Friday, January 18, 2013

Luke 4:1-13


Dear Theophilus,
I cannot tell you how tempting it is to jump straight to the end of the story.  So much of the story is weighted there, and yet I feel like a thorough examination demands that we wade through the details en route to the finale.  I am grateful for the list of Jesus’ ancestors—there are some big names in there, as well as some that I have never heard.  I agree that we could invest significant amounts of time into researching each and every name, but I trust that they are there to give weight to the man’s life—to link him to the past, which is so important in the Jewish tradition.  Jesus did not simply arrive out of nowhere, but rather is a continuation of a long history of faith.  It’s easier for a man like me to grasp his story when placed inside the truth of a larger story.  I would daresay that it’s easier to believe in a God who has a long tradition of belief than one who seems to arise new out of the desert. 
I turn from this to actual stories about the life of Jesus, which should consume the bulk of our correspondence through the duration of the story.  We know so little about how he arrives, but suddenly the stories come in a deluge, pouring down upon us one after another, some with little or no context and others with more.  John has played his part in the play, and while he may yet appear again, the focus shifts now to the primary mover in this tale:  Jesus of Nazareth.  While the historical record of many of these reflections I do not doubt, the aspect of the miraculous, of the supernatural, I turn a skeptical eye toward.
After the baptism you mentioned, an event that I find, frankly, a little hard to believe happened as you say it did, Jesus returned from the Jordan and was led by the same Spirit that filled him at baptism into the wilderness.  It seems an unlikely sequel to the previous event—surely people were demanding to spend time, to know this man who was claimed by God in a booming announcement across the heavens.  Wouldn’t he want to stay and capitalize on such a public event?  I must say I don’t fully understand the reasoning for him fleeing into the wilderness at such a time, but considering that we are still discussing it today, clearly there was a reason for it. 
For forty days he fasted in the wilderness, being tempted by the devil.  I can only imagine the hunger that consumed him by the end of his time there, and I will admit that I would not have the strength to resist any temptation if I didn’t eat for forty hours, let alone forty days.  Perhaps this strength is our first hint that Jesus is different than we.
At this nadir, the devil came and said, “Take this stone and turn it into bread if you are the Son of God.”
Jesus, hunger surely dripping from every pore, looked beyond the simple task and saw something deeper beneath it.  When he replied to the devil, he quoted from the Hebrew Scriptures:  “One does not live on just bread.”
How valuable it would be to see this in real life, to see the facial expressions upon each player in the scene—I’d love to see the stony resolve of Jesus, weakened by hunger but determined to defeat his tempter.  I can imagine the wry smile of the devil as he offers these temptations, and the shock of watching a hungry man turn down a simple request for food.  I can imagine the scene as hushed, still, as all of creation waits to see if the man will turn down what the devil offers, as generations of men have been unable to do.
Knowing that each man has a weakness and unaware, or perhaps unwilling to fully realize, that Jesus was not just a man, the devil took him to a place where all the kingdoms of the world appeared before them, and the devil offered their glory and authority to Jesus, for they are in the devil’s hand, and he is free to give it to whomever he pleases.  Granted, it would not be given freely—only with the condition that Jesus worship the devil.
Looking upon all the world, all of its glory and splendor, all of the wondrous riches and resources, Jesus looked the devil in the eye and once more quoted those Scriptures:  Worship the Lord your God and serve him alone.
Surely, the devil’s mouth opened a little in shock at such a reply.  The devil has seen countless men bend at far lesser offers, and here is this man, turning down a chance to rule the world.  Jesus’ spine must have straightened a little as he saw the devil’s shock, and he must have believed that he could win this battle with whatever strength he had within him.
From there, the devil whisked him to the highest point of the temple, from the point where they could see all of Jerusalem and the lands that surrounded them, and the devil tempted him, “Jump from here, for if you are the Son of God, it says in those same Scriptures you love to quote that ‘God will order his angels regarding you to protect you’ and ‘not a toe on your foot will be dashed against his stone, for their hands will lift you up.’
That sly devil uses the Scriptures Jesus knows so well to twist Jesus into a difficult place, but I can almost see a twinkle in Jesus’ eye as he looks at the devil and replies simply, strongly, “It also says, ‘Don’t put God to the test.’
Such wisdom and knowledge must have frustrated the devil more than he knew he could be frustrated, and it is not difficult to hear him scream in dismay at the replies of Jesus, for he had met an adversary he could not tame.  I wonder if he knew fear at that moment, or if he set his jaw and went about finding any possible way to defeat the man.  He left Jesus, knowing that other opportunities would arise, and prove more advantageous to him then.
Relaying this information to you, it’s easy to get caught up in the tale.  I’m composing what I believe to be a factual case for your information, and yet I can’t simply relay this without having to wrestle with the truth of the whole case.  If this scene is true, and I believe it is, it clearly indicates that Jesus is more than just a man, and that there is a world more than just what I can see.  If so, does that prove the existence of God?  And if that is true, must I then give my life to him in worship?  Do those two things necessarily go hand in hand?  Or can I believe that God is real and yet have no desire to worship him?  Or perhaps find no consequences if I choose not to worship him if I find him not to my liking? 
I wish the case was clear, Theophilus, but a lifetime of ambiguity has left me in a place where it is so difficult to see clearly what is before me.  I know there are many chapters yet to write, in this tale as well as my own life, and so I will strive for patience.  Perhaps it is that same devil that leads me to despair now, tempting me to give up the search before I have truly begun!
Sincerely,
Luke

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