Good Shepherd Lutheran Church(elca)
Following Christ, Growing in Faith, Sharing God's Love
Sermon
February 28 and March 1, 2009
Mark 1:9-15
What are the wilderness times
you’ve had in your life?
When I mention “wilderness”—
--what parts of your life do you think of?
Perhaps times of sickness.
Times of grief—when a loved one has died.
Maybe times when relationships have hit hard times
and even fallen apart.
Times when you’ve felt alone,
and isolated,
and struggling in your heart and soul.
We have wilderness times in our lives.
So did Jesus.
Mark 1 talks about the wilderness for Jesus.
And it seems to me
that if we look at the wilderness for Jesus,
we might see him more clearly
and also see ourselves.
In the first chapter of Mark,
we hear about the wilderness 4 times.
The word is used twice in verses 3 and 4.
John the Baptizer appeared in the—wilderness:
“the voice of one crying in the—wilderness:
Prepare the way of the Lord…”
And John the Baptizer was proclaiming a baptism of
repentance for the forgiveness of sins.
The next time that “wilderness” comes up
is in the reading we just heard today.
Verse 12.
Jesus has just been baptized.
He has heard a voice from heaven saying:
“You are my Son, the Beloved;
with you I am well pleased.”
And right after God says that,
we hear this:
“And the Spirit immediately
drove him out into the wilderness.
He was in the wilderness 40 days…”
Immediately after the baptism,
who drove Jesus out into the wilderness?
The Spirit.
It was where God intended Jesus to be.
Why?
This last week,
I read an article about,
of all things,
a giraffe who was giving birth.
Author Gary Richmond was there,
and asked the zookeeper,
“When will the mother giraffe going to lie down?”
“She won’t,” the zookeeper answered.
“But the baby is going to fall, like, 10 feet.
Isn’t anyone going to catch the calf?”
The zookeeper looked at him and said,
“Go in there if you want,
but you’ll get kicked by the momma,
and that could be the end of you.”
And then the baby giraffe was born,
falling 10 feet,
landing hard.
The mother waited for about a minute,
then kicked her baby,
sending it sprawling head over hooves.
“Why’d she do that?” Gary asked.
“She wants it to get up.
She wants it to be strong.
She wants it to survive.”
Whenever the baby would quit trying to get up,
the momma giraffe would kick it again.
And then, when the calf stood—wobbly, but upright,
the mother kicked it off its feet again.
The zookeeper said:
“She wants it to remember how it got up.
In the wild, if it doesn’t get up quickly,
it won’t last long.”
And before long,
the baby was tottering along beside the mother.
Stronger for the test.
Ready for life.
Immediately after his baptism,
the Spirit drove Jesus out into the wilderness.
It is where God intended him to be.
The wilderness, the desert.
The place of wandering,
and temptation.
And Jesus was meant to be there.
Let me ask the students that are here…
Is a test a good thing
or a bad thing?
Probably some disagreement,
but I’d guess the vote for bad might win out.
Why does it seem that a test is a bad thing?
Because it’s hard.
Because it’s not always fun.
Because there’s a risk of failure.
Because it takes a lot of work to get ready for it—
--when maybe you’d rather be playing
or hanging out with friends.
Now,
let me ask the teachers who are here.
At its best,
is a test a good thing or a bad thing?
Still, probably some disagreement.
But I think the predominant view
is that it would be good.
Because it’s a learning experience.
Because it encourages study.
Because it gives an idea of what else needs to be learned.
Because it focuses the effort of the students.
Is it easy?
No.
Does it have value?
Yes.
Jesus was driven out into the wilderness.
Did he want to be there?
I would guess at least a part of him didn’t.
I would guess that there was a part of him
that would have preferred the easy way.
That would have preferred the comfortable way.
But God’s Spirit sent him out
to be tempted and tested,
even though it would be hard.
And the difference between Satan’s temptation
and God’s testing,
it seems to me,
is that Satan—the adversary—
--wanted Jesus to fail.
God wanted Jesus to succeed.
Again,
at their best,
when teachers give tests,
they really want the students to succeed.
I give tests in Confirmation Class.
I’d be thrilled if everyone got 100%.
I don’t want students to fail.
I want them to learn.
And when we are tested in the wilderness,
God wants us to succeed,
to grow,
to learn,
to become stronger.
Like a piece of pottery that’s been through the fire.
When we go through the fire,
we become stronger because of it.
And sometimes,
even though we don’t like it,
when we are in the desert,
it may not mean we’re doing anything wrong.
It may be that we are right where God want us
for that time.
Or, we may have done lots wrong,
and God still will work to use it
as a time of growth and learning for us.
And while we’re in the wilderness,
we’re not alone.
While Jesus was in the wilderness,
God was with him.
When we’re in the wilderness,
God is with us.
He was in the wilderness 40 days,
tempted by Satan;
and he was with the wild beasts;
and the angels waited on him.
Angels—
--God’s messengers.
In the darkest times of our lives.
When we feel tempted,
torn,
tested to the edge of our endurance.
When we sense that wild beasts are all around us—
--whatever those beasts may be.
Even then,
God is with us—
--giving us strength
--giving us hope
--giving us peace
--giving us direction.
Leading us.
Guiding us.
Shaping us.
I’m thankful to theologian Thomas Long,
who points out that for Jesus,
maybe the greatest temptation came
when we hear about the wilderness again,
a little later in the first chapter of Mark.
Verse 35:
In the morning,
while it was still very dark,
Jesus got up and went to a deserted place,
aramon,
wilderness,
and there he prayed.
And Simon and his companions hunted for him.
When they found him,
they said to him:
“Everyone is searching for you.”
From the voice of friends,
a temptation.
Everyone is looking for you.
You’re popular.
They love you back in Capernaum.
Come on back.
Come on back to where it’s easy.
Come on back to where it’s not so challenging.
Come on back from the wilderness
to a place that’s a lot more comfortable.
So,
would Jesus go back to Capernaum
where he had healed and cast out demons
and was popular and honored
and revered.
Or,
would Jesus go on where God was leading him
to the 15th chapter of Mark,
where they would nail him to a tree.
What do you think?
Which way would you go?
And Jesus says to them:
Let us go on to the neighboring towns,
so that I may proclaim the message there also;
for that is what I came out to do.
And where Jesus leads—
--we follow.
The wilderness focuses our direction.
It focuses our calling.
Will we go where it’s comfortable and easy?
Or will we seek to follow where God leads,
even if it leads to the cross?
Jesus points the way.
Let us go on where God is leading.
That’s what I came to do.
I am so thankful that Jesus followed
where he was led.
That he did what he came to do.
That he went to the cross for you and for me.
That he loves us that much.
That he didn’t take the easy way—
--but followed.
And I pray for strength for me,
for us,
to follow.
In the wilderness times of your life,
remember:
--You are not alone.
God is always with you.
--And God is at work,
shaping you,
testing you,
hoping you will do well.
--And God can use that wilderness to focus your life,
your mission, your purpose.
May we say with Jesus,
That’s what we came to do.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen
