The First Sunday in Lent (Year C), Feb. 25, 2007
BCP: Deut. 26: (1-4)5-11; Psalm 91 or 91:9-15; Rom. 10:(5-8a)8b-13; Luke 4:1-13
RCL: Deut. 26:1-11; Psalm 91:1-2, 9-16; Rom. 10:8b-13; Luke 4:1-13
Idols are anything less than God that we substitute for God or worship as God. Idols can be things that are good, but less than God. It is possible to make a need, a desire, or a possession into an idol. The most alluring idols can be the ones that seem to be most essential and important to us. In this way something good in itself can become harmful.
After 40 days in the wilderness without food, Jesus is famished. His hunger is very real, but his need becomes the basis for his first temptation in the wilderness. If Jesus is the Son of God, the devil says, he can command a stone to become a loaf of bread. That would satisfy his need. But there is more for Jesus to consider. His temptation is to put his hunger first and make an idol of his need. His food would come at a price that he will not pay. Jesus cannot live “by bread alone” (Luke 4:4).
The next temptation is power. The devil offers Jesus the glory and authority of all the kingdoms of the world. Certainly this vast authority could be used for good, and many could share its glory. Real needs could be helped. But this power is another idol, and the price for its availability is the devil’s worship. Jesus refuses.
Finally, Jesus faces the temptation of certainty. The devil offers a way for him to prove his identity beyond question. If Jesus will throw himself down from the pinnacle of the temple, God’s angels will protect him. That dramatic rescue will provide solid proof and certainty. He will not even need faith. But Jesus avoids this temptation as well, saying that God should not be put “to the test” (Luke 4:12). God is not a laboratory experiment, and the desire for certainty in faith is a dangerous idol.
We can find and know God through the everyday circumstances and situations of our lives, including our daily needs. But if we abuse these things or make idols of them, they obstruct our faith and keep us from God. Nothing less than God will satisfy our need for God.
Look It Up
The Litany of Penitence in the Ash Wednesday service includes the confession of “our intemperate love of worldly goods and comforts, and our dishonesty in daily life and work” (BCP, p. 268).
Think About It
What are your idols? What things do you put in the place of God in your life?
Next Sunday
Second Sunday in Lent (Year C), March 4, 2007
BCP: Gen. 15:1-12, 17-18; Psalm 27 or 27:10-18; Phil. 3:17-4:1; Luke 13:(22-30)31-35
RCL: Gen. 15:1-12, 17-18; Psalm 27; Phil. 3:17-4:1; Luke 13:31-35
