March 9, 2025

It’s Tempting

So, Four members of the current Administration in Washington and a list of at least seven Hollywood stars have faced allegations of sexual misconduct. The thing is, I suspect that most of us, at least at some point or another in our lives, have done things we regret. We’re “tempted” not only by sex, but by the occasional opportunity to cheat on our taxes, by an impractical but stylish car, and, of course, by chocolate. A good friend of ours visited recently and, bless her heart, gave us a big bag of chocolate candy. Unfortunately, I pass by that bag in the kitchen several times a day. As Oscar Wilde famously offered (on the lips of Lord Darlington), “I can resist everything except temptation.”

So we have some acquaintance with temptation. And when Jesus is tempted, so the Bible says, by Satan in the wilderness, we feel that we have some basis for empathizing. But I think we’ve got a lot to learn. You and I tend to focus on specific things that we’ve been told we’re not supposed to do because they’re “bad things.” So, it’s easy for us to reduce this whole concept of temptation to a list of “no-no’s, a list that no doubt includes messing around with the woman next door and eating chocolate. But Jesus put the whole thing in a larger context. He artfully used a few scripture verses to carve away the fluff and dig right down to the core of what temptation is all about – the worst kind of temptation, the kind of temptation that, if you yield to it, can eat up your soul and leave you with nothing but a hungry heart.

The temptations of Jesus were three: carelessness, idolatry, and deceit. There’s a lot we can learn from his ordeal in the desert. There’s a lot to be gleaned from the way he framed the issues.

Satan, so the story goes, tempted him to turn a rock into a loaf of bread. But here’s how Jesus frames the dilemma: he says, “It is written, ‘One does not live by bread alone.’” Here’s what I think was going on: Jesus was in the midst of a spiritual quest. He was disciplining himself by fasting, seeking a connection with the deeper reality of the spirit which transcends and underlies the cravings of the body. The temptation wasn’t simply to munch on a piece of bread, like we might succumb to a bar of chocolate, it was the temptation to live carelessly – to deny the spiritual center that he was in the midst of seeking.

What portion of our lives do you and I devote to seeking that spiritual center? Have any of us pursued a deep connection with the Ground of All Being with such passion and intention that we would deny ourselves life’s pleasures, or even necessities? This is the first great temptation we face. It is the temptation to deny that our essential nature is one of spirit, and that our sprits need care. They need to be fed, nurtured, and grown.

Spirituality isn’t just moving into ones’ self for the sake of gaining a little more peace in your life (although, that is certainly a benefit). The highly developed and mature spirit is not only an inner resource, it’s a gift to be shared. It means not just a deeper but a broader awareness. It means living with care for oneself and for others. That’s why we strive to abstain from unhealthy foods and unhealthy relationships, not simply because they are on a list of “no-no’s” but because we are taking care of all our spirits.

One seasoned and wise spirit can make a profound difference in a community, or even a nation. It’s been said that the key event – the major turning point – in the American Revolution was the moment George Washington retired from the army and went home to Mount Vernon. At the end of the Revolutionary War, the nation worshiped Washington; they wanted to make him king of America. They would have granted him virtually anything – unlimited power. But with a spirit afflicted and tested over years of trial, Washington had gained the wisdom to know that if he yielded to the temptation of unimaginable personal power, the Constitution would be rendered null and void, and all that he and his countrymen had fought for would be lost. The inner lights of one person, carefully tended and empowered, can light the way for a whole people.

The second temptation is well known to us. It’s practically written in our DNA. The story says the devil promised vast wealth and power if only Jesus would worship him. Again he replies from scripture: “It is written, ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.’”

We don’t set out to worship other gods, we just want a degree of comfort and security in life. But one thing always leads to another, and before we know it we are living for and serving the things that please us and protect us: money, position, possessions, influence, admiration. In time, it can become virtually impossible for the Spirit of the Lord to squeeze in through the cracks between our golden calves of distraction. Sometimes I wonder if that’s why Jesus spent so much of his time with the outcasts and misfits, and why he said that the poor would inherit the kingdom, and that it would be harder for a rich man to enter the kingdom than for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle. Sometimes I wonder if he instinctively knew that those who are less privileged, less secure, less satisfied, have more room in their hearts for the Spirit to move in.

But it’s not just money we worship, it can be virtually anything and everything. Martin Luther said, “That to which your heart clings and entrusts itself is, I say, your god.” What are our idols in America? I was curious what they might be so I got on the Internet and did a web search for “American . . . idol” and got 319 million hits! (Well, actually, I stopped counting after 700). Truth is, the way people talk about the TV show, you might think it really is an idol. We can fill our lives with television, or food, or toys, or even church! It’s true, church can become an idol!

If we start worshiping the institution instead of the Lord of Life it’s designed to serve, we can make a golden calf of it. William Willimon gives his take on Aaron’s defense when Moses came down from the mountain and found the children of Israel worshiping the golden calf. He writes, “Aaron said (I think), ‘But Moses, they are having such a wonderful time. The people are feeling much better about themselves. Even the teenagers are involved. I take this as evidence of a great rebirth of spirituality in our age. Besides, the parking lot is full and who can argue with that?’” We need to be vigilant about just who and what we are worshiping, even here on Sunday mornings!

And finally, Jesus was confronted with the temptation to throw himself off the temple tower so that God would send angels to rescue him. He answered, “It is said, ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’” The temptation to bargain with the Lord is simply one manifestation of our proclivity to deceive everyone, beginning with ourselves.

Sir Walter Scott was right. Deception is indeed the beginning of a “tangled web.” And self-deception is its prelude. Whether it’s wearing a mask to conceal your true motives, or jumping off a bell tower under the delusion that it’s the Divine intention to protect you from all harm, living the lie complicates life, cheapens its purpose, and erodes its value.

A classic example is Thomas Jefferson’s great self-deception. As you know, Jefferson was the principle author of the Declaration of Independence. The noble words in that document about the “self-evident” truth that “all men are created equal” were the hallmark of a new idea that was America. It was an idea that would be expanded upon and outlive the limited definitions of what constituted a person in Jefferson’s time. But at the same time he was writing these great words, Jefferson was holding slaves himself, slaves he would not release up to the point of his own death.

Bill Moyers says, “Addicted to his own place and privilege, he could send the noblest sentiments winging around the world, but refused to let them lodge in his own home. . . . He knew the truth, and he lived the lie.”

That’s what tempts us to betray ourselves and those around us: knowing the truth, but living the lie.

The season of Lent has arrived. During these forty days leading up to Easter Christians traditionally do a lot of soul-searching. They often deny themselves some pleasure, or fast, or spend regular time in prayer. This is done to follow the example of Jesus who spent those forty days fasting in the wilderness, engaged in spiritual struggle. But it’s not about giving up candy bars as a tradition – like Ground Hog Day or saying “bless you” when someone sneezes. These days afford a great opportunity to examine your life, to consider what draws you to be careless about your essential spiritual center, what compels you to chase after the false gods of money, possessions, or even religiosity, what tempts you to live the lie even when you know the truth.

It’s tempting . . . to consider all the talk of “spiritual discipline” and “self-examination” just a bunch of churchy stuff that has little to do with me. But I tell you, it’s the sort of thing that great people, great institutions, and great nations are made of.