Riposte

Scripture:  Luke 4:1-13

When the very first modern Olympic Games were held in 1896, fencing was one of the sports included and it has been part of every Olympiad since.   Fencing only really coalesced as a sport shortly before those first Olympics.   The first officially recognized fencing tournament was not held until 1880, and it was not until 1894 that an internationally agreed upon rule set for fencing was adopted.  Starting in 1894 three different forms of fencing were recognized: foil, epee, and saber.   However, in 2019 the road was opened for a new fencing style. In 2019 The French Fencing Federation, which is one of the more influential international federations, formally recognized lightsaber as an official fencing technique.  With this recognition they created standards, rules of play, and all the other trappings that are part of international fencing.   This means in France, lightsaber dueling is an officially recognized sport.  It also means that over time more national fencing federations around the world might also recognize lightsaber dueling so that someday it could even be an Olympic sport. 
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There are fencing clubs in Indiana that will teach lightsaber as a technique (sadly not any that close to here).  It does not matter if the fencing technique is lightsaber or something much older like saber, the basic concepts are the same.   One side attacks, the other side attempts to block which in fencing is to parry, and then the blocker attempts to riposte which is striking back quickly after a parry.  This riposte is a new attack that must now be parried.  This continues until one side scores a hit or one side pulls back and disengages.  Attack-parry-riposte is the basic flow of all forms of fencing, including lightsaber.  It is also the same pattern that we see in this morning’s scripture.  The devil attacks, Jesus parries, and there is a back and forth with the devil trying to find a weakness in Jesus.

This morning’s scripture is a well-known one.  The temptation of Jesus appears in some form in the gospels Matthew, Mark, and Luke.   By the traditional lectionary, this story in some form is the gospel lesson during the first Sunday of Lent.   In all versions of the scripture right after being baptized Jesus is taken away by the Spirit to the wilderness. It is commonly assumed that this wilderness is the area between Jericho and Jerusalem.  This is a dry desert reason.  While Jesus was in this region he fasted for 40 days.  He would have been hungry and weak.  In this morning’s scripture it states, “for forty days he was tempted by the devil.”  The gospel of Luke alone implies that Jesus faced temptations throughout the forty days, but all three gospels that have this story contains the same three temptations. 

While none of us have ever been offered power over all the kingdoms of the world Like Jesus was, that particular temptation shares elements with more common temptations.  If we take the three temptations that Jesus faced and break them down to what is really behind these temptations, then we can see that they are like the temptations we face.  We can learn from how Jesus handled these temptations so when we are confronted by the desire to act sinfully, we can parry and riposte successfully. 

The first temptation that Jesus faced was to turn stone into bread.  This does not seem like a big deal.  After all, Jesus endured a fast longer than most of us could handle.  He was in real need of food.  It does not seem unreasonable for Jesus to use his power to keep himself nourished.  Except it was by the leading of God’s spirit that Jesus was out in the wilderness.  The long fast was clearly a directive from God.   The temptation here is to obey God or meet his physical needs.  The first temptation of Jesus was one that asked him to prioritize himself over obedience to God.   While none of us would have faulted Jesus for making stones into bread, the general temptation here is one of selfishness.  All the temptations Jesus faces in this morning’s scripture are dialed up to eleven and are the most extreme examples.  Yet, we face similar temptations as this one.  When we are just a little uncomfortable, we are much likely to focus on ourselves than pay attention to others or be obedient to God. 

Many of the temptations we face daily are ones that are selfish in nature.  Many of the temptations we face regularly are ones that center ourselves at the expense of others.  We face these kinds of temptations so often; we sometimes do not even properly recognize them as being tempted to sinful actions.  This is because we are all amazing at justifying our actions.   It does not matter how selfish or self-centered someone’s actions are, People tend to be really good at coming up with reasons why it is OK this one time to do whatever it is. A small example we have all encountered is the person with a nice car who purposely parks so that they take up multiple spots to keep anyone from parking close to them.  It seems this never happens during down times when there is a ton of space, and these people never tend to the back of the parking lot.  They seem to always do this closer to the front and the park so that their car effectively takes up at least three spaces.  Even though it is a jerk move, the person who does this has likely rationalized in their mind why it is acceptable for them to act that way.  They see their actions as perfectly justifiable, because they are putting themselves above all else.   Whenever we have a self-centered want it is not hard for us to succumb to the temptation to perceive that want as a need and then justify our actions as to how we meet that perceived need.    This first temptation is one of selfishness, to put ourselves first.  We regularly face temptations to do things that put ourselves first above loving our neighbors or loving God.   

The second temptation that Jesus faced is perhaps the most straightforward.  Devil offered Jesus power.  We all know the proverb: “Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.”   We have all seen this.  From the school yard bully who pushes around smaller kids because they can, to the middle manager who terrorizes employees because they can, to the international dictators who invade other countries because they can.  We have all seen and unfortunately many of have suffered the consequences of someone else’s sinful acts motivated by a desire for power.  Think of all the lies, the people hurt, and broken lives that have been created in human history for the quest of power.   Jesus was offered more power than any one person has ever been offered, so he understands the alluring temptation that power offers.  Yet, Jesus once again  parries the devil and quotes scripture.  Jesus once again focuses on God, and Jesus shows us that instead of seeking power to rule our petty little kingdoms we should worship and serve the one and true Almighty God. 

The final temptation Jesus faced was more of a dare.  The temple complex in Jerusalem was built on a hill overlooking a valley.  In the time of Jesus, it had been thoroughly developed and at one place from the top of the wall to the bottom of the valley would have been about 450 ft in the day of Jesus.  This is the spot the devil took Jesus, dared him to jump and have the angels catch him.   This was an appeal to Jesus’ pride.   Like Jesus was here, we are also tempted by pride regularly.   This temptation comes in the form of a challenge, and often that is how we are tempted into pride as well.  We feel challenged, and we are so convinced our rightness we refuse to back down no matter the cost.  Pride is when we think too much of our own selves.  Pride is when we refuse to admit we might be wrong, refuse to apologize, or when we refuse to consider the position or feelings of others.   It is the opposite of humility and pride is one of the great catalysts of sinful actions.  C.S. Lewis points this out in Mere Christianity.   He wrote, “A proud man is always looking down on things and people; and of course, as long as you are looking down, you cannot see something that is above you.” 

We do not face the exact temptations that Jesus faced but we face the same kinds of temptations.  If you think about all the wrong in the world, then many of the ways that people are mean and unkind to one another can trace back to selfishness, lust for power, or pride. These are temptations that all of us face.   The particulars might look different for each of us, but we are tempted in much the same way Jesus was.  We face temptations daily, and they can often be hard for us to parry. Temptations have a nasty way of turning into bad habits which can become lifestyle choices or crippling addictions.  It can feel like we are bombarded by cultural messages, peer pressure, and our own personal demons to give into temptations.  It can all be so much that it can seem impossible to block, much less riposte and push back.  Jesus being fully God and fully man, knows the temptations we face and Jesus showed us how to deal with them.  

It is worth noting just how little Jesus engages with Devil in this morning’s scripture.   Devil is attempting to tempt Jesus, and Jesus barely gives him the time of day.  We do not see Jesus arguing with Devil, we do not see him trying to put the devil in his place or fighting in anyway.  It is less an epic duel, and more Jesus swatting away an annoyance. In fact, the only thing that Jesus says to the devil are quotes from scripture. 

  By quoting scripture, Jesus does more than just say “no” to the devil’s temptations. Every time Jesus is tempted in this morning’s story, he quotes scripture so that he focuses on the right thing.  He quotes scripture, but notice the scripture that Jesus quotes.  Each one connects to his relationship with the Father.   Jesus resist temptation by leaning into his relationship with God.   Jesus says no to the darkness by clinging to the light.  This is an example we should follow.   When it comes to the temptations, we face we tend to overcomplicate it.   We constantly are thinking of ways to justify our behavior.  We are constantly looking for reasons why this time it is OK, because it is an exception. Or we create arbitrary lines so that our selfish or prideful behavior is excusable because at least we did not go across that line.  Following the example of Jesus though cuts right through all of these games we play with ourselves. 

 Instead of making how we wrestle with our temptation complex, we can make it simple.   Every time we are tempted we face a choice, and we can boil that choice down to the most common denominator.  The choice is to say yes to temptation and take a step away from God or we say no to temptation and take a step closer to God.  We either say yes to what tempts us or we say yes to God, we cannot do both.   So let’s follow the example of Jesus and lean into our relationship with God.  

We will not always get it right.  Instead of parrying the temptation and riposting into our relationship with God, the temptation will land. There will still be times where we fall short where we say yes to something else other than God.   When that happens, we also face a choice.  We can fall into guilt, we can allow temptation to gain a stronger foothold as we continue to give in.   We can be weighed down by the weight of our shame and guilt or we can turn back to God.   We can confess or sins, we can repent, we can believe the gospel and we can be forgiven again.  The blood of Christ is strong enough to break every chain.  Even if we have wandered down a dark path, God the Father will always accept us back with open arms.

This morning’s scripture is a hopeful reminder that like Jesus we too can resist sin, but this morning’s scripture is a realistic reminder that all too often we miss the mark.   Perhaps that is why the story of Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness is traditionally read at the start of lent.   May we not lust after power or in selfishness focus on ourselves in prideful ways. Like Jesus may we be quick to turn to scripture and may we strive to keep our focus on hearts, our minds, and our souls focused on God.   In this season of lent may we fully to commit to repent and believe the gospel.