“The Three P’s Of Temptation”

“The Three P’s Of Temptation”

Text: Luke 4:1-13

© February 25, 2007 by C. Edward Bowen

February, of course, is the shortest month out of the entire year. But even though February has only 28 days, I think there are more different festivities jammed into this month than you find in any of the other months. Right at the start of February, on February 2, is Groundhog Day when the world turns it attention to Punxsutawney Phil to find out if he saw his shadow or not. Shortly after Groundhog Day, then, is Super Bowl Sunday, with that game usually being the most-watched TV program out of the entire year. I understand that some people are even trying to get the Monday after the Super Bowl declared to be an official holiday, so that people won’t have to go into work the next morning after staying up late to watch the game.

During February we have Valentine’s Day. During February we have President’s Day. During February, you have Mardi Gras going on in New Orleans. And on top of it all, did you know that February is also National Return Shopping Carts to the Supermarket month?[1]

Apparently National Return Shopping Carts to the Supermarket month was created as a way to respond to those people who at times feel tempted to “borrow” a store’s shopping cart to take their groceries home with. And after giving in to that temptation and taking the carts, it seems that some people never quite get around to returning them. So if your next door neighbor has some shopping carts sitting on their front porch or in their backyard, you might want to run out to the Hallmark store and send them a National Return Shopping Carts to the Supermarket month greeting card. I’m sure they’d appreciate it!

Now, as far as I can tell from reading the Bible, they didn’t have supermarkets back in Jesus’ time. So apparently Jesus never had to deal with that particular temptation, the temptation to borrow some store’s shopping carts. But as we heard in today’s reading from the Gospel of Luke, Jesus was confronted with other kinds of temptations.

As we listen to this story about Jesus being tempted by the devil, I think a lot of people mistakenly assume that the outcome of those temptations was a foregone conclusion. I think a lot of people mistakenly assume that since Jesus was the Son of God, he was incapable of sinning, that he was incapable of ever doing anything wrong. It’s like in the Christmas carol that we sing, “Away in a Manger,” where in the second verse it says, “The cattle are lowing, the poor baby wakes, but little Lord Jesus, no crying he makes.” No crying he makes? What baby in all of human history never cried? But that’s what some people assume when it comes to Jesus. They assume that since Jesus was the Son of God, that means that it was impossible for him to ever sin or to do anything wrong.

Now don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying that Jesus ever sinned. But what I am saying is that the reason that Jesus never sinned was not because he wasn’t able to sin, not because he was programmed like a robot in such a way that sinning wasn’t an option for him. No, we need to remember that not only was Jesus fully God, but Jesus was also fully human. And being fully human means that if Jesus had wanted to sin against God, he could have. And so when we listen to this story in the Bible about Jesus being tempted by the devil, we find Jesus facing the very same kind of struggles that we have to deal with in our lives. And by seeing how Jesus stood up to his temptations and how he resisted them, we find ourselves being challenged to follow Jesus’ example and to stand up and resist the temptations that arise in our lives.

So let’s take a look at this story and consider what kind of temptations Jesus had to face. First off, since Jesus had been fasting for 40 days, since Jesus had gone more than a month without eating anything, the devil decided to start with the hunger that Jesus must have felt. So the devil came up to him and said, “Jesus, I can tell that you’re starving. I can tell that you want something to eat. So why don’t you just use those special powers that God has given you and get what you want, and turn this stone into a piece of bread?” But Jesus refused, quoting from the Bible where it says, “You shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.”

The problem we sometimes have with understanding this particular temptation that was thrown against Jesus is that we don’t understand why Jesus was fasting. Jesus, of course, wasn’t the only person in the Bible who fasted. We find people fasting in the Old Testament and we find people fasting in the New Testament. And throughout Christian history, across the centuries, we find people who fasted. And although most of us today don’t seem to be too familiar with or too interested in fasting ourselves, historically fasting has been an important spiritual practice. You see, fasting is a way of saying with our bodies that the things that this world has to offer, the things that we can possess in this world, are not what is most important. Instead, what is most important is what God has to offer us. And so when the devil tempted Jesus to turn a stone into a piece of bread, the devil was trying to get Jesus to change his focus from God to bread, to change his focus from God to the possessions that Jesus could have for himself, the possessions that could be his for the taking. But Jesus resisted that temptation and refused to do that. And in doing so, he resisted the first P of temptation - the temptation that possessions can have on us.

For a second temptation, the devil lifted Jesus up in the air and showed him all the countries of the world, and said that Jesus could rule over all those lands if only Jesus would bow down and worship him. But again Jesus resisted and refused to give in to that temptation, reciting from the Bible where it says, “Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.” As a result, Jesus held out against the second P of temptations, the temptation that power can have over us.

Finally, the devil took Jesus to Jerusalem, and the Bible says that he took Jesus to the pinnacle of the temple. We’re not 100% certain what the “pinnacle of the temple” was. But we do know that the temple in Jerusalem was built on top of a high hill. And around the temple were massive walls. So quite possibly what is in mind here is that the devil took Jesus up on top of one of those walls, where there was a huge, steep drop-off. And there the devil said to Jesus, “Jump! Go ahead and jump, because God will send his angels to swoop down and catch you. And when everyone in Jerusalem sees that, just imagine how famous you’ll be. You’ll be the talk of the town. You’ll have more attention than you’ll know what to do with. Everyone will want to be your friend.” But one more time Jesus resisted and refused to give in to the temptation as he quoted from the Bible and said, “You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.” And in doing that, Jesus conquered the third P of temptations, the temptation that popularity can have on us.

Jesus came face to face with three temptations: the temptation of possessions, the temptation of power, and the temptation of popularity. And in each case, instead of giving in to those temptations, Jesus kept himself focused on God, and on the kind of life that God wanted him to live. But what about us? When it comes to the temptations of possessions, power, and popularity, are we prepared to stand up and resist those temptations, or do we give in to those temptations?

In what ways do possessions tempt us? In what ways do we find ourselves tempted to focus more and more on money, to focus more and more on the things that money can buy? Jesus said: “Where your treasure is, there will be your heart also.” Where are our hearts? Are we able to tell the difference between what we want and what we need? When it comes to the temptation of possessions, how are we doing?

Or in what ways does power tempt us? No, our goal might not be to become the king or queen over all the earth. But in what ways are we tempted at times to mistreat those who are under us in some way? I don’t know about you, but I’ve been out to restaurants with people who have treated the waiters and waitresses just terribly, barking out orders left and right, complaining about this, complaining about that – not giving even the least little bit of consideration to the fact that that waiter or waitress is a person and doesn’t deserve to be treated like that. When it comes to the temptation of power, how are we doing?

Or in what ways does popularity tempt us? In what ways are we tempted at times to go along with the crowd, even when we know that that’s not the right thing to be doing? In what ways are we at times so wanting to be liked, to be approved of, that we’re tempted to turn our back on what God wants us to be doing so that we can be accepted and cheered on by those around us. When it comes to the temptation of popularity, how are we doing?

Possessions, power, and popularity were three temptations that Jesus had to deal with when he met up with the devil. Those, of course, are not the only temptations that we face in life. But if we can learn to deal with possessions, power, and popularity, chances are we’ll be in a pretty good position to deal with the other kinds of temptations when they come around. Especially during this season of Lent, when you find yourself being tempted in some way, look to God, and trust God to give you the power to make the right choices, the choices that God wants us to make.