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Day 6 Lent: Seeing God’s Heart for Abundance Over Scarcity

“Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan, and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness for forty days, being tempted by the devil.”  Mt. 4, Mark 1:12-13, Luke 4

We first see here God’s abundance in filling Jesus FULL of the Holy Spirit.  

And we also see that it is the Spirit who led Jesus into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.

Jesus faced three temptations in the desert, all in His Humanity, and not in His Divinity!

These three temptations remain universal temptations throughout history that all humans must face before we take on any kind of power-as Jesus is about to do in starting His ministry.

They are all temptations to the misuse of power for purposes other than God’s grand abundant project for us.

1.  The first temptation to convert stones into Bread signifies the temptation to misuse our practical everyday power (the appetites of our flesh - when we are hungry for money, success, pride, lust, envy, wrath, sloth).
Satan’s temptation aimed at Jesus is aimed at scarcity- fill your appetites when you are hungry!  Fill up your bellies.  Fill up your coffers.  Fill up your ego.  Fill up with control.  Fill up with comfort.  Get it now before somebody else gets it. 
But Jesus reminds Satan of God’s abundance to the Israelites in feeding ALL of them manna every day, Deut. 8:3.
2. The second temptation is kind of a battle of Scripture, where Satan cites Scripture to tempt Jesus to throw himself from the top of the temple. 
This refers to the temptation to misuse religious power, or misusing Scripture.
Jesus responds again with Scripture from Deuteronomy, reminding Satan of God’s abundance to give the Israelites a land with large, flourishing cities....houses filled with all kinds of good things....wells...and vineyards and olive groves....He refers to Massah (which means “test”) where the Israelites were thirsty in the desert and grumbled... and yet the Lord provided ABUNDANT water from the rock at Horeb.  He then commanded the Israelites: Do not test my abundance.
3. The third temptation to rule over all the Kingdoms in their magnificence represents the temptation to misuse political or economic power.
Jesus again cites Scripture, banishing Satan in favor of serving only God.  

These three Temptations generally always start with “good” things, or how then could we be tempted?
But Jesus teaches us how not to get into trouble.  
He teaches us How not to distort these good things- the pleasures of our appetites into obsessions or addictions, the sacred position of Scripture to be manipulated to suit our own purposes, and the good role that politics and economics can play in improving lives, and not into power plays that serve only an elite few and marginalize the many.
Jesus cites wisdom texts from Deuteronomy about the FAther’s abundance.

That HE IS ENOUGH.  

WORTHY to be trusted, rather than tested.  
Testing US to trust HIM....
And so Jesus departs from the wilderness, and begins to teach and live out God’s plan to heal and restore all of God’s creation back to Him. 
Jesus’ ministry is filled with parables, metaphors, miracles, and signs and wonders of God’s abundant LOVE, mercy, grace and justice...so that we will not forget!
So let’s not forget it this Lent!
God will often take us into the wilderness to prepare us for His power and glory to be revealed thereafter, as He did even with Jesus! 
The test is to trust His ABUNDANCE and do not dwell upon the scarcity tactics of the Evil One!

Prayer:  Jehovah Jireh, Teach us this Lent how to listen to the voice of your abundant promises rather than the seduction of the world and Evil One, and how to tell them apart, that we may walk faithfully before you and step into your abundant life adventure that you have for each of us. Amen.


From Lyn Woodruff, posted in the River Prayer Reflections Texting Group. If you'd like to join, write to info@riversouthbay.org or post a comment.

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