Stand Firm

by Pat Lee

(Based on Matt 4:1-11; Gen 2:15-17, 3:1-7; Ro 5:12-19)

For those of us who have attended an Ash Wednesday service in the past, we may have heard the words, when we received the ashes, a paraphrased quote from Genesis 3:19: “Remember you are dust and to dust you shall return.” The ashes that are placed on our foreheads are placed in the sign of the cross, a symbol of hope. We begin the season of Lent by reminding ourselves that we are dust, and to dust we shall return. But it is a cross-shaped reminder, done with conviction that when we bind ourselves to Jesus, we bind ourselves not just to his death, but also to his resurrection.

Adam and Eve did not have to return to dust when they died, because everything in the Garden of Eden was perfect, and there was no sin.  They had the freedom to eat anything in it. But God commanded them not to eat from the “tree of knowledge of good and evil”, because, if they did, they would die and return to dust, as in Genesis 3:19.

Then the serpent appeared on the scene and that changed everything, because he tempted them to eat the forbidden fruit, telling them they would “become like” God. So, they ate. They disobeyed God’s command. Sin began.

Looking up the root of the word sin as used in both the Old and the New Testaments, this is what I found.
Hebrew (khata or chata), used in the Old Testament, means ‘to fail’ or ‘miss the goal’ of hitting a target, or to ‘stray from the path’, often in the context of violating God’s commandments of failing to meet ethical expectations.
Greek (harmartia), used in the New Testament, originates from archery, referring to missing the bullseye. It implies a ‘failure, error, or mistake’ in fulfilling the goal of loving God and others.

Essentially, the original concept is less about being ‘evil’ and more about ‘missing the target’ of being in alignment with divine will.

 So Adam and Eve missed the target, failed, and strayed from the path with their disobedience of God’s command. However, they aren’t the only ones who have disobeyed God. They are not the only ones who have faced the devil’s temptations and fallen. After Adam and Eve there was their son, Cain, who killed his brother out of jealousy. By the time Noah came along, God was ready to erase this world and start again. But he, Noah, found favour “in the sight of the Lord”, so he (and we) were given another chance.

After Noah, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob all had their struggles. Joseph and his brothers, too. When Moses led God’s people into the wilderness, you might say it became pretty easy hunting for the crafty serpent. And once God’s people made it to the ‘Promised Land’?
Remember Saul and David?

Over and over in Scripture, even the heroes of our faith succumbed to the temptations of the devil. There were moments of great faith, to be sure. Moments when God’s people looked the tester in the face and said, no. Daniel, for example. But all too often, sin won out. The devil won out. In fact, ever since Adam and Eve brought sin into the world, humanity has found itself captive to sin, unable to free ourselves. To put it simply, we are not strong enough to overcome sin on our own. None of us is. No one throughout history, except for one.

What makes today’s Gospel reading so important?
It is because it shows Jesus doing what no one else had ever been able to do: Locked in a battle with the devil at his strongest, Jesus emerges victorious, resisting his every temptation, and passing his every test – not just for himself, but for us.

Someone has written, “If every copy of the Bible were ever destroyed, and we had only this single page which tells the story of Jesus’s temptation in the wilderness, it would be enough.”

Why would it be enough?
Because it shows that what Adam and Eve could not do in the Garden of Eden, and what God’s people could not do over and over again, and what you and I cannot do on our own, Jesus was able to do. Because Jesus won over the devil, and sin, you and I can too by facing him without fear.

James 4:7 says, “Humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” 1 Peter 5:8 says, “Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Stand firm against him.”

So, what does Jesus’s victory in the wilderness teach us?
First, before it shows us what we can do, it shows us what Jesus did. He defeated sin, death and the devil for us, and later he “finished” it completely on the cross. It shows us that during this season of Lent we can trust that Jesus is right there alongside us. We can learn from his words and deeds. We can learn what he did and try to pattern our lives after his.

Second, we learn that the timing of this story is important. It happened right after Jesus was baptised. That teaches us that baptism doesn’t preserve us from temptation, but prepares us for temptation by uniting us with Jesus. With his help and him at our sides, we can overcome our own temptations.

When we are tempted, it’s good to remember that the devil knows the Bible too, and can quote it. That’s why we need to stay rooted in God’s word. Jesus quoted the Word back at the devil; we need to be able to do the same.

The words in Romans 5 are quite difficult to get your head around when you first hear them, but I think it is a good explanation, if lengthy, of what Jesus did for us. It can be summed up in the last two verses: From the New Living Testament, “Yes, Adam’s sin brings condemnation for everyone, but Christ’s one act of righteousness brings a right relationship with God and new life for everyone. Because one person disobeyed God, many became sinners. But because one other person obeyed God, many will be made righteous.”

I read in Our Daily Bread this story. “After years of struggle and crying out in prayer, Frank quit drinking. He attributes his continued sobriety to God’s work in his life. But he also made some important changes. He no longer kept alcohol in the house, watched for warning signs in his thinking and moods, and was wary of certain situations. He leaned on God and knew not to leave an opening for temptation or sin.
“‘Be alert and of sober mind,’ the apostle Peter warned. ‘Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.’ (1 Peter 5:8) Peter knew we needed to be watchful because the devil’s attacks are often unexpected – when it seems like your life couldn’t be better, or you think we’d never be tempted in a certain area.
“James too warned his readers to submit to God and ‘resist the devil’. When you do, our enemy will flee (James 4:7). The best way to resist him is to stay close to God through prayer and spending time in Scripture. When we do, God comes near to us (v8) through his Spirit (Romans 5:5). James also offered this encouragement: Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.
“We all face challenging moments in life when we are tempted and struggle. We can rest knowing that God wants us to succeed and overcome. He is with us in all our troubles.”

When I read this I thought that it was such a comfort to know that someone else is on the same page as me.

Before we finish, let me ask you, “Who here was a Boy Scout or a Guide Guide?”
Today is World Thinking Day (the 22^nd of February). This is the birth date of both Lord and Lady Bayden-Powell, who began both the Scouts and the Guides movements. Their motto was Be Prepared.
I thought that very apt for today’s message to us.

God of new beginnings, you meet us wherever we are, and stand by us in the lowest points of our lives. Help us to recognize your presence, even in wasteland. Give us the clarity to know what is right, and the courage to reject tempting alternatives. In Jesus’ Name, we pray …