Temptations in the Desert: Are We There Yet?

One of our fun Presbyterian energizers* includes the refrain: “Are we there yet? I gotta go! He’s touching me – she touched me first!” Anyone who has been on a long car ride with children (and some adults) are all too familiar with those phrases. “Are we there yet?” is a cry of frustration, a cry of being dependent on someone else to get us where we are going, a cry of being not in control of the situation. 

Read Psalm 27 and Luke 13:31-35.

We don’t often read about the Pharisees being on Jesus’ side, yet here they are, purportedly trying to ‘help’ him by suggesting that he remove himself from Herod’s reach, to leave his work behind and to save his life. The Pharisees, probably in conversation with Herod, are trying to regain control of the people, of the situation, by removing this troublemaker Jesus – this troublemaker who lifts up the poor and the outcast, who heals the sick and talks about another kingdom.

The Pharisees fall into the temptation of the illusion of control. Instead of being strong, being courageous, and waiting on the Lord, they try to manipulate Jesus, believing they can control his actions. How often do we act as the Pharisees, desperately clawing at the illusion of control? How often are we tempted to bargain with Jesus, believing we can control or limit His presence and His actions?

Jesus, however, does not fear the Pharisees because He knows the Lord is His light and His salvation. Jesus is not swayed from the path to Jerusalem, the path to the cross, his divinely appointed mission. Jesus says ‘no’ to the temptation of the easy way out, escaping with his life intact.

Over and over again, we fall prey to the temptation that we are in control, that we can fix things on our own, that we can face our enemies without God’s help. Over and over again, we cry out “Are we there yet?”, a cry of frustration that God’s time is not our time, that waiting in the Lord requires…waiting.

But our mother hen wants to gather us all together again – Jesus does not see Jerusalem or us as past salvation. Rather than a call for judgment, Jesus calls out to Jerusalem and to us to repent, to return to the LORD our God. The Gospel of Luke over and over again shows who is welcome in the mother hen’s house – shepherds, prodigal sons, Good Samaritans, peasant girls who sing songs of salvation, you, and me. So let us run to our mother hen – let us be embraced by the wings of salvation, for the Lord is our light – whom shall we fear?

Grace and peace,
Pastor Kate

*Energizers are fun coordinated dances set to popular music, often used to help ‘energize’ teenagers in the mornings at camps or conferences.