6th March 2022 (Lent1)
Title: Relying on Scripture & Experiencing Jesus (Scripture Readings: Romans 10:8-13 & Luke 4:1-13)
By Heeyoung Lim
Romans 10:8 tells us, “The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart.” Verses 9-11 deal with the word of faith. The word of faith is a message which is a compressed summary of the gospel. It is the message that a person must receive to become a Christian. What the heart believes, the mouth confesses. If you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. We often think of the heart as the seat of emotions, but it refers to the “seat physical, spiritual, and mental life” (Danker); in short, the whole, integrated self.
Verse 12 claims there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, but there are many people who put exclusive clauses into their faith and life. Verse 13 tells us that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. Anyone who believes and confesses Christ can be saved. The gospel must be sent and proclaimed for people to be saved. “All” are included; “no one” is excluded. No one is hopeless. If one confesses, believes, and trusts, one can be transformed by a spiritual renewal.
Paul announces that the transforming word of salvation is near us, even in us (8). Verses 12 -13 declare that if we call upon the Lord, we will be saved from our sin. If, with our entire beings, we confess and believe, we will no longer be shamed by the residue of our sin, but rather will be enlivened, forgiven, renewed, and enriched. Furthermore, the whole world is invited to join in being raised from the ashes of sin into the radiant presence of God. God’s grace is more persistent than obstinacy and disobedience. To experience God’s saving presence, we must believe in our hearts and confess with our lips. A bounty of spiritual giftsaccompanies God’s presence. All this is of God as an act of grace.
In Luke 4:1–13, when we meet Jesus in the wilderness, we find ourselves in the desert and learn from Jesus’ experience whom to trust. In such wilderness places we can choose whom to serve and equip with God’s word. May we choose wisely in Christ and equip with His word.
After Jesus was baptized, the Holy Spirit led Him into the wilderness. There Satan tempted Him to reject the Father’s plan for his ministry. Jesus passed earthly testing by the devil triumphing over Satan’s
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temptations. His first stop was the desert, a place of isolation and desolation. Jesus followed the Spirit in faith. The stay proved long and arduous, forty days without family, friends, fellowship, or food. Only a devil ventured into the desert with Jesus. Jesus faced the tempting adversary for 40 days with no physical resources. He had to depend on spiritual strength.
Jesus was led by the Holy Spirit, but he was hungry for food. The first test was about serving ourselves, the second test was about serving the devil, and the third test was about making God serve us. The devil’s challenges to Jesus are not to do bad things. The first, to turn a stone into a loaf of bread, would relieve his hunger after the long fast. Bread is good, but not sufficient to do Jesus’ mission. Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone.” All Jesus’ answers start “It is written or said.” He said to the devil’s second test, “Worship the Lord your God and serve Him only.” However, the devil used God’s word at the third test, and it starts “It is written.” Satan just twisted God’s word, omitted some part of Psalm 91, and used it differently. Jesus answered to the devil’s twisted word, “It is said: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’” Jesus showed that worship belongs to God and overcame that crisis with the Word of God and the fullness of the Holy Spirit.
Before the temptations, Jesus fasted to devote to God’s work and His presence rather than devote time to satisfying His personal needs. Ministry and devotion took top priority over physical hunger and self- satisfaction. Jesus’ time in the wilderness is a time of testing. Facing the devil is certainly the time to face God as intensely as possible at the same time. Israel wandered forty years in the wilderness and disobeyed God, but Jesus stayed forty days in the wilderness in complete obedience to God.
Verse 13 tells us, “When the devil had finished all this temptation, he left him until an opportune time.” When it comes to demon timing, Satan is not constantly on the job with us. He comes and goes. He strikes when we are most vulnerable. Then he goes on to other pursuits. However, the devil’s continued temptation is fruitless against a person who has been strengthened by previous rejections of temptation. The devil tempts all of God’s people, but Scripture is the best weapon against temptation. God wants to give them experience in relying on Scripture and experiencing Him rather than on human qualifications, methods, and abilities.
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Jesus’ responses show His faithfulness to God and set the stage for His ministry and sacrifice. His obedience accompanies persecution, misunderstanding, and the cross. Many followers of Jesus wanted Him to free Israel, to restore an earthly kingdom marked by honour and glory. It would have required Him to say no to the salvation and love for people that are the marks of his death and resurrection. To say yes to God, the cross and suffering were required to Jesus.
However, Jesus is not separated from God’s love, and the Holy Spirit fills Him, even in the moment of encounter with the devil. The Holy Spirit was with Jesus all the way from the trial period in the wilderness to the moment it ended. The experience Jesus was able to overcome temptation was not a one-time event, but a permanent relationship with God and fullness in the Holy Spirit. The Spirit gives direction in all ministries for God.
The Word of our salvation is announced in the silence of searching and longing hearts, but it is so powerful. The Word of Christ is beyond our hearing and our speaking, but it needs to be proclaimed through our words and deeds. May we focus on Jesus and await Easter joy during Lent. By grace the Word is heard and new life arises. Sometimes, darkness clouds our lives, but may the radiant brightness of the resurrection of new life in Christ replace our suffering.
We are in Lent. May we pray for God’s wisdom in recognizing the devil’s temptations. We do not need to worry about it, “Because Jesus himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted” as in Hebrew 2:18. May we read and memorize Scripture so that we will have it as a resource to use against temptation and trial. I hope that we can review our daily ways of living to be sure we are worshiping God and Him alone. May we ask God to show us how to carry out His ministry in our lives.
Thanks be to God! Amen.
(Ref. Bible, commentaries, theological books, UCA materials)
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