We begin the season of Lent with the traditional story of the “temptation” . . . the story of Jesus being tested in the wilderness for 40 days. We are told that during those days in the wilderness Jesus fasted. The writer of Luke’s gospel tells us: “He ate nothing during those days, and at the end of them he was hungry.”
One of the ways that I was taught to study the Bible is to look at passages in more than one translation. To read it in several different versions of the Bible. The reason for this is to look for similarities and differences in what is written. The idea behind this is to get a picture of what is being written about from several different perspectives . . . from different points of view. Then to consider the overall image or picture from these sources. It is a process that surprisingly gives one a deeper meaning to what is being shared.
That is the case for us this morning.
In our version of the Bible—the NIV—Jesus comes out of this period of fasting “hungry”. Who is to disagree with that? I get hungry when I miss one meal and I imagine miss 40 days of meals Jesus was hungry. But other versions of the Bible use a different word. Instead of “hungry” they say that Jesus was “famished”. True, the word does mean “hungry” but it is a different type of hunger. This is no ordinary “hunger” that Jesus emerges from the wilderness with . . . no, this is an “intense hunger”. That is what the word means . . . “intensely hungry”.
So, what better time is there than when someone is “intensely hungry” to come and put that person to the test. Which is exactly what the devil decides to do. In the devil’s mind it’s perfect. Jesus is hungry. Jesus will do anything to satisfy his hunger. The only problem is that the devil miscalculates the source of Jesus’ hunger. It is not a physical hunger that Jesus desires to squelch. Jesus’ hunger is of the spiritual kind.
Now think about it.
Jesus heads into the wilderness after his baptism in the Gospel of Luke. The baptism is when God declares Jesus to be the “One” . . . God’s own. God tasks Jesus with going about sharing God’s vision of the Kingdom . . . of restoring things back to the way God had intended them to be . . . to get back to the business of God—loving God and one another. From his baptism Jesus heads into the wilderness to pray and discern about this mission God has asked him to do. Sort of shades of Mission Impossible . . . it is like God saying to Jesus, “Your mission, Jesus, if you choose to accept it . . .”
And that is what Jesus does there in the wilderness . . . he contemplates doing what God asks him to do.
Jesus accepts. Jesus agrees to do what God has asked him to do. He will spend his life sharing the “good news” of God wherever he goes with whoever he meets. He will invite them to take their rightful place in the family . . . to claim their spot at God’s table. His words and life will reflect God’s will to build the Kingdom. And, after having made the decision, he is hungry . . . intensely hungry . . . famished to begin.
Grounding him in his decision is his knowledge that through it all . . . the good days and the bad days . . . he is not alone. God is with him. He affirms this with each temptation that the devil throws at him . . . God alone is the foundation of his life. Three times he does this. With this knowledge he is ready to begin his ministry to change the world.
So begins the season of Lent with the traditional story of Jesus’ temptation. What does it mean for us? Is it a time that we give up something for the duration of the season . . . something like chocolate? Is it a time in which we add something positive or good to our routines for season? Or is it a time that we do what Jesus did . . . we enter into the wilderness in whatever shape or form it takes in our lives to contemplate our response to God’s call on our lives to follow Jesus and do as he has done? Maybe even more so the season of Lent should be a period of respite . . . a “time out” in which we pause, rest, and regroup from the trials of the pandemic journey we have all been on.
I don’t know. That is an individual decision that each of us must make on our own. It is up to you what you do with this season of Lent. My prayer is that we all choose to follow Jesus.
I do not know about the rest of you but as we enter the season of Lent . . . I am already famished. I am “intensely hungry” for the Kingdom of God. “Intensely hungry” to welcome God’s desire for a gentler and kinder world in which we live . . . a world where people actually love one another as God has loved us. I hunger for such a world in which humanity recognizes the connection that makes us one despite the diversity around us . . . a connection that makes us strive for the goodness of not one but all. I hunger for the picture that Jesus paints.
And I think that we all do.
We enter the season of Lent in a global crisis. We sit on the nexus of being pulled into war. We are beginning to experience the impact of unwarranted aggression on an economy already in the midst of spiraling inflation. We see the horror and hardship as we pray the dominoes don’t start crashing down. We feel the divisiveness of not only our nation, but of the world as it wobbles hoping to regain its balance. This is not the world we believe in . . . not the world we hope for. We are starving for God’s world . . . famished!
Therein lies the temptation.
The temptation is to be overwhelmed. This is more than any one of us bargained for. The task is impossible . . . world peace? God’s Kingdom? Maybe we should wait this one out and pray for the best . . . after all, what can one do to change the course of what could be our destiny? We are only one person. What can a person do to make a difference?
Well, Jesus was only one person, and he made a difference.
We begin where we are. We begin one person at a time. We create those relationships, just as Jesus did, that demonstrates love . . . love for God, love for others. We feed that hunger. We feed that hunger by refusing to buy into the world around us which proclaims every person for him or herself. We feed that hunger by not arguing but by talking and more importantly listening . . . listening to one another . . . getting to really know one another. We feed that hunger by wanting to work together for the common good of everyone and not just ourselves and our people. We feed that hunger in not getting caught up in the divisiveness that separates, but to work together to bring unity that benefits all. Most often that begins right where we are with one person at a time.
That is what Jesus did.
If Jesus did it, so can we.
Jesus understood that the power and strength to do God’s will came from God. That God would never abandon him in his journey and his ministry. He believed and he put those beliefs into action . . . and it changed the world. And so can we. Jesus got the ball rolling and now it is up to us to keep it going. During this season of Lent may we feed our souls . . . feed our hearts . . . as we acknowledge our hunger for God’s will. As we say in the Lord’s Prayer: “Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done, as it is in heaven.” In this season of Lent may we all discover the passion and hunger of Jesus . . . may we feed the hunger.
Traveling mercies to us all on this journey of Lent. Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment