Monday, March 10, 2014

“Behold Our Champion” Matt. 4.1-11 Lent1A, March ‘14



1.                  In the name of Jesus.  Amen.  On this 1st Sunday in Lent we look toward Jesus our champion who has overcome the temptations of the evil one on our behalf and was obedient to His Heavenly Father’s will, even unto death, death on the cross for the forgiveness of our sins, the message is entitled, “Behold our Champion,” and it’s taken from Matthew 4:1-11.
2.                  The Bible TV miniseries, created and produced by husband and wife duo Mark Burnett and Roma Downey, was a 2013 sensation, raking in more than 100 million views. It was nominated for 3 Emmy awards, and a sequel title, A.D.: Beyond the Bible, has been planned for NBC.  But amid the hype came controversy. The same episode that debuted Jesus also included scenes with the devil. Downey was immediately disappointed to find the media fixated on the devil rather than Jesus: some were claiming that the actor who played Satan looked like President Obama.  In order to avoid further controversy, the producers decided to remove Satan from the Son of God movie rereleased on Friday Feb. 28th. "I want the name of Jesus to be on the lips of everyone who sees this movie, so I cast Satan out," said Downey.  As a matter of fact, a large number of people in America deny the devil's existence.  Recent polls suggest a large number of Americans don't believe the devil exists. A 2009 Barna survey reported that nearly 60 percent of Christians in America view the devil as only a symbol of evil. Only one quarter of participants strongly affirmed the devil's personal existence, though this figure more than doubles among "born again" Christians.
3.                  What are we to make of this?  When nearly 60 percent of Christians in America question the reality of the devil, or see him merely as a symbol for evil.  In our Gospel lesson today we see our Jesus our champion do battle with Satan and overcome him.  Jesus is our champion and we look to Him who has overcome the devil for us.  But, is there a problem with Christians who don’t believe that the devil is real?  I would say yes.  After all to quote GI Joe, “knowing is half the battle.”  If Satan is real and at work to tempt and deceive us to sin against God our Heavenly Father, then it would be wise for us to know his schemes and look to our Lord Jesus to help us overcome his temptations.  If people don’t believe in the existence of Satan, especially Christians, then it seems that his work of deception and craftiness is alive and well.
4.                  In the Garden of Eden, Adam as the first man exalts himself to be a god in place of God (Gen. 3:1–21 ). He gives in to the temptation of the devil, and eating of the forbidden fruit, he receives death. But in the sin-cursed wilderness, God humbles Himself in His Son Jesus to become man in place of man (Mt. 4:1–11 ). He doesn’t eat but fasts and bears the onslaughts of the devil for us that we may be restored to life. Jesus our champion stands as David in our place to do battle against the Goliath, Satan (1 Samuel 17:40–51 ). Though outwardly Jesus appears weak, yet He comes in the name of the Lord of armies. He draws from the five smooth stones of the books of Moses and slings the Word of God. The stone sinks into the forehead, and the enemy falls. In Jesus our champion we’re victorious over the devil. Seeing that we have a great High Priest, let us come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain help in time of need (Heb 4:14–16 ).
5.                  Every temptation is a test, and the person being tested will either pass or fail. Temptations come to us in many different forms. We think first of anything that tries to lead us into sin, such as opportunities for immoral conduct or to steal. But we must also include unpleasant experiences like pain, suffering, illness, disappointment, poverty, and grief. Such experiences may cause us to question God’s wisdom or love. Sometimes success, good health, physical strength, intelligence, talent, or good looks may be even more serious temptations because we’re not likely to recognize them as tests that we may not be able to handle without falling into serious sin of one kind or another. If we meet all kinds of temptations properly, humbly trusting in God’s promises and relying on his mercy, God will surely enable us to endure them through Jesus our champion. And he will do even more; he will cause them to result in blessings for us.
6.                  The temptations Jesus our champion faced were serious efforts by the devil to rob the world of its Redeemer. Satan had been successful in leading the first Adam into sin so that a Redeemer was necessary. Now he attacked the second Adam, Jesus Christ, in an effort to frustrate his work of redemption.
7.                  The Greek word used for the devil here is diabolos (from which we get the word diabolical). The meaning of this word is slanderer or liar. The devil is not just a clever liar or an habitual liar; he is a constant liar. He’s the father of lies. He invented the very idea of lying and told the very first lie. He makes wonderful promises, as he did to Eve (“You will not surely die” [Genesis 3:4]), but he’s never kept a single one of them, and he never will. If he does occasionally speak a few words of truth, he distorts them or misapplies them or takes them out of context or immediately proceeds to contradict them.
8.                  We know these things about the devil, but we keep on falling for his lies. He tells us that life will be so much more enjoyable if we disobey God’s commandments. So he persuades us to lie and cheat and steal and commit adultery, and he tells us there’s nothing wrong with coveting and lust and filthy speech and misusing God’s name—as long as we don’t actually do something to harm someone else. His lies lead to all kinds of trouble and sorrow and grief and regrets. Yet he convinces people that in their case it will be different. But in every single case the devil’s promises aren’t intended for our good or benefit. The devil’s one and only goal is to make or keep people separate from God and to draw them into the eternal torments of hell with himself.
9.                  It’s interesting to note the contrast between the temptation of Adam in Eden and the temptation of Jesus our champion in the desert. In both cases Satan used something to eat in his efforts to awaken distrust in God. He succeeded in Eden, a land of plenty, where there was no unsatisfied hunger. But he failed in the barren wilderness when Jesus was extremely hungry. The temptations and sufferings that Jesus endured throughout his earthly life were greatly magnified versions of the trials we endure. But Jesus our champion never faltered, though we keep on falling into sin. Jesus willingly suffered the punishment we deserved for all our failures, and he gave us the credit and the blessings for all his successes. He was wounded for our transgressions and bruised for our iniquities. With his stripes we are healed (Isaiah 53). Jesus died so that we may live.
10.              What a tragedy it is that people still fall for Satan’s lies. He misleads all of us from time to time. In spite of our better knowledge, he convinces us that we’ll be better off, wealthier, happier, more successful, if we disobey God’s commandments and follow his suggestions. He loves to call our attention to people who have openly done exactly that and appear to have prospered, but he wants us to forget about their eternal fate. We need to remember that Satan will try to deceive us as long as we live and especially in the hour of our death, but with the power of the Word of God, the sword of the Spirit, we can drive him off and remain safe with Jesus our champion for eternity
11.               Remember that when you enter the darkness of the devil, when you give into his temptations, Jesus your champion is there overcoming the darkness because his light is always with you. As the author of Hebrews said, “For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted. . . . For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin” (Heb 2:18; 4:15).  Those who suffer through the darkness know that there’s nowhere to go but to Jesus, just as Jesus knew there was nowhere to go but to the Word of life during those forty dark days of hunger and temptation in the wilderness.  When you enter a great darkness, know that Jesus your champion went into the wilderness for you.
12.               Jesus your champion knows you’re battling the evil one. So he gives you a song to sing: the soldier’s psalm, Psalm 91, on which is based today’s Introit. Your Baptism has enlisted you as foot soldiers on the frontline of the war against Satan, and though the battle is waging all around you, though you are surrounded by darkness, you fear nothing. Covered by God’s angels, Jesus’ Lenten greeting to you is this: “When he calls to me, I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will rescue him and honor him. With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation” (Ps 91:15–16).  Look to Jesus your champion when the devil attacks and He will help you.  Amen.


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