LENT 1, B – March 1, 2009

SCRIPTURES – Genesis 22:1-18; James 1:12-18; Mark 1:9-15 

Take out your Worship Resources sheet and flip it over to the Epistle reading from James. Now, read with me the first sentence from that reading: “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.” Say it with me again: “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.” I urge you to say these words again and again this week. Memorize them and take them to heart! They will be your strength when you undergo trials and the testing of your faith.

 

You will undergo them. When this will be, and in what ways your faith will be tested, what form your testing will take – a health crisis, or someone challenging your faith in Christ and your trust in His Word, or a financial hardship – I do not know. I only know that you will be tested. If Abraham, a man of faith whom God loved and called His friend, was tested by God; and, if Jesus, the beloved Son of God Himself with whom God was well pleased, was nevertheless driven by God’s Spirit into the wilderness so that He would be tempted by Satan – then you can be sure that you, too, will be tested.

 

Satan will tempt you because he is evil and hates you. He will tempt you, try to get you to not trust God and not follow what He says. Satan hates you because you are loved by God and love Him, and so he will try to overthrow your faith.

 

God will not tempt you. No, as James tells us very plainly, “God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one.” God loves you and does not want you to fall into sin. But, He does want you to be weak in faith, either. He wants you to be strong, to know His Word and trust in Him, relying upon and following what He says. In order to strengthen your trust and your reliance upon Him and His Word, He will put you to the test.

q   I’m being tested right now. I have been seeing an attractive young woman lately. She’s blond, cute, and smart. We meet twice a week, and always at her place. I do look forward to seeing her; but, you know something? She always hurts me. You see, Missy is my physical therapist. She’s been working on my shoulder, helping me to recover from the surgery I had in January. She’s always moving my arm beyond where it will easily go, pushing it to where it hurts, and is digging into my shoulder with her fingers and finding sore spots, which she then digs into even more. She gives me exercises to do that are hard work and very tiring. Why do I go to her? Why do I put up with this? You know the answer, of course. This is good for me! It’s what I need to have the full use of my arm and shoulder and not be burdened with pain and restricted movement. I’m not upset with her for hurting me. No, I’d upset if she didn’t hurt me and push me!

God pushes us and tests us in order to strengthen our trust and confirm our faith in Him. If He did not do this but let us grow weak in faith, He would not be good. But, He is not dealing with the body. God deals with the mind, the heart, and the will. They are not so easily pushed and tested. To remind us of and lead us to hold onto His promises; to turn us away from loving and trusting someone else, or ourselves and our wisdom, more than we love and trust Him; or, to keep us from setting our hearts on things which are detrimental to our  faith; is not easy. His tests, then, are also not easy, and sometimes are not even understandable to us. “Abraham! Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering.” This test can’t be sugar coated. A God who asks this of one who loves Him sounds like a harsh and unloving God to us. Often times the things we endure – the sudden death of a loved one; a diagnosis of cancer; the loss of a home – make it seem as if God does not care, has abandoned us or perhaps is even against us. What can you do then?

 

Trust God and obey Him, as did Abraham. He went to the land of Moriah to sacrifice his son, whom he loved dearly. How could he do this? Well, he first of all remembered that his son was not really his. God had promised this son to him, and, when Abraham was very old and long after his wife Sarah had passed her child-bearing years, God had kept His promise. Isaac was born. He was a gift from a faithful and loving God. Abraham also remembered the promise God had given regarding Isaac, that in him all the nations of the world would be blessed. How good was his God! He held onto this promise regarding his son; he remembered that his son was really God’s son; and so, he was strengthened in faith to obey God and sacrifice his son. God would do something great, even raise His son from the dead if He had to!, in order to keep His promise regarding him. He would, because He is good and faithful. “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change,” says James. Abraham believed this and obeyed God, and he saw God’s faithfulness. God provided a ram to sacrifice instead of his son, and Isaac was given back to him.

 

God is good and faithful to us all, and has done something utterly incredible: He has given us His Son. He was given into this world, to endure the temptations of Satan just like us. He was tested in His faith, just like us. In Jesus we see that God is not unconcerned or unaware, sitting up on high and looking elsewhere when you are being tested. He knows what you are enduring, having experienced similar things Himself! As your Creator He also knows you and will not give you more than you can bear. Trust Him! Learn and follow what He says and obey Him, even if this means hardship! He will strengthen and confirm your faith. He will give you the crown of life.

 

“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 a promise to hold onto. It’s not just a promise for the future, of life in heaven to be received after we die. It’s a promise for now, because in Jesus we have eternal life now. In Christ your life is crowned with God’s love and care, for He has brought us into God’s kingdom. This promise will carry you into the future as you hold onto it. You will see it’s complete fulfillment in heaven, where there will be no more trial or testing, and no temptations of the devil. “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 certain, for Christ has triumphed for us!