Victory Over Temptation

Text: Mark 1:9-15

In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

            We begin this Lent as we always do, hearing about the temptation of Jesus. As we ourselves are only just embarking on our own forty-day spiritual warfare and time of fasting—in whatever way best benefits us—we look to Jesus for guidance and direction, seeing Him going ahead of us in His own forty-day time of fasting and prayer in the desert. As He led His people forty years in the wilderness during the Exodus out of Egypt, we turn to Him these forty days to be led to our own Promised Land of Easter. And just as He fought for His people then, so He fights for His people now, as shown in the reading for today: the temptation of Jesus.

            But unlike Matthew and Luke’s more familiar account of Jesus’ temptation in wilderness, Mark does not give us much detail—or so it would seem at first. Rather, we have a sparse, stark picture painted for us. No dialogue, few descriptive words. Matthew and Luke give us the specific examples of the temptations that the evil one set before Jesus: to make stones become bread to fill His hungry stomach, to test God by jumping off the temple, to take the easy route to dominion and power by bowing down to the tempter. Matthew and Luke also give us the specific Scripture passages Jesus used in response to those temptations. But Mark does not. He gives us only this sketch: “The Spirit immediately drove [Jesus] out into the wilderness. And he was in the wilderness forty days, being tempted by Satan. And he was with the wild animals, and the angels were ministering to him.”

            So what is Mark doing with this very intentionally sparse and bare-bones account? He almost makes it sound like Jesus’ temptation was a simple matter-of-fact, a one-sided battle. There’s no dramatic detail as in the other gospels, almost like it was so lop-sided that the devil never really had a chance; that the fight was over before it began. Mark makes it seem like it must have been such a landslide victory for Jesus that the blow-by-blow record wasn’t even worth writing down because Satan couldn’t even land a single punch.

            And, in a way, that’s precisely the point Mark is making. Throughout his gospel, Mark is going to be chronicling the war that Jesus makes against the kingdom of the devil. But this will be no evenly matched tug-of-war, with the final outcome a suspenseful question mark yet to be answered. No—this will be a decisive victory for Jesus, everywhere He goes. In every single stronghold of Satan, whether it’s in the wilderness wasteplaces, the home of jackals and demons; or the tombs of the dead, with ranting and raving men possessed by unclean spirits; whether it’s the lies publicly proclaimed by hell’s minions in broad daylight, or the three hour darkness of Golgotha as hell makes its last assault on the Son of God; no matter where and when, Jesus is going to get the victory. Every single time. Yes, it will hurt Him at times, as all battles do. Yes, He will weep. Yes, it will cost Him—He will even die in this war. But there will never be a question of who wins. It will always and only be Jesus.

            That’s important for us to remember in our own times of temptation and spiritual affliction. Often, we will be tempted, and then that temptation will be compounded by wanting to try out our own power, or our own discipline, or our own just-enough adherence to the Law. But those things will never win the war with the evil one. And you can be sure that it is a war. Mark’s point here is that even something as everyday and mundane as temptation, with no colorful vivid detail, just the common, descriptionless temptation we face every day—that is in fact spiritual warfare. And if you’re trusting in your own resolve or cleverness or purity, you will not win. Adam and Eve couldn’t win, even in their blissful state, even surrounded by the splendor and plenty of Eden. What chance do you really think you have against the old evil foe, who has been successfully leading all mortals into temptation since then? You just sang with your own lips, “On earth is not his equal.”

            So we are taught here to look for our victory over temptation in Jesus. When you are tempted, don’t try to wrestle the devil to the ground with your own strength or willpower. Don’t think you can outwit him or that there’s some simple trick to outmaneuver him. Rather, when you’re faced with temptation, tell the devil that he’s already lost this fight, back in the wilderness, when Jesus won, when all the tempter’s weapons were broken and Jesus announced, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the Gospel.” Repent—that is turn away from your own self-chosen paths, from your old ways, from thinking you can handle this with maybe just a little extra help or clever tips from Jesus. Repent of all that and believe in the Gospel. Believe that Jesus has already won. Find your strength, your resolve, your protection in that. A mighty fortress is our God, so run to Him. Hide yourself in Him, since He’s a fortress. Cover yourself with His Word, with His blessing. See the walls being built up around you by your fellow soldier-saints as they pray for you here in the service and in quiet moments of devotion at home. Be shielded and strengthened by receiving the body and blood of Jesus, given and shed for you. Receive the victory of life over death in that Sacrament. Have the saint in you strengthened daily in Baptism as the old Adam is drowned with all sin and evil desires. Fight the good fight of faith, but find your strength for the fight in what Jesus has already won, what He already shares with you in all these beautiful places: His Supper, His font, His pulpit, His altar, His Word. Those are the springs in the desert wilderness that will sustain you during your time of testing.

            For you will be tested. Just as the Holy Spirit drove Jesus into the wilderness, so you will be led by your God to tests, as your father in the faith Abraham was, as all God’s people have been. Those tests, those trials, that spiritual affliction and temptation, may not be pleasant at the time. But they will do something important. Your crosses and trials will draw you to Jesus’ cross and trials. That is to say, they will draw you to all the places where Jesus has already won the victory. That’s why you can confidently say with St. James, “Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.” This is the crown Jesus has for you. Follow Him through the wilderness of this world to the life that waits for you with Him. In the name of Jesus, who conquers. Amen.