Being Driven

On the first Sunday of Lent we’re focused on Jesus’ temptation in the desert. Mark’s account is the most concise of the three gospels that tell it. He expresses the event in just two sentences and 31 words—a lot shorter than most tweets on Twitter. 
 
But, they’re a very powerful 31 words, which are captured in the verbs: drove, remained, tempted, and ministered.
 
There was an internal movement within Jesus. Mark tells us the Spirit drove him into the desert. He was being driven to experience our human experience—including being tempted. To face it, he remained in the desert for 40 days. The number 40 is very significant in the story of God’s people; typically the amount of time (in years or days) needed for trial, testing, and discovery.
 
The author of the letter to the Hebrews explains the significance of the temptation: “Because he himself has suffered and had been tempted, he is able to help those who are tempted.”  (Heb 2:18)
 
Jesus understands our struggles and human needs. He knows what can tempt us away from God or from what’s good and right for ourselves or others. Knowing that, we don’t have to hide anything from him.  Instead, we can go to him when we need help.
 
So, as we enter these 40 days, instead of being tempted to let this time slip away from us, what if we adopted Jesus’ program for the spiritual life—the plan we heard about on Ash Wednesday.  We can fast from something we know is pulling us away from God, or our families (or our spouse, our relationships, or the commitments we’ve made, or you name it). 
 
We can give of our time or our support to build up what’s good, meaningful, and making a difference in people’s lives. 
 
And we can pray—especially during the times we’re tempted to abandon our spiritual plan because something else seems so much better. To fight temptation, as Jesus teaches us, we need to pray—“lead us not into temptation and deliver us from evil.”
 
Mark tells us that what sustained Jesus as he remained in the desert was that the angels ministered to him. It’s what strengthened him, so that when he emerged from the desert, he could begin his ministry announcing what the world needs to hear: “The Kingdom of God is at hand.  Repent and believe in the gospel.” The exact same words we heard as our foreheads were marked with ashes.
 
The angels ministered to Jesus. Jesus ministers to us. And then, to complete the pattern, all of us—the Body of Christ in the world today, the Church—minister to each other. We’ll be tempted not to buy into this. But instead, let’s remain driven by the Spirit to be more and more like the One we follow and the One who knows us.
 
May God bless you and lead us all as we journey toward Easter,