March 31st
Share your thoughts, comments, reflections and questions on the readings for March the 31st
Numbers 34:1-35:34,Psalm 38:15-22,Proverbs 9:16-18,Luke 4:1-21
We have today two of the events at the start of Jesus ministry. Remember that Jesus is now 30 and we know almost nothing of the last 30 years. The first event we heard about yesterday when Jesus was baptised. Now Jesus has left the Jordan and gone into the wilderness on his own. He was there for 40 days (a very biblical length of time) and fasted all that time.
The devil then came and tempted Jesus. Sometimes I think we look on Jesus as such perfection that he was never tempted. Well he was – and just like we are. These three temptations were not the only temptations Jesus faced. He was tempted as he walked through the countryside and the towns and cities. He was tempted as he sat down to eat. He was tempted by money and possessions and through the people around him and others he met. Jesus was tempted just as we are, but with one difference, he never gave in to the temptations, he never sinned.
Having fasted for 40 days Jesus was hungry – and understatement! So the first temptation was to meet his own needs through a wrong use of God’s powers. Remember that when Jesus had become a man he had voluntarily given up all that it meant to be God, and part of that was Omnipotence (or Power), he now relied on the holy Spirit for all the miracles and healings. So this temptation was to take that power back upon himself and misuse it for himself. This is a temptation that many of us will have as well from time to time – to misuse the power that we have.
The second temptation was that of idolatry, who would Jesus worship? Again this is a temptation that we have as well. Who do we worship? Do we truly worship God with all we have and are or do we worship or possessions, our homes, our families, our work, our status or perhaps even ourselves?
The final temptation was to test God to see if he would fulfil his promises. Do you remember the very first temptation, in the Garden of Eden the serpent said ‘Did God really say …’ the temptation as to doubt God and here the temptation was to doubt God and therefore test him. Have you ever done that? Have you ever said to yourself – I’ll do this God if you do that? Again we have the same temptations as Jesus did.
But, as I said earlier, the difference is that Jesus never gave in to temptation.
The past part of the reading from Luke’s gospel today is an amazing declaration by Jesus as to who he was. The passage he read from in the Old Testament book of Isaiah was known as a Messianic passage. This was well known as a prophecy about the coming Messiah. Everyone in the Synagogue who heard him read would have known what this was about and many would have known this passage by heart. Some of them would be sitting hearing it read and dreaming of the day it would come true, dreaming of the day that YHWH would sent their Messiah to free them.
Then Jesus says “Today this has come true.” Listen – you can hear the stunned silence!