What am I being tested for?

What am I being tested for?
Genesis 2:15-17; 3:1-7
Matthew 4:4-11
Year A
First Sunday of Lent
Repreached on 3/13/11
2/10/08



Introduction

You don’t have to even go to church to know the story of adam and eve. I would think that this story takes the cake as one of the most significant bible stories in all of the world. I don’t even have to repeat that one for you I am positive that you know it. What you might not know is that there is a tradition in Jewish culture called midrash – that is the story behind the story. Folklore that everyone in jewish culture would have know, but it is not written in the book. For instance, in the creation story when it talks about how it think it was in the first day that Jesus made separated the water from the land and bought order out of chaos. Everyone would have known that chaos is actually the name of a water dragon. And it was a pretty big fight to bring get the water dragon chaos out of the water so that the water would be calmed and ordered.

The meaning of the Adam and Eve Story
There are lots of midrash stories around the story of adam and eve – for instance did you know that eve is actually Adam’s second wife. His first wife is named Lilith. God created adam and Lilith at the same time as equals. So Lilith had a fit when Adam started bossing her around and telling her to clean the house and pick up after her. She refused under the premise that as equals, his hands were just as good as hers. Lilith stood up to him about everything. So adam finally divorced her and went to God to explain that the arrangement was just not going to work out. That’s when God put him to sleep and created eve out of adam’s rib. Eve, being younger and not being an equal was willing to do everything that Adam said. So they got along fine. While Lilith lived as a single woman on the other side of the garden. But anyway….




The questions is addresses

There are many stories like that about this the story of first. Because even though simple it addresses the fundamental questions of who we are as human beings. Even the name adam is actually the Hebrew word for mankind. The story of adam and eve addresses the question of why do we have to work so hard to be happy in life, why do we have to earn the things we need in life, why do we have to wait for things to grow, why must there be regrets in life, why do women have to suffer in order to have children, why do we age, why do we die? The questions go on, but the story of adam and eve addresses them all.


New adam and eve story

We all know that the story has also been used to justify the denial of equal rights of women. That it was Eve’s fault that the couple was banished from the garden of eden – the Lilith story takes care of that. But I want to share a new story of adam and eve. I like it because I think that it addresses the fundamental question of lent of the definition of sin and how it affects our lives – I would think each of could relate to the story in some way.

In the beginning God covered the earth with broccoli, cauliflower and
spinach, with green, yellow and red vegetables of all kinds so Man and Woman
would live long and healthy lives.
Then using God's bountiful gifts, Satan created Dairy Ice Cream and
Magnums.
And Satan said "You want hot fudge with that?
And Man said "Yes!"
And Woman said "I'll have one too with chocolate chips".
And lo, they gained 10 pounds.
And God created the healthy yoghurt that Woman might keep the figure
that Man found so fair.
And Satan brought forth white flour from the wheat and sugar from the cane and
combined them.
And Woman went from size 12 to size 14.
So God said "Try my fresh green salad".
And Satan presented Blue Cheese dressing and garlic croutons on the side.
And Man and Woman unfastened their belts following the repast.
God then said "I have sent you healthy vegetables and olive oil in
which to cook them".
And Satan brought forth deep fried coconut king prawns, butter-dipped lobster
chunks and chicken fried steak, so big it needed its own platter.
And Man's cholesterol went through the roof.
Then God brought forth the potato, naturally low in fat and brimming
with potassium and good nutrition.
Then Satan peeled off the healthy skin and sliced the starchy centre into chips
and deep fried them in animal fats adding copious quantities of salt.
And Man put on more pounds.
Then God gave lean beef so that Man might consume fewer calories and
still satisfy his appetite.
And Satan created McDonalds and the £1.00 double cheeseburger.
Then Satan said "You want fries with that?" and Man replied "Yes, and super size
'em".
God then brought forth running shoes so that his Children might lose
those extra pounds.
And Satan came forth with a cable TV with remote control so Man would not have
to toil changing the channels.
And Man and Woman laughed and cried before the flickering light and started
wearing stretch jogging suits.
And Satan said "It is good."
And Man and Woman went into cardiac arrest.
God sighed ......... and created quadruple by-pass surgery.
And then Satan chuckled and health insurance and all of the paperwork which goes with it.




The story of temptation

I would think that is the story of temptation in our lives. The things that are right and good for us are bountiful in our lives, but we want something more. Something differerent. Something more exciting. Temptation is the recognition that we have the power in our lives to do what we want to do, even if we know within our lives that it is not the best thing.

Temptation in our lives

God gave us the right to make choices in our lives. That was a really big thing in the garden of eden – choices and the right to think for ourselves and to know that we will bear the consequences of those choices. Adam and eve were not driven out of the garden of eden for the choices they made, but because they were not prepared for the consequences of those choices. We are all faced with temptation, that is what it means to be human. But how do we know to make the right choices and prepare ourselves for those consequences?

Temptation in Jesus life

Because we have the priviledge of knowing the story of Jesus. Every first Sunday of lent, we hear of Jesus was tempted. In todays version of the story, the spirit led him into the wilderness. And while there satan came to Jesus and gave him three choices – choices we face everyday about prestige, plenty and power. In each choice, Jesus chose to do what he knew was right, rather than what would benefit him.

What Jesus shows us about ourselves

In the wilderness Jesus was being tested for the task that God had in store for him. If the essence of God was present in Jesus as we believe, then this would have been easy for him. The essence of what it means to be human was also present in Jesus – so it was a struggle. But Jesus made the right choice and proved that we are capable of doing to same.


A man was the sole survivor in his platoon in world war I. His lost all of his friends in a horrible battle. Years later as he read the story of the battle, he was disturbed to find that history recorded this battle as inconsequential. A newspaper article reported that this was an easy battle and that not many men had been lost. The sole survivor knew different. This battle had been a huge sacrifice, and a lot of effort had been put into defending his territory.
When we hear of Jesus temptation, our reaction is the same – how hard could it have been for the son of God to resist temptation? In the battle of life, when we see the consequences of those who have given in to sin in their lives – we know that it was, and continue to be a huge battle for the son of man. And yet Jesus wanted to show us that the battle could be won. And that we as humans can win the battle.

Power and energy

Like the word Adam, the name satan is not a name for a person it is a technical term. It means the one who asks questions. Satan is not a red man with a pitchfork. Satan is the challenger in our lives, the one who asks pertinent questions – like are you going to eat that? Are you going to let that person get away with that? Are you going to just let that happen? Do you really need to do that? It is in how we answer those questions that determines our sin in life.

Sin is about who we use our power

Dumbledorf, a character in the Harry Potter story once said that there is no good or bad in the world, there is only power and those who do not know how to use it. In the story of adam and eve, God had the power to create. The story says God formed, God formed, God breathed, God planted, God took, God put, God said. God had actually did all of the work of creation. When you look at the story of the serpent, there are no action verbs, the snake didn’t do anything but ask questions about what God had already said. In the story of Jesus temptation – It was the Spirit that led and once again Satan’s only power is to ask Jesus questions about what God had already done. In both stories the people don’t have the power to act- they only have to power to respond. That is something to think about – Jesus power was not in what he did – it was in what he was willing to wait and to let God do for him. Each of us indeed has that same power. There is no good or bad, only power and those who don’t know how to use. Sin is always a misuse of our power – to depend on a God who always acts.

This lent – depend on the power of God

Lent is a chance for us to be reminded of what it means to be human – like adam from dust you came and to dust you shall return. We have no power within ourselves to do anything. And yet God created us to take an active role in the continuing story of creation. Adam and Eve only started the story – God calls you to help God create the rest of the story. It is human for us to have to work and to wait for things to come. Jesus showed us that it is also human to depend upon God to be the powerful force behind making our work useful.

Angels ministered to him….
Matthew ends with a promise that the devil left him and suddenly the angels came and waited on him. As you make the right choices – may you look for your angels.

Amen