Memory as the Beginning of Resurrections

Luke 4:1-13; Deut. 26:1-11

        “A wandering Aramean was my ancestor.”  This was the starting place for many a story told around campfires, late at night in the fields outside Bethlehem, and later Prague, perhaps even Berlin and now once again in Jerusalem.  It is not a story told by my ancestors.  It is the story told by those who claimed a family tree that went all the way back to Abraham.  The Aramean referred to is the grandson of Abraham, the semi-nomadic Jacob who eventually followed his son Joseph into Egypt.  And there the adventure began.  It was a story that involved slavery, liberation, the Law, the wilderness and finally the Promised Land.   It was the story of Moses, Aaron,  Miriam, Caleb and Joshua. It was a story that every Jewish child learned as a reminder that Yahweh is greater than Pharaoh, the Red Sea, the Wilderness, the sinfulness of a disheartened people and even the walls of Jericho.  “A wandering Aramean was my ancestor” offered hope, redemption and resolve.  It rolled off the tongue of a Jewish child as easily as,  “I pledge allegiance to the flag”, rolls off the tongues of our children.  It was more than a history lesson.  It evoked memories of God’s everlasting covenant.

Every family has stories.  I keep those stories, those pictures of another time firmly embedded in my memory.  I can’t visualize my grandfather Gober’s face but I can remember his words of encouragement as we fished together on the lake near his cabin.  Likewise, life lessons shared by my parents helped mold my spirit and my soul.  I don’t need a picture to remind me of the first time I saw my daughter or son.  I imagine the same is true of you.  I know we record or photograph everything from the first step to the final resting place.  But the real memories are the stories we tell over and over around the table at family gatherings.  It is the clay that molds who we were and who we will become. These stories are our past and future lifelines.

You may have never heard the verse, “A wandering Aramean was my ancestor”, but you know the power and the hope that evolves from telling stories.  Memories are often the beginning of resurrections.  How often have you found yourself in a difficult spot and your memory of a past story or holy word saved you from making a horrible, life changing decision.  We need search no further than our New Testament text to be reminded of how memory is often our last defense against the power of evil.

Today’s text is a story that we encounter once a year.   It marks the beginning of our Lenten experience.  It is the story of Jesus in the wilderness. Matthew, Mark and Luke share similar accounts of the 40 days.  Each affirms the power of memory to overcome the temptation of ungodly behavior.

Luke’s account informs us that Jesus had eaten nothing for forty days.  Sometimes I find it difficult to go forty minutes without eating.  Here is Jesus, absolutely famished, surrounded by nothing but sand and rocks and the devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command one of these stones to become a loaf of bread.”  Soon Jesus will be filling up empty nets with fish.  Soon Jesus will be feeding 5,000 people from crumbs.  There is no doubt that Jesus had the power to produce a meal out of nothing.  And that is exactly the point.  We are never tempted to do what we can not do.  We are only tempted by what is within our power.    Children are tempted to steal cupcakes from the kitchen because those cupcakes are within their reach.  Young people are tempted to experiment with alcohol because someone places it in their hands.  Adults are tempted to play with power because we think it defines who we are.  Jesus was tempted to something he was perfectly capable of doing in order to impress his host.  But instead of showing off his power, he shows off his memory, “One does not live by bread alone.”

The devil was impressed but not convinced.  The devil took Jesus up into the mountains and pointed out all the kingdoms of the world.  “I know that you have come to save all these people.  I know that you have an agenda that will certainly make life easier for them.  I am even convinced that you will make a good ruler.  You seem to have what it takes.  But convincing all those folks that you are the real deal is going to take an awful long time.  They hardly agree on anything.  No sooner have you made one group happy then you will have upset someone else.  But they listen to me.  I not only have their ear, I have their hearts and souls.  You want to rule these people, do it in my name.  If you are willing to worship me, these people will follow you.”

How many politicians have made their personal deals with the devil?  I suspect the devil comes in many disguises.  He may be a political action group or a lobbyist.  He may be a powerful voice already entrenched in the halls of power.  Whatever the disguise, the temptation is always the same, the keys to the kingdom in exchange for a critical vote at a specific moment.  But Jesus could not be bought.  His response to becoming a fixture within the belt way was, “Worship the Lord your God and serve only him.”

Disappointed, but not defeated, the devil reached for his trump card.  He took Jesus to Jerusalem, to the top of the Temple and said, “You don’t have to prove anything to me.  I know who you are and I respect what you believe you need to do.  But trust me, you are about to play to a very tough audience.  They will turn on you in a moment.  They want miracles; they want great displays of power.  Why go through all the misery of trying to win these folks over.  I’ll gather a crowd of thousands of people.  I’ll make sure the high priest and the Roman Governor are looking your way.  All you have to do is jump.  God will not let you die.  He has too much invested in you.  Just jump.  Before you have fallen twenty feet, a band of angels will appear.  You will be whisked to the ground before your adoring fans.  They will know that you are the Son of God.  Caiaphas will flee to the Temple; Pilate will retreat to Rome.  Jerusalem will once again become the Holy City.”  

Jesus said, “Do not put the Lord God to the test”.  And with that the devil departed from him.

Let’s look at what Jesus turned down.  In the initial temptation, one might suggest Jesus ignored the chance to rid the world of hunger.  Can you imagine what might happen if every piece of loose concrete in Haiti was suddenly turned into food?  How could that be considered anything but good?  Secondly, Jesus was offered the chance to be King of the world.  Think of it, with Jesus as King, his agenda would be peace, righteousness, ridding the world of hunger and disease. It would literally become a new heaven and earth.  Finally, Jesus could have avoided death by displaying his supernatural powers.  People would have believed.  The chant Jesus is Lord would have been on his lips.  What could have been wrong with this?

Temptation is always deceptive.  Jesus was not being asked to compete with the devil.  Jesus was being tempted to compete with God.  If he had done so the devil would have won.  What greater sin can there be than to consider oneself to be God?

In the face of all that he was offered, Jesus remembered the story he had been taught as a child, “A wandering Aramean was my ancestor.”  Oh maybe those words did not pop into his brain but the training that followed from that story was there.  As he learned the story of his ancestors, he learned and remembered the creed of their ancestors.

Deuteronomy 8:3, “One does not live by bread alone.”

Deuteronomy 6:13, “Worship the Lord your God and serve Him alone.”

Deuteronomy 6:16, “Do not put the Lord your God to the test.”

What do we remember in our times of temptation?  Perhaps even more importantly, what will our children remember in their times of temptation.  I suspect more often than we like to admit, it is not the temptation to do wicked things that ruins us.  It is the temptation to believe that we are God.  Once we do that, we can justify anything.

Imagine remembering “A wandering Aramean was my ancestor.”  Imagine remembering, “Thou shall have only one God”.  Imagine remembering, “For God so loved the world.”  Imagine our memories as the beginning of our resurrections.

To God be the glory.                                            Amen.