The Wilderness

24 Feb 2018 • Articles

Author: The Rev'd Ann Tarper

After Jesus was baptised, when he was about to begin his public ministry, St. Mark reports, "The Spirit sent Jesus into the wilderness, and he was there 40 days, being tempted by Satan. "It is these forty days which have given us the forty serious days of Lent, a time for thinking about God and our lives.

St. Luke also says, "Jesus was led by the Spirit in the desert, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. "But the Lord's Prayer teaches us to pray, "Lead us not into temptation." So why was Jesus tempted? Shouldn't the Holy Spirit have taken him to somewhere safe, comfortable and holy - perhaps to Galilee, to his home in Nazareth, or to the temple in Jerusalem? God does not want anyone to do wrong, so why does God allow temptation, and does God ever lead anyone to a place where they might be tempted?

In the 1970s, the Church of England issued the first new translations of the Lord's Prayer since the 1662 Prayer Book. One of these replaced reference to temptation with "Bring us not to the time of trial" but this was never widely used, perhaps because the word 'trial' sounds trivial to some people and too much like awaiting judgement, conviction and sentence to others!

St. Matthew's account of the temptations reads, "Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil." Matthew leaves no doubt that the Holy Spirit's full intention was to lead Jesus into facing temptation. Temptations themselves do not come from God, they are the result of the negative powers and influences in the world pulling us away from God, so we need to recognise temptation and not give in to it, but as God can use any situation for good even temptation can be part of God's purpose and plan.

Jesus was in the wilderness for forty days. Fifteen hundred years before, the Hebrew people were in the desert for forty years, after their escape from slavery in Egypt. This was a time of continual testing for the young nation, teaching them to live and work together in peace, obeying and relying on God.

The Israelites needed to discover their strengths and weaknesses, and to be sure of their own resolve to be faithful to the one true God, before they moved into the Promised Land and met other nations with different ideas and ideals.

Temptation can provide a useful testing as people grow and develop - testing as metal is tried and tested when it is made, not to breaking point, but in a way which strengthens it. It is in the fire, but it is not burnt up.

As God's own Son, Jesus Christ was born on earth to become the supreme example for humankind and to be the Saviour of the human race. Fully divine and fully human, it was essential for Jesus to be tempted as we are, so that there could be no doubt, he was tested and tried, yet he is without sin. Allowing himself to be led by the Holy Spirit at all times, Jesus drew his strength and his wisdom from his unity with God the Father and the Holy Spirit, so that when he faced temptation he recognised it and rejected it without fail.

Ordinary human beings are not always alert to recognise temptation. The negative powers and influences of the world can be very seductive, and sometimes temptation begins with attracting us to flirt with temptation: flattering ourselves that we can safely sail close to the wind, we soon capsize. Going our own way instead of God's way, we proudly try to test God - when the enemy threatens to surround us, will he send his winged cavalry to the rescue? Temptation can play subtle tricks, suggesting all sorts of excuses: 'it was his fault', 'my intentions were good', 'I was in a cleft stick', or even 'I was in love'! To draw on God's strength, we must follow God's ways, not our own ways and not those of people who do not know God; but follow God's clear plan and if that leads where temptation is unavoidable, don't panic, rely on God's wisdom.

Sometimes God does allow us to be tested, discovering for ourselves our strengths, our weaknesses and our ability to follow our faith and rely on God. Treading in the footsteps of Jesus, even in the wilderness, we can be safe.

So, each day, as morning breaks, ask your Father in heaven for the daily bread which you need, and for integrity to forgive others because we each know that we need forgiveness for ourselves, and pray, "Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil," and know that God can grant your prayer, for the kingdom, the power and the glory are his, now and for ever. Amen.