The First Few Temptations of Christ (NOT a prequel to the movie where Willem Dafoe Played Jesus)

Our Scripture Lesson is the Story of the First Few Temptations of Christ from Matthew 4: 1-11:

4 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tested by the devil. ² He fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterward he was famished. ³ The tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” ⁴ But he answered, “It is written, ‘One does not live by bread alone,     but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’ ”

⁵ Then the devil took him to the holy city and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, ⁶ saying to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written, ‘He will command his angels concerning you,’  and ‘On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.’ ”

⁷ Jesus said to him, “Again it is written, ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’ ”

⁸ Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory, ⁹ and he said to him, “All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.” ¹⁰ Then Jesus said to him, “Away with you, Satan! for it is written, ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.’ ” ¹¹ Then the devil left him, and suddenly angels came and waited on him.

          We do not often realize that this is the conclusion of the baptism of Jesus.  John the Baptist dips Jesus in the Jordan, the heavens open, God speaks, the bird comes down...but no splashy finish.  Instead, the Spirit of God (the bird) immediately drives Him out into the wilderness to go toe to toe with the Devil.  The Devil is testing Him.

          The first temptation is straight forward.  Jesus has been fasting for forty days and forty nights.  So the Devil pushes on Jesus to use divine power to change over some rocks into bread.  (I wonder if that is similar to converting water into wine?)  But for Jesus, the fast is done on purpose, in God’s purpose.  He’s hungry but there is more to life than eating (although that does push against my Presbyterian sensibilities I will say).

          Doesn't the second temptation feel like the Devil wants Jesus to show off His phenomenal cosmic powers?  Leap off the temple and let the angels catch you!  I picture the guy who dives off a high platform into a tiny pool of water.  Jesus’ response is interesting.  “Do not put the Lord to the test.”  In other words, “Do not use God to show off...”? 

          The third temptation is a bribe, plain and simple.  Worship me and I will give you all the kingdoms of the world and their splendors!  Such is the presumption of the Devil.  Jesus does not even acknowledge the Devil’s presumption of dominating the world.  He simples tells the Devil to get lost!  That we worship God alone.

          The title of the sermon this week is “The First Few Temptations of Christ”, playing on the title of “The Last Temptation of Christ”, a movie I remember growing up that was surrounded with its own controversies.  But then again, when the popular culture considers Jesus, when is there NOT controversy? 

          There is a clincher verse (Hebrews 4:15) that follows up this time of Jesus versus the Devil in the wilderness.  It is a verse of great comfort to me.  That Jesus was tempted in every way, but without sin.  He does what none of us can do.  And he uses that perfection to save us by his death and resurrection.

 

Praise the Lord,

Pastor pete

 

If You Cannot Speak for Yourself, Who Will Speak for You?

As a pastor, I have the privilege of coming alongside many people in our whole church family (and beyond) when they are in healthcare situations.  Nobody wants to think about ending up in hospital or rehab or long-term care.  Ending up in a coma or unable to communicate.  God forbid, so we push it away.

But I have a question.  Who will speak for you if you end up being unable to speak for yourself?  Who, among the people whom you love and trust, will you trust to decide medical things on your behalf if you are unable to?  Painful as it might be, you will bless them by asking them to speak for you before they might ever be called upon to do so.  You can make sure they understand what you want and the loving trust you are putting in them to speak if you cannot. 

 There is more you can do for them.  Who will you name to consult with them if the decisions become truly big and scary?  Whose love and input do you value to make such decisions?  Ask them now, tell them who has agreed to speak for you, tell the person who would speak for you who they can talk to, who they can consult to help carry the burden of such decisions. 

You may already be able to list those people whom you trust to speak for you, to consult on your behalf, but asking them now, deciding now removes a significant shock and surprise in the midst of an already shocking and surprising and unthinkable time. 

In so doing, you set clear boundaries on who does NOT get to speak for you.  Grief is overwhelming.  People have their own beliefs and assumptions of what is right and wrong when a medical decision needs to be made.  The key to a person who speaks for you, or who consults on your behalf, is that you trust them to decide according to YOUR wishes-even if they do not hold the same beliefs.  In grief, people can become very vocal and demanding in their own pain over what they believe is the best thing to be done.  Even if it is not what you want done.  

Yes, make it your own fault how you want things done.  Do not leave your loved ones fighting and blaming during those moments when they need to be leaning on one another for support.  

This is the intention behind a Living Will.  It is an official document that expresses your wishes and intentions in case the unthinkable happens.  It can also state categorically whom you choose to speak on your behalf if you cannot speak for yourself.  Making clear what you want for yourself takes the burden off those who are trying to do the best for you.  It is a gift of reasoned clarity in a time of unreasonable, grief-laden confusion.

 I am not a lawyer, I am a pastor.  That is the point of view I bring to this.  And truth be told, it is rare that I have been witness and spiritual caregiver to such conflicts and divisions.  But when it happens, it is so devastating to witness yet more pain overlying pain.  And even if it never comes to a point of family division, of all the things that are out of control in these moments, this is one that, with planning, can be controlled, one less piece to be swirling in the chaos and pain of grief.

Pastor Pete

Sharing our Scripture for Next Sunday, February 22, 2026: The First Temptation of Christ

https://youtu.be/TGR39jizZqI

 Our Scripture for Sunday, Feb. 22, 2026 is Matthew 4: 1-11.  

The Spirit has driven Jesus out into the wilderness where He is tempted 3 times by the devil.  This particular story is the Biblical origin of the popular television show "Lipsynch Battles".  However, in its original, Biblical format, it is not a battle of music.

It is a battle of Scripture.  The devil has a bible quote for every occasion.  And Jesus has one to return.  In this passage, the devil assumes he has control of the whole world.  But Jesus corrects him on that overstatement.  

The 22nd will be our monthly healing service.  In our passage, we can see the origins of the power that we know is in the Lord Jesus as he heals us.  May we be blessed to know his power.

Peace,
Pastor Pete

https://youtu.be/TGR39jizZqI

Sharing Our Scripture for Next Sunday, Feb. 15, 2026 Matthew 17: 1-9 The Transfiguration.

 https://youtu.be/MDCZl_j5OBs

In Our Story, after we celebrate that Jesus was Baptized for us, we celebrate that Jesus lives for us.  How do we know this?  Because God tells us so.  God, the Almighty Father, spoke at the baptism of His Son and God speaks at the Transfiguration as well.  

"This is My Son, the Beloved; with Him I am well pleased; listen to Him!"

And God speaks these words in a moment when the glory of heaven shines upon Jesus, in the company of Moses and Elijah.

You may notice that in the KJV and the Pirate Bible, the name is Elias and not Elijah as we are used to.  Same person, different time of translating into English.  The Pirate Bible uses the KJV as its basis for its delightful rendering of the language.

The video processing in Youtube asked for a Thumbnail pic to front end the video.  Tilt your head, its the Transfiguration from our sanctuary's Stained Glass.  I will know better next time how to take the picture so it doesn't flop to the side...probably...

Peace

Pastor Pete

https://youtu.be/MDCZl_j5OBs

Sharing the Word of God. Matthew 5: 13-20, Our Scripture for Sunday, February 8, 2026

 https://youtu.be/jgHOV_fLEG4

Our Scripture for next Sunday continues from this past Sunday, from the Sermon on the Mount.  We began with the Beatitudes and will continue in Chapter 5 of Matthew. 

And now for something completely different, at least for me.  A time at the beginning of a new week to share the Scriptures for the coming Sunday.  It has been my informal practice, as I prepare for the new Lord's Day, to read the Scripture as an invitation to the week.  It is not simply about sermon prep, about seeking the right illustrations, but it is about connection.

The Bible is God's inspired Word.  It would be naive to think that God's hand is not on the preparations to share a word from the Word as we worship His Name.  So, taking the verse into daily living, into moments of pastoral care, in reflection to ongoing church projects, bible study prep, meeting prep, all of thee above and more.

So how about taking the word of the Word into the whole community?  At least the blog reading community?  So, the Word of the Lord in three voices, three translations.

The New Revised Standard Version-the version of our pew bibles and the version in general use in our denomination.

The King James Version-the version written for King James in the time of Shakespeare (and one of my favorite conspiracy theories is that it was William who translated it for the King).

The Message-"The Bible in Contemporary Language", by Eugene H. Petersen. 

And below is the link.  

https://youtu.be/jgHOV_fLEG4

Peace,

Pastor Pete

In the Season of Advent, This Sunday is the Celebration of Joy

 Dear Fellow Church Members,

Our passage for Sunday is Isaiah 35:  

"The wilderness and the dry land shall be glad; the desert shall rejoice and blossom; like the crocus ² it shall blossom abundantly and rejoice with joy and shouting. The glory of Lebanon shall be given to it, the majesty of Carmel and Sharon. They shall see the glory of the Lord, the majesty of our God. ³ Strengthen the weak hands and make firm the feeble knees. ⁴ Say to those who are of a fearful heart, “Be strong, do not fear! Here is your God. He will come with vengeance, with terrible recompense. He will come and save you.”

⁵ Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be opened; ⁶ then the lame shall leap like a deer, and the tongue of the speechless sing for joy. For waters shall break forth in the wilderness and streams in the desert; ⁷ the burning sand shall become a pool and the thirsty ground springs of water; the haunt of jackals shall become a swamp; the grass shall become reeds and rushes. ⁸ A highway shall be there, and it shall be called the Holy Way; the unclean shall not travel on it, but it shall be for God’s people; no traveler, not even fools, shall go astray. ⁹ No lion shall be there, nor shall any ravenous beast come up on it; they shall not be found there, but the redeemed shall walk there. ¹⁰ And the ransomed of the Lord shall return and come to Zion with singing; everlasting joy shall be upon their heads; they shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away."

         This passage is subtitled a "sermon" by the translators and scholars of the Study Bible I prefer, that the chapter is the whole sermon. It opens with a good 'hook' into the power of Joy, with the land itself.  We are in Advent and this Sunday, we light the candle that represents ‘joy’.  Joy is at the heart of our passage.

          I find myself having one of those ‘chicken and egg’ disputes over this passage.  So, the wilderness, the dry land, the desert, all of this shall blossom abundantly and rejoice with joy and shouting.  The dispute running in my head is whether joy is the cause or the effect.  Is the land blooming as a result of joy or is joy causing the land to bloom?

          On the face of it ‘the land blooming’ may not seem like such a big thing.  Now, this is the land of Judah, in the south the south, surrounding Jerusalem.  It is a borderland of feast or famine.  It all depends on the rain.  It is a big thing,

          A few verses later, Isaiah speaks of the glory of Lebanon, of Carmel and Sharon.  These regions are north of the line, in the 'feast' zone.  They are beautiful, well-watered regions.  But this land, it will bloom when the rain is just right-which often it is not.  It can be drought or flood, too much or too little.  There is a thin sweet line in-between.

          The rains down in Israel is thing in Jesus' bible; God's control of the rains being a reflection of the people's obedience to Him, but that's another sermon.

          But here’s the dispute for me.  The land is blooming to express God’s joy via the creation.  Is God doing that especially for this particular time in history?  When God wishes to express joy, does He trigger something supernaturally in the creation to make it happen?  Or is it something deeper?

          Is joy “built in” to creation?  Joy is ‘built in’ to us.  It is an emotional response to the glory of God expressed in Christ Jesus.  As with the shepherds, reacting to the choirs of angels at the moment of Jesus’ birth.  Or with Simon and with Anna when Mary and Joseph brought Jesus to present him at the temple. 

          One response to this is “well, what’s the difference”?  Maybe there isn’t one.  But maybe there is.  Maybe all creation is linked together, humans to the very land itself.  All ‘hard-wired’, created for joy.  And what greater joy is there than the gift of our Lord Jesus Christ? 

 

In Jubilee,

Pastor Pete

 

Ever Feel A Bit Discontented at Christmas? We Have Jesus but the World is Trying to Like...Take Over the Holiday?

             “Now is the winter of our discontent!”  So speaks Richard, Duke of Gloucester at the beginning of Shakespeare’s play, “Richard III”.   If I have ever read or seen Richard III, I remember nothing.  Except this line (and a quick online search for context...)  From a trailer or a commercial or something.  But it has popped for me, at least a variation of it, in describing this season as the “Christmas of our discontent.”

            Ours?  Implies “we”, so...who are we?  Us of the church.  But its Christmas, what is there to be discontented about?  

            It is summed up well in a couple of bumper stickers, "Gen X memes" for those of us of a certain age...  "Jesus is the Reason for the Season”.  It is a polite reminder, hinting that other "reasons" for Christmas are sneaking in.  More to the point, “Keep Christ in Christmas.”  I feel like it should be written like this: "Keep Christ in Christmas".  This has more clarity to it.  If "Christmas" were a company, Christ is the founder and somewhere along the way the greedy Board of Directors is trying to show him the door.  

            Imagine the innkeeper showing up at the stable at about 3 o’clock in the morning to show Mary, Joseph, and Jesus the door, something about extra "manger rent" or something...

            This discontent exists.  I have felt it personally.  Christmas getting hijacked, everyone wanting a piece of it.  There is something about Jesus in the manger, his parents standing close by, the shepherds and animals surrounding him, the angels gathered overhead in a glorious choir.  There is something in their song, “Glory to God in the Highest and on earth, peace among those with whom the Lord is well-pleased.”

            There is light in the midst of darkness.  There is quiet in the midst of noise.  There is hope in the midst of pointlessness.  There is peace in the midst of anarchy.  There is God in the midst of godlessness.  There is a gift in the midst of greediness.  The world, sinful and broken, has latched onto Christmas like nothing else in our faith.  I do not believe it is malicious appropriation so much as unrecognized desperation.

            It is HERE that I believe we should be focused with discontent.  The world is desperate for something they see Christmas providing.  If I am so tied up with the conviction that the world has hijacked 'my' Christmas, how easy is it for me to keep the world, ‘them’, at arm’s length?  Devote myself to shielding ‘the real thing’ from the excesses of the popular cultural?  

            When this is the season where the 'world', and the sinful, broken people who live in it, are closer to the truth of Jesus Christ than maybe any other time of the year?  

            Yes, there is a veneer of overhyped sparkle that seems to get thicker over the celebration of Christmas every year.  But this is also the time of deepest depression, of highest suicide rates, of disconsolation and disconnection.  A Christmas of Overhyped Sparkle does not touch the soul, it cannot provide answer to the sadness.  But we know the truth, the Christmas of Jesus, it does.  And the devil has worked wonders to keep us, the faithful, from truly seeing that.

            Let us not be content to let that stand.  This is the Christmas of our Year of Jubilee, of our celebration of the gifts of Christ.  Let us share the wealth that can not be measured in any earthly terms. 

            Besides, Christmas is God's Holiday for us.  Can the world really be expected to take it over?  Or is the real truth that Christmas will take over the world?  The Christmas of Christ.  Our Christmas.  The gift that we can offer to make it everybody's true Christmas.

Pastor pete