A Homily for the First Sunday of Lent, preached on Vestry Sunday at All Saints, Collingwood, Anglican Diocese of Toronto. Readings for Lent 1A: Genesus 2:15-17, 3:1-7; Psalm 32; Romans 5:12-19; Matthew 4:1-11.
THE HOLY GOSPEL OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST
ACCORDING TO MATTHEW
Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. He fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was famished. The tempter came and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread." But he answered, "It is written, 'One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.'" Then the devil took him to the holy city and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, saying to him, "If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down; for it is written, 'He will command his angels concerning you,' and 'On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.'" Jesus said to him, "Again it is written, 'Do not put the Lord your God to the test.'" Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendour; and he said to him, "All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me." Jesus said to him, "Away with you, Satan! for it is written, 'Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.'" Then the devil left him, and suddenly angels came and waited on him.
Which would you rather be: independent? or dependent?
A lot of us value independence, particularly teenagers, those reluctant to get married, and the current premier of Alberta. Independance is about autonomy, self-determination, charting your own course, being master of your own fate.
Dependence, on the other hand, can often be seen in a negative light. Being dependent on someone else can make one feel like a burden. It might inspire feelings of resentment - why do I have to help so and so?
The story of Jesus’ temptation in the desert is about dependence. In the three temptations, Satan tries to get Jesus to chose independence over reliance on God the Father. First, Jesus is encouraged to rely on his own powers turn rocks into bread and end his fast. Next, Jesus is challenged to perform a miracle to prove his identify as the Son of God. Finally, Satan offers Jesus all the power in the world if only he will give up his loyalty to God, which, ironically, just leads to Jesus depending on Satan rather than on God.
In resisting all three temptations, Jesus chooses to put his trust and his faith in God the Father. He knows he belongs to God, and he trusts that God will bring him through this ordeal. He will be tested again in worse moments, as when he is taunted to show his power and come down off the cross, but then as he does here, he trusts that God will deliver him.
God will look after Jesus, just as God looks after the church. I think there’s a certain divine humour at play in that just before our annual vestry meeting, we hear the story of Satan tempting Jesus in the wilderness. This story announces the beginning of Lent this week, and introduces some traditional Lenten themes such as fasting and austerity, but it’s also a useful text for us to hear today because it helps us resist temptations to try and be what church shouldn’t be.
The church, most Anglican churches, really, live in our own wilderness time. We have our own temptations. The first is what I call the bread temptation. Just as Jesus must have been tempted by fresh bread, so we are tempted to imagine having more resources. Funds are scarce, our people are aging, and our buildings are getting old. But we have what we really need, which is Jesus in our midst. If we listen to him, as he listens to every word of his Father, we can trust that we will get what we need for as long as it pleases God to give to us. And we trust in Jesus because we know he does provide and he does feed us.
The second temptation of the church is what I call the miracle worker temptation. Just as Jesus is asked to perform a miracle save himself from falling, I think we wish that we as church could perform miracles, with the best of intentions. We see so much need around us — hunger, homelessness, just raw human need. It’s tempting to think that we could do so much more - another meal, maybe a breakfast program, maybe do something around sheltering people overnight. Recently I heard a talk by the new principal of Wycliffe College, Dr Kristen Johnson, and she said that God wants saints, not heroes. If at the end of the day, we as individuals and as church do what we can with what we have, that’s enough for the moment. Jesus said love your neighbour, he didn’t put a quota on how many neighbours we had to love each day.
The third temptation of the church is what I call the boss temptation. Satan promises Jesus all the authority on earth if Jesus will worship Satan, but Jesus already knows that all authority on heaven and on earth has been given to him by his Father. The authority of God isn’t the Satanic authority of so many kings and dictators on earth. We know that just by watching the news. In the kingdom of God there are no bosses, only servants. Scripture calls us as church to remember that we all rely on one another’s gifts and efforts, just as all the body parts work together. This idea of interdependence is especially relevant to us as we will lean more into regional ministry in the years to come. It’s not just big All Saints supporting our smaller churches, it’s also about how they enrich us and about our common life together.
So my friends, as we soon move into our vestry meeting, and as we think about the future of this church, let’s resist the temptation of independence and keep in mind that are wonderfully, happily, and fulfillingly dependent, dependent on God, and dependent on one another.
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