The Prize Fighter

First Lesson: Deuteronomy 26: 1-11
Responsive Reading: Psalm 91: 1-2, 9-16
Second Lesson: Romans 10: 8b-13
Gospel Lesson: Luke 4: 1-13

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Grace and Peace from Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,
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Life might seem to be nothing more than a never-ending boxing match between Satan and ourselves. The prize though happens not to be a championship belt, but rather our eternal body and soul.

Round 1: The place was the Garden of Eden. Satan was staring down our spiritual ancestors Adam and Eve[1]. Satan’s words were clever: “You will not certainly die…For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil[2].”

Here’s what made Satan’s words so dangerous not that they were false, but rather that they were true!  Adam and Eve looked over the tempting fruit, saw that it looked good, pleasing to the eye, and would grant them wisdom.  Adam and Eve’s eyes were both opened[3].  They both immediately noticed their nakedness[4]! Adam and Eve did not instantly die! Something much worse though happened.  The whole world started plunging into a never-ending cycle of death and destruction.  Generations after generations tried to escape this cycle.  Satan remained undefeated! Satan appeared to be the never-ending champion of this world with humanity the vanquished foe.

Round 3: Our Gospel lesson comes to us Today from the 4th Chapter of Luke’s Gospel[5]. Jesus leaves his Baptism from the Jordan River and is led by the Holy Spirit out into the Wilderness[6].  Jesus was going to spend forty days staring Satan down like everyone else before him only in isolation.

Satan’s first temptation is simple: “If you are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread[7].”

Once upon a time, a woman joined a diet club[8].  She was getting frustrated though as she had gained weight rather than lost weight.  She was now going to have temptation directly. Over the weekend, she made her family their favorite cake.  The family ate half the cake at dinner. The next day as she walked by the fridge, she kept staring at the other half of the cake. She would walk away, then open the refrigerator again a few minutes later and stare at the cake some more.  Finally, she decided that she could have cut a very thin slice for herself.  Well, one sliver of this cake wasn’t going to be sufficient and pretty soon the whole cake was gone.  The woman was lamenting how disappointed she was in her lack of willpower and what was she going to tell her family upon their wondering: “Where the rest of the cake went[9]?”

As she tells the diet club her story, they wondered what did her family say when they saw the missing cake[10].

The woman smiled. “They never found out.  I made another cake and ate half of that one[11].”

A few years back, an experiment was conducted with about seventy people.  The group was brought to a lab[12].  The group was divided into half and told they were not to eat anything for the next five hours.  The other group was able to enjoy as many wheat thins as they wanted over the next five hours.  The groups were then tasked with food shopping online to determine “Whether their hunger impacted their choices?” The hungry group proceeded to buy nearly 50% as much junk food[13].  When the experiment took place in a grocery store comparing groups that shopped right after lunch between 1-4 and those who were hungrier between 4-7, similar results were found.  The hungrier you were, the more likely, you were to make bad decisions[14]

Our willpower with food isn’t the only thing that breaks down the hungrier we get, a recent study at the University of Michigan showed that hunger breaks down our willpower to such a degree, we’re more likely even to buy things such as office supplies when hungry[15]. 

So the Devil’s first temptation to Jesus takes place after days and days of starvation with lightheadedness seemed destined to defeat him.  The following was the same type of temptation for food faced by Adam and Eve generations before. 

Jesus merely disregarded the Devil’s temptations of bread by declaring: “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone.[16]”

Round 7: The Devil knew he had to change his techniques at this point.  The Devil had something much more alluring for Jesus. The Devil took Jesus to a high point and offered him all the Kingdoms of the world[17].

I was in third grade.  There was a kid that I’ll call Jimmy.  Jimmy was like a lot of third-graders in that he liked to brag about all the things at which he was really good.   Well, the other kids were getting tired of Jimmy’s bragging.  So a group started gathering around Jimmy on the playground.  I wasn’t the leader, but I was a willing follower.  Eventually, another kid gets behind Jimmy in a bridge position.  Like a lot of kids, I was really tough when surrounded by a group of other kids.  So I pushed Jimmy over the bridge.  I would spend the next day’s recess inside for fighting.   Now Jimmy grew up and is a really good guy. I was invited to Jimmy’s graduation party when he finished high school.  I saw him not long ago in Lindstrom where he greeted me pleasantly as he drove by while, I was walking. 

Satan is clever in how he breaks us.  In Jimmy’s case, it wasn’t anything dramatic that he did wrong to me.  Satan worked over time by making power more alluring to me.  Finally, Jimmy is standing in my way.  Then I’m doing what’s wrong in shoving others on the playground[18]. 

Adulthood can often work in the same way.  People have affairs because they long for the power of feeling attractive.  People struggle with addiction because their sense of power is warped.  Often it is our longing for power than blinds us to our self-destruction.

So Jesus could have achieved the height of all human power as the Devil declared: “If you worship me, it will all be yours[19]”  

Jesus unlike myself on the playground or Adam and Eve realized there are limits to power in human form.  “It is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve him only[20].’”

It is only in our weakness that we can see the way to salvation.

Round 11: Satan led Jesus to the highest point of the Jerusalem Temple.  Satan demands Jesus to leap off the top of the Temple to prove he can save himself.  Satan’s basic instruction is for Jesus to abandon all his faith.  Embracing spiritual despair can be the most deadly of all temptations.

Once upon a time, two frogs fell into a vat of cream[21].  One frog quickly lost all hope and sank in the cream and eventually died.  The other frog kept his long legs paddling and paddling.  The frog kept kicking and kicking until he turned the cream into butter before leaping to his safety[22]. 

Two frogs, one frog embraced spiritual despair unto his own death. The other frog walked a more difficult road of clinging to hope however seemingly small unto his own salvation.

Paul Gerhardt was a minister in Germany during the Thirty Years War[23].  The Thirty Years War was devasting for all of Europe. Some cities in Germany would lose up to ninety percent of their population as a result of either war or plague.  Well one night, Gerhardt and his family were forced to flee from their homes.  They finally found shelter in a nearby village. Years and years of bad news had broken Gerhardt’s wife.  She began to break down and shed tears in despair.  Gerhardt proceeds to comfort her by reminding her of the scripture’s promises.  Gerhardt then left her presence, only to go outside to cry himself.  Gerhardt proceeds to write a hymn Give to the Winds Thy Fears. Gerhardt despite every reason to embrace despair remained a prolific hymn writer throughout his life.  Gerhardt in the darkest of times was able to place his faith in God’s hands rather his own. 

Jesus for the third and final temptation was being asked to do the same thing.  Jesus proceeded upon this last temptation to stare the Devil down again and declare: “Do not put the Lord your God to the test[24].” Jesus sought to remind Satan that faith is ultimately a more powerful force than despair!

Round 15: Satan left Jesus.  He was going to wait for an opportune time though to return[25]. 

James J. Braddock[26] was a promising boxer in the early 1920s[27]. He began his career 44-2. He had an opportunity to become the Light Heavyweight Champion of the world. He narrowly lost in the fifteenth and final round. Braddock hurt his hand in the process[28]. His boxing career then went in the tank.  He finally had to give up boxing due to his losing streak. He would be forced to receive government relief.  He finally found work as a long shore man.  During his longshoremen work, James Braddock had to get proficient working with his left hand because his right hand was so weak from the previous injury[29].  

Braddock several years later finally returns to a boxing ring. He triumphs in a series of upsets.  In March 1935, Braddock was scheduled to fight Max Baer to be the Heavyweight Champion of the World. Braddock was thought to be an easy payday for the champ[30].   Baer dismissed Braddock as a joke. The fight begins.  Baer seemed destined to make quick work of the older Braddock.  It soon became apparent that no amount of punishment could defeat James Braddock.  After fifteen rounds, James Braddock was the Heavyweight Champion of the World no matter the previous odds[31].

Satan was undefeated when he came face to face with Jesus in the wilderness. Food, power, and loss of faith would certainly be enough to defeat Jesus like so many foes before him.    Jesus survived Satan’s temptations for forty long days.  Their story would not be over.  Satan finally had Jesus defeated as he hung upon a cross. Three days later, Jesus rose from the ground only to claim the world back as his own.  Satan’s power began to wane.  The gates of heaven were opened as Satan was unable to stop it.  Amen
 

[1] “The Battle.” Lutheran Hour Ministries. 6.Mar.2017. Web. Feb.12.2019. 
[2] Genesis 3:4-5. 
[3] Genesis 3:7.
[5] Luke 4:1-13. 
[6] John 4:1-2a.
[7] Luke 4:3. 
[8] “Will Power, Self Control.” Preaching.com. Web. Feb.12.2019.
[9] Will Power, Self Control.” Preaching.com.
[10] Will Power, Self Control.” Preaching.com.
[11] Will Power, Self Control.” Preaching.com.
[12] Rettner, Rachael. “Grocery Shopping While Hungry Not Good Idea, Science Confirms.” Live Science. 6.May.2013. Web. Feb.12.2019. 
[13] Rettner, Rachael. “Grocery Shopping While Hungry Not Good Idea, Science Confirms.” Live Science.
[14] Rettner, Rachael. “Grocery Shopping While Hungry Not Good Idea, Science Confirms.” Live Science
[15] Van Hare, Holly. The Daily Meal. 16.Jan.2019. Web. Feb.12.2019. 
[16] Luke 4:4.
[17] Luke 4:5-7. 
[18] Hoezee, Scott. “Luke 4:1-13.” Center for Excellence in Preaching. Calvin Seminary. Grand Rapids, MI.
[19] Luke 4:7.
[20] Luke 4:8. 
[21] Zingale, Tim. “Temptation=Ease” Sermon Central. 24.Feb.2004. Web. Feb.12.2019. 
[22] Zingale, Tim. “Temptation=Ease” Sermon Central.
[23] “Despair.” Our Daily Bread. 7.May.1992. Web. Feb.12.2019. Found on Sermon Illustrations.
[24] Luke 4:12. 
[25] Luke 4:13.
[26] Braddock’s lifestory is told in the 2005 movie Cinderella Man starring Russell Crowe.
[27] “James J. Braddock.” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation. 19.Jan.2019. Web. Feb.12.2019. 
[28] James J. Braddock.” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation.
[29] James J. Braddock.” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation
[30] James J. Braddock.” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation
[31] James J. Braddock.” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation