t everything turn out perfect when we say no to temptation? Isn’t saying no supposed to lead to a life of celebration, a life of victory? Why doesn’t everything in our lives turn out for the best, economically, or in physical terms or in social terms if we are obeying God? Why?

Let’s look at our texts for some clues. Jesus first two responses were, “It is written, ‘One does not live by bread alone’” (Dt 8:3) and , “It is written, ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.’” (Dt 8:19) Both come from Old testament scripture.

They come from a time when the people in the wilderness were being tested and when God was demonstrating to them that he would provide. Remember when there seemed to be no food and God provided manna on a daily basis. God did not want them to store up the manna, but God wanted them to understand their utter dependence on God.

Saying no to temptation does not mean our lives will all of a sudden be filled with great success, but what will happen is that we will learn that we are not the center of the universe, there is a higher power upon which our lives, our very existence depends.

Life is a balance between faith and forgiveness, between freedom and failure, between fear and fortitude. Unfortunately, for many of us we don’t discover that balance until we are pushed to our knees at the foot of the cross, usually by our own stupidity.

Saying no to temptation means we are saying yes to God, yes to recognizing our own humanity, our own limitations. Saying no to temptation means we recognize our need to worship God and not ourselves, we glorify God and not ourselves, we trust God and not ourselves. Taking this step says a lot about our maturity.

Jesus final answer to the third temptation was “It is said, ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’” So, our final question this morning is – are we putting the Lord our God to the test?

What’s going on in your life right now, this week, this month? We begin this Lenten journey together knowing that God sent Jesus into our world for a reason, a purpose. Just two months ago we celebrated the birth of Christ, the birth of a baby in a manger, now he is grown, being tempted in every way like we are and yet not sinning.

Are we putting God to the test by the way we live? Are we putting God to the test by the way we give? Are we putting God to the test by the way we love? God wants the best for us, but are we testing God because we keep living as if there were no God, no redeemer, no Savior?

Have you answered the first question I posed yet? Do you believe there is a battle going on in this world between good and evil? Paul believed it. In fact listen to what he wrote to the Ephesian church: “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his power. Put on the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For our/your struggle is not against enemies of blood and flesh, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” (Eph 6:10-12)

There’s a battle going on in this world. It’s a battle for the hearts and minds of all people and it’s a battle with evil, with the devil according to Jesus, according to Paul. Which side of that battle are you on? Put on the whole armor of God, it’s available to you today! Don’t leave home with out it.

Does everything turn out perfect when we say no to temptation? No, at least not how someone in the secular world would describe it, however through every temptation God provides a way of escape and for those who endure temptation God gives them a crown of life. (James 1:12-16) Ultimate joy, ultimate reward – the crown of life – God wants you to have it and it costs nothing because Jesus already paid the ultimate price.

So, we shouldn’t be afraid of testing or temptation. (James 1:3-4) James tells us in the first chapter of the book he wrote that because you know that the testing of your faith produces endurance; 4 and let endurance have its full effect, so that you may be mature and complete, lacking in nothing. Remember what I said earlier about maturity, being tested, tempted, challenged is a good thing – God always provides a way of escape and you will grow in your faith – that’s a promise.

Do not test God, but love God because it’s only through God that we can live by faith. It’s only through God’s unending grace, Christ’s ultimate demonstration of love that we can claim victory over death and evil. God’s grace, Christ’s love, our hands; are we ready to follow Jesus today?

Amen

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