The Greatest Temptation

A Sermon preached on Lent I February 26, 2023 at St. Augustine’s, WI and St. Christoph, MZ

Genesis 2:15-17; 3:1-7, Romans 5:12-19, Matthew 4:1-11

On the first Sunday in Lent, we always hear the story of Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness, this year in Matthew’s version. We have great combination of readings today. The story of the first temptation in the Garden of Eden because of which Adam and Eve are driven out of paradise and sent into the wilderness. The story of Jesus’ temptations, which he – the second Adam – resists. And, parked between the two, we have Paul’s interpretation of how Sin first came into the world through Adam and was defeated by Christ: “For just as by the one man's disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man's obedience the many will be made righteous.” (Romans 5:19)

Let’s clear up some myths first. The Genesis story has often been used/abused to place the blame for Sin solely on Eve, and through her on all women. They have been considered to be the bearers of Eve's guilt and so the first woman's conduct in the fall is the primary reason for a universal, timeless, subordinate relationship to the man! No! Eve was not the temptress, the serpent was! And Adam and Eve were clearly in this together. Eve may have done the talking and had the first bite, but “her husband was with her, and he ate” (Genesis 3:6) without resistance, objection or protest! You will also note that Paul places the blame solely on Adam: “As sin came into the world through one man.” (Romans 5:12) He does not mention Eve at all (which is a problem in itself). And sorry, there was no apple – all we know is that the tree from which the fruit came was “good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise.” (Genesis 3:6) Another good reason, by the way, not to judge things by appearances!

Turning now to Jesus’ temptation in the desert – no apples here either! Matthew does not make a connection with the story of the temptation of Adam and Eve. Instead, Jesus' testing recalls that of Israel in the wilderness, though as Matthew emphasizes Jesus, unlike Israel, passed his test. The Spirit led Jesus into the wilderness, just as God had guided God’s people in the wilderness. Jesus quotes three times from Deuteronomy, all of them from commandments that Israel had failed to obey during their long trek. So, rather than Jesus being a second Adam, Matthew wants us to think of Jesus as the true heir of Israel. But it is the same idea as Paul’s. Jesus is sent by God to redeem the past, to cure and to heal past transgressions, and to release us from the effects of sin – both individual and collective. He establishes a renewed relationship between God and God’s children – either as a second Adam or as a new Israel.

Jesus heals the past by reliving it, he heals the world by being part of it, but without repeating our mistakes. As the Letter to the Hebrews (4:15) says: “but we have one who in every respect has been tested as we are, yet without sin.”

Jesus’ temptations are not an accident. “Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil,” (Matthew 4:1) God sent him there! Both the fasting for forty days and forty nights, and the temptation are part of his preparation.  Fasting – as many people do during Lent – is a way of focusing on God, the hunger and the lack act as a constant, physical reminder. And Jesus was – with the exception of the devil of course – alone. During his ministry Jesus would often withdraw to be alone in prayer and meditation.

The temptations were also part of his preparation. What does it mean to be the Son of God? What does it mean to be equally human and divine? The devil invites him to act according to various worldly expectations for the role of Messiah. If you have such power, then surely you can also use it for personal gain and to satisfy your own needs. That won’t do any harm. If you are the Son of God, nothing can harm you. But why don’t you just check to make sure by throwing yourself off this tower? If you are the Son of God, you can rule this world, now, by yourself, you don’t need to wait – think of all the good you can do!

But then Jesus would not be the Son of God in whom in John’s words (1:18) God is made known. His power and mission would be corrupted. And so, anticipating many of the debates that he will have with those who are also sure that they know God’s will, Jesus refuses each temptation with a passage from Scripture.

Each temptation also anticipates an aspect of Jesus’ ministry. He refuses to use his divine powers to feed himself. But is willing to use them to feed others, both physically (the 5000) and spiritually: “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.” (John 6:35)

He refuses to test God by putting himself in danger, and yet when it is necessary for his mission, he uses his divine powers to calm the seas (Matthew 8:26) or to slip through a threatening crowd (Luke 4:30).  But ultimately, and in obedience to his mission, he goes to the cross to die – where, echoing the devil, those who passed by mock him saying “Come down from the cross, if you are the Son of God!” (Matthew 27:40) God does deliver him, by his resurrection, and through him delivers us.

And finally, counter to for example Judas’ expectations, Jesus was not a political or military messiah, who would drive the Romans out by force: "My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest" (John 18:36). Instead of receiving “all the kingdoms of the world and their splendour,” (Matthew 4:8) Jesus inaugurates the Kingdom of God, which is built on the values of the beatitudes such as simplicity, righteousness, justice, mercy, and peace. Jesus does not just resist the temptations. He turns them round; he transforms them into something good!

For me there is a certain tension in the 40-day season of Lent. Learning self-discipline is good, some of the things we manage to do without during Lent may well be worth doing without permanently, some of the practices we adopt, for example on the journey to zero waste, are well worth keeping, and many of the Lenten disciplines we take on will improve our spiritual health and bring us into a closer relationship with God.

But, we can be tempted to believe that by fasting - giving something up - and then resisting the temptation to eat or drink whatever we have decided to quit, we can transform ourselves. And we must not be tempted to believe that we can do this on our own …. Like Adam and Eve who thought that by eating the fruit they would become like God, knowing good and evil. (Genesis 3:5) The greatest temptation would be to turn from the path of following Jesus Christ. He resisted the devil for us, he died for us, he rose again for us, he is “mighty to save,” and only through him do we “receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness.”  

Amen.

 

True Glory

A Sermon preached on February 19, 2023 at St. Augustine’s, WI and St. Christoph, MZ

Exodus 24:12-18, 2 Peter 1:16-21, Matthew 17:1-9

Today the season of Epiphany comes to a close with what we call a Theophany, a word meaning appearance of – and usually encounter with – God (Theos). It is related to the word Epiphany – which means revelation - and our Greek Orthodox brothers and sisters call the whole season Theophany rather than Epiphany.

As I’ve mentioned before, we use a three-year lectionary cycle for our Sunday Eucharistic readings. This means that we last heard today's readings on February 23, 2020. Just three Sundays later we were in lockdown and only Steve, then my curate, and I were church to record and later upload a simple, spoken service of morning prayer. All we had was an iPad perched on the piano as our camera and microphone! As far as technology is concerned, we've certainly come a long way!

Lent always has a very different flavour compared to Epiphany, especially in this part of the world where it coincides with carnival! But we did not expect quite such a difference, quite such an extreme change, nor that Lent would seem to last so long - in some people’s perception, Lent lasted for two years. It has certainly been a roller coaster of emotions since March 2020 and appropriately, today's Gospel reading also covers this idea of an emotional roller coaster!  

Six days before the event we call the Transfiguration, according to Matthew’s timeline, Peter, inspired by the Holy Spirit, had declared that Jesus was the Messiah, anointed by God and the Son of the Living God. Together with Jesus he, and two other disciples, now ascend a high mountain where Jesus is transformed before the disciples, so that his divinity shines through, and where he seems to already come in glory: “And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became dazzling white.” (Matthew 17:2) Peter’s declaration is confirmed by a voice from the cloud declaring – again, we heard similar words at Jesus’ Baptism – that “This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased; listen to him!”

But it does not stay that way!  They come down from that mountain and back into the world again. In the episode that immediately follows, Jesus has to heal a young boy after his disciples failed to do so. Clearly this experience is somewhat of an anti-climax after all Jesus has just experienced, which might explain his somewhat exasperated response when he hears that the disciples could not cure him. “Jesus answered, ‘You faithless and perverse generation, how much longer must I be with you? How much longer must I put up with you? Bring him here to me.’ (Matthew 17:17) A rare example of Jesus getting angry! And when the disciples come to Jesus privately later and ask “’Why could we not cast it out?’ He said to them, ‘Because of your little faith.’” (17:19-20)

We see once again how quickly human beings can forget God’s glory and God’s light when we move back into the shadows, how quickly we can ignore our promises and our commitments. One of the most extreme examples in Scripture is what we hear every year on Palm Sunday when within a few days the “Hosanna” of Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem turns into the “let him be crucified” when Pilate asks the crowd “what should I do with Jesus who is called the Messiah?”! (Matthew 27:22) God is faithful and unchanging in God’s love for us. We are often not.

In many ways, Jesus’ transfiguration story echoes Moses’ ascent of Mount Sinai that we heard about in the Exodus reading. Jesus is accompanied by Peter, James, and John. Moses is accompanied by Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, although they are not allowed to the very top of the mountain with Moses. Moses’ appearance is also changed, after encountering God his face shines. And when Moses returns from the glory of his mountain-top experience, he has good reason to be very frustrated and angry when he discovers that Israel has become faithless in his absence and begun to worship the golden calf.

But the Gospel does not just point back to Moses, connecting us with that part of the story of salvation that we have in common it our Jewish brothers and sisters. It also points forward to Jerusalem and the cross, to Good Friday. When Jesus returns to Jerusalem, he is confronted with condemnation by the people he had loved and with abandonment by his friends especially by Peter – despite having accompanied Jesus to the mountaintop.

In the Transfiguration, on the mountain Jesus is revealed in glory. At the crucifixion on a hill outside of Jerusalem Jesus is revealed in shame. Here his clothes become dazzling white, there the Roman soldiers strip them off. Here he is flanked by Moses and Elijah, standing for the law and the prophets. There he is flanked by two criminals. Here a bright cloud overshadows them, then darkness descends. What both events have in common is Jesus being identified as God son. Here on the mountain, it is as I said God, speaking from the cloud, who identifies Jesus as “my Son, the Beloved.” There it is a centurion who says with amazement “Truly this man was God’s Son!” (Matthew 27:54)

The Transfiguration is not the end, and not the final glory, but a sign of the glory and transformation to come. It is also intended to encourage the disciples, and strengthen them, even if that did not work as well as intended. But Jesus must first come down from the mountain, he must first go through a death on the cross before his final glory in the resurrection. From the Collect for Fridays (Morning Prayer): “Almighty God, whose most dear Son went not up to joy but first he suffered pain, and entered not into glory before he was crucified.” There is no divinity without humanity, no glory without sacrifice, no beloved without loving. There is no shortcut to glory for Jesus, and there is no shortcut for us either.

Jesus tells his disciples: “Tell no one about the vision until after the Son of Man has been raised from the dead.” (Matthew 17:9) For the same reason, the church puts Lent and Holy Week between the Transfiguration and the Resurrection. We need them to understand the meaning and the cost of Jesus’ sacrifice. This coming week, on Ash Wednesday we will begin our desert experience, our time of denial in Lent, our period of preparation, of repentance and renewal.

Like Jesus, we must come down from the mountain and into the world. We do this every Sunday. First, we encounter God in the Eucharist at the altar. Then, strengthened and renewed, we are sent back into the world to do our work, to tell our story, to heal as Jesus healed, and to point to the glory that is to come. Even then, deep down in the valley, we can be secure in the vision and message of the Transfiguration that Jesus is God’s beloved Son, that in him we encounter God. We hold on to that knowledge. We are never abandoned, never lost. Death and sin are never victorious. The Collect for Fridays concludes with “Mercifully grant that we, walking in the way of the cross, may find it none other than the way of life and peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord.” 

Amen.

Revealing behaviour

A Sermon preached on February 8, 2023 at St. Christoph, Mainz

Sirach 15:15-20, 1 Corinthians 3:1-9, Matthew 5:21-37

As I mentioned in my weekly email, at a recent Wednesday Bible Study, one of our number commented that the current readings seemed to have little to do with the “happy” theme of Epiphany, the manifestation of God in Christ, the light of the world!  At least more recently, they already seemed to be pointing more towards Lent with its themes of repentance, reconciliation, and renewal. And it is certainly the case, that after looking at this week's readings, especially the Gospel, we could easily feel that we have or will have cause to repent because we are being confronted with “impossible demands”!

In Matthew's Gospel we continue to work through the Sermon on the Mount. Today, Jesus takes three of the 10 Commandments: You shall not murder; You shall not commit adultery and - in a paraphrase of the commandment to not take the name of the Lord your God in vain - You shall not swear falsely and intensifies them. If you want to prevent murder do not be angry, do not even insult another person. If you want to prevent adultery do not even look at another person with any desire, and to avoid swearing falsely do not swear at all. The consequences are not so good either: court, prison, hell, mutilation …. There are times when it is difficult to talk of “Good News” – which is what the word Gospel literally means.

So, what is Jesus up to? Well, we know that he was influenced by the teaching of the Pharisees (who were not all bad!). And there is a Pharisaic practice called building a fence around the Torah: By observing a law well beyond its minimum requirements we ensure that the law itself is observed. The rationale comes from Deuteronomy 22:8, which states that when someone builds a house, he must build a fence around the roof to avoid guilt should someone fall off the roof! And so they "build a fence around the Torah" in order to protect the commandment.

So, in today’s Gospel, we get nowhere near wanting to kill someone, or tempting them to kill us, if we do not get angry or insult them and if we immediately seek forgiveness and reconciliation when we recall that a brother or sister has something against us. This is another good, solid Jewish practice by the way, that only reconciliation with God is only possible once we have sought and made peace with our neighbour.

Jesus uses lots of different teaching methods. We have the parables, 55 of them in total, stories that “invite us into a different world: one that asks questions, explores possibility but that rarely ends in a clear, single answer.”[1] But we also have very clear commandments: Love God, love your neighbour, love your enemies! This is also not the only time that Jesus will speak about bad attitudes that can lead to destructive behaviour. Later in Matthew’s Gospel, after an argument with some pharisees, Jesus says: “For out of the heart come evil thoughts—murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. These are what defile a person; but eating with unwashed hands does not defile them.” (Matthew 15:19.20)

We do not have to take every word literally, much of it is deliberate exaggeration for effect, especially the warnings about hell (not the medieval Christian concept, but a reference to Gehenna a valley south of Jerusalem associated with child sacrifice and by Jesus’ time a huge rubbish/trash dump that was constantly smouldering – still not a place you want to spend a lot of time!) and the instructions about tearing out eyes and cutting off limbs. Sadly these have been taken literally and led to self-harm. And while I respect the Quakers for their refusal to swear oaths before court based on this passage, often a very costly refusal, I don’t think that is a necessary interpretation.[And in case you are worried, in 1695 an Act was passed allowing Quakers to just affirm that they were telling the truth with the words: “I do declare in the Presence of Almighty God the Witnesse of the Truth of what I say.”]

All of our readings in this season between the Epiphany and Lent are about the revelation of God in Jesus Christ. This year, they seem to have a lot to with the impact and effect of that manifestation. We heard how people, the first disciples, were so convinced by what they saw and heard that they immediately followed him, leaving home and job behind. Last week we heard Jesus tell those disciples that they have to share in his mission and revelation. That they – and not just he “are the light of the world.” And that their purpose, as was his, is to point to God: “In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.” (Mt 5:14)

Jesus was sent into the world not just to reveal himself, and through him God's true nature, but also to invite us all into a new, renewed and active relationship with God and our neighbour! Jesus inaugurated God's kingdom, and revealed the values of that kingdom that are the only way for us to truly experience an abundant life.  Yes, we have a promise of salvation and we have the proof of God's victory over sin and death in the Cross and Resurrection. They are unearned and God’s gift. At the same time Jesus called and calls us to work to overcome sin in the here and now – our own sin and the systemic We are to begin the work of transforming self and society now as a way of already living into God's kingdom, even if that will not be fully realized until Jesus’ return in glory. As Paul tells the Corinthians, we plant and water, but only God give the growth. Jesus' radical intensification of the commandments is part of our transformation. These commandments are all about our relationship with one another, how we treat one another. If I were to summarise them more positively, and without any of the threats, our relationships are to be without anger, governed by respect and tolerance, imbued with a deep desire for reconciliation, and characterised by complete honesty and commitment! That’s still not easy, but something I think we can sign up to. And, as our Collect for today makes clear, we do this only and always with God's help: “because in our weakness we can do nothing good without you, give us the help of your grace, that in keeping your commandments we may please you both in will and deed.” Amen.

---

[1] The Parables, Paula Gooder, xv