The Lutheran Hour
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"If"
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Text: Matthew 4:3
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Christ is risen! He is risen, indeed! Throughout His life, Jesus was tempted in every way as we are, but with this notable difference: Jesus did not sin. So we might be free from Satan’s stranglehold, Jesus said “no” to every temptation the devil could construct. Now, through His perfect, lifelong work, all who believe on the risen Savior are forgiven and free. God, grant this Lord unto us all. Amen.
A few months ago I visited with a man who likes to shoot. He’s a hunter, a skeet-shooter, a man who takes the sport seriously. After talking with him for about an hour he said, “Pastor, come with me, I’ve got something to show you.” He took me down to his beautifully finished basement and there, in a room all by itself, was a safe. Not a little safe like the ones you might find in a hotel room; no, this man had a big safe, a safe that might make a small bank proud. My friend reached into the safe, he reached way in, and brought out a shotgun. Now, I’m hardly an expert on firearms, but even an amateur like me could see this weapon was something very special. The wood was beautiful, the carving on the wood was beautiful; the metal was beautiful; the unique, gold-filled engravings were beautiful. The gun was a work of art.
Then, with pride, the man told me its history. He said he had waited for three-and-a-half years for master craftsmen to give birth to this prized firearm. To make sure the shotgun would fit him perfectly he had twice flown to Britain for measurements. After hearing all of this, I simply had to ask: “I know you can’t put a value on such a thing, but do you have any idea how much this thing cost?” He said, “I can’t, but my wife can. She figured out everything and it came to somewhere around $49,000. $49,000! I wanted to say, “$49,000? Are you nuts? Don’t you know what the Lord could do with that amount? Don’t you know the people who could be touched with the Gospel message?” I thought a lot of things, but I said none of them. That’s because, in the back of my mind, I remembered the many occasionally expensive things which I have purchased over the years. If my shotgun owner saw some of those things and had been told what I had paid for them, he would be absolutely convinced I’d gone off my rocker, too. Now of course, it’s only natural for you to wonder: “And just what things have you bought, pastor?” I’m not going to tell you. What I will do is say this: the things which tempt me, are probably not the things which tempt you; even as the temptations which trip your trigger would probably leave me bored beyond words.
Temptation. This sermon is about temptation. Not the temptation to buy an expensive shotgun, car, jewelry, or bottle of wine. This sermon is talking about the temptation to sin, the custom made, one-of-a-kind, temptations which Satan has successfully offered to each and every one of us. We’re talking about the devil’s temptations which manage to bring down almost every person who has ever lived, even pretty good people like you and me. Now that’s a pretty broad statement, isn’t it? Maybe, but the statement stands. The seducer Satan, hell’s expert psychologist, has made it his eternal work to woo every one of us into doing things which are wrong, which we know are wrong, which we might never normally do, but which at that moment seemed acceptable and OK.
For example, I recently came across an old, old story about a lady who went to her butcher to buy a chicken. The honest man put the bird on the scale, announced the weight and was told, “That’s a little small, do you have another?” He went back to the cooler and found out this chicken was his only chicken. Not wishing to lose the sale, the normally honest butcher took the same chicken, put it on the scale and added a little pressure from his thumb. He shared the new and inflated weight with his customer who said, “That’s wonderful, I’ll take them both.”
Does that story seem far-fetched? Well, how about the story of the mostly honest salesman who brought his company’s bid to the purchasing agent of an engineering firm. The project was so big that if the bid were accepted his company would be in the black for an entire year and his job security would increase tenfold. When he got to his appointment, the agent’s secretary told the salesman her boss was running late. Even so, she ushered him into the office, told him to have a seat and get comfortable. “My boss,” she said, “will be here in about five minutes.” As he sat, the salesman couldn’t help but notice his competition’s bid was sitting on the agent’s desk. Nonchalantly, and upside down the salesman read the document – everything except the last line which was situated right under a can of juice. The normally honest salesman debated and then decided to move the can, just a little bit; just a few inches. He reached over, picked up the can and hundreds of bb’s poured out of the bottomless can. When the agent arrived, he saw the bb’s all over and summarily declined the normally honest salesman’s offer.
Temptation – it’s an easy thing to preach about. It’s easy because all of us are voluntary victims of Satan’s seductions. If you doubt me, open your newspaper. The business section will tell you of some trusted CEO who managed to make tens-of-millions of dollars for himself even as he lost his investors’ cash and his employees’ jobs. You will read of the honored civic servant who took something extra, spent something wrongly, and betrayed his constituents’ hope. You won’t have to look over too many pages before you are told of a preacher, pastor, or priest who has been found guilty of some scandalous charge; or of a respected athlete who chose to enhance his God-given abilities by using illegal drugs. Look back on your own life and you will find, as I have, far too many episodes of shame and sin; too many times when Satan successfully placed before us something to which we couldn’t, or didn’t, say, “no.” Looking back, we wonder why we did what we did; but the truth is, we did it. Each of us has fallen victim to Satan’s seductions.
We’re not alone, you know. Read God’s Holy Word; go ahead, open the Book to just about any page and you will see one of God’s heroes being successfully snared by Satan. In the beginning he told Adam and Eve they could be like God if they ate from the forbidden tree. He used a jealous rage to encourage Cain to kill Abel. He whispered words of doubt about God being able to keep His word into the ears of ancient Abraham. He encouraged Isaac’s belief that it would be just fine to be a little bit sneaky in stealing his father’s blessing. Jacob thought there was nothing wrong in showing preferential treatment to his favorite sons. The devil was there when Moses disobeyed God, and he cheered on the Children of Israel as they continuously complained about God’s grace. The devil helped send King Saul on an ego trip; he made sure David’s roving eye was 20-20; and under the devil’s direction Solomon didn’t seem so very smart after all. Look at God’s prophets; one after another they succumb to Satan as he calls them to melancholy and misery, doubt, discouragement, and depression.
With centuries of successful accomplishment and achievement, Satan confidently approached the Christ when the Savior, at the beginning of His ministry, went into the wilderness. Knowing Jesus had been without food for a considerable period, Satan began: “Jesus, if you are the Son of God, say the word so these stones might become bread.” Satan probably didn’t think appealing to the basic human needs of hunger or shelter or sex would get Jesus to sin; still, since this simple suggestion had been successful so many times in the past, it was worth a try. Even so, the devil would not have been shocked when Jesus replied, “Man does not live by bread alone.”
Satan’s next temptation was a little more specific for the Savior. Taking Jesus to a pinnacle of the temple, the center of worship for God’s chosen people, Satan said, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down. Your Father’s angels will protect You and You will have shown to the Scribes, the Priests, the Pharisees who You really are.” Satan knew this was a very good temptation. It would have a certain appeal to Jesus who knew His earthly journey to save us was going to be a long, lonely one. Here, Satan was providing a shortcut. Satan was saying if Jesus performed a miracle nobody could doubt or deny; if Jesus could get these people to acknowledge His Divinity, He would have some company on His road to the cross. Thankfully, Jesus knew this plan was not His Father’s plan. He knew He would have to be rejected by men before He suffered and died. That’s why His reply to Satan’s second temptation was a simple one: “You must not put the Lord your God to the test.”
Satan was not discouraged. If Jesus didn’t think He wanted or needed any kind of support in His suffering, Satan upped the offer. He took Jesus to a high mountain and showed Him… the world. “These I will give You,” Satan confidently declared, “if you will only worship me.” In effect, the devil was saying, “Jesus, You know and I know how this is all going to turn out. Many won’t understand You and the rest will desert You. You’re going to be rejected by Your people and betrayed by one of Your closest friends. You are going to be arrested, beaten, spit upon and lied about. Yes, we both know You’ve done nothing wrong, but that won’t make any difference. Your people will call for Your crucifixion and after You have been whipped and crowned with thorns, You will carry Your cross to Calvary. Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, You don’t want to go through that; nobody wants to go through that. Look, I’ll make it so none of this has to happen. You can escape all the suffering, the scourging, the crowds calling for Your death, Your crucifixion, if You will only worship me.”
This final offer from Satan had been carefully and craftily created to get the Christ to sin. It was an offer which any sensible person, a person like you or me would have been glad to accept. But this offer was made to Jesus, God’s only Son; and the Savior saw things differently than we. A lot of people think the devil is complex when he tempts us. He isn’t. He has a very simple formula which he uses to tempt you, me, anybody… even the Redeemer of the world.
Before you hear Jesus’ reply to this final temptation, I want you to know that formula. Ready? Here it is: the devil promises us something good if we will first do something bad. Did you get that? The devil promises you something good if you will do something bad. That’s what he did to Adam and Eve. He said: If you want to be smart (which was something very good) they first had to disobey God’s command (which was something bad.) That’s what the devil was doing to Jesus.
Let me show you how it works. In Temptation #1, the devil had said, “Jesus, You’re really hungry. If You’re hungry, You should eat. All You have to do is break Your self-imposed fast and use Your powers to feed Yourself.” You see, the devil knew eating is a good thing when you’re hungry, but it’s not if you have to first deny your relationship with the Lord. In Temptation #2 the devil had said, “Jesus, wouldn’t it be great if the priests and publicans and people recognized You as their Savior? It can happen. Listen to me, throw Yourself down from here. Your Father has said He will send His angels to protect You.” Do you see how it worked? The devil promised something good… the belief of the people… if Jesus first did something bad… which was listen to him.
Which takes us back to the last of Jesus’ temptations. Satan had made an offer which really couldn’t be refused: He had said “Jesus, You’re on earth to win the world. It’s a noble gesture; indeed, I applaud Your willingness to sacrifice Yourself. But how about if I make it so You don’t have to go through all of that nasty business of betrayal and whipping and spitting and crucifixion? Nobody has to know what’s happening here. It’ll just be between the two of us. Worship me, just once, just for a second. What do You think?” Jesus had been offered something which seemed good, if He first did something bad. What was His reply? I’ll tell you.
But first, let me reminisce. Back when I was in the parish, I used to do children’s sermons… that’s a short message designed to teach the children on a level they can understand. It was great fun because you almost never knew what the children were going to do or say. I say “almost never” because there was one question which they always answered the same way. When I asked them, “What did Jesus do for you?” Every time, without fail, they answered, “Jesus died for me.” It was a wonderful answer, a blessed answer, a Spirit-given answer. But you should know that Jesus did more for you than die for you. When I ask, “What did Jesus do for you?” you might also want to add, “Jesus said ‘no’ to temptation for me.” You can say that, because that’s what He did.
That day on the mountain top, and indeed, for every day of His ministry, Jesus said “no” when the devil offered Him something good if He would only do something bad. That’s right. Jesus said, “no.” Every time, at every opportunity, without any exception, ever, Jesus said, “no.” On the Mount of Temptation, Jesus said, “Satan, get out of here. I’m done listening to you. The Bible says I’m supposed to worship the Lord God and serve Him, and you are not Him.” If Jesus hadn’t done that, His passion would have been without power, His crucifixion would not have counted and there would have been no resurrection from the dead – not for Him, not for anyone. But Jesus did say, “no.” For us Jesus said, “no.” So He might defeat sin, death, and Satan, Jesus said, ‘no.” So all who believe on Him might be saved, Jesus said, “no.” So all of us who are so easily tempted might be forgiven, He said, “no.” Jesus always did what was right so His heavenly Father might do something which was unbelievably, unexpectedly, undeservedly wonderful. From cradle to cross and every day in between, Jesus did what we couldn’t do, so we might be saved. Now, through Him, and only through faith in Him as our sacrificing Savior, can we sinners be saved.
From the Middle Ages comes the story of a young skylark who, one day, came across a man who offered to give him three worms in exchange for one, just one, of his feathers. The bird saw nothing wrong with the offer and accepted. Indeed, he felt so good, the next day, as he was flying around, he proudly told his father about the bargain. The older bird said, “You know, son, we skylarks ought be the happiest of all birds. We’ve been given wonderful wings to lift us high in the sky where it seems we are flying very near to God.” It was a grand thought, but the young bird didn’t hear. He was thinking of a man who was waiting to give him worms for a feather. Day after day he met the man, day after day he plucked out a feather and ate his fill. But eventually summer turned to autumn and it was time to fly south. But the young skylark, now without feathers, wasn’t able to make the trip. He had failed the temptation test. He tried to get something good by first doing something bad.
A foolish old story? Of course it is! It’s foolish because birds don’t talk; and if they could talk, they would never do anything so foolish as trade their feathers for food. Theirs is a wisdom humans do not possess; for every one of us regularly has bought into Satan’s suggestions to sin, each of us has fallen into Satan’s subtly set snares. True, your temptation may not be mine, and mine is not likely to be yours, but Satan doesn’t care. He has a trap with each of our names on it; he has the words to make us believe he will give us good if we will do just a little evil. His success means we sinners need a Savior. We need to be brought close to the One who has never messed up; we need to worship the Christ who rejected all of Satan’s damnable offers. Only through faith in Jesus can we be set free from Satan’s snares and be allowed to fly heavenward.
Of course, you Christians already know that, don’t you? And if you don’t know Jesus is your Savior, may I ask why? What’s holding you back? What’s stopping you? I can’t hear your reply, but I’m sure you have your reasons, and I’m sure they seem like good reasons. But, may I remind you how Satan works: he offers people something which seems good if they will first do something which is bad. Don’t listen to him, he’s lying. It’s what he does; it’s who he is. By the Holy Spirit’s power, be brought to faith in Jesus who alone is the Truth. Believe on Jesus who, for you, said no to temptation. Amen.
LUTHERAN HOUR MAILBOX (Questions & Answers) for February 10, 2007
TOPIC: The Least of TheseANNOUNCER: Now, Pastor Ken Klaus answers questions from listeners. I’m Mark Eischer.
KLAUS: Mark?
ANNOUNCER: Yes?
KLAUS: Today, if you don’t mind, I’m not going to answer any questions.
ANNOUNCER: Oh. OK. Now, Pastor Ken Klaus won’t answer questions from listeners, but I’m still Mark Eischer.
KLAUS: Actually, I’d like to use our time today to read an email I recently received; and then I’ll make some comments on it, if that’s OK.
ANNOUNCER: Please continue.
KLAUS: First, let me say, I do have permission to read this; but I have taken out references to the person and the place.
ANNOUNCER: Understood.
KLAUS: This is what the listener wrote: Dear Rev. Klaus, every day I get your devotions through the Lutheran Hour Ministries.
ANNOUNCER: And, I should point out that more and more listeners are going on line and having these devotions sent to them every day by e-mail.
KLAUS: If we have time, maybe we can, before we’re done today, tell people how to sign up for those. At any rate, our listener writes, “…today’s message really hit home. I am mother a to a 25-year old handicapped son. Over the years, we were specifically told that we did not fit into some churches.”
ANNOUNCER: Now, why would anybody in a church say something like that?
KLAUS: That’s one of the reasons I wanted to read this letter. Sometimes when we go to church we get very concentrated. We concentrate on getting dressed, getting ready, getting to church on time.
ANNOUNCER: So that we can get to our regular pew.
KLAUS: That and a lot of things. People can get so in the zone, so focused on their
own routine, that they sometimes forget the needs of others.ANNOUNCER: Like, for example, someone with special needs.
KLAUS: Yes. We also forget that no matter how good a pastor preaches on Sunday, most often it is the people in the pew who preach the loudest sermon of all.
ANNOUNCER: Please, explain.
KLAUS: Well, I’ve been in churches where the organ was powerful, the choir was right on, the pastor preached a sermon that would knock your socks off. He nailed it. Law and Gospel. Powerful, motivating.
ANNOUNCER: But, what’s the downside?
KLAUS: Well, everything should have been successful, but the worshipers seemed to be there for themselves, not for anybody else.
ANNOUNCER: And that’s not what worship is all about. Worship is people coming together as a family around God’s Word.
KLAUS: Yes, united by their sins and their need for forgiveness that comes through Jesus Christ alone.
ANNOUNCER: So that the Holy Spirit can speak to each of them on the level on which they can receive it.
KLAUS: Yes, including a child with special needs or disabilities. The sermon preached by some of those churches this family attended said the preacher might be saying one thing, but the people were living something quite different. The rubber wasn’t meeting the road.
ANNOUNCER: So what happened in this case?
KLAUS: I’m pleased to say the family didn’t give up. She says, “…It was discouraging to us, but finally we found a church that did welcome our whole family even if we sat in the Narthex because the rustling of people and sounds of the organ were too intense for our son. Today (many years later) our son now is comfortable enough to sit in the church. His internal clock tells him when one hour is up (probably to the Pastor’s chagrin); but now rather than leaving church we stand back out in the Narthex and he has become a ‘greeter.’ He is nonverbal but communicates with people. It is interesting how many people have told me that they have become more comfortable around such people through meeting our son. We shall always be thankful for a welcoming church.”
ANNOUNCER: That’s great! That’s a story with a happy ending.
KLAUS: I agree. So today, I wanted to say “well done” to that nameless Lutheran Church in Arizona that has, for many years, practiced what their pastor has been preaching and what the Savior has asked them to do. I wanted to join with this lady and say thank you for doing as Jesus would have done… for opening your hearts and your church doors to a child with special needs.
ANNOUNCER: And, in a way, don’t we all have special needs?
KLAUS: We do, and that is the word of encouragement I want to give to all our churches. You people in the pews have been given a special opportunity to be the Lord’s voice, His hands, His love to anyone who walks in the door with special needs. Reflect the power and love of the Christ to all those who come in your doors, and even those who hesitate to walk in as well.
ANNOUNCER: Thank you, Pastor Klaus. And we thank our listener for sharing that story with us. To subscribe to Pastor Klaus’ daily online devotions, here is what you do: go to our website, www.lutheranhour.org. On the right hand side of the page, look for the picture of the coffee cup where it says Daily Devotions by Pastor Ken Klaus. Click there, and follow the instructions. Well, that brings us to the end of our program for another week. We hope you’ll join us again next time. Thanks again for listening. This has been a presentation of Lutheran Hour Ministries.
Music selections for this program:
“A Mighty Fortress” arranged by John Leavitt. Concordia Publishing House/SESAC
“O Lord, Throughout These Forty Days” arr. Henry Gerike. From Agnus Dei by the Concordia Seminary Chorus (© 1996 Concordia Seminary Chorus)
“When I Survey the Wondrous Cross” arr. by Kevin Sadowski. Concordia Publishing House/SESAC
“O Lamm Gottes, unschuldig BWV656” by J.S. Bach. From Cramer & Resch at Kramer Chapel by Richard Resch & Craig Cramer (© 2001 Concordia Theological Seminary, Ft. Wayne)