The Divine Crash

Sunday’s sermon was from Matthew 4:1-11 focusing on the temptation of Jesus.  You can download the sermon on iTunes or listen to the audio here.  This sermon was quite fun and a little controversial.  I love to step into a pulpit for teaching and let the Holy Spirit move in new ways for the people who are hearing and just watch their faces go from utter surprise to “ah-ha.” I began speaking about my son and how I wanted to be able to relate to him but I could only do that if he had things happen to him that happened to me.

This is how Jesus is, he desperately wanted to related to his created humans that he loved so dearly and he knew that the best way to do that was to become human and experience life.  So he did.

• Jesus experienced physical birth and slithered out of Mary’s womb.
• Jesus experienced growing up in a broken family, never seeing his real family and being raised with a step-father with half-brothers and half-sisters.
• Jesus experienced the death of friends and the abandonment of friends
• Jesus experienced his own physical death
• Jesus also experienced what it is to be tempted like us.

But Jesus wasn’t really tempted like us, was he?  I never see Jesus being tempted to charge up credit cards, or underage drink or premarital sex right?

Hebrews says that Jesus was tempted the same way we are, so maybe when he was tempted there was a real meaning behind the temptation.

He was tempted with food in the wilderness, but maybe food wasn’t the real temptation.  The real temptation was more, suddenly his relationship to God wasn’t enough, he needed more than he had.  We have had that temptation, just turn on the TV now and you will see constant temptations for a never-ending supply of more stuff.

Jesus was tempted with using power to save himself from falling, but that wasn’t the real temptation.  The real temptation was safety and comfort.  We see that, If we are honest we would rather be comfortable than follow Jesus into the dangerous unknown.  If Satan can get us to stay safe then we are not dangerous to him.

Lastly, Jesus was tempted to be king of the earth.  This was not about kingship it was about fitting in.  If Jesus fits into the way Satan wants him to be then Jesus can be ignored.  If we fit into people’s decision of us then we can be ignored.

Jesus did not give in when presented with these temptations, however, we do.

So what then do we do when we give in to these temptations of more, safety and comfort, and fitting in?

We call on the one who is able to stand up in the face of temptation.  When we fail we do not let God down because we were not holding him up in the first place but God picks us up and holds us up with his strong hands.

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Sermon by RevBT