Sermon by Reverend Dr. John W. Mann | February 18, 2024

Mark 1:9-14

The glasses I’m wearing were purchased from an online company. They are what you call a bargain. I’ve bought different pairs from the same company. Before I make a purchase, I look at the different frames available, narrow down my choices according the correct measurements, and settle on a style. And then I’ll think about it for a while, maybe even a couple of weeks before I actually commit to the purchase.

In the meantime, when I go back online for something, there appears alongside a news article I may be reading, adverts for eyeglasses. The emails appear in my inbox: “Did you forget something? Buy now and receive a special discount!”

Offers, offers; tempting offers. In this culture of commerce in which we live our lives, our movements are tracked, sorted and analyzed so as to present us with just the right promotional pitch to get us to spend our money. Even when we put fuel in our vehicle, on comes the commercial onslaught. All it takes is for us to respond one time, to tick that box, to push that purchase button, and the tempter has won. The tempter you say? I’m certainly not saying that giving in to that sort of temptation is a sin. Not at all. Rather, we know what it is to be tempted.

Jesus was tempted. The writer of Mark described it in two sentences. Maybe we think that it wasn’t such a big deal then; only two sentences. Besides, he was the Son of God, so how could he be tempted in an authentic way? We might think all he had to do was say, “Don’t you know who I am?” and that would end it. But there’s a lot going on in those two sentences and the author of the tale leaves us to ponder how he loaded those two sentences with meaning while he moves on to the next episode.

Jesus began his work by being baptized. Maybe he was thinking that would be a good way to identify with the people. Show folks that you’re one of them; not too good to be baptized. Immerse yourself fully into humankind. That should work. Then God had a say in matters by telling Jesus who he was: “You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.”

Jesus may have thought, “Perfect! Now we can get started. Let’s go share the message of the Good News!”

But God said, “Not so fast. We need to take a road trip. I’ll drive.” And we read that the Spirit drove him into the wilderness. God didn’t say, “Now, find a quiet place, somewhere you can be alone for a while. A comfortable setting where you can put your feet up and think about things.” He was driven.

When I go somewhere, I like to drive. Most of the time Lindsay lets me drive. Sometimes she will tell me that she’s driving; then I am a passenger. When I’m the passenger, I try to be a good passenger. But sitting in the passenger seat reminds me of how much I like to be in the driver’s seat. Because in the driver’s seat, I’m in control; I’m in charge.

That the Spirit drove Jesus into the wilderness says that he had to let go of his sense of being in control and being in charge. It was God’s way of reminding him, “You’re on a journey, and for this journey you’re along with me.”

We go through life seeking a sense of direction, of control even; we gain some mastery over our life and then something happens, and we realize life takes us in directions we had not planned on and for which we are not always prepared for; places we would rather be in. That’s when we’re in the wilderness where we have to figure out how we’re going to survive.

I went wilderness camping once when I was fourteen years old. My uncle Roger lived on the edge of the Oregon outback and cousin Tommy and I thought it would be fun to go camping in the wilderness. We were driven into the wilderness and dropped off. All we had with us were our sleeping bags, canteens and pocketknives. That’s it. It was up to us to survive.

Tommy was more outdoorsy than me, but still, when the sun went down, the wilderness became a different place. We were blessed with a full moon, but wolves like to bay at the moon and they seemed awfully close. Instead of wilderness camping, we went on a wilderness hike, by moonlight to make our way back to the safety and comfort of civilization.

Jesus wasn’t out there in the wilderness in his RV. His only resources were what he could carry, both physically, mentally and spiritually. He had to make the best of it, and he had to find out what he was made of. That journey of discovery was the basis of his temptation.

He was tempted by Satan. The other tellers of his story go into more detail about this. Mark leaves it to our imagination to wonder just how the Son of God might have been tempted. For me it goes back to his baptism. Everything God told him was up for question.

God told him, “You are my son.” Satan asked him, “Are you really though?”

God told him, “I love you.” Satan asked him, “Does he really though?”

God told him, “With you I am well pleased.” Satan asked him, “How can that be, you haven’t earned that?”

The temptations that Jesus faced had to do with coming to grips with himself, with believing that what God said is actually true. Satan’s only real power is the power to question, to cast doubt. To question our identity and to cast doubt on the power of God’s love. In our journey through life we come upon people, places and events that can cause us to question God’s love.

My friend’s daughter was murdered. I’ve known Marty and his brother Craig since the second grade. Craig has a son named after me. Losing a child under those circumstances is unimaginable. The killer is in custody. Marty said he would like to get his hands on the guy, but that won’t happen. But it’s that feeling toward someone who does us wrong in a big way, that we would like to wring their neck and squeeze the life out of them. It’s an impulse we usually don’t act upon.

Some people might say, “How can you say that minister? Here you are talking about doing someone harm. Aren’t you supposed be about the love of God?” But that’s the human in us. Last week my daughter told me she was almost car jacked in Minneapolis. She was savvy enough to get away with her life and car intact, but it was a close call and it rattled her to the core. And it rattled me. It brings up that instant reaction that we would do anything to protect our loved ones. And if we can’t protect them, then we must avenge them.

Therein lies the temptation. I say it often that, “God is love.” It’s a truth written in the bible in many ways. The temptation is to turn away from God’s love. Sometimes we cling to God’s love out of desperation because the alternative is not a pleasant path to travel. Sometimes we just have to pray, “Lord, I trust in your love, even though the world denies it. I can’t love the world like you do, that’s a task too big for me, so I won’t pretend to try. I’ll love the people I’m supposed to love, and I’ll try to love my neighbor, whoever that might turn out to be.”

Mark wrote that the wild beasts were out there with Jesus. Whatever they were, he had to face them on his own; no support to lean on from friends or family. It’s unlikely that he had to fight off an actual lion or wolf. The wild beasts could be all the possibilities that temptation placed before him. All the “what ifs” of his own heart and soul. Even the wild beasts within human nature. He had to contend with them all.

Through it all, off in the wilderness he was not completely on his own. It is said that angels waited on him. They didn’t fix anything for him. They likely reminded him of what they usually said when they show up in the story: Fear not.

That’s an important word for us to hear. Much of what happens in our world is driven by fear. “If we don’t this, then there are dire consequences waiting for us.” The temptation to give in to fear is always before us. Yet even when the worst that can happen actually happens, the angels are near to remind us, “Fear not.”

In this brief story of Jesus being tempted we are reminded that he was very much one of us. He faced what we face. He came through it to remind us that fear doesn’t have to rule our lives. He reminds us of God’s truth: “I’ve always known you; I’ve always loved you. Amen.