| February 17, 2002 Genesis 2·7-9,3:1-7 + Romans 5:12-19 + Matthew4:1-11 |
| Here we go, head long into Lent. Most of us have been in this desert many times, and a glance at the calendar says: “Easter is early this year We think: “That’s good, we’ll get it over with early and get back to the good times: after all, as they say in the New Orleans: “Laissez Les hon temps roulez!” And so we start with the story we’ve heard as many times as there have Lenten Seasons in our lives. He comes, the devil. Is he real or just a character of the story there to scare us? What really matters is, the lie he represents. That’s real enough. There are three of them in this story |
| The first lie is that eating more will make you strong. For most of us, eating makes us fat. In the story though, he urges Jesus to eat, because he’s hungry – it’s about instant gratification, a good temptation for those who are impatient, or hungry, or for those who don’t think that God is going to take care of them, so they had better do it themselves. |
| The second lie is that we are indestructible. For most of us, we’re falling apart faster than we like to think. In the story, he urges Jesus to jump, because after all, he’s special – it’s about believing or maybe wishing that we were better than some body else, that somehow by some chance of birth, we are privileged and have rights that give us power, and choices that give us control. a good temptation for those whose most used words are “mine’ and “Me.” |
| The third lie is the lie of the golden calf It’s the lie of idolatry Anyone afflicted with or enabling addictive behavior knows this lie. They know that any person, place, thing, idea, law, theory, feeling, or fantasy can be turned into a god; a good temptation for people who are not too sure of who they are and what they are, for people who are making it up as they go along in life. |
| Jesus wasn’t making it up. His biggest concern was to make what was his become ours, and his hunger was for the Will of God, a God who enjoyed his trust and confidence without doubt. One of our ancestors in faith, a hermit named Anthony who lived in the desert around 250 years after Christ made the point that when the body is week, the spirit is strong, and his wisdom might guide our thoughts about this season and lead us to pay attention to the sick and those who suffer, to the poor and those who are weak in order to learn something about strength and endurance. |
| In all his temptations, Jesus found strength in the Holy Scriptures. From them he drew the Truth in order to confront the Lie. Later in his story and at his trial, Pilot will ask the question: ”Truth? What is that?” Ironically, he will seek the Truth seated in front of the one who Is the Truth and the one who came to reveal the Truth. |
| The truth about us is told this season. The truth is, we are sinners, and too often we chose the Lie and make choices that do not lead us to the Truth. We choose to satisfy our physical hunger while we starve to death spiritually We meet our ego needs and set aside the truth of who we are, while we toy with power in place of having real strength of character, faith, and vision. These lies touch us in our most vulnerable places: hunger, pain and power We hoard food, we indulge in painkillers and mood altering potions, and we fight for control over others while our own lives spin on the edge. |
| This season we have begun does not have to be like the ones before. This time we may get it right – or come closer than ever before. This time we might, like Jesus find our strength in the Holy Scriptures and embrace the temptations we face because they say so much about us: our needs, spiritual, emotional, and physical. We might even come to say a prayer of Thanks when the temptations come because they tell us so clearly what we need to change. Lent is about choosing, it’s not about doing without – it’s about what we choose to have and what we choose to become. |