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SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2008

THE FIRST SUNDAY IN LENT

Matthew 4:1-11 (Overcoming temptation)

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TODAY’S SERMON THEME:

Temptation always seems so harmless. It always seems so simple. It starts with a tiny, innocuous thought. And then it blossoms into a distracting, enticing fantasy. And then -- if left alone -- it starts to take control of our lives, slowly and steadily. God understands our temptations. And after all these centuries, He is still willing and able to help us. All we have to do is ask Him for help.

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1. Years ago, when I was serving as chaplain at Texas A&M University, our parish had a sweet little Afro-American woman who worked as sexton. Her name was Barbara. For three years, Barbara and I had an on-going joke about the parish kitchen -- in particular, about all the various and sundry food items that showed up ALL the time. ALL the time. Even in Lent. A typical morning conversation would go like this: Barbara would stick her head in my office and say, "Oh, Fr. Steve. There are some hot glazed donuts in the kitchen, and they're starting to bother me." And, of course, I would reply: "Well, Barbara, we'd better go check on them to make sure they're OK." And thus would begin another trip down JUNK FOOD lane. Donuts. Brownies. Cookies. Chocolate cake. Apple pie. Once we started thinking about them, all of them bothered the heck out of Barbara . . . and me. And we always had to go check on them to make sure they were OK.

2. TEMPTATION. It always seems so harmless. It always seems so simple. It always starts with a tiny, innocuous thought. And then it blossoms into a distracting, enticing fantasy. And then -- if left alone -- it starts to take control of our lives, slowly and steadily. How do YOU handle temptation? A couple of little stories to consider:

(1) About 15 years ago, a 16-year-old boy started working part-time in a hardware store. It was his first real job, and he was incredibly excited. More than anything else, he wanted to work in the front of the store, running the cash register. He wanted his friends to be able to come into the store and see him working in a position of trust and responsibility. But that was NOT how his first day began. Instead, he was escorted into the stock room, where he was shown several large barrels of assorted bolts, screws, wires, and nails. His job was to DIG THROUGH THE MESS and sort everything out. And it was as far away from the front of the store as you could get. About three hours into the job, an amazing thing happened: He found a wadded up $100 bill. Right there in the middle of the barrel. He was amazed. He unfolded the bill and laid it on the work table. For an instant, he was tempted to put the money in his pocket and keep the new-found treasure for himself. But then he asked himself a question -- a question that many young folks ask themselves: WWJD? What would Jesus do? He immediately took off his gloves and took the money to the manager's office. When the manager saw the $100 bill, he smiled and motioned for the young boy to come in and sit down. And then the manager said something astonishing: "I put that $100 bill in the barrel. And because you brought it to me, I want you to keep it. And starting tomorrow I'm going to train you to run the cash register." The young man had passed an important test. He had shown himself to be trustworthy -- even while working all alone in the stockroom, far from the eyes of his boss.

(2) Another little story. A man who was just getting started in business decided to bid on a large project that was starting up in a nearby city. He called, talked to the construction manager, found out the specifications, and did a quick walk-through of the construction site. The deadline for bids was the next day, so he totaled up his estimates and ran them through his computer. It was going to be a good job, and it would give him new contacts in the community. He made an appointment to see the construction manager the next afternoon. The meeting took place as scheduled, but at the beginning, the manager said there were only two firms competing for the job -- his company and another that had submitted a bid that morning. He tapped on a sheet of paper on his desk and said he was just starting to go over the first bid. At that moment the phone rang, and the manager said he needed to attend to something in the office next door. He said he would be back in 10 minutes. "Just wait right here," he said. And then he left. At that moment, temptation struck. The man knew his only competitor's bid was right there on the desk, six feet away. All he had to do was sneak a quick glance, and then adjust his total as needed. He looked around to see if anyone could see him. No one could. He paced quickly around the office to double check. No one was around. Taking another quick look, he hurried around the desk to look at the bid. BUT A COFFEE MUG was covering the bottom line. Taking another look around, he quickly picked up the coffee mug . . . only to discover that the mug was turned upside down, and it was holding hundreds of tiny ball bearings, all of which rolled off the desk in every direction. The man had failed the test. He folded up his own bid, stuck it in his pocket, and left the office. He did not have to say anything to anyone.

3. These stories are strikingly similar. Notice the suddenness of the temptation. Notice the shocking power that temptation carries. The young boy and the man were NOT EXPECTING to be tempted . . . but they were. That is the way TEMPTATION usually hits -- when we least expect it. Both the young boy and the man had only seconds to respond. The young boy PRAYED. The man let the THOUGHT PERCOLATE around in his mind . . . until it became unbearable. When I teach young people (and adults) about our faith, I always spend time talking about THE SEVEN STAGES OF SIN. SIN ALWAYS starts with TEMPTATION -- a simple, innocuous thought. And then it progresses, often very rapidly, through the other six stages. The SEVEN STAGES of Sin are: (1) A THOUGHT. (2) The thought brings PLEASURE. (3) The mind gives ASSENT to the pleasing thought. (4) The ACTION is taken. (5) The action is REPEATED. (6) The action becomes HABIT. (7) The action brings spiritual BLINDNESS.

4. Temptation is as old as creation. And it flows through life like a river. It is the great equalizer, touching every one of us dozens of times each day. Temptation comes to us through three primary sources (often referred to as the "three ancient enemies" of our lives): (1) The world. (2) The flesh. (3) The devil. Not every temptation we endure is demonic. Not every temptation comes from our flesh (our own broken human nature). Not every temptation comes from others (the world). But all of them have something in common: They entice us to betray ourselves, our family or friends, or our God. They call upon us to put our own selfish and self-centered desires above everything and everyone else.

(1) Temptation was there at the beginning -- Genesis Chapter 3 -- where Satan, through the serpent, enticed Eve.

(2) Temptation was there at Sodom and Gomorrah. When Lot's wife looked back for an instant and died.

(3) It was there with Moses in the wilderness. When Moses lashed out at god's people and disobeyed God's specific instructions.

(4) It was there when King David lusted after Bathsheba, wife of Uriah the Hittite. When David took her to himself and ordered Uriah killed.

(5) It was there when the prophet Elijah fled for his life from the madwoman Queen Jezebel.

(6) It was there with the Apostle Peter LIED three times on that awful night in Jerusalem, saying that he did not even know Jesus.

5. And, yes, the tempter was there at the beginning of the Lord Jesus' ministry -- confronting our Savior with a variety of false choices, with a variety of demonic temptations. Our Gospel account today of Jesus' temptation is from Matthew Chapter 4 -- an account that gives us just a few details. Immediately after Jesus was baptized in the Jordan River by his cousin John, the Baptist, Jesus was "led" or "driven" by the Spirit into the wilderness. He fasted for 40 days and 40 nights (the length of the Lenten Season, not counting the six Sundays), and at the END of that period he was famished. It was during his moment of great physical weakness, after the fast, that Satan came to Him. (1) Jesus fasted and prayed in the wilderness (the MIDBAR, in Hebrew) as He prepared for His earthly ministry. Fasting and praying are always integral components of Lent. And so is temptation. And temptation usually comes to us when we are weakened physically . . . as Jesus was. (2) Satan's assault came in three specific ways -- all of which are familiar to us, too. Jesus was tempted to turn stones into loaves of bread, to throw Himself down from the pinnacle of the Temple, and to bow down to Satan. In so doing, according to Satan, Jesus would be given authority over the world. (3) In other words, Jesus was tempted to SATISFY His physical needs (hunger) over all else; to PERFORM a MIRACLE for His own benefit and the amusement of Satan; and to USE EVIL to accomplish good. (4) In still other words, Jesus was tempted to: BE SATISFIED, BE SPECTACULAR, BE POWERFUL. (5) To all of these, Jesus remained FOCUS -- quoting Scripture and keeping His eyes on His mission. He overcame temptation through the Word, and through obedience.

6. Temptation always seems so harmless. It always seems so simple. It starts with a tiny, innocuous thought. And then it blossoms into a distracting, enticing fantasy. And then -- if left alone -- it starts to take control of our lives, slowly and steadily. God understands our temptations. And after all these centuries, He is still willing and able to help us. All we have to do is ask Him for help.