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"Recognize Temptation For What It Is" Meditation Delivered By Reverend Richard E. Stetler – February 26, 2012 Centenary United Genesis
2:15-7, 3:1-7; Matthew 4:1-11
Since this is the
first Sunday of Lent, I would like us to examine a major issue
constantly being faced by every person on earth.
That issue is temptation.
Since my goal in delivering sermons has always been to help
people think for themselves, this morning we are going to look at
temptation, its origin and come to some conclusions that we may find
helpful in living more creatively with the time we have left on earth. One of the more
challenging assignments for any pastor is helping his or her people to
move beyond certain beliefs that each of us had instilled in us since
our childhood. A question I
want you to answer for yourselves is this:
Are we students of what
the Bible says or are we students of the interpretations of scripture
that have been handed down for centuries by pastors, priests, rabbis and
teachers—most of whom were only repeating what they were taught?
Think about this before you
respond. Before we discuss temptation, let us first consider the story in the Book of Genesis where the classical understanding of the fall of man took place. Regardless of what we think about this story, it has influenced our thoughts about the nature of humankind. Are we absolutely certain what the author of Genesis was intending to communicate in this story? Further, how much of our understanding of his words is the result of the interpretation of that story by priests? Remember, for
centuries, the priests were the only ones who could read and interpret
the Scriptures. The average
person had to accept what the priests were teaching.
During the centuries that followed, Christians were trained to
believe that people had become
fallen creatures whose souls were in jeopardy every day.
The power of the priesthood was enormous and they never hesitated
wielding that power to keep their
flocks faithful. Let us go back to
this influential story in Genesis and review the story for ourselves.
God said “You may eat the fruit of any tree in the garden, except
the tree that gives knowledge of what is good and what is evil.
You must not eat the fruit of that tree; if you do, you will
die the same day.” (Genesis2:16f)
When we consider what happened, a different conclusion can be
drawn from this event that differs from what we have been taught. A snake appeared
and asked Eve if God had put any limitations on what she could eat.
Eve answered, “God told us not to eat the fruit of one particular
tree or even touch it; if we do, we will die.”
The creature responded, “That is not true; you will not
die. God said that because
he knows that when you eat it, you will have the same reasoning skills
as he does and you will be able to tell the difference between what is
good and what is evil.” (Genesis 3:4) What is most intriguing about this story is that the snake was correct and it was God who had deceived Eve. Eve ate the fruit, gave it to her husband and the writer of Genesis concludes, “As soon as they had eaten it, they were given understanding.” (Genesis 3:7) Note the words, “They were given understanding.” Should we believe that it was not God’s will that humans should have the ability to think for themselves? Could it be that
the writer was actually communicating that God was like a mother bird
nudging her babies from the security of the nest?
Through the centuries, however, priests never interpreted the
scriptures with this understanding.
The priests instead taught the
idea of disobedience. This
teaching created the idea that humanity had fallen from grace.
In the interest of keeping the people feeling vulnerable and
dependent on their teachings for finding the path to salvation, the
priests forgot something that the writer of Genesis knew.
The author remembered that they were created in the image of God,
a little lower than the angels. The author of
Genesis wanted his readers to know that God had given humanity the gift
of understanding. Not only that,
but humans were free to create the quality of their own lives by the
choices they make.
In order to receive that gift,
however, they first had to confront their greatest fear.
They had to want understanding so badly that they were willing to
risk their lives by facing the prospect of death.
What happens next
is that God tells Adam and Eve what life will be like for them.
God tells them that they will have to work hard to make a living.
He also told Eve that when she delivers a baby there will be pain
associated with it. Was the
first couple being punished by this news?
Or, was the author of Genesis telling his readers that God was
preparing Adam and Eve for their experience?
Was God angry?
Apparently God was not because God even made clothes for Adam and Eve.
(Genesis 3:21) Many of us have
been taught that Adam and Eve were thrown out of the Garden because of
their disobedience. If we
go back to the Scriptures, rather than blindly accepting that
interpretation, we find a much different reason.
Adam and Eve were
expelled from the Garden of Eden because of the fears experienced by God
and his angels. Listen again to
what the author wrote: “God
said, ‘Now that these human beings have become like us and have
knowledge of what is good and evil, they must not be allowed to take
fruit from the tree that gives life, eat it and live forever.’
So the Lord sent them out of the Garden of Eden.”
(Genesis 3:22f) All of us must decide for ourselves
whether we believe what we read in the Bible or believe the
conclusions others have drawn through the centuries from the same words.
Our understanding of temptation
hinges on what we decide. Do
we miss the mark with our choices because we are flawed
fallen creatures, or do we
make mistakes in our judgments because we are still learning and have
not matured in our understanding? Most
of us prefer the latter.
Would God really want us to view ourselves as
damaged goods as soon as we
come out of the womb? Temptations are
like the rungs that we can use to climb an infinite ladder.
Temptations offer us the
opportunity to define the kind of spirit we want to radiate.
For example, are we growing a spiritual presence that is
small, narrow, selfish, spiteful and unforgiving; someone who always
feels victimized when our world is not the way we want it?
Or are we growing a spiritual
presence that is gracious, flexible, understanding, willing to
volunteer, trained to look for solutions and one who never tires of
being hopeful and optimistic?
When we consider
the origin of temptation, it does not matter whether such urges come
from a sinister, evil, supernatural being lurking in the shadows of all
human life, or something much easier to understand – our uninformed
desires. All temptations
present us with the same crossroads where we must make a choice.
Temptations always
approach us at points where our skills are underdeveloped or
non-existent -- the very places where growth is most needed. Once I was staying
in a 5-star conference center for a number of days.
Everything was being paid for by my sponsoring agency.
The first evening meal featured a buffet.
In front of me stood a carver who was slicing prime rib as thick
and as rare as you wanted it.
A very short-lived
civil war broke out inside of me as I stood at the crossroads of a
decision. My mind said,
“Dick, do all things in moderation; nothing to excess.
Remember your cholesterol
levels! You know what authorities say about eating too much red meat.”
My desire said, “You may never again have an opportunity like this. Just
imagine, Dick, all the prime rib you can eat is yours for the taking.
Not only the prime rib, check out the gigantic shrimp, scallops
and lobster tails further on down the serving line.
Go for it, Dick, besides you are
not paying for it.” My mind lost the
struggle. I enjoyed
everything that night but there were consequences from my
over-indulgence. I did not
sleep very well and my entire physiology was in a state of shock. One of
the positive consequences was that I was presented with the same
opportunity several more times during future conferences.
During those times there was never any struggle.
During all future events my mind
prevailed because I had learned a lesson. If we consider the
nature of temptations, all of them have something in common.
Each temptation tells us that we will become more whole and
complete if we acquire or gravitate toward something in the material
world.
Every temptation, every allure
grows from the illusion that we have some unmet need.
Consider this thought as we
turn our attention to the second scripture lesson this morning. As Jesus wandered
in the wilderness, he faced a number of temptations.
Did Jesus really struggle with any of these?
Remember he had just come from an experience where God said, “You
are my Son whom I love very much.”
What else would he need from the external world to make him more
clearly understand his identity?
He would need nothing.
The author of
Genesis was coming from the same orientation, “You were created in God’s
image, a little lower than the angels.”
What more do we need?
Our imaginations, however, tell us that if we had more money, we
would feel complete. If we
could trade in our spouse for three 27 year olds, we would be more
complete. Remember Solomon
had over a thousand wives and concubines plus he had everything the
material world had to offer and still he experienced emptiness.
One advantage that
we have over countless other people is that we are followers of Jesus.
Unbelievers do not develop our
orientation toward life.
While this sounds like
class warfare on a religious level, this statement is more accurate
than not. Committed
Christians have learned to be thoroughly alive and involved in our
material world while remaining citizens in the invisible inner world
that we know as the When temptation comes and when the
allure of something in the material world has an irresistible quality to
it, we must recognize immediately that what is pulling us into
the flame is an appetite of
our inner child crying out, “I want that!
I need that!
I want love
and respect.” Notice
that the first symptom of any temptation provides us with a
dead-giveaway for what is happening.
All of them are centered on self.
Everything about the nature of God is centered on God’s love for
us. Only by recognizing what temptations are trying to teach us, and how temptations are trying to guide us, are we able to climb the ladder toward fulfilling God’s will of our becoming a mature spirit-being. Only then will we appreciate the gift God gave humanity in the Garden of Eden. If we return to the author of Genesis, we learn that God’s will was for humanity to strive toward understanding the complexities of all creation. (Genesis 1:27f) The Apostle Paul
once captured this understanding when he wrote:
When I was a child,
my speech, feelings and thinking were all those of a child; now that I
have grown into adulthood, I no longer have use for childish attitudes
and behavior. Even so I am
still growing and maturing; my understanding of myself is still
incomplete. A day will come when the knowledge I have of myself will be
as complete as God’s knowledge of me. Until I achieve that level of
understanding, the three qualities of life that guide me are these:
faith, hope and love. The
greatest of these is love.
When a sudden urge confronts us causing us to say, “I want that,”
first pause and ask yourself, “Is what I want coming from a spirit that
I can use when I transition from this life?”
Paul said that of all the values that guided his life – extending
our loving energy to the world is the greatest test.
Holding on to this one response could prevent us from ever
feeling lost again. |