Day 4 - Saturday, March 4
The Temptation of Christ
Scripture: Hebrews 4:15-16
For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

Poetry:
"Temptations"
by Malcolm Guite
1 Stones into bread

The Fountain thirsts, the Bread is hungry here,
The Light is dark, the Word without a voice.
When darkness speaks it seems so light and clear.
Now he must dare, with us, to make a choice.
In a distended belly’s cruel curve
He feels the famine of the ones who lose,
He starves for those whom we have forced to starve,
He chooses now for those who cannot choose.
He is the staff and sustenance of life,
He lives for all from one sustaining Word,
His love still breaks and pierces like a knife
The stony ground of hearts that never shared,
God gives through him what Satan never could;
The broken bread that is our only food.

2 All the kingdoms of the world

‘So here’s the deal and this is what you get:
The penthouse suite with world-commanding views,
The banker’s bonus and the private jet,
Control and ownership of all the news,
An “in” to that exclusive one percent,
Who know the score, who really run the show,
With interest on every penny lent
And sweeteners for cronies in the know.
A straight arrangement between me and you,
No hell below or heaven high above,
You just admit it, and give me my due
And wake up from this foolish dream of love…’
But Jesus laughed, ‘You are not what you seem.
Love is the waking life, you are the dream.’

3 On the pinnacle

‘Temples and spires are good for looking down from;
You stand above the world and holy heights,
Here on the pinnacle, above the maelstrom,
Among the few, the true, unearthly lights.
Here you can breathe the thin air of perfection
And feel your kinship with the lonely star,
Above the shadow and the pale reflection,
Here you can know for certain who you are.
The world is stalled below, but you could move it
If they could know you as you are up here.
Of course they’ll doubt, but here’s your chance to prove it!
Angels will bear you up, so have no fear…’
‘I was not sent to look down from above,
It’s fear that sets these tests and proofs, not love.’

IN EVERY RESPECT    
Hebrews 4:15-16 contains some of the most comforting language in the entire Bible. In these words is the heart of the gospel, the paradox of a kingly, priestly, powerful God who is also a relational human being, one who struggled in this harsh world just as we do, choosing not "to look down from above" but to know us and love us here. As one of us. A man who ate and drank, laughed and cried, bled and sweat as we do.

Take a few minutes to meditate on the two sentences of Hebrews 4:15-16. Repeat them. Sit with them. Ponder their implications. Pray in response to them. This is one of those passages one shouldn't quickly pass over. This is a mysterious, thrilling, absurd and humbling passage, one to hold deeply in the heart and access regularly.

What does it mean that "in every respect" Jesus "has been tempted as we are, yet without sin." In every respect. Think about that. How many ways are we tempted, on any given day? Temptations to sin abound: to put our interests and safety above that of others; to seek power and prestige; to spew condemnation on social media; to be prideful; to lie; to lust. The list could go on.

Even now I am tempted as I feel the insidious allure of pride, whispering to me that my writing will impress people. Temptation is everywhere, and its pull on us is hard to resist. But Jesus knows what this is like. He can sympathize with our weaknesses. He's been tempted as we are, in every respect. And yet he did not sin.

Sometimes we view Jesus as a sort of superhero, a God who took on the form of humanity but was really indestructible. Our immersion in the pop culture narratives of comic books reinforces this perception. But the writer of Hebrews makes it clear that Jesus is no stranger to weakness. He wasn't like Superman with only one weakness, Kryptonite. He was a hero who flipped weakness on its head and redefined it as strength. As Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 1:27, in Christ's crucifixion "God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong."

In his time in the wilderness, in the ridicule he endured during his ministry, and ultimately at the cross, Jesus leaned in to suffering and weakness. For our sake. He meets us and knows us in our own deserts. In our darkest hours of suffering he says I know what it's like. And yet none of this is simply for the sake of solidarity. Jesus endured temptation, suffering and death so that we could have access to God's presence, having confidence to draw near to the throne of grace.

PRAYER
Lord,
Lead us not into temptation
But deliver us from evil.
Guide our decisions
Protect our vulnerable hearts
Help us to call out to you in our weakness
Speak to us in our struggles
In your mercy and grace,
Draw near to us in our time of need.
Amen.

Brett McCracken
Associate Director of Presidential Communications