If You are the Son of God

 

Temptation of Christ, mosaic, 1100-1150.  Barrel vault detail, Basilica di San Marco, Venice

 Then Jesus, being filled with the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, being tempted for forty days by the devil.  And in those days He ate nothing, and afterward, when they had ended, He was hungry.  

 

And the devil said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread."  But Jesus answered him, saying, "It is written, 'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.'"

Then the devil, taking Him up on a high mountain, showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time.  And the devil said to Him, "All this authority I will give You, and their glory; for this has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I wish.  Therefore, if You will worship before me, all will be Yours."  And Jesus answered and said to him, "Get behind Me, Satan!  For it is written, 'You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.'"

Then he brought Him to Jerusalem, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down from here.  For it is written:

'He shall give His angels charge over you,

To keep you,'

"and,

'In their hands they shall bear you up, 

Lest you dash your foot against a stone.' "

And Jesus answered and said to him, "It has been said, 'You shall not tempt the LORD your God.'"

Now when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from Him until an opportune time. 

 

- Luke 4:1-13 

 

Yesterday we read that, as the people were in expectation, and all reasoned in their hearts about John the Baptist, whether he was the Christ or not, John answered, saying to all, "I indeed baptize you with water; but One mightier than I is coming, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose.  He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.  His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather the wheat into His barn; but the chaff He will burn with unquenchable fire."  And with many other exhortations he preached to the people.  But Herod the tetrarch, being rebuked by him concerning Herodias, his brother Philip's wife, and for all the evils which Herod had done, also added this, above all, that he shut John up in prison.  When all the people were baptized, it came to pass that Jesus also was baptized; and while He prayed, the heaven was opened.  And the Holy Spirit descended in bodily form like a dove upon Him, and a voice came from heaven which said, "You are My beloved Son; in You I am well pleased."

 

 Then Jesus, being filled with the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, being tempted for forty days by the devil.  And in those days He ate nothing, and afterward, when they had ended, He was hungry.   My study bible tells us that this exodus of Jesus into the wilderness following His baptism has a dual symbolism.  First, it fulfills the Old Testament "type," in which Israel journeyed in the wilderness for forty years after its "baptism" in the Red Sea.   Second, it is a prefiguration of our own journey through the fallen world after baptism, as we struggle towards the Kingdom.  Let us note once more the powerful role of the Holy Spirit, right from the beginning of Jesus' public ministry.   First the text tells us that Jesus is filled with the Holy Spirit after His Baptism in the Jordan.  And also, Jesus was then led by the Spirit into the wilderness, for His forty days of temptation by the devil.  

And the devil said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread."  But Jesus answered him, saying, "It is written, 'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.'"    My study bible asks us to note that each time Christ rebukes the devil, it is with the truth and power of Scripture.  It says that this teaches us, the faithful, to become immersed in Scripture in order to resist and drive away every temptation (see Psalm 119:11).  All of Jesus' quotations from Scripture come from Deuteronomy, the recounting of the time of the temptation of Israel during the forty years of struggle toward the Promised Land.  Here He quotes from Deuteronomy 8:3.  Jesus' struggle with the devil and the temptations put before Him is marked by the temptation for an earthly kingdom.  Here specifically the temptation is for earthly comfort in the "food which perishes" (John 6:27).  My study bible notes that while Adam disregarded the divine word in order to pursue the passions of the body (Genesis 3), the New Adam, Christ, conquers all temptation by the divine word, giving human nature the power to conquer Satan. 

Then the devil, taking Him up on a high mountain, showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time.  And the devil said to Him, "All this authority I will give You, and their glory; for this has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I wish.  Therefore, if You will worship before me, all will be Yours."  And Jesus answered and said to him, "Get behind Me, Satan!  For it is written, 'You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.'"  It's very interesting that the text tells us something "marvelous" -- that the devil showed Christ all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time.   In John's Gospel, Jesus calls the devil "the ruler of this world" (John 12:31, 14:30, 16:11).   He's also called "the god of this age" (2 Corinthians 4:4), because the whole world is in his power (1 John 5:19).  But God's Kingdom is not one of earthly power and possessions, my study bible tells us.  In the devil's test, Jesus is being asked to choose worldly power over the Kingdom of God.   But He refuses a road suggested by anything contrary to His mission; that includes the road of earthly glory, which would lead Him away from His suffering and death for the redemption of the world.  As in the Scripture He quotes, Jesus serves only God.  Jesus quotes from Deuteronomy 6:13.

Then he brought Him to Jerusalem, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down from here.  For it is written:  'He shall give His angels charge over you, to keep you,' and, 'In their hands they shall bear you up, lest you dash your foot against a stone.' "  And Jesus answered and said to him, "It has been said, 'You shall not tempt the LORD your God.'"   Here the devil attempts to quote from Scripture (Psalm 91:11-12).  But, my study bible says, he does so vainly (as do the Pharisees in John 7:52), but understands neither their truth nor their power.  To know and quote Scripture without true understanding, my study bible tells us, is worthless at best and ultimately condemnable.  Without true understanding through the Holy Tradition of the Church, the Scriptures are robbed of their authority.  That is, without the experience of all those whom St. Peter calls the holy people of God who spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit  (see 2 Peter 1:19-21).   Jesus quotes from Deuteronomy 6:16.

Now when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from Him until an opportune time.   For those "opportune times" see Luke 22:40-46, 23:35; Matthew 16:21-23.

Let us note that even Jesus is not free from temptation in this world.  In Hebrews 4:15, St. Paul writes, "For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin."   So clearly, if Jesus had to face temptation (and indeed, was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be so tempted), why do we, as "moderns," tend not to take temptation very seriously?  It seems there might be some who feel that to be a faithful Christian is such a profound thing that it confers freedom from temptation.  We are taught to pray by Jesus that we are not led into temptation, but at the same time delivered from the evil one (Matthew 6:13, Luke 11:4).  There is really nothing in Scripture that says we won't be tempted, and so we need to consider very carefully Jesus' acts and response here.  Why does He go into the wilderness for forty days?  Why is it that we model our period of Lent prior to Easter along the same lines?  The traditional role of fasting is really one that addresses temptation, teaches us that we are capable of being disciplined, of saying "No" to something, and ignoring our own bodily or personal comfort in order to do so.   For this reason, fasting, in acceptable periods and norms, is a good practice so that we learn discipline in a spiritual sense.  We're not slaves to passions and temptations, to things that merely sound good but might not really be so.  We bind ourselves in loyalty first to God, as does Jesus in all the Scriptural quotations He uses here.   The Church has historically practiced fasting in imitation of Christ in the wilderness, and it gives us particular determination and reminder of where our top priorities are, and what we choose to serve in life.  It also teaches us that we are quite capable of sacrificing temporarily for something bigger, higher, more important.  We are not slaves.  In John chapter 8, Jesus says quite solemnly to those among the religious leaders, "Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin" (see John 8:31-36).  And so, our awareness of temptations, and our own commitment to discipleship, to discipline, becomes even more important to our own well-being when thought of in this light.  Almsgiving, fasting, and prayer all fall into this category of practice and strengthening discipleship, for each one involves some element of sacrifice for a greater good, a higher goal than is immediately before us in material or earthly terms.  In popular culture, it seems that we are constantly told that we need to be disciplined for reasons of personal appearance to others.  Quite often, this is put into terms of physical health, but truly that frequently comes second to our physical appearance and also our social appearance before others.  Advertising frequently appeals to our vanity:  foods to help us to slim down compete with hair care products, or pitches to our need to get on a bandwagon of some sort and take up a slogan are promoted by those who'll profit with power and wealth if we do so.  Temptations to give up our own sovereignty under the love and protection of Christ abound.  But it is our own practice of spiritual discipline and discernment which becomes the one thing necessary, especially in a world quite beset with a dizzying array of temptations, of things that sound great which hide ulterior motive, and seek to make us pawns of others -- just as the devil does in today's reading.  The devil begins two of his temptations with, "If You are the Son of God," seeking to strike a blow against Jesus' true identity and loyalty to God.  The other temptation seeks to take the place of God, tempting Jesus with worldly glory and authority, if only "You will worship before me."  But Jesus asserts His own power and authority, saying, "Get behind Me, Satan!"  In teaching us about discipline and temptation, Jesus asks us to do the same, in a very particular sense.  He is here in this world, as is the gift of the Holy Spirit, in order to elevate human beings to sonship, to adoption by grace.  He teaches us that we also have the power to assert this authority, to pray in His name (and in the name of the Holy Trinity -- the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit), and to resist and discern temptation.  By His truth He has come to set us free, to be our Deliverer and Savior, so that we are not slaves of sin, and not slaves to the ruler of this world.  Let us deeply consider the power on offer in all this, and keep in mind that even Jesus Himself was tempted.  Therefore let us not fool ourselves into thinking that we don't need to take spiritual discipline seriously.  He set the example -- and by way of the leading of the Holy Spirit -- for all of us, so that we might be free and resist the false allure of what sounds good, but seeks to make us less than we are:  children (sons) of God.

To you it has been given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God; but to those who are outside, all things come in parables

 And again He began to teach by the sea.  And a great multitude was gathered to Him, so that He got into a boat and sat in it on the sea; and the whole multitude was on the land facing the sea.  Then He taught them many things by parables, and said to them in His teaching:  "Listen!  Behold, a sower went out to sow.  And it happened, as he sowed, that some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds of the air came and devoured it.  Some fell on stony ground, where it did not have much earth; and immediately it sprang up because it had no depth of earth.  But when the sun was up it was scorched, and because it had no root it withered away.  And some seed fell among thorns; and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no crop.  But other seed fell on good ground and yielded a crop that sprang up, increased and produced:  some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred."  And He said to them, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear!"

But when He was alone, those around Him with the twelve asked Him about the parable.  And He said to them, "To you it has been given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God; but to those who are outside, all things come in parables, "so that

'Seeing they may see and not perceive,
And hearing they may hear and not understand;
Lest they should turn,
And their sins be forgiven them.'"

And He said to them, "Do you not understand this parable?  How then will you understand all the parables?  The sower sows the word.  And these are the ones by the wayside where the word is sown.  When they hear, Satan comes immediately and takes away the word that was sown in their hearts.  These likewise are the ones sown on stony ground who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with gladness; and they have no root in themselves, and so endure only for a time.  Afterward, when tribulation or persecution arises for the word's sake, immediately they stumble.  Now these are the ones sown among thorns; they are the ones who hear the word, and the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.  But these are the ones sown on good ground, those who hear the word, accept it, and bear fruit:  some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred."

- Mark 4:1-20

Yesterday we read that after Jesus chose the Twelve, they went into a house.  Then the multitude came together again, so that they could not so much as eat bread.  But when His own people heard about this, they went out to lay hold of Him, for they said, "He is out of His mind."  And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, "He has Beelzebub," and, "By the ruler of the demons He casts out demons."  So He called them to Himself and said to them in parables:  "How can Satan cast out Satan?  If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.  And if a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand.  And if Satan has risen up against himself, and is divided, he cannot stand, but has an end.  No one can enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man.  And then he will plunder his house.  Assuredly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they may utter; but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is subject to eternal condemnation" -- because they said, "He has an unclean spirit."  Then His brothers and His mother came, and standing outside they sent to Him, calling Him.  And a multitude was sitting around Him; and they said to Him, "Look, Your mother and Your brothers are outside seeking You."  But He answered them, saying, "Who is My mother, or My brothers?"  And He looked around in a circle at those who sat about Him, and said, "Here are My mother and My brothers!  For whoever does the will of God is My brother and My sister and mother."

 And again He began to teach by the sea.  And a great multitude was gathered to Him, so that He got into a boat and sat in it on the sea; and the whole multitude was on the land facing the sea.  Then He taught them many things by parables, and said to them in His teaching:  "Listen!  Behold, a sower went out to sow.  And it happened, as he sowed, that some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds of the air came and devoured it.  Some fell on stony ground, where it did not have much earth; and immediately it sprang up because it had no depth of earth.  But when the sun was up it was scorched, and because it had no root it withered away.  And some seed fell among thorns; and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no crop.  But other seed fell on good ground and yielded a crop that sprang up, increased and produced:  some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred."  And He said to them, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear!"  We who follow the developments in Mark's Gospel can now sense a shift in Jesus' ministry.  He has come to the attention of the religious and state authorities, who now seek to destroy Him.   We have also read of the growing crowds who follow Him, which at this point must be preached to at the shore because of the great number of people who seek Him.   He most likely sits in a boat to avoid being crushed (3:9).  The Twelve have been chosen, and they He has shared with them His power and authority to preach, to heal, and to cast out demons.  So Jesus' speaking in parables marks a new turning point in His ministry.  His call, He who has ears to hear, let him hear! is a reference to the Scripture He will quote from Isaiah, a little further down in our reading, when He speaks in private to the disciples.  The parable of the Sower is Jesus' first parable that He gives in this new style of preaching.   Parables were common forms of teaching by Jesus' time, but no one used them so skillfully as He did.   My study bible describes them as images drawn from daily life to represent and communicate the deep things of God.  Many concern farming, drawn from the daily lives of people in this agrarian society.  Parables, my study bible explains, give us glimpses of Him whose thoughts are not our thoughts and whose ways are not our ways (Isaiah 55:8-9).  Importantly, and relevant to the growing public attention and crowds who gather to Him, at this point in His ministry He makes it clear that not everybody who hears the parables are going to understand them.  Moreover, understanding and perception happens on different levels.  Most often, Jesus' parables illustrate the "hidden" life of the kingdom of God in our midst, how it works and what it does.

But when He was alone, those around Him with the twelve asked Him about the parable.  And He said to them, "To you it has been given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God; but to those who are outside, all things come in parables, "so that 'Seeing they may see and not perceive, And hearing they may hear and not understand; Lest they should turn, And their sins be forgiven them.'"   Jesus first explains in private to His disciples His new use of parables in and of itself.  He quotes from Isaiah 6:10.  The hidden messages in the illustrations in the parables are intended to draw those toward Him who are capable of real faith, who "have ears to hear."   God permits our self-chosen blindness; our love must be freely given.  Moreover, God gives people up to their own devices.  It is a way of expanding on Christ's pronouncement regarding blasphemy of the Holy Spirit in yesterday's reading (above).  A refusal of love is not a boundary God crosses to compel us to faith.

And He said to them, "Do you not understand this parable?  How then will you understand all the parables?  The sower sows the word.  And these are the ones by the wayside where the word is sown.  When they hear, Satan comes immediately and takes away the word that was sown in their hearts.  These likewise are the ones sown on stony ground who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with gladness; and they have no root in themselves, and so endure only for a time.  Afterward, when tribulation or persecution arises for the word's sake, immediately they stumble.  Now these are the ones sown among thorns; they are the ones who hear the word, and the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.  But these are the ones sown on good ground, those who hear the word, accept it, and bear fruit:  some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred."   Christ reveals Himself to be the Sower, the one who sows the word.  My study bible explains that this is an image of the promised Messiah, who had been foretold in Isaiah 55:10-13.

Why this hidden nature of the kingdom of heaven?  Why aren't things obvious to us, completely visible?  Why do we need faith?  This is the nature of our world.  If we think about love, we can perhaps understand the nature of this reality a little bit better.  If there is someone that you love, you look upon them with a particular kind of seeing.  In the language of the Scriptures, we look with a particular kind of sight or "eyes that see."  Perhaps we see the good in the soul of the person we love.  There is a special sight that we have.  But the good we see might be at hidden depths, covered up by flaws and bad personal behavior, habits that get in the way of the good that we see.  Love may be simply a kind of faith that there is this depth of good that we somehow perceive.  Moreover, in our world, love may be confused with desire, a type of selfishness, wanting something for ourselves.  God is love (1 John 4:7-21), and from a reciprocal loving communion with God, we learn love.  But the nature of this learning is a long road, a kind of journey.  When Christ speaks of Himself as the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6), that word for way means "road" or "path" in the original Greek of the Gospels.  Today's parable gives us a sense of what that road is like, and where we might stumble on our way along this path of faith.  It illustrates for us the factors of our world and our lives that get in the way of that great good that is God and our communion with God.  This is not a one-way ticket, a "Get Out of Jail Free" card, or winning the Lotto.  It's a path, a journey -- and it's one that we live in a world that will give us all kinds of temptations to give up on it or to forget about it.  We are, of course, free to get back on that road at any time, but it remains just that:  a road, a journey we take through life that asks of us a daily practice, awareness, and will present us with challenges, as  any true pursuit in love or wisdom is wont to do.   In today's parable, Jesus gives us examples of the things that halt this journey and take it away from us.  In the first example illustrated in the parable, Satan comes immediately and takes away the word that was sown in the heart.  Then there are those who immediately receive the word with gladness, but they have no root in themselves, and so endure only for a time.  When tribulation or persecution arises for the word's sake, immediately they stumble.  Finally He illustrates the ones who hear the word, and the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.  These are not prophecies written in stone, but they are warnings to us about the reality of the world in which we live and struggle for our faith.  A daily prayer practice is designed simply to keep us on this path, to enable us to resist the temptations and pitfalls that Christ names, to keep our priorities straight -- and our eyes and ears truly hearing and truly seeing.  Like all relationships of love, this is something that asks us to work at it.  We don't create it all by ourselves and we don't invent things from scratch:  but our role to play is very real.  Our work is something Christ asks of us (John 6:28-29).  It asks of us vigilance and watchfulness, a guarding of the heart in which we come to know ourselves and our own weaknesses,  and an effort to protect what we know is good in us, our love of God and that good ground of the heart that Christ illustrates in the parable.  Our "yes" and our own growth in understanding is every bit as essential to this synergy Christ offers of the divine at work in us as God's work is for us in the first place.  Jesus lays out the struggle, and He speaks in parables, guaranteeing that out of all the crowds only those who really feel drawn to this love are the ones who will pursue it with the faith that stands up even to persecution and struggle.  In the loving relationships we know, even popular self-help manuals give us to understand that good loving relationships (such as marriage, for example) involve mutual commitment, work, and daily effort at nurturing, supporting, and protecting them.   God offers us love -- but how do we value and respond to God's love in a world full of temptations to do otherwise?

Therefore hear the parable of the sower

 "Therefore hear the parable of the sower:  When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it, then the wicked one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart.  This is he who received seed by the wayside.  But he who received the seed on stony places, this is he who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while.  For when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles.  Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful.  But he who received seed on the good ground is he who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces:  some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty."

- Matthew 13:18-23

In Tuesday's reading, Jesus taught the crowds the parable of the Sower.  See He who has ears to hear, let him hear!   Yesterday, we read that the disciples came and said to Him, "Why do You speak to them in parables?"  He answered and said to them, "Because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given.  For whosoever has, to him more will be given, and he will have abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.  Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand.  And in them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled, which says:  'Hearing you will hear and shall not understand, and seeing you will see and not perceive; for the hearts of this people have grown dull.  Their ears are hard of hearing, and their eyes they have closed, lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, so that I should heal them.'  But blessed are your eyes for they see, and your ears for they hear; for assuredly I say to you that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it."

"Therefore hear the parable of the sower:  When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it, then the wicked one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart.  This is he who received seed by the wayside.  But he who received the seed on stony places, this is he who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while.  For when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles.  Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful.  But he who received seed on the good ground is he who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces:  some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty."  Today's reading is fairly self-explanatory!  Indeed, it's Christ's explanation to His disciples of the parable of the Sower.  But I think if we look carefully, we might find (as I do, anyway) that each of these things Jesus describes are things we may deal with in our own lives.  Do we understand everything that is taught?  Clearly there is always mystery -- even for the disciples.  We may be tempted to receive the word with joy, only to be disappointed when life presents us with troubles.  Tribulation and persecution are difficulties for anyone.  The cares of the world, and "deceitfulness of riches" -- a sore temptation -- are long-term problems that are all too common all around us and in our lives.  But to receive seed on the good ground, to hear the word and understand it, and to bear fruit and produce is to endure and to grow in faith.  In a sense, Jesus seems to promise that all these things will be present, but the good soil of a good heart is one in which the seed can take root and grow.  Are we drawn in by His teachings and His word?  Do we want to listen more?  Do we want to grow in relationship to Him?  All of these things draw us forward.  In my opinion, there is none of us who will not be tempted by the things He names here.  But the key is endurance.  If we really are to understand, to put things together (as the Greek word here for understand literally implies), then through all things we seek Him.  A rootedness is an image that gives us an idea that as we grow outwardly, we also grow inwardly.  The roots of the plant must grow as deep (or deeper) than whatever the plant produces.  So it is with us.  How deep do the roots go?  The inner life gives strength to the outer.  Remember it is the rootedness of the seed that gives life to the whole plant, and nourishment to the fruit for good productivity.  How does His word take root in your heart -- to see you through tribulations and persecutions, when things don't go right, when the deceit of riches may disappoint and the cares of the world drag on in our daily lives?  There is a rootedness on which we depend, a kind of growth in the heart, upon which everything rests, especially our understanding of His word.  Prayer is a key to strengthening our internal roots, to shoring up that relationship, drawing upon His nurturing and strength.  He who has ears to hear, let him hear.