Sermon Seeds: Led by the Spirit…Backed by the Word

Sunday, February 22, 2026
First Sunday in Lent | Year A
(Liturgical Color: Violet)

Lectionary Citations
Genesis 2:15-17; 3:1-7 • Psalm 32 • Romans 5:12-19 • Matthew 4:1-11
https://lectionary.library.vanderbilt.edu/texts/?z=l&d=25&y=17134

Focus Scripture: Matthew 4:1-11
Focus Theme: “Led by the Spirit…Backed by the Word”
Series: Tested. Opened. Naked. (Click here for the series overview.)

Reflection
By Cheryl A. Lindsay

Most of us experience tests. They may be diagnostic and identify conditions. Running blood work as part of a medical exam is a test of the composition of expected elements as well as screening for unknown elements that may impact our physical condition. Eye exams test our vision in the same way that hearing tests measure the functioning of our ears and connected parts. Driving tests may evaluate our knowledge of the laws of the road as well as our competency in operating a motor vehicle. Standardized tests used in education may be used for comparison against benchmarks for advancement or comprehension against competition for admissions. Tests take many forms and serve different purposes.

My earliest memories of Lent involved deciding what I needed to give up in order to practice overcoming temptation as an act of gratitude for Jesus’ suffering. I do remember reading or learning about Jesus being tempted in the wilderness. Somehow, in that telling of the events, conflation of the different versions presented by the gospel writers, or through the distorted lens of memory, I believed that Jesus went to the wilderness in order to fast and was found by the devil who decided to tempt Jesus with what Jesus decided he could not have. In my more careful reading, I note that Jesus was driven into the wilderness by the Spirit to be tested. It is no longer clear to me if the fasting was a prelude or a response to the testing. What remained consistent through my memory and my reading was that Jesus was tested and passed by using the biblical witness to refute the claims backing the devil’s temptation.

This encounter occurred within the context of launching Jesus’ ministry, which began with the baptism of Jesus. Jesus is still being introduced, and in this instance, the introduction is of the Word made flesh to the enemy of God’s realm. This moment transcends a test of knowledge; it’s an examination that reveals identity and will set the stage, as all introductions do, for the remainder of the gospel narrative.

In Matthew, the sequence is wilderness, temple, high mountain. Luke reverses the latter two: wilderness, high mountain, temple. In both Gospels, the last temptation corresponds to the conclusion of that Gospel; Matthew ends on a high mountain, Luke at the temple. Talbert observes that the Matthean order reflects Israel’s experience in the wilderness: “Exod. 16: doubting God because of hunger; Exod. 17: testing God; Exod. 32: idolatry or forsaking God.”The Matthean sequence also results in a progressive escalation in perversity: Jesus’ temptations to (1) make bread for himself, (2) put God to the test, and (3) worship the devil.
R. Alan Culpepper

Of all the gospels, Matthew most intentionally draws parallels and connections to the scriptural heritage of the Hebrew Bible. The allusions to the Exodus narrative are not subtle. The making of bread to stave off hunger points to the miraculous provision of daily manna, an unleavened bread, from God’s generous and faithful hand. Putting God to the test is not that different from seeking, receiving, or needing signs like Moses’ serpent-like staff striking the rock to release unlikely and seemingly impossible water. Worshipping the devil is hardly different from building a golden calf to worship; idolatry takes many forms.

The references are not limited to the Exodus story:

Frederick Bruner makes the astute observation that Jesus (and his followers) live “between two spirits.” Once again, Matthew must be understood in light of the Scriptures. Just as God had led Israel out of Egypt and into the wilderness, so Jesus is led by the Spirit into the wilderness, where he, like Israel, is tested. In Deut 8:2, which immediately precedes Jesus’ first response to the tempter, Israel is exhorted to remember how the Lord “led you these forty years in the wilderness, in order to humble you, testing you to know what is in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commandments.” Similarly, God tested Abraham (Gen 22:1). Jesus’ followers are therefore instructed to pray, “Lead us not into temptation.”
R. Alan Culpepper

Jesus responds to all the devil’s prompting, testing, and temptation with scriptural references. Just as significant as Jesus’ pattern of response, the temptations are all predicated on the claim of Jesus as the son of God.

The affirmation that Jesus is “the Son of God” needs to be worked out as to its meaning. In each of the temptations, the tempter begins, “If you are the son of God …” Eugene Boring points out that the word translated “if” (Greek ei) could equally well be translated “since.” The question at issue is not whether Jesus is the Son of God, but since he is the Son of God, what will that mean, how will he live out his relationship to God? The temptations he faces will each in turn urge him to take his relationship to God as a position of privilege, using it to meet his own needs, receive protection from the vulnerability of his humanity, and gain power over all the kingdoms of the world. Is this what it means to be “the Son of God”? Or will Jesus understand his calling in terms of God’s redemptive work and take up a role of serving God and God’s people toward that end—even if the end was suffering and death for him?
Anna Case Winters

The devil tempts Jesus to use the power Jesus possesses but has intentionally set aside to live a full human experience. The devil does not merely seek to cause Jesus to stumble, he tempts the Son of God to abandon his mission just as he has publicly introduced himself and has been affirmed by the Voice and the Spirit at his baptism in the Jordan River. The devil used bread as a temptation to assert privilege, the pinnacle of the temple to abuse authority, and the kingdoms of the world to abduct adoration. In these temptations, the devil attempts to influence the Embodied One to redirect his path to follow the devil when Jesus came to manifest The Way and invite God’s beloved to follow that road of life.

The temptations are presented in progression; however they quickly escalate in nature, power, and impact. Therefore, the final temptation reveals the ends the devil seeks from this testing: to split the allegiance of the Holy One, to splinter the Godhead, and to entice the Creator to worship the enemy of the divine.

The third temptation is to possess kingdoms and power and glory. The setting of this temptation is a high mountain looking down on “all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor” (v. 8). It is the view from above, looking down. It is a vantage point and life orientation that Jesus will resolutely refuse. Jesus could rule over all the kingdoms of the world—much as the Roman emperor actually did. All that would be required in exchange is to “fall down and worship” the devil. We might speculate with interest whether Matthew means to imply that these kingdoms and empires are in the devil’s hands to give. Israel’s great creedal affirmation as recorded in Deuteronomy 6:4–5 shapes Jesus’ final answer to the invitation of the tempter to serve another as god. “Hear, (Shema) O Israel: The LORD is our God, the LORD alone. You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and with all your might.” This is an affirmation and calling that Jesus, as a faithful Jew, would have learned from his earliest instruction. God alone is God. So he answers, “It is written, “Worship the LORD your God, and serve only him.” With this he dismisses the devil.
Anna Case Winters

The only reason this story was told was because Jesus shared it. There were no eyewitnesses to this private meeting. Yet, Jesus makes this test public because it was essential to his identity and the ethos of his ministry. He held privilege but did not take advantage of it. He had authority but did not use it to be served by others. His divinity invited him to be worshipped, but he directed glory back to the One who sent him.

This encounter does not contain the explicit manifestation of the Triune God, but they are as unified and present with Jesus as at his baptism. This encounter reveals the path and commission of the baptized life–faithfulness and commitment to God will be tested. In this exam, the Judge is on your side. The Proctor will guide you, and the Book is open.

Today, as throughout history, allegiance to the kindom of God and commitment to the baptized life is being tested. Imperial forces use power and privilege to divide and conquer. Nationalism distorts religious claims to misinterpret the will of the Holy One. Cultural and societal norms counter the good news of God’s liberative and redeeming power with isolationism, manipulation, and exploitation. These tests may seem overwhelming, yet Jesus provides a blueprint and serves as an examination partner inviting all to be led by the Spirit with the assurance of being backed by the Word.

Glory to God.

Reflection from Voices of People of African Descent
The 33rd General Synod adopted a Resolution to Recognize the United Nations International Decade for People of African Descent (2015-2024). As part of its implementation, Sermon and Weekly Seeds offers Reflection from Voices of People of African Descent related to the season or overall theme for additional consideration in sermon preparation and for individual and congregational study.
“Our Plea” (1894)
by Benjamin Tucker Tanner
To Thee, oh Lord, we make our plea
That human sorrows Thou wouldst see,
And human grief, and human tears
That flow throughout the life-long years.

Awake, O Lord, and speak the word,
Awake, assert Thyself as Lord,
And let the pain of head and heart
At thy dear coming, Lord, depart.

Awake, and let they people know
That from them Thou wilt never go;
And let the world be put to shame—
If, Lord, it rev’rence not thy name.

For Further Reflection
“Our care of the child should be governed, not by the desire to make him learn things, but by the endeavor always to keep burning within him that light which is called intelligence.” ― Maria Montessori
“As I grow older, much older, I will experience many things, and I will hit rock bottom again and again. Again and again I will suffer; again and again I will get back on my feet. I will not be defeated. I won’t let my spirit be destroyed.” ― Banana Yoshimoto
“Walk with the dreamers, the believers, the courageous, the cheerful, the planners, the doers, the successful people with their heads in the clouds and their feet on the ground. Let their spirit ignite a fire within you to leave this world better than when you found it…” ― Wilferd Peterson

Works Cited
Case Winters, Anna. Matthew: A Theological Commentary. Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2015.
Culpepper, R. Alan. Matthew: A Commentary. Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2021.

Suggested Congregational Response to the Reflection
During the Season of Lent, reflect and discern as a community the tangible acts of liberation available as a response to communal events and realities and commit to realizing those acts within the season. Love Knows No Borders is a valuable new UCC resource to consult.

Worship Ways Liturgical Resources
https://www.ucc.org/worship-way/lent-1a-february-22/

The Rev. Dr. Cheryl A. Lindsay, Minister for Worship and Theology (lindsayc@ucc.org), also serves a local church pastor, public theologian, and worship scholar-practitioner with a particular interest in the proclamation of the word in gathered communities. You’re invited to share your reflections on this text in the comments on our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/SermonSeeds.

A Bible study version of this reflection is at Weekly Seeds.