Second Presbyterian Church

Roanoke, Virginia

January 20, 2008

"What Kind of Son of God Are You?"

Luke 4:1-13

George C. Anderson

1Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness, 2where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing at all during those days, and when they were over, he was famished. 3The devil said to him, "If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become a loaf of bread." 4Jesus answered him, "It is written, ‘One does not live by bread alone.’"

5Then the devil led him up and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. 6And the devil said to him, "To you I will give their glory and all this authority; for it has been given over to me, and I give it to anyone I please. 7If you, then, will worship me, it will all be yours." 8Jesus answered him, "It is written,

‘Worship the Lord your God,

and serve only him.’"

9Then the devil took him to Jerusalem, and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, saying to him, "If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here, 10for it is written,

‘He will command his angels concerning you,

to protect you,’

11and

‘On their hands they will bear you up,

so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.’"

12Jesus answered him, "It is said, ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’" 13When the devil had finished every test, he departed from him until an opportune time.

I do not endorse a program which I think children should not watch, but last week I happened to see a creative episode of the South Park television series. I don’t mean to make too much of this crude show but an old theatrical technique was being used. By old, I mean at least as old as ancient Greek and Roman drama. In the beginning of the history of theater, an audience would be entertained by two interlocking dramas; one mythological among the gods and the other among mortals. Of course, the mythological drama would impact the mortal one.

Two dramas were interlocked in this South Park episode. One was in the "real" world. (That in itself is an ironic statement, because the real world of South Park is animated and the real people are cartoon characters). The other world is the virtual world an internet game, World of Warcraft. Within the virtual world of the video game, a killer is loose wiping out all the characters he comes across. Behind this drama of war, death and destruction is the drama of the computer geek who manipulates the unstoppable killer and the kids who grow increasingly fat and sleep-deprived trying to figure out ways to stop him.

Something of that dual drama is going on in our passage. The Gospel of Luke will tell the story of Jesus contending with the principalities and powers of the world of Israel. But before that drama begins, the Holy Spirit and the devil get into it. Otherworldly powers have to engage before we can see Jesus take on the powers of the world. After his baptism, the Holy Spirit drives Jesus into the wilderness where he is subjected to the devil’s temptations. As we watch what goes on, let’s remember that there is a third drama to follow. The same kind of drama being played in Luke is played out in the dramas of our own lives. The divine powers in contention in the wilderness are contesting for the high ground of Jesus’ heard, and also of our own hearts.

If we had to give a title to the Luke’s prelude in the wilderness, a good choice would be "Lent." The Holy Spirit has arranged for 40 days of denial to prepare Jesus for the temptation to live up to or deny the identity that declared for him at his baptism.

The devil presents Jesus with the worst kind of temptation. Jesus is tempted at the place where he is strong. We might miss this because unlike the professional football players facing each other in the two games this afternoon, the famished Jesus is not at his physical peak. But in a reverse of the old saying, "Give the devil his due," the devil gives Jesus his due. He says, "If you are the son of God," but really is trying to manipulate Jesus as the Son of God. In other words, Jesus is not tempted to prove he is the Son of God, but rather reveal just what kind of Son of God he is.

We would do well to ponder this. We can be tempted not only where we are weak, but also where we are strong; our intellectual ability, artistry, good looks, reputation, physical strength, money, political power.

The devil wants to know our strengths and our virtues and at those points do his life-diverting work.

This could be illustrated in subtle ways, but I’ll take the easy way out and draw on the evidence of the crude dramas of Middle School. Middle School tends to show off many who rely on their strengths to the neglect of areas in which they are unsure of themselves. The physically strong can neglect their brains, the physically attractive can neglect their manners, the wealthy can neglect their values, and the intelligent can neglect their bodies.

The crude dramas of Middle School don’t end when adolescence ends. We just get more clever and sophisticated in playing to our strengths and giving into distortions of what it means to be fully human. It is utterly illogical to think that might makes right; or that wealth makes one smart; or that beauty, political influence or any other personal asset grants virtue; but that is the logic many live by.

The devil is well versed in this logic. "You are the Son of God. If you can, Jesus, you should." That’s the devil’s way, to gain desired ends by whatever means, whether the ends are selfish or noble. We are tempted in our weakness to embrace whatever means possible to achieve selfish ends, but the most insidious temptation for Jesus, and sometimes even for us, is to entice him and us to reach a righteous destination by an unrighteous path.

Take the first temptation, the social one: turn stones to bread. Weakness wants to turn stones to bread because of the hunger of a 40 day fast. But Jesus’ desire for bread is more selfless than that. Throughout his ministry to come, when he sees the hungry he wants them fed. He takes meeting this need so seriously that he will later say in a parable that when one feeds the hungry it is like feeding him.

So, why not? Why can’t Jesus take seven stones, bless them, and turn them into bread to feed thousands? Wouldn’t this good deed win thousands as followers? The church certainly can understand this temptation. We are tempted to give people what they want, give it to them in the name of Jesus, and thereby win their loyalty and support. Entice, entertain and help people, and maybe they will come back for more.

But though Jesus probably finds human hunger to be an outrage in a world where there is plenty for everyone, let us remember that his healings and feedings never create faith. Some come to him in faith, and Jesus lets them know that their faith is a part of their healing. But feeding hungry bellies does not create believing hearts. "Man does not live by bread alone," Jesus tells the devil, quoting Deuteronomy 8:3. Jesus is not the kind of Son of God that will simply offer bread. He is the kind of Son of God that offers himself as bread. Know Jesus- love Jesus- and you get to know and love God. That’s the hunger Jesus wants to feed.

The 2nd temptation is political and of the Faustian sort: Bow down and worship the devil. In return, the devil will give Jesus everything he wants. Once again, in our most selfish, this temptation is compelling. Lust for power, for influence, to be worshipped and served; basically to be treated as a god has produced some of the worst dictators we have known or heard of; whether dictators of countries or relationships; the people who demean and destroy others lives in order to elevate their own.

But, again, it is not in the selfish desire to be worshipped where Jesus is most tempted. "You are the Son of God," Jesus. Don’t you want what God has wanted for Israel and the world; for justice and righteousness to be maintained; for the Law of God to be honored in the social fabric of life so that people are treated with decency and are given freedom and space to explore who they are called to be in the eyes of God? Don’t you want the poor to be fed, widows cared for, and the marketplaces and courts be safe places? Worship me, Jesus, and have all that your good heart desires. Why not? If you are willing to climb up on a cross to win salvation for others, why not give yourself a break and bow down to worship me instead?"

Throughout history, the church has succumbed to this temptation to achieve its ends by the practiced, but compromised, ways of the world. At certain low points in the church’s history, every commandment has been broken to advance the church’s cause. Massive commandment breaking became much easier with the Emperor Constantine’s conversion to the faith. With the privilege of being he approved church of the political realm came the temptation of access to Roman strings of power. Pulling those strings became addictive simply because they were effective. And so the church became a part of unholy wars, character assassination, lying, stealing, coveting…

Quoting Deuteronomy 6:13, Jesus declares that only the God of justice and truth is to be worshipped and served. Jesus’ resistance of this second temptation should remind the church that we make as much a witness in the journey as in the destination. We can’t get by with saying that "it is just business" or "it is just politics" when neither business nor politics are shielded from God’s view. To be unethical in the sale, or untruthful or unfair in the cause is to bow down and worship something that is not of God… even if it is meant to achieve godly ends.

The 3rd Temptation is theological: It deals with death and miracles. The devil takes Jesus to the top of the Temple, at its very peak, and says, "Throw yourself off from here, and let the angels rescue you."

Once again, there is a purely selfish level where this temptation hits hard. We would love to escape death, and we would love to have it in our power to force God’s hand in this matter. It would be a very difficult thing not to drink from the fountain of youth or to make a bargain with God that cannot be refused.

Yet, it is not at this place of weakness where Jesus would be most tempted. His temptation as the Son of God is to win the faith and loyalty of followers by doing something sensational and death-defying. If he could capture attention and galvanize a following, then surely his work in the world would be more easily accomplished.

In fact, Jesus would later do some amazing things; heal the sick, cast out demons, feed thousands. And indeed, these amazing acts will grab the attention of the crowds and generate a large following. And yet, when the time comes for the cross, the gathered crowds disappear. Jesus is not surprised because true faith is not generated by the sensational or by the show. Britney Spears once sought the media attention that now won’t leave her alone, but the spirit of the vulture was always a part of the crowd’s obsession with her.

The church can seek the sensational and the showy to win support, but when one is truly sick, or grieved, or desperately thirsty for the comfort of the Gospel, being a part of the largest, or shiniest, or most entertaining is of little comfort. The only comfort is in knowing that in life or in death, we belong to God, and that nothing can separate us from God’s love.

Quoting Deuteronomy 6:16, Jesus warns us not to put God to the test. There are no deals to be made with God. God is holy, above and beyond our manipulation. We can’t make promises for God, or offer assurances of God, that are of our own creating. Before the holy, we can only bow down, surrender and accept.

After the temptations are over, it is said that the devil departs from Jesus to await a more opportune time. The more opportune time will be the cross, when once again the devil whispers in Jesus’ ear: save yourself.

But at this point, the drama of the prelude gives way to a drama in Israel. Jesus will leave the desert of contesting with a spiritual power and enter the world of Israel to contest with worldly powers. In many ways, he will continue to face the same temptations as they come from those who try to destroy him; like the Pharisees, Pilate and Herod; and those like Judas and Peter who try to follow him, but only if Jesus does it their way.

But, here at the beginning, we have a hint as to how that drama will play out. Jesus answers the question put to him by the devil: "What kind of Son of God Are You?" The devil’s question is,

"Are you an ask-me-what-you-want, any-means-to-a-good-end, impressive-and-death-escaping kind of God"

and Jesus’ answer is, "No!"

He is a Son who is uncompromising in his faithfulness in both means and ends, no matter the cost.

The question is, "How will we face the temptations when they come to us in our weakness, and even more insidiously, in our strength?" Can we simply surrender and accept God as God, and travel the journey God would have us travel regardless of what we win or lose in doing so? Jesus did; but it meant losing a lot that the world thinks valuable. He did, though, have a death and a life in God. That was enough for him. Is it enough for us?