“Jesus 101: Drawing From Our Roots”
Luke 4:1-13 & 6:46-49
The night of my Ordination – the time at which I officially became a Minister of the Word – is still vivid in my mind. The joy, the solemnity, the anointing through laying on of hands – when the night was completed I felt exhilaration and anticipation, and an overwhelming sense of responsibility, that could not be put into words. It was one of the spiritual high points of my life.
You may have had similar feelings. You finally received your diploma, you got the job, the wedding day finally arrived, the baby was born, you won the election or got the part or cracked the starting lineup. Whatever the occasion, you knew you had arrived, that all the preparation and waiting had finally paid off. And you knew that it marked a new beginning with new responsibilities. It was a great feeling – a high point in your life.
Welcome to Jesus’ life. JESUS EXPERIENCED A SPIRITUAL HIGH. Luke wrote about it in Chapter 3. JESUS WAS BAPTIZED in the Jordan River by John the Baptist. As we saw last week Jesus was baptized so He could identify with our sin, to symbolize the fact that one day He would take our sin upon Himself on the cross. Going under the water and coming up again stood for cleansing from sin.
But Jesus also consented to be baptized as a sign of His commitment to do the Father’s will; it was a public testimony of His unwavering commitment to enter into a ministry of salvation; He was making it known the He would walk the way of the cross. He was acknowledging the purpose for His life.
And after He was baptized “…heaven was opened and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: ‘You are my son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.’” JESUS RECEIVED HIS FATHER’S AFFIRMATION. It’s significant that Jesus had not yet done any miracles, preached any public sermons, or died on the cross. Yet the Father affirmed Him. The Father loved Jesus for who He was and affirmed Him for His desire to do His will
Can you imagine being affirmed and loved by God, the Creator of the world? Can you imagine the overwhelming awe of hearing His voice of love? I wonder how often Jesus, as he faced the difficult times of ministry, remembered the voice of God and gained strength from the affirmation?
After the baptism and affirmation JESUS WAS FILLED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT. He was now gifted, empowered, prepared, and strengthened as never before. When the great moment was over Jesus felt exhilaration and anticipation, and an overwhelming sense of responsibility, that could not be put into words. It was the spiritual high point of his life.
But notice what happened next. ‘Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the desert, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil.” JESUS WAS SEVERELY TEMPTED. The exhilaration and joy of the moment didn’t last long. The Spirit led Jesus to the desert for 40 days. In the Bible the desert is the place of testing and temptation and 40 days is the symbol of the fullness or completeness of a period. So the first thing Jesus did, in obedience to His Father, was to enter into a time of testing and trial.
Why is this important? SATAN PLANS HIS TIMES OF ATTACK. Having made His public commitment, Jesus was now a target of the enemy. Whenever someone makes a deeper commitment, whenever they are spiritually high, they are vulnerable – because Satan is upset. As the late Matthew Henry once said, the richest ship is the pirate’s prize. Or as George Buttrick put it, you are not going to have a sea storm in a roadside puddle.(i) This brings me to lift up a word of caution. We, too, are vulnerable immediately in and after highly spiritual moments. Such moments sap our physical and emotional strength, opening the door to weakness. Consistory has asked you to pray even more diligently than you have been as Hope Church moves into her next chapter of life. The warning alarms should be going off – this is an opportune time for the tempter to strut his stuff. The more deeply we commit ourselves to Jesus Christ the more the devil steps up his attacks against us. We are not dealing here with a red suit, a pitchfork, and horns. There is a real, live tempter – he is the devil. He is not just some figment of our imaginations or some cartoon or comic character. He is a real, true person or force, which can call all the hosts and forces of evil against us. So beware – if you choose to be more devoted to Jesus, or make a stronger commitment to Him in some area of your life, you will be tempted, perhaps as never before.
SATAN ALSO PLANS HIS POINTS OF ATTACK. Knowing Jesus was hungry and tired, he went after his appetites. And he goes for the same appetites within us. He goes after the PERFORMANCE APPETITE. He asked Jesus to turn a stone into bread, to perform a miracle. It’s tempting. After all, the world measures our worth on the basis of our achievements and accomplishments, on our levels of success. Since we want affirmation, we long to perform well. But the desire to perform can lead us into the TRAP OF BELIEVING THAT “I AM WHAT I DO.” Once we believe that, performance becomes our purpose.
Satan also attacks the POSSESSION APPETITE. He told Jesus He could have all the kingdoms of the world. It’s tempting. Let’s face it, the world honors and respects those who own, who are wealthy, those who have it all. The bumper stickers read “He who dies with the most toys wins.” Since we want affirmation, we want to win. But the desire to own can lead us into the TRAP OF BELIEVING THAT “I AM WHAT I POSSESS.” Once we believe that, ownership at any cost becomes our purpose.
There’s a third appetite that Satan attacks: the POPULARITY APPETITE. He challenged Jesus to let the public know how much He trusted God – how much He dared to test God – by jumping from a great height. It’s tempting. The reality is that the world worships those who are powerful. The powerful and influential are popular. Since we want affirmation we want the crowds to like us; we like to be popular. But the desire to be popular can lead us into the TRAP OF BELIEVING “I AM WHAT OTHERS THINK OF ME.” Once we believe that, power becomes our drive.
The bottom line is that none of the three things Satan asked Jesus to do was wrong in itself. Most of us, if asked to do something wrong, will resist. Satan didn’t ask Adam & Eve “Do you want to be like me?” Rather he asked, “Do you want to be like God?” Isn’t that the right thing to do – to be like God? Jesus knew there’s nothing wrong with doing miracles – after all He would do plenty of them. There’s nothing wrong with owning everything – after all, Jesus would one day own and rule it anyway. There’s nothing wrong with proving God’s faithfulness – after all Jesus would prove it one day anyway. But the reason for doing them was all wrong – it was to please Satan not God; it was to please self and not God; it was to seek affirmation from anyone or anything but God. It was to take a shortcut and seek to gain the crown without the cross. It is possible to get the right thing in in the wrong way; but the ends do not justify the means. Satan was tempting Jesus with a deeper question: “What am I going to do with my life? How will I live my life? What is God’s will for me?”
But Jesus already had his affirmation: ‘You are my son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.’ And He got it by committing to do the Father’s will and walk the Father’s way – which was through the cross - even though it was not an easy way. Dr. Martin Luther King put it, “I still believe that standing up for the truth of God is the greatest thing in the world. This is the end of life. The end of life is not to be happy. The end of life is not to achieve pleasure and avoid pain. The end of life is to do the will of God, come what may.” (ii)
That’s what Jesus did. He could do it because JESUS DREW STRENGTH FROM HIS ROOTS. After each temptation He quoted Scripture. HE STOOD FIRMLY IN THE SOIL OF GOD’S WORD. And Jesus continued to do so throughout His life. And it’s a good thing he did. Luke tells us, “When the devil had finished all this tempting, He left him until an opportune time.” The devil would return so Jesus needed to consistently draw from His roots to be prepared. Jesus needed A SPIRITUAL BALLAST. A ballast is “any heavy material, such as gravel or sand, placed in a ship’s hold to sink it to such a depth as to prevent it from capsizing when in motion. It is that which tends to give stability in morals or politics.” A spiritual ballast, then, is what we draw upon in the face of temptations – what is deep inside us to hold us firm and keep us from sinking. Jesus drew from the Word of God.
It was a small adjustment that could make a big difference. Sure, it was against NASCAR rules, but almost everyone else was doing it. So crew chief Tim Shutt crawled under the No. 20 car of Mike McLaughlin, who raced on the NASCAR Busch circuit. "Joe [Gibbs, team owner] is adamant that we don't cheat," says Shutt, a relatively new believer who encountered Christ at a Christian retreat for participants in the racing industry. "Most teams figure that as long as you get away with it, it's not cheating." "I said to Mike that morning in practice, 'If we're no good in practice, I'll put this piece—the illegal piece—on. Probably 30 other teams are doing it." I was justifying it. "I got up under the car, I got halfway through putting it on, and that verse, 'Seek ye first the kingdom of God,' came flashing in red in front of me, and whoa, that was it. I said, 'I'm leaving this up to you, God.'" Shutt didn't put the piece on the car. McLaughlin won the race. It was Talladega, one of the biggest races of 2001. "When we won, the first thing that came to my mind was that verse," Tim says. "God wanted to show himself to me." (iii)
Drawing from the Word of God should be the pattern for us as well. As the Psalmist eloquently wrote (Ps. 1): “Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, but whose delight is in the law of the LORD, and who meditates on his law day and night. That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither— whatever they do prospers. Not so the wicked! They are like chaff that the wind blows away. Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. For the LORD watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked leads to destruction.”
Jesus stood firmly in the soil of God’s Word so He could LIVE FIRMLY IN THE SOIL OF GOD’S WILL. We need more than knowledge, we need action. We are to not only hear the Word but live obediently under the Word. It’s what Jesus said about the foundation of life: “Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say? As for everyone who comes to me and hears my words and puts them into practice, I will show you what they are like. They are like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built. But the one who hears my words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete.” The Bible is dangerous. Therefore being here and hearing it is dangerous – because once we hear it Jesus expects us to obey it and live by it. He won’t force us to – but if we do not, our unstable lives will collapse under the storms of life.
So you’ve heard the Word of God. What are you going to do? The questions Jesus asked in the face of temptation are your questions: “WHAT AM I GOING TO DO WITH MY LIFE? HOW WILL I LIVE MY LIFE? WHAT IS GOD’S WILL FOR ME?”
Having heard the Word this morning you stand at a crossroads. There are no shortcuts. Jesus is calling you to follow Him, to make Him the priority of your life. Will you? Have you been baptized? Have you made your public commitment to walk in the will of your Father in heaven? If not, what’s holding you back? If it was important for Jesus to do, isn’t it important for you as well? Would you like to hear the voice of God loving and affirming you? Look to the cross. There God speaks loudly. Through the cross He hollers “I love you! You are my beloved Child!” Your commitment would be pleasing to Him. Some of you have been baptized but not heard yet the voice of affirmation. It’s time for you to step up, make the commitment to serve God by being a disciple of Jesus. Some of you have heard the voice; you seized your purpose for life. It’s time for you to share your life with others.
During baptism we claim that the person baptized is “sealed by the Holy Spirit and marked as Christ’s own forever.” We are brothers and sisters of Jesus, we are headed to full fellowship with Him, and we will get there through obedience to the Word of God. We must be true to our baptisms. I once saw a drawing of a young man standing at a fork in the road. The sign at the fork labeled each road. One arrow pointed left and said “Your way.” The other arrow pointed right and said “Yahweh.” Clever, but true. As Jeremiah said, “This is what the LORD says: "Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls.””
By the way; the devil did come back to Jesus. He attacked Him in a Garden called Gethsemane. But Jesus was prepared; having drawn from His roots, Jesus had already settled the questions for His life. So, with just a few words, He prayed: “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.” The devil has only left until an opportune time. When he returns will you have settled by whose will you will live?
i) Quoted in The Cherry Log Sermons, Fred B. Craddock, Westminster John Know Press, © 2001 Fred B. Craddock, p. 16
ii) "Paul's Letter to American Christians, November 4, 1956"; from preachingtoday.com
iii) Victor Lee, Sports Spectrum; reprinted in Men of Integrity (May/June 2002); from preachingtoday.com
