Reflection: Watching for Temptation (March 3, 2013)

The 3rd Sunday in Lent
Ezekiel 33:7-20; 1 Cor. 10:1-13; Luke 13:1-9

Temptation is not only tempting, it’s interesting. What is tempting for one person holds no temptation for others. There are even things that are repulsive to some people while being irresistible to others. Evil things can be tempting, but so can good things. When the object of temptation isn't something bad but is something good that we want to use in a sinful way we can see the problem with trying to deal with temptation by ridding our lives of tempting things. There is no way to remove every source of temptation from our lives. Instead, we must watch for temptation and for the way out of it. And, because we are the body of Christ, we must watch for the temptation that threatens others too.

Drawing on a familiar and important role in the ancient world, God told the prophet Ezekiel that He had made him a watchman for the house of Israel. As a spiritual watchmen, Ezekiel was to warn people who were facing temptation and rescue those who had given into it. His work was to save the people from falling from God’s grace and having to face His justice in the Judgment. God told Ezekiel that He did not want to see people perish, even those whom He called “the wicked.” As a watchman, Ezekiel was called to warn people about the dangers of temptation and the consequences of sin. He could not control their response and the outcome, but he was responsible for sounding the alarm — for watching for temptation.

Like Ezekiel, we serve as watchmen. God has called us to warn those who are facing temptation and rescue those who have embraced it. The God who still “finds no pleasure in the death of the wicked” works through us to turn them from their destructive ways. As we carry out this vitally important work we will face many temptations. The very things that we warn people about may tempt us. The thought that we can control the reactions to and outcomes of our message will try to seduce us into relying on things other than God as we carry out our work. The lack of visible results may tempt us to think that our work is pointless. But when we remember that our God takes “no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live” and that He has rescued us from death, we find the strength, purpose, and hope we need to be faithful in watching for temptation.

Audio file of the sermon "Watching for Temptation."