The Temptation of Christ – 27 February 2009

The temptation story can seem far removed from our world, our life.  Turning stone into bread, jumping off the highest part of the temple and having God’s angels tend to you, or being placed on a very high mountain so that you could see the whole world, then having the devil giving you a chance of owning it all.

As Jesus sits in the desert, his stomach empty, he hasn’t eaten for forty days. The devil approaches.

Jesus was tempted to take the easy way, to bypass God’s plan, God’s will. Turn stones into bread, jump off the temple, show the people a great magic act then they will follow.  Be the ruler of the whole world, bring peace, justice, love - but in reality it is the way that leaves God out of the picture.

The temptations are not so far removed from our lives.  They are about not following the will of God for us, not giving Him the honour, worship, thanksgiving.  But they are about our will, what we want.  Having the control and power.  We like to pretend, to play games with each other and with God that we are not as bad as someone else we can point the finger at.  You and I like to have things our own way.  We want to take God out of the picture.  We want control, but in reality without God we are out of control as Paul said. “I don’t accomplish the good things that I set out to do, and the evil things that I don’t want to do, I find I’m always doing”.