Grace to you and peace from God our Father and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!

I have no idea what possessed me but some years ago I was doing a children's sermon for a group of about 30 youngsters. Now imagine, if you will, the kids are all facing the congregation, seated around the chancel in front of the altar, my back is to the congregation. I'm talking about obedience, as in Jesus obeying his mom, and I ask whether or not they always obeyed their moms. Of course the answer both spoken and in the form of nodding heads was "yes." So I asked them if they thought I always obeyed my mom. On cue, without anyone looking at the person next to them, all of then in unison said "no." Now, I suspect they were wrong regarding their own obedience. But they were right about my obedience with my mom, and although they would not have thought of it like this, the fact that the patterns set in childhood continue into adulthood. I am still disobedient, I still sin, left to my own devices, I am still set apart from God -- which leads me to our Gospel this morning.

Jesus has just been baptized -- the Holy Spirit has descended upon him and the voice of God the Father is heard: "This is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased" -- similar to the statement that is heard at the Transfiguration. But now Jesus is led into the wilderness for 40 days and nights -- a time of trial, a time of testing.

He has been fasting and is hungry when the tempter comes -- IF you are the Son of God tell these stones to become bread -- feed yourself, and while you're at it, become the "bread king" and feed the world... Notice the "IF" followed by a challenge -- after all, if you're God's Son then he won't mind. But it is written: "Man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of God." The Word of God, the Word made flesh, God incarnate refers to OT Scripture, and in our NT Scripture we hear this same Word saying: "I am the bread of life." An I AM statement -- God is the sustenance of life, God is life, God gives meaning to life, the bread that leads to eternal life.

Then to a high mountain -- fall down and worship me and I will give you all this... reorder governments and kingdoms, peace and justice, bread for all... And a real temptation for us as well because many have bought their own kingdoms by compromising with and accepting evil, and Jesus says "love the Lord your God and serve him only" and he models this for us as through his love and obedience. He served God by dying on the cross and bring salvation for all who believe. Not only did he take our death but he gave us his obedience and he tells that those who would be first must be servants to all, and that we should do unto others what we would have done unto ourselves, that greater love hath no man than this that he lay down his life for his friends, which may be through lives of service as well as literal.

Then to a high place on the temple -- throw yourself down and God will command his angels concerning you -- he will not let you be harmed -- all will see and believe -- same as what the high priests and others said when Jesus was on the cross -- come down and we will believe -- it is written you shall not put the Lord your God to the test. Jesus knew even then that he would raise the dead, heal the sick as well as lepers, restore sight to the blind, hearing to the deaf. And still those who witnessed these things would not believe -- even when five loaves and two fish fed thousands of people who came to see the show... Remember his words to Doubting Thomas -- Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed. Faith comes by hearing, and faith is simply trust, not doubt looking for proof. Adam and Eve lost the garden because of their disobedience. We lose our balance, our peace of heart. Jesus calls us back to faithfulness and shows us how God loves us and became like us to die for us to redeem us and bring us back.

Food for thought in your Lenten journey, bread for life...

AMEN.