This Sunday my focus scripture is Matthew 4:1-11. The world is full of things that could be labelled as “evil.” There isn’t a day that goes by when some new form of evil isn't discovered or when we’re reminded of it. Recently there are the two children who were found frozen on the Yellow Quill First Nation. There are the hundreds of thousands who are dying and have died in the Congo. There are children who go to school hungry at our local schools. There are children, women and men who live in abusive relationships. There are racial, economic, gender, religious, social, age and violent rooted evils reported in every news cast - from printed word to podcast. Yes, evil seems to be all around us, yet today’s gospel reading tells us that there is a way to overcome this kind of systemic evil. It is rooted in Jesus reactions to the “tempter” or “devil” – who represents evil personified. It is also rooted in how the angels “minister” (Greek: diakoneo) which informs how we are called to live as disciples.
Every Jewish person in Jesus day grew up deeply rooted in the understanding that each person is called to love God with "all their heart, all their soul and all their might." In his response to the devil - the evil that manifests itself that day in the desert - Jesus responds with quotations rooted in his love of God with heart, soul, and might. The Greek word diakoneo that is translated here as "waited upon" also means to minister or serve at table.
What would happen to the evils of the world if we equally stood rooted in the love of God with all our heart, soul and might? What would happen if we turned the popular ideology of hierarchical entitlement on its head and understood that, like the angels, we are called to minister to one another, to wait on one another, to serve one another at table?
Its an interesting set of questions to ponder as we begin a new season of Lent.
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