Upside-Down Christmas: Luke 4

Luke 4

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Greetings this morning from the Upside Down Christmas podcast, our Advent series tracing the theme of reversal and irony through the book of Luke one chapter at a time.

In chapter four, we start off with Jesus entering into the wilderness. Jesus, after having been baptized by John, goes off into the wilderness for forty days to fast and pray. And while he’s out there, he’s also tempted by the devil in three different ways. In one of those temptations, the devil tempts him with a kind of kingship. Here’s what it says: “And the devil took him up and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time, and said to him, “To you I will give all this authority and their glory, for it has been delivered to me, and I give it to whom I will. If you, then, will worship me, it will all be yours.” (Luke 4:5-7)

Now, the reason why that’s such a temptation is because Jesus knows that the trajectory of his mission in the world is for him to be king. And in a sense out there in the desert he had experienced what he would have to go through over the next several years in order to arrive at that. I mean, he hadn’t eaten, surely it was hot. Mark’s gospel says that he was surrounded by wild animals, a haunting kind of image of chaos. Did Jesus really want to endure all of that. The devil was offering him a shortcut, a kind of circumvention that would bypass all the suffering…if only he would worship him.

Now that sounds like a pretty good deal if you’re interested in ruling the world. In fact, in the wisdom of the world, this seems like a no-brainer. It’s certainly the more direct route, the more efficient route. It involves way less suffering. It’s just what Jesus was aiming for and it would get him there a lot quicker.

Of course, Jesus says no because the cost of getting there is too high. He resists temptation—quite unlike our forefather, Adam—and he does so because he knows that it is trading real kingship for a hollowed out version. Instead, he chooses the road of suffering and death. Jesus knows that the way to the crown is through the cross.

That’s the upside down way of the king.

And being a follower of Jesus means that we happily receive our place in Jesus’ kingdom by placing our faith in his kingdom. He resisted temptation where we would have faltered and he triumphed where we would have failed. And because we’ve been brought under his lordship, we are now called to live as he lived, to imitate him. Because we’re under his kingly rule, he expects that we will live a life that is pattered after his—a cruciform pattern. It means that our lives will in some measure look rather upside down according to the values of the world.

I guess the question then is, what shortcuts are you trying to take when God is clearly calling you into a different path? What suffering are you trying to avoid to get to your kingship, your crown, your glory?

Let’s pray. Lord, we thank you that you resisted temptation in the wilderness because we are the great beneficiaries of your self-sacrifice. You resisted the temptation of the devil in our behalf and you went to the cross in our stead, and now you ask us to live in ways that reflect that. So Lord we pray that you would strengthen us by your Spirit to resist temptation, to embrace suffering, and to live the cruciform life. Amen.

Family Devotion:

Start with this silliness. It’s a game called “Let’s See What You Can Do.” Explain that you will be asking everyone to perform different tasks that are a little bit challenging. Some examples of tasks would be: standing on one leg for a minute, making a roll with your tongue, saying the months of the year backwards, patting your head and rubbing your stomach at the same time, or touching your nose with your tongue.

Then as you’re winding down, ask if there are any tasks they can do that other children may not be able to do, and allow them to demonstrate their unique skills.

Explain that in the Bible story, the devil wanted Jesus to prove himself by performing miracles, but Jesus did not give in to the devil's temptations.

Read the Temptation of Christ in Luke 4:1-13

As you read pause and ask:

• After verse 4 ask: Why do you think it would have been wrong for Jesus to turn the stone to bread? Can we use God’s power for our own needs? How can we resist the temptation to use God’s power for our own benefit?

• After verse 8 ask: Why was it wrong for Jesus to kneel before the devil? Do people still kneel before the devil today? In what ways? How can we resist the temptation to seek power or glory for ourselves?

• After verse 12 ask: Why did the devil want Jesus to jump from the temple? What would have happened if Jesus had done this? How can we resist the temptation to prove ourselves to others or seek attention?