Wilderness, Power & Grace
Luke 4: 1-15
February 25, 2007
Rev. Michelle Freeman

As of last Wednesday, Ash Wednesday, we entered the season of Lent. Today marks the first Sunday of Lent. There are five more Sundays to come in this season before the great celebration of Easter. Lent is a season of forty days, not counting Sundays, and it is a time of preparation, repentance and reconciliation as we look towards the new life found in the risen Christ.

Some associate Lent with giving up something for forty days that perhaps we don’t really need or that we didn't really like that much in the first place. Fasting has its purpose not only a self-denying; its chief value comes as a reminder. Every time we approach the kitchen or pass by the refrigerator door during a time of fasting, we are reminded of our modest self denial in comparison to the incredible sacrifice that Jesus made on our behalf. And while fasting is indeed one form of self-discipline to deny oneself during Lent, we are also encouraged to take up something as well. Not lacking in something that is a reminder, but beginning a form of spiritual discipline can be a part of the reconciling work of Christ in the world – that reconciliation that we are looking towards on Easter Sunday, when we know that Christ has reconciled humanity to God.

But before we get ahead of ourselves in the story and in the season, let’s see where it all begins.

Jesus has just been baptized by John the Baptist. God has declared that Jesus is the Beloved Son, and to top all of that affirmation up, Luke recites the genealogy of Jesus from Joseph to David to Adam. If you weren’t sure that Jesus was indeed a very special person, this should be confirmation. But before he can even begin his ministry, before he can begin to do good in the name of God and teach and preach and heal, Jesus is led by the Holy Spirit out into the wilderness for forty days. And this is no ordinary time apart from the world, for the evil one comes to tempt and challenge Jesus.

The first challenge to the famished "Son of God" is to turn stone into bread. The title "Son of God" gives us some context. In first-century Palestine there was only one "son of god," namely Caesar. When the gospels rename Jesus as such, it is not simply a theological claim, but a direct challenge to the sovereignty of the Roman Empire. In other words, the term “Son of God” carries much power, and might even be understood to challenge the rule of Caesar, instead of just being understood as the son of the God of Israel. In this challenge from the evil one to demonstrate the power of the “true” Son of God, Jesus does not throw away his power like bread-making magic, but instead cites scripture, insisting that God will define his mission and use of power.

Although he fails to tempt by bread, the evil one ups the ante. The kingdoms of the world are now on the table. The offer is made concrete: "If you will worship me, it will all be yours." The proposal made here is not one of generic power, as in the stone-turning temptation, but of worldly power — the social, economic, political, and religious power which permeates everyday life in every age, perhaps historically and most powerfully embodied by Rome. The term used here for "kingdoms" is the Greek basileias. When the ruler Herod is introduced in the first chapter of Luke during the birth story of Jesus, the same noun for king (basileus) is used. Herod’s kingship, an earthly one, contrasts with Jesus who is king of kings and lord of lords by God's calling, not the political and socio-economic structures of the earth or the offer of the evil one. Again referring to God revealed in the "second law," Jesus affirms his steadfast fidelity to the "Lord your God" and to no one else.

The third leg of the temptations on this wilderness journey comes in the form of the Jerusalem Temple. Jerusalem, the center of first-century secular and religious power, is the locale which permeates the gospels in particular and Jewish life in general. Here, the evil one — perhaps in frustration — mimics Jesus by quoting scripture, attempting to show that the command to "throw yourself down" is all under God's control. Pulling out the Torah for a third time, Jesus declares that he will not demand any display from God, but will trust and act at God's direction only.

In the face of each temptation, Jesus reminds the tempter that the heart of righteousness is commitment to God and God’s Word, not the performance of marvelous deeds. Jesus will indeed eventually feed the hungry, deliver the people from bondage and demonstrate the marvelous power of God. But he will accomplish these feats in God’s good time and by God’s grace and in a manner that will please God, not the crowds, and certainly not the evil one. Jesus never bargained for results.

How do these readings help us understand Lent? They show no interest in what we can do for God, but in what God has already done for us. They call us, not to repent of our sins, but to open our hearts to God in faith. Even the account of Jesus’ temptations underplays the significance of great feats of devotion, and instead emphasizes the importance of fidelity to God’s promptings in life.

This is not to say that penance is out of place during Lent. Quite the contrary. Still, whatever penances we take on should enable us to recommit ourselves to God, who has been so gracious to us. They should strengthen our faith and trust in God, and not reassure us that we have paid our debts. They should open our eyes to the fact that God is indeed our refuge and through God’s grace we are called to be a part of God’s amazing acts of reconciliation in the world.

Lent is our time in the wilderness: a season of confession, repentance and spiritual cleansing; indeed, an opportune time for personal renewal. Yet, in our historical moment, as in Jesus' moment, many of our individual temptations and failings are directly related to the impersonal powers and principalities under which we live. The Gospel of Luke challenges the faithful to recognize and confront the far-reaching power of empire and its social, economic, religious and military manifestations. How are we, as faithful members of Christ’s body, called to understand how we embody the power of the Holy Spirit, and not earthly powers? How can we, like Christ, become empowered through the spiritual discipline of these wilderness days, so that we may be reconcilers in the world?

For remember what comes after the wilderness: Christ is filled with the power of the Holy Spirit and begins teaching, preaching and healing.  In this season of repentance and self-reflection, we are also looking towards new life and rejuvenation in the power of Easter resurrection. As a congregation we are looking towards what new things God has in store for us as our new pastor, Shannon Webster arrives and begins his ministry with us. As we seek to welcome Shannon, we are also exploring the spiritual discipline of welcoming and hospitality during FOCUS@first, striving to understand how we can embody welcome for others here at this home in the heart of the city. How will you travel through this wilderness time? What can you take on or let go of to help in your journey? During our Ash Wednesday service last week, we invited the congregation to take on a Lenten spiritual discipline, and so I reiterate that invitation today, that each person gathered here might find meaning, integrity and purpose in this season of Lent: That as we approach Easter, it might hold greater mystery and significance for us individually and as a congregation.

Let us claim the fine balance between honest self-reflection and hope for a new day during this season of Lent. Let us honor this wilderness time, so that we might look towards the welcome and the reconciliation, when we emerge from the wilderness, Spirit-filled and ready to live out God’s grace in the world.

Now to the God who can do far more abundantly than we can ever imagine, be all power and glory, now and forever, Amen.