8/7/2019 3-13-11

1/3

1

March 13, 2011 Romans 5:12-19 Matthew 4:1-11 Tempted in the Wilderness

Dr. Ted H. Sandberg

Matthew tells us that after Jesus was baptized in the Jordan by John the Baptist, he was led up by the

Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. The biblical scholar, William Barclay, tells us

that the wilderness was a terrible stretch of land, 35 by 15 miles, that was called Jeshimmon, whichmeans The Devastation. The hills were like dust heaps; the limestone looked blistered and peeling;

the rocks were bare and jagged; the ground sounded hollow to the horses hooves; it glowed with heat

like a vast furnace and ran out to the precipices, 1,200 feet high which swooped down to the Dead

Sea.1

If there was a place that wed expect to meet the Devil, a place like The Devastation would

be it. Thats the kind of place I think of when I picture desert wilderness.

In her book of sermons, Bread of Angels, Barbara Brown Taylor tells of going out into the desert once,

just to see what it was like. She tells about the quiet she encountered there and about the loneliness

that soon enveloped her. Then she tells about the flies. She writes, [Matthew] never mentions the

flies, but based on my own experience I feel certain that if they didnt constitute a fourth temptation

for Jesus then they at least made the other three harder for him to bear, because nothing can try yourspirit like a fly. There I was in the desert, trying to commune with Jesus, and all I could think about

was that #*@! fly circling my head, buzzing in my ears, trying to crawl up my nose. Flies are

perfect tools of the devil: So you think youre pretty spiritual, huh? Well, try one of these on for

size.2

When I read of Rev Taylors encounter with the flies, I was struck by the insightfulness of her

observation. Not only are flies irritating, but even more, flies are symbolic of the wildernesses we face

in our own lives. We dont have to be in a place called the Devastation to be in wilderness, nor to

be tempted by Satan. We can face that kind of wilderness experience when we encounter something

as trivial as flies.

Now compared to being tempted to turn stone into bread, to rule over all the world, or to prove to the

world that Jesus was the messiah, our being tempted by flies is rather petty, I know. The temptations

we face are minor in comparison to what Jesus faced. But realize that temptation is an indication of

strength, not weakness. The greater ones strength, the greater the temptation. The saints of the world

are tempted by things much worse than the flies that buzzed around Barbara Taylors head, or

sometimes buss around me in my office when Im trying to study. Even more so, the temptations that

Jesus faced were the greatest of all temptations because Jesus, Gods only Son, was being put to the

test. But even though Jesus faced temptations that were far more difficult than the temptations we

face, we can still learn a great deal from how Jesus handled the temptations Satan threw at him.

First, notice that Jesus was tempted after fasting for 40 days. He had to be tired and starving by then.Even Jesus resistance wouldve been low after a 40 day fast. And thats often when Satan comes,

1. Barclay, William, The Gospel of Luke, rev. ed., The Westminster Press, Philadelphia, PA., 1975, p.43.

2. Taylor, Barbara Brown, Bread of Angels, The Wilderness Exam, Cowley Publications, Cambridge,MA, 1997, p. 37.

8/7/2019 3-13-11

2/3

2

when were tired, when were already out of sorts, when weve already handled about all we can

handle. When our patience is wearing thin, we meet that neighbor who just goes on and on and on and

on, and Satan tempts us to tell her to jump in the lake. When were already stressed out, the preacher

calls with one more job that needs to be done, and were tempted to not even thinkabout what were

being asked to do. When were already tired, sure enough, its Sunday morning and its just sooooo

tempting to stay home and rest up for the next tiring week of work. The kids are worse when weretired. The stop lights are against us when its late and were tired and just want to get home. Things

are most hectic when were the most tired. I dont think thats always a coincidence.

Notice too that Jesus wasnt tempted to do something terribly wrong, at least not on the surface. Satan

doesnt say to Jesus, Why not have big party before you hit the road as a preacher? Have a few

drinks. Invite a few women in. Have a good time before you start preaching! That may work with

ordinary people, but Satan knows that wont work with Jesus. Theres nothing here of the debauchery

that so many of us in the church spend so much time worrying about. Satan doesnt tempt Jesus with

dancing, movies and cards as Baptists historically have seemed to believe or the sex, drugs and rock n

roll of the 60's.

Satan knows that Jesus isnt going to fall for a temptation like that. Instead, Satan says, Turn thestones into bread. You and all the hungry, starving people of the world should be fed. Take

political control of the world. The governments of the world are too ineffective, too corrupt, and too

violent. The oppressed of the world are waiting for you to rule. Never mind that so many in the

world are hungry because of Satans handy work. Never mind that hunger isnt caused by a lack of

food, but by a lack of care and love and commitment that are caused by greed and the desire for power

which are Satans tools. Satan tempted Jesus to solve the problem Satan himself/herself had created.

Satan offered Jesus what Jesus had in many ways come to do.

No self-respecting devil would approach a person with offers of personal, domestic, or social ruin.

The serpent in the Garden of Eden didnt ask, Do you wish to be the devil? No. The serpent asked,Do you wish to be as God? Jesus was being offered what hed come to earth to accomplish.

The temptation for Jesus was to attain his lifes goals without going through the cross. Satan offered

him food, offered him the opportunity to rule all the nations, offered him the chance to prove to the

world that he was the Messiah. And all Jesus had to do was use the power that was his Jesus, not

Satans to accomplish what he wanted to accomplish anyway. Jesus had the power to turn stone into

bread. Jesus had the power to rule the nations. Jesus couldve shown the world that he was the

Messiah by doing wondrous miracles, or even by forcing humanity to worship Him. Jesus couldve

done all that and more, but that wasnt in Gods plan. That wasnt how God wanted it. Gods plan

was for Jesus to go to the cross so that you and I could see Gods love for us, and freely choose to

obey Gods will.Jesus saw through Satans game and refused to take any short cuts. Jesus saw the fine print at the

bottom of the contract that Satan was asking him to sign. Ill give you this, Satan said. Ill make

you ruler. Ill make you powerful. Ill have people worship you. And all you need to do is say, Yes

to me. But Jesus said, No. No. Im going to do it the hard way. Im not going to take any short-

cuts that counter Gods will and end up doing just what Adam and Eve did. Im not going to bow to

you Satan. Im going to obey my heavenly Father instead.

8/7/2019 3-13-11

3/3

3

This is often how Satan works with us, too. Satan doesnt necessarily present us with the choice

between good and bad, but often times with the choice between good and almost good. Lots of

times, if the almost as good is easier, chances are well take that choice. The Devil presents us with

the choice between church and family. How many of us regularly choose family over doing Gods

work, saying that, After all, God loves the family? If its a choice between taking the extra step to

make sure that the one we dont know real well feels welcome, and just letting the preacher or thoseon the membership/evangelism committee make sure theyre welcome, how many let the others do it

thats their job? If its a choice between going the mile or going the extra mile, between forgiving 7

times or forgiving 70 times 7 times, if its a choice between giving our coat or giving our coat and

shirt, how many of us choose the lesser, figuring weve given more than most people, and thats

enough? If its a choice between living for Jesus, and kind of living for Jesus, how many of us settle

for going only part way?

Occasionally, we all choose the dark road. Occasionally, we simply do what we know we shouldnt

be doing. We spread rumors, even though we know we arent to gossip, because this one about the

President, this one about the football player, this one about our neighbor, is just too good to keep from

telling. We simply say, Ive done my share. Im not going to do any more even though Godcontinues to ask us to serve Him. Occasionally we say, Lets just bomb those terrorists into oblivion

for what they did, rather than worrying about how to love an enemy who is unlovable from our

human perspective. Occasionally, the temptations we face, and the temptations we fail, are pretty bad,

and we know theyre pretty bad, but we do them anyway. There are those times when were just

totally distracted by those blankety-blank flies.

More often, however, especially for those whove been Christian for any number of years, more often

were tempted more subtly as Jesus himself was tempted. Were tempted to do second best, not best.

Were tempted to go part way, not all the way. Were tempted to give most of ourselves to God, but

not all of ourselves to God. Thats the wilderness for most of us. Thats the temptation we face, to

hold back, to settle for part, to not give everything to God.

Whatever temptation we face, know that through Gods Spirit, we can resist. When were overly tired,

God can give us the extra strength to be patient. When were stretched to the limit, Gods Spirit can

help us maintain for awhile longer. When were ready to give less than our best, Gods Spirit can give

us the boost to not settle for second best.

And when we fail to resist the temptations Satan places before us? Then we can thank God that Jesus

resisted the temptations that we do not resist. Then we can rejoice that because Jesus went all the way

to the cross, we can find forgiveness when we fail to make it out of the wilderness. We can thank God

that because Jesus turned Satan away, our own failures are forgiven when we confess Jesus as Lord.

We can only praise God that because Jesus said no to Satan, we can have forgiveness in our own livesbecause too often, even temptations the size of flies cause us to falter.