At the Intersection: Temptation’s Lure
Temptation’s Lure
James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came forward to Jesus and said to him, “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.” And he said to them, “What is it you want me to do for you?” And they said to him, “Appoint us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory.” – Mark 10:35-37
I entered the third grade satisfied with getting grades that were mostly “C’s.” Sometimes I managed a “B” in either social studies or math while sloppy handwriting or disinterest in spelling resulted in a “D”. I didn’t detest going to school, but neither did I apply myself to learning. What I did enjoy was the marble field next to the asphalt playground. During the first two months of third grade, Mrs. Frosdick often called me to her desk. A couple times my classroom behavior necessitated her stern rebuke. However, most often she “merely” engaged me in a conversation, or reviewed a word chart, or asked me to read to her.
Reading time was an everyday routine. The class gathered in one of three groups. I belonged (or so I thought) with those whose reading skills were below grades level. Early in November, at the beginning of the second quarter, Mrs. Frosdick came over to where I sat and asked to pick up my things and follow her. Instinctively I rehearsed the events of the day to find the reason for being “called out.” Instead of giving a reprimand, she led me to the group reading above grade level. “This is where you belong,” she informed me.
Through her encouragement and questions, Mrs. Frosdick ignited a delight to discover and learn. By the end of the school year the report card displayed A’s and B’s. Over the coming years through high school, I continued earning honor roll grades. Sadly, the delight at learning became overshadowed by the quest to find out what the next test would cover. I discovered that “A’s” translated into parental praise and class rank.
The Genesis prologue begins with the story of creation and God’s design for humans to live in communion with their God and Creator and with each other. Temptation, coming in the form of the serpent, lured the first humans into believing they would get more out of life by ignoring what God said about relationships and daily provision. Instead, they should go after and take whatever they wanted. That story, along with narrations of Cain killing brother Abel, Noah and the flood, and the Tower of Babel present the awful truth of human sin and its consequences. The pronouncement made by those at Babel well summarizes the “soil” in which human sin takes root, “Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves…” – Genesis 11:4.
We find the same attitude evinced by brothers James and John (remember their nickname, “sons of thunder”). Not really understanding what Jesus told his followers about going to Jerusalem where the chief priests and Gentiles would conspire to kill him but on the third day he will rise again, the brothers responded to the idea of Jesus entering his glory and Lordship. Thus, they made their request for places of honor and power alongside him. Can you imagine the rancor that erupted when the other disciples overheard James and John lobbying “to make a name for themselves.”
In his reflection upon Life Together among Christians, Bonhoeffer notes that vying for personal standing and prestige among others in a group makes impossible the bonding of Christians in communion with God and each other. Instead of attending to the well-being of the other, personal need for recognition and praise becomes the modus operandi, that is the motivation for what we do. Even our attempts to show love are tainted because our image of love is limited by human desire and imagination. Just like I lost the delight of learning to the conflicting desire to get praiseworthy grades, so also, we fail to enter God-intended joy because what we do is founded upon “making a name for ourselves” instead of being “compelled by the love of Christ.” That is why Bonhoeffer urges Christians to begin each day remembering they are baptized into the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Doing so opens us to the good work of the Holy Spirit who forms us as ambassadors of Christ’s love (see 2 Corinthians 5:14-21).
Bonhoeffer notes, “For Jesus Christ alone is our unity. ‘He is our peace.’ Through him alone do we have access to one another, joy in one another, and fellowship with one another.” Moreover, according to our baptismal identity each of us has a gift, a contribution, a presence to offer for the well being of our communion in Christ and for the sake of God’s Kingdom coming.