Lent 1C 2025

Text: “9 And he took him to Jerusalem and set him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here, 10 for it is written, “ ‘He will command his angels concerning you, to guard you,’ 11 and “ ‘On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.’ ” 12 And Jesus answered him, “It is said, ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’ ” 13 And when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from him until an opportune time.” (Luke 4:9–13)

Some of you are old enough to remember an ancient technology that was once used called ‘calendars’. Not the one on your phone; a thing that was actually printed on paper and hung up on your wall. It was in a prominent place so that everyone could see it. You wrote down appointments on it to keep track of your life.

These ‘calendars’ came in different forms. There were also ‘page a day’ calendars. They were like a really thick note pad, just with smaller sheets of paper. You tore off one page each day to keep track of what day it was. These were not generally used to keep track of appointments. Some had a picture on each page; others had a joke on each page; and others had an inspirational quote on each page. There were a number of them that had a Bible verse on each page.

I mention all of this because there was one Bible verse page-a-day calendar, in particular, that failed spectacularly. It had all the standard inspirational verses— (Joshua 1:9) “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go”; (Jeremiah 29:11) “11 For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope”; (Philippians 4:13) “13 I can do all things through [Christ] who strengthens me.” Those were kind of expected. But it failed spectacularly because one of the inspirational Bible verses that they chose was Luke 4:7 “7 If you, then, will worship me, [all of this will] be yours.”

Do you notice the problem with that verse? Look at the reading on the back of your bulletin if you need to. The verse is in there. The calendar makers did not make it up. But who is speaking there in Luke 4:7? The Devil. The publisher of this page-a-day calendar was trying to inspire you by using a false promise from Satan.

Honestly, the other verses are not much better. Joshua 1:9— “Be strong and courageous”— God is talking there, but He is speaking to one specific individual. You and I do not get to just take that verse for ourselves. I mean, think about how it begins: “Have I not commanded you?…” No. No He hasn’t. He commanded Joshua; He commanded the Children of Israel under Joshua’s leadership; but He has not commanded you and me.

Jeremiah 29:11 “11 For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.” Again, God is speaking. He is speaking through the prophet Jeremiah. But He is speaking to a particular group. That verse is in the middle of a letter to the Children of Israel who were in exile in Babylon. Unless you or I are a 6th century B.C. Jew, Jeremiah is not writing to you there.

For better or for worse, those page-a-day calendars are nearly extinct. But the sentiment is still alive and well. Now, those same inspirational Bible verses go scrolling by on social media in front of pictures of sunsets or beautiful mountain ranges. Satan is happy to promise you wealth, success, a good reputation, security, happiness. He will use Scripture to try to promise you whatever you want— the context is not important (in fact, the context, so often just gets in the way). All that is important is that the verses make you feel good.

The devil is not afraid of people talking about Jesus, either. He is more than happy to hear Jesus mentioned, right and left, in our political debates as both sides tell you how Jesus would vote and what His environmental policy would be. Satan does not mind discussions about Jesus in the least. As long as those discussions have nothing to do with the cross.

Notice that, in these temptations, Satan had no problem talking about the fact that Jesus is the Son of God. If you are the Son of God, then command the stones to become bread. If you are the Son of God, then throw yourself down from the pinnacle of the Temple. But what He could not do was allow Jesus to go to the cross. Satan has no issue with people talking about Jesus— as long as those discussions have nothing to do with the cross.

But that is the way you and I prefer to handle Scripture. You grab bits and pieces of it to use as a pick-me-up on a difficult day. You argue about what Jesus’ political platform would be. And Satan could not be happier. The devil is not necessarily afraid of Scripture. He knows Scripture, too. He uses Scripture, too (just like He did with Jesus in one of the temptations). And he uses it to destroy you. He is more than happy to inspire and motivate you all the way down into hell.

Jesus, on the other hand, refused to allow it to be anything less than the message of His bleeding and dying love for you. There will be many, many times when this life is hard; there will be many times when it is painful; there will be many, many times when it is ugly. Rather than worrying about inspiring you, Scripture assures you: “Jesus Christ suffered and died for you.”

And, because the devil and the Word and your own sinful flesh will not give you any peace in this world, God delivers that Word to you again and again and again: Jesus suffered and died for you.

Scripture is not about trying to give you a better life. It is not about wealth and success and happiness and fame. It is about bringing you from death to life. “1 You were dead in the trespasses and sins 2 in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— 3 among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. 4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when [you] were dead in our trespasses, made [you] alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— 6 and raised [you] up with him and seated [you] with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus” (Ephesians 2:1–6). That is what God promises you.

The message of Scripture is not about inspiration. It is about identity. “23 You have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God” (1 Peter 1:23).

And, yes, that word is near you. One of the weird but wonderful parts of the liturgy we use at baptisms is connected to the Lord’s Prayer. We include the Lord’s Prayer in the baptismal liturgy. And I don’t know if you notice but, as we pray it, I place my hand on the child’s head. In baptism, that prayer is being given to that child to pray. He or she is being born again through that water— combined with God’s Word— as a child of God who is able to pray, “Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name….”

It is God’s Word that sustains you in the faith. “17 Faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ” (Romans 10:17). That is why staying away from Church is so harmful. Not just because you are deprived of seeing my lovely, smiling face, but because you are deprived of hearing God’s Word.

God knows that the devil and the Word and your own sinful flesh will not give you any peace in this world, God delivers that Word to you again and again and again: Jesus suffered and died for you. He delivers it to you attached to the water of baptism, promising that you were buried with Him there and raised to new life again. He delivers it to you through the word of absolution— the forgiveness for each sin that would threaten to separate you from God’s love. He attaches it to bread and wine, promising that, by eating and drinking, He is giving you eternal life and salvation. For where there is the forgiveness of sins, there is also eternal life and salvation.

The message of the cross— that is the Word that fells Satan. That is the Word that he fears. That is the word that is your refuge, your mighty fortress. Confess Him boldly with your words and with your actions. In Him, you will not be put to shame.