Invocabit (Lent 1)

Invocabit – March 9, 2025

Psalm 91; Genesis 3:1-21; 2 Corinthians 6:1-10

St. Matthew 4:1-11

In the Name of the Father, and of the + Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Immediately after His baptism in the Jordan River, Christ was cast into the wilderness by the Holy Spirit to be tempted for 40 days and nights. At the end of this sojourn, the devil appeared to directly tempt our Lord. He tempted Him three times: with food, with command over the Holy Angels, and with power. In these temptations, we can see what is sometimes called the “Unholy Trinity”: our flesh, the world, and the devil. These three are the means by which Satan tempts the holy ones of God to sin, seeking to drive you away from your Heavenly Father.

The devil tempts Christ to use His divine power of creation to turn stones into bread. Our Lord is hungry. He is truly man, meaning He feels the ache in His belly the same way you and I would if we fasted for 40 days. He is hungry. Satan is tempting Christ to give in to the ache of His body, to indulge His flesh through the use of His divinity.

Although you are not divine, Satan uses the temptations of the flesh in the same way against you. He would have you believe that if it feels good it must be good for you. If it brings momentary pleasure, it must be good.

Yet, how does Christ respond to this temptation? “Man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.”[1] The only reason food nourishes and sustains your body is because God has ordained that it would. With this response, Christ is also stating that if God has commanded Him to fast, He will not listen to the command of Satan to create bread and eat. He refuses to eat the meat supplied by a wicked butcher. God is the One who makes food profitable to your body. As such, a man would starve even if he had all the food in the world but did not have the Word of God.

So too, as the beloved children of the Lord, recognize that every bit of nourishment you receive comes from God. When St. Paul speaks of meat sacrificed to idols, he says that on one hand, the idols are nothing but wood and stone, meaning the meat comes not from Baal or Shiva, but from God, and is therefore permissible for Christians to eat and be nourished. On the other hand, such meat has been set aside for the worship of false gods and if by eating, your conscience is tempted toward these demons or the conscience of those around you might be fooled into worshiping such false gods, then such eating is forbidden.[2]

When this temptation fails to deceive Christ, Satan tells Him to leap off the pinnacle of the temple because God will send His angels to save Him. This is a temptation to manipulate the creation, those things visible and invisible, to serve a frivolous end. He is tempting Christ to manipulate God and His creation. This can be seen as a temptation of the world.

The sinful world will almost always tempt you through the manipulation of creation. While the temptations of the flesh come from within you, temptations of the world come from the outside. ‘The world is yours for the taking.’ ‘Eat, drink, and be merry.’ Just as Satan manipulates the Word of God to tempt Christ, so too the world will manipulate the Word of God to tempt you. The world says, “You shall not kill means you should protect life. Therefore, don’t go to church for two weeks, three months, a year or more because you might get sick, or worse, get someone else sick.” Similarly, the world has convinced us that health is so important that if you are sick or injured, you shouldn’t go to church, but you can’t miss any of your doctor’s appointments. You can’t sit in the pew for an hour or so, but you can sit in a waiting room for just as long. And those are the manipulations of the world against only one of the commandments.

Satan’s temptation of Christ is to take something God has promised, the ministrations and protection of the holy angels, and put it to the test. “Did God really say…? You should test it and find out.” God cannot lie. There is no reason to put His Word to the test. The preaching of the apostles and the preaching of your pastor should be put to the test, but they should only be tested by the standard of God’s Word, that which is certain and true.

Having failed to tempt Christ twice, Satan cuts to the heart of the matter. He offers Christ all the kingdoms of the world and their glory if only He will fall down and worship Satan. He is claiming authority that is not his, for although he is the ruler of this world, it does not belong to him. God alone governs the heavens and the earth. God alone has all authority on heaven and in earth. Yet Satan will offer anything, lie about anything, if it means he can have his way.

The temptations of Satan are always a lie. To believe the lies of Satan are to offer him worship and praise. In the stillness of night, he will try to convince you that God has abandoned you, that you are worthless to God and man. Or, he might try to convince you that you are greater than man and more powerful than God. He will use whatever lie seems most convincing. To believe him is to fall down and worship before him. For Eve, that meant sowing the seed of doubt in God’s Word and God’s goodness, then convincing her the opposite of God’s command was good. She was deceived and obeyed the command of Satan. In so doing, she offered him worship, violating the first commandment.

Now, we all know that Satan is the Accuser, the Deceiver. He was created an angel of God who led a rebellion against the Lord and was cast out of heaven. Hell, the place of eternal torment and damnation was created to be the eternal dwelling of Satan and his rebellious angels, now called demons. What motivated him to tempt Christ? His primary motivation is to drive a wedge between God and man. He desires to separate man from God so that he would not be alone in his suffering. He rebelled against God in hatred for God and His creation, most especially for the creation of man, whom God placed as the crown jewel of all creation.

Satan also knows exactly who the Christ is. He knows that He is true God and true Man. If Satan could tempt Christ to sin, he would forever divide God from man. God is, by definition, good. He is the source of all good things. If Satan could drive a wedge between the two natures of Christ, if he could divide Christ’s humanity from His divinity, then there would be no hope of salvation for all human beings. Christ would no longer be God because He would no longer be pure, without sin. Christ would also no longer be truly man because the purity of humanity lies in relationship to God. To be the most fully human is to be in perfect communion with God, our creator and the source of life. If Satan could corrupt, divide, destroy the One in whom humanity and divinity are perfectly united, he would succeed in destroying God and all humanity in one fell swoop. His plan to tempt the Christ was his most devious plan to date.

In St. Luke’s account of the temptation, it is recorded that when the temptations failed, the devil “departed from Christ until an opportune time.”[3] The temptation was Satan’s best opportunity to “defeat” the Christ. Our Lord was weakened by hunger and exposer in the wilderness for 40 days. Both Satan and Christ knew the prophets had written about our Lord’s crucifixion. Satan seized the opportunity to attack the hungry and exhausted Christ with temptations that all boil down to avoiding the crucifixion. At this time, Satan uses the crucifixion as something to be avoided, tempting Christ with a pain-free way out.

But when that fails, he departs for a while, waiting for the next opportune moment – our Lord’s passion and crucifixion. He waits for the next opportunity when the flesh of man and the world will align with the desires of Satan to attack Christ again. In that instance, Satan is certain that he has won the victory. The body of the Christ will hang dead on a tree. The devil believes he has finally won the victory he so desperately sought in the wilderness of temptation.

And yet the one who drew man into sin by means of a tree was by a tree overcome. What Satan thought was his great victory, was, in reality, his defeat. Christ overcame the Accuser in the very death Satan claimed to be his greatest weapon.

This is the greatest lesson to be learned from the temptation of Christ. Where we have failed, Christ has won the victory. While Eve succumbed to temptation, Christ triumphed over it. While Job eventually blamed God for his suffering, Christ was sustained by the Word of God alone. While Peter denied Christ before the world, Christ overcame death to restore Peter to salvation.

Satan still stalks about as a roaring lion, seeking to devour whom he wills. He still has the means of your flesh, the world, and his own evil will. He still has the motive to separate man from God. He still has the opportunity whenever you are at your weakest, even if that means you are feeling your strongest. These he still uses to tempt you. Yet though he rage, he is little more than a rabid dog on a chain, waiting to be put down. Christ has won the victory and will not let Satan tear you away from Him. Christ won the victory in the wilderness and brought it to completion on the cross.

Now is the day of salvation. The Accuser stands accused. The judgment has been rendered, and the sentence will soon be carried out against him.  All who dwell in the shadow of the Most High will find refuge under His wings. When you call, He will answer. You will be satisfied with long life as He shows you His salvation.

In + Jesus’ name. Amen.

---

[1] St. Matthew 4:4; Deuteronomy 8:3.

[2] 1 Corinthians 8.

[3] St. Luke 4:13.

Invocabit (Lent 1)

Invocabit – February 18, 2024

Psalm 91; Genesis 3:1-21; 2 Corinthians 6:1-10

St. Matthew 4:1-11

In the Name of the Father, and of the + Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

The first and most important lesson to take from the Temptation of Christ is that He suffered the temptations of Satan and overcame them on your behalf. The war between Jesus and the devil begins right after Jesus’ birth, as the servant of Satan, Herod, sought to murder the infant Jesus. But on that occasion, the devil worked through his agent to assault the Son of God. It is not until Jesus is Baptized, anointed by the Holy Spirit, and marked by the Word of the Father as being a pleasing and acceptable sacrifice for the sins of man that the devil took a personal stake in assaulting Jesus.

Baptized by John, Jesus is immediately hurled into the wilderness by the Holy Spirit. It was the will of God that Jesus be tempted in the wilderness. He willingly submitted to this temptation. If He had not, then the devil could not tempt Him. The devil is powerful, but he is not omnipotent. He is not the “equal-but-opposite” of God. The devil is, after all, an angel, a created being, a spiritual being.

Why might Christ will to be tempted by Satan in the wilderness? To win the victory on your behalf. When Adam and Eve were tempted in the garden, they fell, choosing to listen to the word of the serpent and eat the forbidden fruit. When the Israelites were tempted in the wilderness, they fell, complaining against Moses, Aaron, and God, and saying they preferred slavery in Egypt over freedom with God. When given the land of Canaan, the Israelites were tempted to worship the false gods of the Canaanites, and they fell, worshiping Baal and Asherah.

By contrast, our Lord was cast into the wilderness to be tempted and win the victory. But He did not win the victory for Himself. “He battled as the Surety, the Mediator, the Substitute of the whole human race, for all men, for us who are gathered here. Through sin all men sold themselves to Satan; all became his servants and subjects of his kingdom. To redeem and save men Christ came as the real Owner of all the souls of men in order to conquer Satan, destroy his kingdom, take his booty away again, free us from his power, and lead all men through the kingdom of grace into the kingdom of eternal glory.”[1]

So it is that we can see Christ taking the place of all mankind in the struggle against sin, death, and the devil. He is winning the victory that you cannot win. He humbly and willfully submits to being tempted by Satan to fulfill the Law of God. Your salvation was not won by breaking any rules. God did not simply assert His authority over all creation and rewrite the laws of reality. Instead, He entered into reality, into creation, that He would win the prize of your salvation according to the Laws which He already wove into the world. When He told Adam and Eve that in eating the fruit, “dying you shall die,” He meant it. The consequence of sin is death. In order to fulfill this Law, someone must die.

Thus, being anointed as the acceptable sacrifice for sin, Jesus submits to being tempted that He might fulfill the whole Law. Where man has failed, Christ has stood steadfast and won the victory. By His overcoming temptation, we see that He is truly the unblemished Lamb, acceptable as the perfect sacrifice for all ages. This is by far and away the most important truth of the temptation of Christ.

Knowing that Christ was tempted on your behalf and won the victory over temptation on your behalf, you are now free to see His actions as an example for your own. Such an example should never overtake the fact that Jesus defeated Satan for you, but it is the necessary consequence. Seeing David strike down Goliath, the Israelites were spurred on to victory, chasing down the Philistines and killing every last soldier and plundering their tents.[2] The actions of the army would be impossible, let alone insignificant, if not for the actions of the lowly shepherd boy from Bethlehem. So much more is this true of the actions of Christ and the resulting actions of all Christians. We have seen our Almighty General conquer in the fight. This should then rouse our souls to imitate His glorious victory as we chase down and smite the remnants of the devil’s pitiful army.

The example of Christ for us to follow in fighting against the temptations of Satan are three-fold. First, we see that Christ has been in the wilderness for forty days and forty nights without food or water. He has been fasting. At first, this seems like a weakness. At first, it seems as though Christ would be at His weakest and that is the reason that Satan has chosen to tempt Him at this time. “But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty.”[3] This fast of Christ is an example of the spiritual discipline of fasting which strengthens you against the temptations of the flesh.

The primary purpose of fasting is to remind you that man does not live by bread alone, but by every Word of God.[4] The result is the training of your flesh, bringing it under the control of your faith. Fasting, if you are not used to it, is difficult. Remember, fasting is not just “giving something up for Lent.” To fast is not to eat. Christians have always practiced fasting, but the guidelines have been different at different times and in different places. Sadly, these guidelines have sometimes become the basis of controversy in the church as though God had commanded a specific method of this discipline.

The basic guideline to fasting is to not eat for a period of time. If this is something new for you, you might begin on Sunday mornings. Do not eat until after you have received the Sacrament. By the time we get to the Lord’s Supper in the Divine Service, you will notice how hungry you are and the first sustenance you receive will be the Body and Blood of Christ. If you would like to go a step further, choose a day of the week—historically Wednesday or Friday—on which you will not eat from sunup to sundown. When you do eat, it should be a lighter meal for the practical reason that gorging yourself on an empty stomach is not good for your gut but for the spiritual reason that fasting is not an excuse for gluttony. And if you would like to go even a step further, then fast on your chosen day from the time you wake up until you go back to sleep.

The second tactic to learn from Christ is how to counter the temptations of Satan. The devil tempts Jesus with corrupted versions of creation and the Word of God. He tells half truths and offers that which he has no right to give. Such temptations are incredibly enticing for man. Yet we see Jesus not only parry, or deflect, such attacks of Satan, but He delivers a riposte, or counterattack. How? He rightly uses the Word of God. He rightly takes that given to Him by the Father and uses it against such false teachings.

For you to use such a tactic first means you must know the Word of God. You must be familiar with the teachings of Scripture. It is one thing to quote Scripture. Even the devil can do that. It is another entirely to use it appropriately. This requires that you read the bible every day. You must be steeped in the Word of God. The pace at which you read the bible is dependent upon you. Maybe you are only capable of reading a few paragraphs a day. Maybe a chapter. Maybe multiple chapters. I can tell you that you are capable of reading more than you think. Challenge yourself to read more than you think you can. There are myriad bible reading plans out there. If you need one, let me know and I’ll get you one.

Being familiar with the Word of God, being steeped in it, is only the beginning. It is necessary that you commit the Word of God to memory. No matter your age or your relative ability to memorize, it is possible. Start with the verses you already know. Almost everyone in this room knows John 3:16. Excellent. Then, think of every time we sing or speak verses of Scripture in the liturgy. You probably already have those memorized. Most everyone here today could participate in the Divine Service without looking at your hymnal for the ordinaries, that is, the parts of the liturgy that don’t change.

From there, think of the verses that are used in the catechism and those verses choses for the Congregation at Prayer which correspond to the catechism. If you worked to memorize only those passages I’ve already mentioned, you would arm yourself with close to 100 verses of Holy Scripture. The next step would be practicing using those passages. When you are tempted to sin, speak aloud a corresponding Word of God. Tempted to gluttony, then say, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.”[5] Tempted by anger, then say, “Do not avenge [yourself], but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, ‘Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,’ says the Lord.”[6]

The final tactic to be learned from our Lord is reliance on God and his ministers, specifically the Holy Angels. Amid temptation, it is vital that you remember relief is at hand. “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I shall fear no evil for [the Lord is] with me.”[7] Though they are unseen, God has appointed the Holy Angels to be ministers to His beloved, a mighty army encamped around the children of God.[8] No amount of suffering or temptation will last forever for those who trust in the Lord. “And take they our life, goods, fame, child, and wife, those these all be gone, the victory has been won, the kingdom ours remaineth.”[9]

The comfort and ministration of the Holy Angels may not always be as apparent as those who ministered to Christ after His temptation, but your temptations are also not as apparent as the Devil whisking you away to top of the temple nor showing you all the kingdoms of the earth. Just as your temptations are real so too is the ministry of the Holy Angels real. Whether in the guise of mortals or simply working unseen, the Holy Angels will and do minister to all of you. In fact, they always guide and protect you. Be strengthened in the knowledge that all the heavenly host is on your side and fighting with you against Satan, all his works and all his ways.

In + Jesus’ name. Amen.

---

[1] C. F. W. Walther, Gospel Sermons, Volume 1, translated by Donald E. Heck (St. Louis, MO: CPH, 2013), 160.

[2] 1 Samuel 17:51-53.

[3] 1 Corinthians 1:27.

[4] St. Matthew 4:4; Deuteronomy 8:3.

[5] St. Matthew 4:4; Deuteronomy 8:3.

[6] Romans 12:19.

[7] Psalm 23:4.

[8] Psalm 34:7.

[9] A Mighty Fortress, Stanza 4.

Invocabit (The First Sunday in Lent)

Guest Preacher: Rev. Kevin Vogts

Invocabit (The First Sunday in Lent) - February 26, 2023

Psalm 91; Genesis 3:1-21; 2 Corinthians 6:1-10

St. Matthew 4:1-11

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.  Amen.

Our text is today’s Gospel Reading from the fourth chapter of St. Matthew, the example of Jesus “Fighting Temptation.”

It seems that the very notion of “Fighting Temptation” is passé, old-fashioned, obsolete.  Instead of “Fighting Temptation,” our attitude is, “Don’t fight it.  If it feels good, DO IT!”  Don’t worry about the consequences, DO IT!  Don’t think about the hurt to yourself or others, DO IT!  Don’t consider whether it’s right or wrong, DO IT!  Don’t be bothered by God’s commands, DO IT!    Instead of “Fighting Temptation,” we WELCOME the devil and his wicked ways into our lives. 

Paul warns us in Romans, “The wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all the ungodliness and wickedness of men.”  That is what we deserve on account of our wickedness, the wrath of God.  But, in mercy and love, God does not mete out upon us the punishment our sins deserve.  Instead, our punishment was meted out upon his own Son, as Isaiah says, “He was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him.”

Today’s Old Testament Reading presents the sad story of humanity’s fall into sin, in the persons of Adam and Eve.  In Romans, St. Paul compares Jesus and Adam and explains how Jesus’ perfect life and sacrificial death saves you: “Consequently, just as the result of one trespass was condemnation for all men, so also the result of one act of righteousness was justification that brings life for all men.  For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.”

Jesus’ resurrection is God the Father’s announcement to the world that he has accepted his Son’s perfect life and sacrificial death as payment in full for the sins of the whole world.  The book of Acts says, “Everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins in his name. . .  Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved.”  Trust Jesus, he is your Savior; he forgives all your sins; he has prepared a place for you in heaven, and he will take you to be with him there.

But, as long as you remain here on earth, St. Peter warns, “Your adversary the devil prowls about like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.  Resist him, standing firm in the faith.”  Jesus shows you the greatest weapon of all for resisting your adversary the devil, the greatest weapon of all for “Fighting Temptation.”  St. Paul calls it “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”

When Jesus was tempted, every time he replied: “It is written.”  He fought back!  He fought back with God’s Word.  Martin Luther says in the Large Catechism: “Nothing is so effectual against the devil, the flesh and all evil thoughts as to occupy oneself with the word of God, talk about it, meditate on it. . .  [There is nothing] more potent against the devil than to busy yourself with God’s commandments and words, and to speak, sing, and meditate on them.  This . . . defeats the devil and puts him to flight. . .  For he cannot bear to hear God’s word . . . we must [therefore] use it every day against the daily, unending attacks and ambushes of the devil . . .”  In today’s Hymn of the Day, “A Mighty Fortress,” Luther puts it this way: “One little word can fell him.”

As a follower of Jesus Christ, you will follow his example, “Fighting Temptation” with “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”  “Take up the sword of the Spirit” by coming to God’s house to hear his word, in worship, Sunday School, catechesis, and Bible Class. 

And “take up the sword of the Spirit” not only here in God’s house but also in your own house, by your personal devotions, and prayers, and reading and study of God’s word. As a follower of Jesus Christ, you will follow his example, “Fighting Temptation” with “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”

Are you tempted to be absent from God’s house?  IT IS WRITTEN: “Remember the Sabbath Day to keep it holy.”  “I rejoiced with those who said unto me, ‘Let us go to the house of the Lord.”  “Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing.”  “You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.”

Are you tempted to neglect reading and study of God’s word?  IT IS WRITTEN: “If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples.”  “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly.” “Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.”

Are you tempted to forget prayer in your daily life?  IT IS WRITTEN: “Pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.”  “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests known to God.”  “Ask and you will receive, seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened unto you.”

Are you tempted to ignore Christ’s gracious invitation to his Holy Supper?  IT IS WRITTEN: “Take, eat . . . take, drink . . . THIS DO in remembrance of me.”  “I will take the cup of salvation, and will call on the name of the Lord.”  “For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.”

Are you tempted to withhold from the Lord the offerings he is due?  IT IS WRITTEN: “Bring an offering and come into his courts.”  “On the first day of the week each one should set aside a sum of money in keeping with his income, saving it up for the collection.”  “Give to God what is God’s.”

Are you tempted, parents, not to make a priority the spiritual upbringing of your children?  IT IS WRITTEN: “Bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.”  “We will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord, his power and the wonders he has done.”

Are you tempted, children, to be disrespectful to your parents?  IT IS WRITTEN: “Honor your father and your mother.”  “Obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord.”

Are you tempted to gossip?  IT IS WRITTEN: “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.”

Are you tempted to cheat or steal?  IT IS WRITTEN: “You shall not steal.”  “He who has been stealing must steal no longer.”

Are you tempted to lie?  IT IS WRITTEN: “Do not lie to each other. . .  put off all falsehood and speak truthfully to one another.”

Are you tempted to take the Lord’s name in vain, to use curse words and other improper language?  IT IS WRITTEN: “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.”  “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths.”  “Nor should there be obscenity foolish talk, or coarse joking.”  “Cleanse yourselves of filthy language from your lips.”

Are you tempted to lust and adultery, to join in the wicked ways of the world?  IT IS WRITTEN: “Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires.”   “Get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent.”  “You shall not commit adultery.”

Are you tempted to anger and hatred, to get revenge and hold a grudge?  IT IS WRITTEN: “Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger. . . be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.”   “Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge . . . but love your neighbor as yourself.”  “Forgive as the Lord forgave you.” 

Are you tempted to worry and despair?  IT IS WRITTEN: “Do not let your hearts be troubled; trust in God.”  “Cast your burdens upon the Lord, for he cares for you.”  “Fear not, for I am with you.”

“We plead with you,” St. Paul says in today’s Epistle Reading, “not to receive the grace of God in vain. For he says, ‘In the time of my favor I heard you, and in the day of salvation I helped you.’ I tell you, now is the time of God’s favor, now is the day of salvation.”

“We plead with you not to receive the grace of God in vain,” but when you are tempted, resist the devil, standing firm in your faith.  Fight back with the sword of the Spirit, the word of God.  “One little word can fell him.”  And if you fail, when you fall, turn the Lord, confess your sin, receive his forgiveness, and continue the struggle—as a follower of Jesus Christ following his example, “Fighting Temptation.”

Amen.