Lent 1, Year A
The Rev. Dena Cleaver-Bartholomew
Curiosity is natural. It can even be a gift. We love to see children explore. Parents and teachers encourage inquisitiveness. Our culture now touts the ability to ‘think outside the box’. Yet we know that with curiosity comes risk. There is a difference between pushing the edge and crossing a boundary. Part of the learning process is to figure out how to try new things, go new places, and express novel concepts without risking more than we can accept. There are reasons we are told not to do things. It is wise to ponder why something is off limits and whether challenging that limit is good or necessary. Who put the limit there and why?
And the LORD God commanded the man, ‘You may freely eat of every tree of the garden; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall die.’
Every tree was accessible, except one. God had been exceedingly generous. God had also been clear. There was a boundary that could not be crossed without severe consequences. Who knows how long Adam and Eve lived happily without eating from that one tree? Eventually someone decided it was time to shine a spotlight on the tree, to lay the snare of temptation. First, the consequence was rejected: “You will not die….” The fine art of downplaying, denying, and dismissing is introduced. Then the curiosity was piqued: “God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” The best part is that it isn’t even a lie. It’s just a partial truth, which is what many temptations are based upon. How could something that sounds so good go so wrong? True, Adam and Eve do not die immediately. But their relationship with God and with each other was forever altered, as the serpent promised. They now knew the difference between good and evil, for they had lived the good and had chosen the evil. They had learned not to trust God and not to take responsibility for what they had done. It was a choice that eventually led to death, but the first thing to die was unselfconscious openness and trust. Once that was broken it could never fully be restored.
In the movie Harriet the Spy, eleven year old Harriet is an inveterate people watcher who longs to be a writer. She spies on people and writes her observations in a series of notebooks. This is all fine until one day the mean girl in her class grabs her notebook and begins to read out loud. What Harriet’s classmates hear is brutal. Harriet writes as she sees, with no sense of compassion or room for interpretation. After others have heard her words Harriet finds she no longer has friends. Finally, a wise mentor tells her that she needs to apologize. Harriet learns that her gift for writing, which is a wonderful thing, can be used both to hurt and to heal. She can tell the truth with kindness.
In today’s Gospel we hear the story of Jesus who, immediately following his baptism in the River Jordan, saw the heavens open and the Holy Spirit descended upon him like a dove, and heard the voice of God declare: “This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.” We do not yet know what this means, except that God is delighted with him. Thus it is a surprising twist that God’s next act is to put Jesus to the test. “Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.” Why would God do that? We’ve seen where temptation can lead.
The first temptation is two pronged. Just listen to the subtle challenge: “If you are the Son of God….” What do you mean ‘if’? It implies that Jesus needs to prove that he is the Son of God by using his power to meet the second part of the temptation: “…command these stones to become loaves of bread.” Jesus has not eaten for forty days and forty nights, so the appeal of food would be strong. So here, in the very first volley, Satan entices Jesus both to prove himself and to meet his own needs, two common temptations. He rebuffs the invitation by quoting Scripture. The second temptation again says “If you are the Son of God…”, as he still hasn’t proven himself, “…throw yourself down.” He could prove himself and prove the validity of Scripture, by trusting in God. Only the temptation is not really about trusting God, it’s about manipulating God, so Jesus rejects it. Finally, Jesus is presented with “all the kingdoms of the world” if only he will worship the devil. Imagine the power he would have had! Yet Jesus rejects that temptation as well. Hmm…first personal power, then power over God, then power in the world: those sound just like the three things we renounce in our Baptismal Vows when they draw us from the love of God. We are called to reject those lures just like Jesus did. Power, like any other thing, can be used for good or for evil. When we are tempted to use it wrongly, we need to pause and see where the temptation leads.
There is a commercial for Subway restaurants in which an attractive young woman approaches the counter in a fast food place and asks “What does your cheeseburger combo come with?” The answer is “Bloated feeling, an expanded waistline, larger thighs, feelings of regret, loss of boyfriend, loss of self-esteem, years of therapy, fries and a shake.” If only we could get a little truth in advertising tag attached to each decision we make. Would we still choose to go forward with our first impulse?
When Jesus faced temptation willingly, he did what Adam and Eve were unable to do. He looked down the line from the temptation to where it could lead, to the hook holding the bait, and he said no. He carved out a new path for us, one in which we could rely not on our own strength, but on his, to help us say no. For even as we renounce the things that draw us from the love of God when we prepare for Baptism, we fill the space they have left with the power of God in Jesus Christ. It is a process we repeat again and again, like bailing out a boat. Now that our eyes are open, we know that temptation will always be there. We also know that God will be too.
Amen