Worship on the Lord’s Day
First Sunday of Lent 10:00 am February 26, 2023
Online & Onsite (Mixed Presence) Gathering as a Worshipping Community
Led by the Rev Brad Childs
Music director: Binu Kapadia Vocalist: Sam Malayang
Elder: Jane de Caen
We gather to worship God
Music prelude
Greeting
L: The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.
P: and also with you.
Lighting of the Christ candle
Welcome and announcements!
Silent preparation for worship
Call to Worship
L: Just as the Spirit drove Jesus into the wilderness,
P: the Spirit sends us into places of uncertainty where we confront our weakness and insecurities.
L: In the wilderness, we, too, are confronted by our hunger and thirst.
P: We are tempted to grab at empty promises that offer an easy way out.
L: Like Jesus, we are tempted by power and prestige.
P: Unlike him, we often submit to their glamour.
L: We wonder whether God is with us.
P: We wonder whether we can trust God to take care of us.
L: We can only move forward in faith.
P: Let us stand on the cliff edge and, like Jesus, dare to trust.
Opening praise: Forever God is faithful
Prayers of approach and confession
Providing Father, We come before you as servants to the King of all creation. You, Oh God, stand at the door and knock. We seek only to answer your call to us. We gather in your name before you as unworthy people drawing near to you and to your perfect word. Father blesses us and our worship of you for the benefit of your will and your world.
Our LORD you are supreme. Your security is overwhelming and your powers without limits. Oh, Holy! Holy! Holy God! your sovereignty holds us. Salvation is from you and you alone. Father of Knowledge and Wisdom your wrath, mercy, justice and faithfulness abound; your deeds are wise and perfect; your goodness overflows. Our gracious Father you are good and all that is good comes from you. You are Patient. You are Love; your grace and personal attention to all creation is unending. Your Jealousy and Majesty reign on High and you are ever faithful to your word and to your people. You are God, Eternal King.
As we draw near to You oh LORD, advance us even more toward the living water and to your right hand. And hear our confessions to make us whole again. Silence
Gradual: Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God
Assurance of God’s forgiveness
Hear the words of the Psalmist: Happy are those who are forgiven. Be glad in the Lord and rejoice. (Psalm 32) Thanks be to God. We are made new. Amen.
We listen for the voice of God
Children’s time
Gradual: Jesus, we are gathered (514)
Story: There was this Jewish grandmother, and she loved her one and only grandson. She loved him like crazy. She gave him anything that that he wanted, and she never said no.
One day she took him out to the beach, and she put these big floaty things on his arms, and she put a big white floppy hat on his head and a big smear of white goo on his nose so he wouldn’t get sunburned and then she sat down on a chair on the beach, put her umbrella up, and read her book.
She looked out, and she saw her happy grandson out playing in the ocean and having a good time, and she was excited.
This grandma wasn’t a particularly nice lady..
She was nice to her grandson, but she was kind of mean to everybody else. She always cheated on her taxes, and she stole their neighbor’s newspaper every morning. She always said mean things about the ladies down the hall, but she loved the grandson.
So, that day at the beach she looked up, and she saw him playing, and she was so happy, and she went back to her book.
Then she looked up again and all of a sudden, she realized he was gone. Her grandson was missing in the ocean, and she was terrified.
And so she falls down on her knees, and she starts praying right away.
God, please, please, bring me back my grandson. Don’t let him be hurt. Please bring him back. Let him be okay. I won’t steal the paper anymore. I won’t cheat on my taxes. I’ll be nice and the ladies down the hall. I’ll do anything, please.
And then, Boom! Thunder! Crash!
Lightning flashed, and a huge swell of waves started building in the ocean, and it pushed forward right up in front of her, and it deposited the boy just perfectly standing there on 2 feet, floaties on his arms, goo on his nose.
She ran up and she hugged him, and she said, Thank you, thank you. God! My boy is Ok.
And then she moved back a bit and looked at his face and said: But he had a hat!
Sometimes in life we are tempted to take things for granted, but every good gift comes from above.
In the letter of James. It says, you should be humble of heart, not wanting what other people have, but being content with what God gives you. (James 4:5) Let’s try, this week, to be very content with what God gives us, and not worry so much about the hat.
The Lord’s Prayer (535)
Transition music
Song: Forty days and forty nights (197)
Today’s Message
Scripture readings: Matthew 4:1-11; Genesis 2:15-17; 3:1-7
Response: Behold the Lamb of God
Message: “Tested”
When I was in high school I went white-water rafting in Colorado. It was the scariest thing on earth. And I distinctly remember the feeling of that raft turning sideways down the rapids, with my stomach sinking and my heart in the throat. And as the rocks got closer and closer the fun became more dangerous and I prayed harder and harder and I paddled until my arms just burned.
The baptism of Christ… this is where it all began. As the Bible tells us, Jesus came up out of the water and was greeted by the voice of God as the Holy Spirit descended upon him like a dove. The great voice from heaven spoke and said, “This is my Son, in whom I am well pleased.” It is perhaps the single most beautiful picture described in all of our Holy Bible. And yet… it comes with a catch. You see, this beautiful story of Baptist doesn’t stand alone. It appears in all three of the synoptic gospels (Matthew, Mark and Luke) and in every single case the story ends in the same way.
Right after the Spirit descends upon our Savior, we’re told that Jesus was led out into the wilderness to be tempted by the Devil who immediately challenges Jesus with “if you really are the Son of God”… a direct challenge to the words the Father has just spoken and the same exact words Matthew will later tell us that the people called out to Jesus when he was on the cross again saying (just like the Devil did) “if you really are the son of God come down off that cross and save yourself”. (Matthew 27:40)
The Hebrews had this belief in Tiamat and the Leviathan which are serpent-monsters of the ancient world that almost every nation feared. Both are mentioned in scripture and have to do with evil, chaos and death. Snake stories were popular.
In Ancient Samaria the people believed in a snake-god called Ning-ish-zida whose name means “Lord of the Produce tree”. They had a similar Adam and Eve type of story involving the serpent and the fruit from its tree. But the snake isn’t really the bad guy in that story. Then again the snake isn’t really the bad guy in ours either. In Gen 3:4 the serpent is called “crafty” but not evil. In fact he never lies to them in the story. And the same word we translate “crafty” is used in other parts of the Bible to describe Godly people). Unlike the Christian idea of a powerful and evil foe, the Hebrew’s had no concept of a singular personification of evil (a Devil).
The Old Testament talks about a character called ha-Satan. Used as both a noun and a verb it can mean “to oppose” or “the adversary”. Ha-Satan is applied to supernatural beings in Numbers and 1 Chronicles. But it’s also used to describe humans in 1 Kings and 1 & 2 Samuel. Ha-Satan is also used 14 times in the book of Job. But in Job ha-Satan is a part of the heavenly court (what’s sometimes called “the hosts of heaven”). Essentially his job is to act as the prosecuting attorney. Yes, I did just say that Satan is a lawyer. Save the lawyer jokes, though, because the way he is portrayed – this particular prosecutor actually works for God and can’t do anything without his permission. The same is true in 1 Kings where God actually asks ha-Satan (three times) to do things for him.
Now at some point when the Israelites were concurred by Babylon they began to view ha-Satan as more of a foe to fight than a part of God’s counsel. This would be natural because the Persians were Zoroastrian worshipers and their God had a mirror-opposite, evil version of himself whom he was always battling. Some people think of this as a developing theology whereby the Israelites borrowed parts of their religion from other ancient people. Theologians just call this progressive revelation.
By the time of Jesus, Greek speaking Jews were using the Greek word (diabolos) “Devil” instead of ha-Satan but it’s really just a translation. Both words mean accuser. In his version of the story Matthew refers to this character as “Satan”, “the tempter” and “the Devil” just so everyone is clear. And really nobody doubted the existence of pure evil personified. In fact, it was assumed.
In the present age the world scorns those who believe in the supernatural (the idea of a “Devil” with horns and goat feet (not a biblical picture by the way) is shunned. Yet Christianity has historically affirmed the existence of the divine and quite frankly although it makes people very uncomfortable and seems superstitious to others… One cannot deny that it is the very same book that tells us there is a God which tells us there is a Devil. If one already believes in Angels (as most people do in the world – even the non-religious) it’s not exactly a giant leap to say that one should also believe in fallen angels.
In any case whether we believe or not one thing is for sure. Jesus and his followers did. In fact in the Lord’s Prayer we know (which comes from Matthew’s gospel) Jesus says, “Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from πονηρός ponēros (pah-neh-ross) The Evil One”. That is what he actually says.
Now, our story takes place at the very beginning of Jesus’ journey; before he even gathered his disciples.
And we’re told that for 40 days and 40 nights Jesus is in the wilderness. 40 days and 40 nights is important. It’s like recalling Noah’s time of rainfall as he prepares to start anew, Moses’ time on Mount Sinai as well and Elijah’s time in the desert as well as others. To the original audience it’s like a hint that this story is about temptation and preparation.
As an interesting note we’re told that Jesus was led out into the wilderness TO BE TEMPTED BY THE DEVIL. BUT He’s not led out by the Devil. He’s led out BY THE HOLY SPIRIT TO BE TEMPTED BY THE DEVIL. In the end it’s actually God that wants him tempted.
As the story goes, a billionaire oil tycoon from Texas decided to find a husband for his only daughter, a girl who wasn’t exactly having much luck in the dating department. He initiated his search by inviting local bachelors to a party in his backyard. A large, elegantly designed swimming pool dominated the yard. As the men edged by it to get their refreshments, they saw it was filled with sharks.
Clustering beside the pool, the bachelors puzzled over the strange sight. Just then the tycoon appeared on the patio and gave an emotional speech, telling how much he loved his daughter and expressing how much he wanted her to marry someone deserving of her. He then laid out The Deal. “Anyone who will jump in the swimming pool and swim to the other side will have their choice of a check for one million dollars with no questions asked or the hand of my daughter in marriage and your place in my will, which will result in your inheriting my entire fortune.”
The bachelors were speechless. Their questioning looks seemed to say that none of them would be crazy enough to risk his life–even for all that money. The long silence was finally broken by a splash. Everyone turned to see one of the men swimming to the far side of the pool as fast as any Olympic swimmer ever could. Leaping out of the water, he shook himself off and walked over to the tycoon. With a hug and a handshake, the oil man congratulated the boy on a fine swim.
“Son, would you like a million dollar check?” he asked. “No sir, I wouldn’t,” responded the young man politely, and slightly out of breath. “Fine,” said the tycoon. With a tear in his eye the tycoon asked, “Then, my boy, would you like my only daughter’s hand in marriage?” To the surprise of the gawking bachelors, the young man replied, “No sir.” Puzzled and a little hurt, the tycoon asked, “Well then, son, what do you want?” “I only want one thing,” he answered. “I want the name of the guy who pushed me.”
Nobody would willingly jump into a shark-infested pool–even for a million dollars.
Similarly, no one really wants to be tested. It’s something forced upon you. And in this case it’s God’s idea. And I can’t help but wonder… Maybe it always is??? Not because God wants us to fall for temptation though… maybe it’s because he wants to watch us overcome it.
After living in the hot desert (Luke’s word), and eating nothing for 40 days (most likely living off only water), staving, smelling of the desert sun and the wild animals, emaciated, in his most vulnerable state; skin most likely just hanging off his skeleton – the Devil asks a literally starving Christ to turn stones into bread (something God does for Moses and the Israelites when they are in the wilderness) and Jesus just waves his nearly lifeless arms and shrugs the very notion of it away. The way he deals with temptation is – He calls on God. He quotes the Hebrew Bible and says, “Man cannot live on bread alone”. Jesus has no need to prove He is the Son of God.
In the story it all just seems so easy for him. But I don’t think it was. It can’t be a real temptation unless it’s actually tempting. I suspect it wasn’t quite as easy as it appears. If Jesus was truly fully human as we say he was, then I bet he had to struggle with it, just like us.
I read this story about a boy and a shopkeeper this week. Apparently the shopkeeper sees a little boy standing outside of the storefront; wide eyed and staring down at a large basket of apples with a lot of sideways glances as if he’s constantly checking to see if anyone is watching him. “What are you doing son?” the shopkeeper asked the little boy “Trying to steal one of those apples?” “No sir” said the boy as he stood up straight. And then he swallowed hard “Then what’cha do’n boy” the shopkeeper said. And at that the boy took a deep breath and said, “Trying not to”.
I suspect that’s more the way it is for most folks. That’s why Humorist Sam Levenson said, “Lead us not into temptation. Just tell us where it is; we’ll find it.”
It’s a struggle. And even if we weren’t surrounded by it – we’d find it anyway.
The Huntington River Gorge, near Richmond, Vermont, is beautiful but deadly. In recent years, twenty people (mostly in their early twenties) have lost their lives in the gorge. Hundreds of gorge swimmers have been severely injured.
See, on the surface the water of the gorge looks calm and placid, but beneath it are strong currents that run swiftly over treacherous underwater drops, crags and whirlpools. Public safety officials have designated the gorge “the single most deadly place in the state of Vermont.” Warning signs have been posted all over the place, reading, “When the water is high due to rain or snowmelt, especially powerful currents can easily sweep you over the falls and trap you underneath the water.” There are Danger and Warning signs everywhere.
Over the years people have debated about what to do about the gorge. Some argue for more public information about the gorge’s risks. Others want to ban anyone from visiting the place all together.
Meanwhile, swimmers continue to be attracted to the scene. One college student attending the University of Vermont—just fourteen miles from the gorge—said she had heard about the beauty of Huntington River Gorge and wanted to swim in it. She said people already know about the dangers and try their best to be careful. But as young Katie Zezima told the New York Times, “You can’t change the water, and you can’t stop people from going in,” (Katie Zezima, “An Enticing Gorge Poses a Deadly Problem,” The New York Times (July 16, 2006)147 725-729)
The world can be a dangerous place. And even though we don’t often think of it in those terms, we are surrounded by temptations. You can’t keep people away from temptation. Whether it’s the temptation to speed or lie your way out of a ticket, or cheat on your taxes, have two extra helping of desert, or something far, far more serious, temptation is literally everywhere because it is anything you know you shouldn’t do – and so because of that temptation is far more than the personification of evil… that’s part of it but really – it takes every possible form known to man.
When the Devil takes Jesus up to the Temple and says “throw yourself off if you are the Son of God and He will protect you” Jesus again quotes the Hebrew Bible and says, “No.”, “Do not put the LORD your God to the test.”
And when the Devil promises him every kingdom in eye’s sight (even his beloved Israel, at that very moment – oppressed by Rome and its army) and says all you have to do is “bow”… Jesus says “No”. “You shall worship the LORD your God and Serve Him only”. When dealing with temptation his first response is always to call on God.
And then that’s it. Matthew shows that Jesus has been tested and has come out victorious. And that’s the end of the story. The End.
But it’s not. Not really. You see, I promise you that wasn’t the first time in 30 some years that Jesus was ever tempted. And I promise you that it wasn’t the last either.
What’s more, if you read this over carefully you’ll see that the Bible doesn’t actually say, “Jesus went out into the desert to fast” or Jesus “was to be tempted 3 times” It actually says, “Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil.” And in Luke it says, “for 40 days he was tested”. And for me… that one little sentence makes all the difference. See, it’s not that Jesus defeated this pure personification of evil in three great temptations. These are just the three that get their own headlines. He was tempted every day.
And that’s where I find the most meaning in this story. Because I think that’s just how it is for us. It’s not just a one-time deal or even a three-time deal. It happens every day of our lives. In fact more than that, it’s a part of our lives. Who hasn’t been tempted in one way or another? There is no escaping it. The fact that we’re tempted to do things we shouldn’t do is a part of who we are as fallen people.
There is no getting away from the danger. You can’t stop people from going to the gorge. The gorge is everywhere. Moreover if the bible is to be trusted, God even puts us to the test on purpose sometimes just to see what we’re really made of.
And as if that isn’t bad enough, sometimes, some of us will actually go out looking for it too.
In the end, I can’t help but think back to my time in the raft as the best possible way to deal with trials and temptations in life. There is something about that image of uncontrollably being pushed into the rocks that speaks to me. And so, in the end, I think Ralph Waldo Emerson put it best. When writing about temptations he wrote “Call on God, but row away from the rocks”.
This is the Lord’s example. May we follow. – Amen
Song: O Jesus, I have promised (569)
We respond to serve God
Reflection on giving: We have been giving faithfully since the beginning of the pandemic and we are committed to continuing the ministry and mission that define Dayspring – using the ways described below. Thank you all for your support of our shared vision and mission.
Prayer of gratitude and for others and ourselves
Lord God, we offer our gifts in thanksgiving for all the goodness you provide. Bless our gives and our lives so that we become a source of goodness for others, in the name of Christ, our strength and our hope.
God of all life and each life, we offer you thanks for all the ways we meet you in our daily lives:
- in a word of encouragement, (brief silence)
- an insight into truth, (brief silence)
- an answer to prayer. (brief silence)
Thank you for a breath of calm in the midst of stress, and an offer of support when we need it. (brief silence)
Thank you for a sense of accomplishment that our work matters and moments of rest and relaxation to renew us. (brief silence)
Thank you for all these signs that you love us, understand us and walk with us, Loving God.
Our gratitude for your love reminds us of the need for your mercy in the world.
And so in times of silence we pray for:
The world and the people and places in the news this week. (silence for a count of 10)
Leaders facing difficult decisions and balancing different needs in complex situations. (silence for a count of 10)
Your church and congregations facing new challenges and opportunities for mission. (silence for a count of 10)
Our workplaces and our community facing many needs and pressures. (silence for a count of 10)
Our family, friends and neighbours, especially those facing hard choices these days. (silence for a count of 10)
And for ourselves, offering to you our own concerns. (silence for a count of 10)
Thank you for your grace that embraces all for whom we pray, O God. In the week ahead, help us notice your hand at work in our lives and in this troubled world.
Song: Word of God across the ages (497)
Sending out with God’s blessing
As we begin our journey through the season of Lent, remember the words of the prophet Micah: What does the Lord require of us? To do justice, love kindness and walk humbly with our God.
May God’s loving kindness comfort you,
God’s justice inspire you,
And Jesus walk beside you in humility and hope.
Response: Amen, we praise your name, O God
Music postlude
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Numbers in brackets after a song/hymn indicate that it is from the 1997 Book of Praise of the Presbyterian Church in Canada. Those and other songs are being used in accordance with the specifications of Dayspring’s licensing with One Licence (3095377) and CLC (A735555).
The Rev. Brad Childs retains the copyright (© 2023) on all original material in this service. As far as Brad Childs is aware, all of the material that has not been attributed to others is his own creation or is in the public domain. Unacknowledged use of copyrighted material is unintentional and will be corrected immediately upon notification being received.