Please Pray with Me.
The Proclamation of Holy Desire
The three temptations are aimed
directly at the heart of Jesus’ identity. Twice (vv. 3,9) Satan begins his temptation by calling into
question Jesus’ identity as the Son of God with the words “if you are
the Son of God” followed by a challenge to prove this identity with some
miraculous display (stone into bread (v. 3); a dramatic angelic rescue from
death (vv. 9-11)). In the first 3 chapters of Luke, Jesus’ identity was
confirmed by Mary, Elizabeth, Simeon, Anna, John the Baptist, and the genealogy
in Luke 3. Jesus did not have to do anything to prove his identity or to earn
commendation as the Son of God. He is declared to be the one who will bring
salvation to his people. It was not what Jesus could do; it was who he was. To
do justice, to heal the sick, to bring sight to the sight-impaired, raising
Lazarus from the dead, to alleviate the pressing concerns of mental health even
the feeding of thousands, while a life-changing alleviating tragedy, it was not
the point, more so it was the question of allegiance. Jesus could still do
those things, even some form of salvation, but in allegiance to Satan, the
authority of the world (Luke 4:5) which Jesus rejected.
This passage puts in mind Matthew
7:21-23 that says, 21 Not everyone who says to Me, “Lord,
Lord,” will enter the kingdom of heaven. Simply calling Me “Lord” will not
be enough. Only those who do the will of My Father who is in heaven will
join Me in heaven. 22 At the end of time, on that
day of judgment, many will say to Me, “Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy
in Your name? Did we not drive demons out of the possessed in Your name?
Did we not perform miracles in Your name?” 23 But I will say
to them, “I never knew you. And now, you must get away from Me, you evildoers!”
The work we do, the ministries that change people’s lives must grow out of our
love for God and nothing else. Another point I want to acknowledge is that the
saving grace of Luke 4:1-13 appears in Hebrews 4:15, “For we do not have a high
priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who in
every respect has been tested as we are, yet without sin.” Having gone through
his own temptations, Jesus knows what we experience.
Now Satan repeatedly tempts Jesus through
scripture to display his identity in self-serving ways that would undermine his
identity as the Son who relies on the good gifts of the Father. Let me be clear
here, Satan knows scripture. Satan knows the Bible cover to cover and cannot be
fooled. Both Jesus and the devil quote Scripture. In response to temptation,
Jesus quotes from Deuteronomy, but it is not enough to know Scripture. Satan,
who quotes from Psalm 91, also knows Scripture. Satan is very well able to
manifest a church that denies the power of radically inclusive love for the
sake of unfettered violent power, so we must be careful to consider this as we
reflect on the meaning and presence of church this Lenten season. Considering
such matters, what makes the difference? Where is the hope? Luke 4:1, says,
Jesus was led into the wilderness by the Holy Spirit. The Christian, the one
who sincerely and humbly, seeks to follow in the footsteps of Jesus must be
full of the Holy Spirit as promised by Jesus of Nazareth, the Son of God. All
the Spiritual Practices matter little unless the Christian is filled with the
authentic power of the Holy Spirit. Prayer, meditation, fasting, reading, and knowing
scripture at the level of heart and soul, self-examination, even the grace to
discernment, as necessary for a strong and steadfast faith as they are, cannot
contend with Satan unless one is filled with the Holy Spirit.
The
Bible tells us, in the Old Testament teachings and the life and teachings of
Jesus that the Christian has been promised the Holy Spirit. Joel 2:28-29, says,
“It will come about after this,
That I will pour out My Spirit on all humanity; and your children will
prophesy, your old people will dream dreams, your young people will see
visions. “Even on men and women both I will pour out My Spirit in those days.
The
Gospel of John 14:15-17
“If you love me, keep my
commands. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you
another advocate to help you and be with you forever— 17 the
Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him because it neither sees him nor
knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be [a] in you.
And the
Gospel of Luke 24:49 (the Amplified Bible)
49 Listen carefully: I am sending
the Promise of My Father [the Holy Spirit] upon you, but you are to remain in
the city [of Jerusalem] until you are clothed (fully equipped) with power from
on high.”
It is by
the power of the Holy Spirit that the Church is built and that the prophetic
fire is lit, grounding the following statement by W.E.B. DuBois,
“How
shall Integrity face Oppression? What shall Honesty do in the face of Deception,
Decency in the face of Insult, Self-Defense before Blows? How shall Desert and
Accomplishment meet Despising, Detraction, and Lies? What shall Virtue do to
meet Brute Force? There are so many answers and so contradictory; and such
differences for those on the one hand who meet questions like this once a year
or once a decade, and those who face them hourly and daily.”
Grounded in holy desire, prophetic fire is a sacred response to
the foundational struggle in American life, that is the struggle at the root of
all American struggles exemplified by the Sojourner Truths speech, Aint I a Woman? Delivered at the
1851 Women’s Convention in Akron, Ohio, the words “I am a Man” on picket signs carried by Black men
during the sanitation strike in Memphis, TN in 1968, and the word, “Pride”,
emblazoned on signs in the LGBTQI+ movement and the statement “Forward
Together, Not One Step Back” of the Poor People’s Campaign, A National Call for
a Moral Revival. The American struggle is very much engaged in a discourse on
the temptation of Jesus in Luke 4:1-13. It is not what we know, how much
education we have, the banning of books like “The beloved,” All Boys Aren’t
Blue, The Bluest Eye or even a fuller more accurate accounting of American
history and the discomfort it might cause, is not the problem, more so it is
who we are that is the great insult to Satan’s principalities and powers of
Ephesians 6:12 reflected throughout much of American history.
How I Got Over
This weekend was our 2022 Women’s Spring Renewal. Spring
Renewals, like our Fall Retreats, are a sacred time for Women to take a break,
breath, pray, reflect, connect with diverse spirit-filled sisters in the faith.
Most importantly it is a time of courageous rest. As the Minister of Women’s
Ministries, I am extremely blessed to be a part of a Women’s Council that is in
communion with the Women in the Region, that makes space for all Women to share
their joys, concerns, and burdens. This year the theme was “I’ve Got a Testimony.” Our keynote speaker was the Rev. Dr. Katrina
Marsh. Listening to the testimonies of Women and the keynote, what emerged was
love, trust, believing, and having a living and active hope in God. It brought to mind the words, “How I Got Over.” We see how Jesus Got Over, “how do we get
over?” We Get Over with Holy Desire. We
Get Over with the Power of the Holy Spirit. We Get Over it because we have Jesus
Christ who knows what it is like to be tempted by Satan. We Get Over because we
are, you and I, are God’s love and desire. Let me say it this way, God Desires
You. God pursues you. Can you see it, do you not perceive it, God desires you,
God longs for you. God‘s love is unconditional. This is salvation, this is joy
and a peace that passes all understanding.
Holy Desire rests in our acceptance of God’s extravagant
unconditional love. It is through the acceptance of this truth that we overcome
the tragedies and temptations in this life. This is one reason Communion is so
important. It recenters us into God’s extravagant, even lavish love. It is
God’s Great Hospitality that strengthens us for the coming week. As we journey
through this Lenten season may we bask in God’s love.
Amen!
