“Into the Wilderness”

Matthew 4:1-11



Pastor Tom Johnson, March 9, 2014

Today we have a reminder and an acknowledgement in Scripture that our life’s journey sometimes includes wandering through spiritual wilderness. It might be a sober reality check. Or, in some ways, it may be comforting to know that such times are part of the normal, human experience. Our readings began with Adam and Eve who are residents of the Garden of Eden—Paradise on earth. And yet, their utopia quickly becomes a wilderness of temptation, sin, and death because of their pride, deception, and disobedience. They eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. God tells them the consequences of their fall into sin—namely, expulsion from paradise and death. But he also tells them of the hope of the one to come—their promised descendent. Adam and Eve are promised a child who will one day deal a deathblow to the serpent and lead humanity in victory over our all our adversaries.

The story of continues with the Exodus. Israel is delivered from hundreds of years of slavery. They have a foretaste of this crushing blow first promised to Adam and Eve. And the Lord leads them as a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night—providing a protective barrier from the Egyptian army behind them and a forging a path ahead through the wilderness to the Promised Land. But they behave exactly in the way the name Israel means—they wrestle with God. They are tempted to turn back to their former lives as slaves. They are hungry, yet complain about the menu God provides. They are thirsty, but put God to the test. Despite their unfaithfulness, God is faithful, and he eventually leads them into the land flowing with milk and honey. God safely leads them though 40 years in the wilderness and they finally enter the Promised Land.

These stories—how we turn God’s paradise into wilderness and how we as God’s people fail to trust him as he leads us out of the wilderness into a better land—these stories are why Jesus must also go into the wilderness. Our Scripture says, “Jesus is led into the wilderness by the Spirit.” He is the New Israel who spends 40 days and nights—a day for every year of Israel’s wandering. Jesus immerses himself into the fullness of what it means to be human. Like Israel in their wilderness wanderings and like us in our difficult times, Jesus is physically brought low. He is emotionally vulnerable. And, he is cleverly tempted by the Tempter and Deceiver. It is like the temptation in the Garden of Eden and Israel’s 40 years of wandering wrapped up into one, concentrated experience. Unlike our first parents, Adam and Eve—and unlike God’s chosen people Israel—and unlike us who give way to temptation and sin, Jesus navigates his way through the labyrinth of deception. And he does so blameless and undefiled. As the Scripture says, “He was tempted in every way that we are, yet without sin” (Heb 4:15).

The good news of this story is that, in Jesus, we have Forerunner to lead the way through our wilderness experiences. He is led by the Spirit. And we are led by him. We may not know why he has led us through this dark territory—but we have the assurance that he is ahead of us and behind us. He is our pillar of cloud by day and our pillar of fire by night. He is the King who graciously leads his people Israel and all nations. And despite our unfaithfulness, he remains faithful. He will lead us to the land of milk and honey, to the great city with streets paved in gold, and to a new creation that will not need sun, moon, or stars to illuminate our world because we have the eternal light of Christ.

Do we find ourselves worried that we cannot survive in the wilderness? Or do we live in fear that our journey will end there in darkness and despair? Jesus’s example says, “Do not fear!” We are his children and he will not leave us as orphans. We are his sheep who can say, “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of darkness, I will fear no evil. For Thou are with me. Thy rod and staff; they comfort me.” In this strange story of Jesus’ 40-day trial in the badlands, we have a Leader who is showing us the way. He is the Good Shepherd who shows us how to use Scripture as a defensive weapon to overcome in times of trial. He shows our true hunger is not for food but the Bread of Life—the Word made flesh—the Word of Christ boldly and faithfully proclaimed in times of need. He has our backs and he has cleared a path before us. With the Word of God in our hearts and on our tongues, we journey ahead in confidence and assurance of his love.

Though devils all the world should fill,
All eager to devour us, We tremble not, we fear no ill;
They shall not overpow’r us.
This world’s prince may still
Scowl fierce as he will,
He can harm us none. He’s judged; the deed is done;
One little word can fell him.                                                ("A Mighty Fortress Is Our God," LSB 656 v. 3)