DON'T TAKE TEMPTATION LIGHTLY
Christ’s Warnings to His Disciples
Jesus had warned them. Jesus had warned his disciples about what was to come. On the very night in an upstairs room of a house where he would give out the blessing of the Lord’s Supper for the very first time, Jesus warned Peter that he would fall into sin before the rooster crowed early the next morning. Jesus warned all of the disciples that every one of them would run away from him in the very near future. Jesus even warned them that one among their number would actually betray their Lord and hand him over to his enemies. Jesus had predicted these things to his chosen twelve as they all sat around the dinner table that night so that they might be prepared for what would happen later that evening and what would carry over into the next day. Jesus didn’t want his disciples to go into the next few hours completely blind because he honestly didn’t want them to fall into temptation.
And so after supper they got up from that table and Jesus led them out to a place beyond the walls of Jerusalem where he had often spent time with his disciples in the past: the Garden of Gethsemane. And after taking Peter, James, and John aside so that they could stay up with him and pray, Jesus went just a little farther through the olive grove in order to present his pleas to his Father in private. And the writer Mark records for us, “Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. ‘Simon,’ he said to Peter, are you asleep? Could you not keep watch for one hour? Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak.’ Once more he went away and prayed the same thing. When he came back, he again found them sleeping, because their eyes were heavy. They did not know what to say to him. Returning the third time, he said to them, ‘Are you still sleeping and resting? Enough! The hour has come. Look, the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.’”
Jesus had warned these three disciples yet once again: “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation.” Because Jesus realized what was about to happen. Jesus understood what temptations the disciples would soon face. And he did not want them to take these temptations lightly. He wanted them to be alert. He wanted them to pray for strength. He wanted them understand how dangerous the next few days would be to their faith. Of course, the disciples must not have realized how serious or how close those temptations actually were because instead of taking Jesus’ advice to “watch and pray” they fell asleep three separate times.
“Lead Us Not into Temptation”
“Lead us not into temptation…” we pray in the 6th Petition of the Lord’s Prayer. But it would almost seem as if Jesus did lead these disciples right into the teeth of temptation that night! Because Jesus was the one who had brought them out to the Garden in the first place. Jesus was the one who had allowed them to be there when Judas arrived with the mob. And Jesus was the reason why Peter had wandered into the courtyard later that evening and ended up denying his Lord. Jesus didn’t seem to be doing anything to keep his disciples away from the temptations that attacked them. And that’s right: Jesus didn’t do anything to prevent those temptations from attacking his disciples. But Jesus did not lead them into temptation. It wasn’t Jesus’ desire that they would fall into sin. It was Jesus’ desire that they face those temptations and stand firm. He didn’t tempt them himself; he even warned them, “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation.” He knew that these temptations were right around the corner for his disciples. He knew they would be challenged by them. And he knew they needed help.
And, in fact, that’s what the 6th Petition of the Lord’s Prayer is all about, isn’t it? We do not say: “Lord, take all temptations away from us.” No, there will always be temptations that haunt us in this life. And so instead we pray, “Lord, lead us not into temptation.” And he will not. The Lord will not steer us in the direction of a temptation so that we fall. He never wants us to fall. He never wants us to sin. And so he will continue to strengthen us and encourage us and warn us through his Word about the temptations to come - just like he did for his disciples on that late Thursday night.
Failing to See the Danger
I would hope that we take the Lord’s warning about temptations a little more seriously than the disciples did that evening. I would hope we understand how dangerous they are. I would hope we understand how close they may be. I’m just not so sure we do. I, for one, usually go about my day to day business not all that worried about the temptations that I may face, not too concerned about the sins I might fall into, not even all that aware of what dangers might be lurking just outside my peripheral vision. And that’s a dangerous thing to do: To continue into the unknown without making sure that my footing is secure and that my protection is solid; without constantly going to my Lord in prayer for help and to his Word for guidance and to his love for the forgiveness that I’m most certainly going to need. I really do hope that you have proven to be a little more conscientious about the dangerous temptations out there than I have been.
Because do we think this is a game? Do we think that temptations and the many sins that result from those temptations are no big deal? Of course they’re a big deal! They are damaging to our faith! They are potentially harmful to our salvation! And they are direct violations against the Word of our dear Lord. Falling into a temptation every now and then is not OK. Dabbling in a little sin here and there is not OK. Accidentally tripping over something that entices your sinful nature is not OK. It is life-threatening. It is serious.
Jesus’ Victory over Temptation
Do you think Jesus took temptation seriously? He foresaw the temptations that the disciples would face and he warned them that night no less than four separate times. He prayed in that Garden like no one has ever prayed before - Luke even says that his sweat was like drops of blood pouring off his brow because he was praying so hard. And then when Jesus came back and found his disciples sleeping, he left and prayed again. And then again. Whom do you think he was praying for? He was certainly praying for himself and what he was about to go through. But that also means he was praying for you. And he was praying for me. Because just moments after he returned to his disciples for the third time, it started. His “Passion,” his suffering, started. Judas came. Jesus was arrested. He was tried in the court of the high priest. He was made to stand before Pilate. He was questioned. He was accused. He was beaten. He was flogged. He was mocked. He was led. He was crucified. Do you think there were a few temptations that Jesus had to face during all of that? Of course there were! Hundreds of temptations every step of the way. And Jesus was ready for them. Jesus was ready for those temptations because he took them seriously. And so he prayed and he forged ahead and he suffered and he won. He battled and he conquered every temptation because his disciples certainly couldn’t do it! They had slept and had run away and had denied and had failed. And we certainly can’t do it either! Sometimes we sleep and run away and deny and fail. And so Jesus did it himself. Because he not only took those temptations seriously, he took our salvation seriously. And if winning our salvation, our eternal life, meant undergoing those temptations and suffering the effects of sin and experiencing death itself and being smacked in the face by the devil, then that was what he was going to do. He was willing to take it all so that when we fall into temptation now, the punishment has already been paid for and the consequence has already been carried out. By his victory Jesus has effectively declawed any temptation and has taken the venom out of the serpent’s fangs. Those bites still hurt of course, but they are not deadly. The fight can be rough for us at times, but it will not be fatal.
And so continue to ask the Lord to help you through these bites and these fights of the devil’s attacks. Ask him to guard you against the temptations that will plague you in this life. Ask him to strengthen you against sin’s potency. Ask him to protect you from the dangers that you do not yet know about. And thank him that he already has. Thank him that he took temptation so seriously that he was willing to take all of your temptations for you. And thank him that he took your salvation seriously enough on that Maundy Thursday evening that you never have to worry about again.
Amen.
Christ’s Warnings to His Disciples
Jesus had warned them. Jesus had warned his disciples about what was to come. On the very night in an upstairs room of a house where he would give out the blessing of the Lord’s Supper for the very first time, Jesus warned Peter that he would fall into sin before the rooster crowed early the next morning. Jesus warned all of the disciples that every one of them would run away from him in the very near future. Jesus even warned them that one among their number would actually betray their Lord and hand him over to his enemies. Jesus had predicted these things to his chosen twelve as they all sat around the dinner table that night so that they might be prepared for what would happen later that evening and what would carry over into the next day. Jesus didn’t want his disciples to go into the next few hours completely blind because he honestly didn’t want them to fall into temptation.
And so after supper they got up from that table and Jesus led them out to a place beyond the walls of Jerusalem where he had often spent time with his disciples in the past: the Garden of Gethsemane. And after taking Peter, James, and John aside so that they could stay up with him and pray, Jesus went just a little farther through the olive grove in order to present his pleas to his Father in private. And the writer Mark records for us, “Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. ‘Simon,’ he said to Peter, are you asleep? Could you not keep watch for one hour? Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak.’ Once more he went away and prayed the same thing. When he came back, he again found them sleeping, because their eyes were heavy. They did not know what to say to him. Returning the third time, he said to them, ‘Are you still sleeping and resting? Enough! The hour has come. Look, the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.’”
Jesus had warned these three disciples yet once again: “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation.” Because Jesus realized what was about to happen. Jesus understood what temptations the disciples would soon face. And he did not want them to take these temptations lightly. He wanted them to be alert. He wanted them to pray for strength. He wanted them understand how dangerous the next few days would be to their faith. Of course, the disciples must not have realized how serious or how close those temptations actually were because instead of taking Jesus’ advice to “watch and pray” they fell asleep three separate times.
“Lead Us Not into Temptation”
“Lead us not into temptation…” we pray in the 6th Petition of the Lord’s Prayer. But it would almost seem as if Jesus did lead these disciples right into the teeth of temptation that night! Because Jesus was the one who had brought them out to the Garden in the first place. Jesus was the one who had allowed them to be there when Judas arrived with the mob. And Jesus was the reason why Peter had wandered into the courtyard later that evening and ended up denying his Lord. Jesus didn’t seem to be doing anything to keep his disciples away from the temptations that attacked them. And that’s right: Jesus didn’t do anything to prevent those temptations from attacking his disciples. But Jesus did not lead them into temptation. It wasn’t Jesus’ desire that they would fall into sin. It was Jesus’ desire that they face those temptations and stand firm. He didn’t tempt them himself; he even warned them, “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation.” He knew that these temptations were right around the corner for his disciples. He knew they would be challenged by them. And he knew they needed help.
And, in fact, that’s what the 6th Petition of the Lord’s Prayer is all about, isn’t it? We do not say: “Lord, take all temptations away from us.” No, there will always be temptations that haunt us in this life. And so instead we pray, “Lord, lead us not into temptation.” And he will not. The Lord will not steer us in the direction of a temptation so that we fall. He never wants us to fall. He never wants us to sin. And so he will continue to strengthen us and encourage us and warn us through his Word about the temptations to come - just like he did for his disciples on that late Thursday night.
Failing to See the Danger
I would hope that we take the Lord’s warning about temptations a little more seriously than the disciples did that evening. I would hope we understand how dangerous they are. I would hope we understand how close they may be. I’m just not so sure we do. I, for one, usually go about my day to day business not all that worried about the temptations that I may face, not too concerned about the sins I might fall into, not even all that aware of what dangers might be lurking just outside my peripheral vision. And that’s a dangerous thing to do: To continue into the unknown without making sure that my footing is secure and that my protection is solid; without constantly going to my Lord in prayer for help and to his Word for guidance and to his love for the forgiveness that I’m most certainly going to need. I really do hope that you have proven to be a little more conscientious about the dangerous temptations out there than I have been.
Because do we think this is a game? Do we think that temptations and the many sins that result from those temptations are no big deal? Of course they’re a big deal! They are damaging to our faith! They are potentially harmful to our salvation! And they are direct violations against the Word of our dear Lord. Falling into a temptation every now and then is not OK. Dabbling in a little sin here and there is not OK. Accidentally tripping over something that entices your sinful nature is not OK. It is life-threatening. It is serious.
Jesus’ Victory over Temptation
Do you think Jesus took temptation seriously? He foresaw the temptations that the disciples would face and he warned them that night no less than four separate times. He prayed in that Garden like no one has ever prayed before - Luke even says that his sweat was like drops of blood pouring off his brow because he was praying so hard. And then when Jesus came back and found his disciples sleeping, he left and prayed again. And then again. Whom do you think he was praying for? He was certainly praying for himself and what he was about to go through. But that also means he was praying for you. And he was praying for me. Because just moments after he returned to his disciples for the third time, it started. His “Passion,” his suffering, started. Judas came. Jesus was arrested. He was tried in the court of the high priest. He was made to stand before Pilate. He was questioned. He was accused. He was beaten. He was flogged. He was mocked. He was led. He was crucified. Do you think there were a few temptations that Jesus had to face during all of that? Of course there were! Hundreds of temptations every step of the way. And Jesus was ready for them. Jesus was ready for those temptations because he took them seriously. And so he prayed and he forged ahead and he suffered and he won. He battled and he conquered every temptation because his disciples certainly couldn’t do it! They had slept and had run away and had denied and had failed. And we certainly can’t do it either! Sometimes we sleep and run away and deny and fail. And so Jesus did it himself. Because he not only took those temptations seriously, he took our salvation seriously. And if winning our salvation, our eternal life, meant undergoing those temptations and suffering the effects of sin and experiencing death itself and being smacked in the face by the devil, then that was what he was going to do. He was willing to take it all so that when we fall into temptation now, the punishment has already been paid for and the consequence has already been carried out. By his victory Jesus has effectively declawed any temptation and has taken the venom out of the serpent’s fangs. Those bites still hurt of course, but they are not deadly. The fight can be rough for us at times, but it will not be fatal.
And so continue to ask the Lord to help you through these bites and these fights of the devil’s attacks. Ask him to guard you against the temptations that will plague you in this life. Ask him to strengthen you against sin’s potency. Ask him to protect you from the dangers that you do not yet know about. And thank him that he already has. Thank him that he took temptation so seriously that he was willing to take all of your temptations for you. And thank him that he took your salvation seriously enough on that Maundy Thursday evening that you never have to worry about again.
Amen.
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