Lent I: Invocabit - February 22, 2026

Grace to you and peace from God our Father, from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

Temptation is a reality. It happens to each and every one of us.

No one is exempt, young or old, strong or weak, experienced or new to the faith.

Every one of us is tempted in some way or another.

But temptation in and of itself is not sin.

The problem is that when temptation comes, the problem is when we give into it and sin.

We live in a battlefield.

And as baptized believers in Christ, we fight against the devil.

He tempts us to doubt God and his word, to deny God's promises.

He tempts us to seek the sinful pleasures of the world. The devil wants to take

our faith in Christ away.

But take heart. You're not alone.

Our Lord Jesus has entered the battlefield for us. He fought for you, and he won.

Jesus was tempted by the devil in the wilderness. And three times the devil

attacked or tempted Jesus.

And Jesus responded with scripture for three times.

It's interesting to note that all three responses to Satan, Jesus quotes from

the book of Deuteronomy.

Just as Moses spoke words to Israel, so also Jesus used these very words to

speak against the devil.

Jesus is the new and the greater Moses. What happened to Israel in the wilderness

is now replayed in Jesus' temptation in the wilderness.

Where Israel failed, Jesus stands firm.

Where we have fallen, Jesus is victorious.

And his victory is our victory.

The first temptation is to worship earthly bread opposed to the bread of life, God's word.

We see this clearly in the history of Israel.

Just one month after they left Egypt, from the slavery in Egypt,

the children of Israel grumbled and said, oh, we long for the food that we had

back in Egypt where there was plenty of meat and bread to eat.

So they want to go back to slavery in Egypt?

Their stomachs became their idol god, and they worshiped earthly bread rather than the one true God.

So the Lord had mercy upon them, and he fed them.

He fed them with manna and quail for 40 years in the wilderness,

but he also sustained them spiritually by his word.

Moses explained the meaning of it all. His words to them are recorded in Deuteronomy 8, verse 3.

Deuteronomy 8:3

Quote, God humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna.

To teach you that man does not live

by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.

God was teaching them that their life did not come from bread alone.

Yes, bread sustains the body, but the word of God gives them life, eternal life.

Satan used food to tempt the Israelites, and he still uses the same tactic today.

He tempts you to make food, money, possessions to be your God.

And he whispers, Are you hungry? Are you lacking?

Where is your God? Does he really care about you? Take matters into your own hands.

Do what you want to do to get and order what you want.

Satan tempts you to worship earthly bread, to make that the most important thing,

over and above God's word, which is our real bread of life.

And how often have we listened? We have worried, we've complained,

we hoard things, we are envious of what other people have, we trust in earthly

things more than God's promises,

We've made idols out of things that we own.

We fail to trust in God as the giver of all good things.

Lord, have mercy upon us.

But into this battle stepped Jesus. After his baptism, the Holy Spirit led him

into the wilderness to be tempted.

And there he fasted for 40 days and 40 nights.

He was hungry. He was really hungry.

And the devil came to him and said, If you are the Son of God,

command that these stones become bread.

It is as if he said, If you are the Son of God, then why are you hungry?

Why did you do something about it? Why doesn't your Father answer and give you something to eat?

Take matters into your own hands, Jesus. Provide for yourself.

You can do it. Make these stones into bread.

If Jesus had listened, there would be no salvation for you and me. but he did not.

Instead, he answered with the word of God from Deuteronomy 8 verse 3.

Deuteronomy 8:3

Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.

Jesus trusted his Father.

Jesus is the Father's beloved Son. He doesn't need to prove it by turning stone into bread.

He lived by the word of his Father, and Jesus did this for you and me.

Dearly beloved, your daily bread is important and your welfare to be sure.

And God knows your needs and he has promised to provide for you.

But your life does not come from bread alone. It comes from God's word,

his word of forgiveness, his word of promise, his word of life.

Jesus is the word of God, the word of God made flesh.

And Jesus said, I am the bread of life, living bread.

He's living bread who has come down from heaven.

And this morning, that word has been given to you.

It entered your ear in the words of absolution. It enters your ear now in the

hearing of the preaching of the gospel.

And the real bread of life will enter your mouth here at this altar as you partake

of the body blood of Christ.

Here, your sins of greed and anxiety and unbelief are forgiven,

and your faith is strengthened and you trust in God alone.

The second temptation was to doubt God's word rather than trust in it.

Again, we see this in Israel. When they were camped at Rephidim, they had no water.

And so they grumbled against God and Moses and they complained.

They said, why did you bring us up out of Egypt that our children and livestock will die of thirst?

And after everything that God has done for them, and they doubted him,

they tested him, Moses rebuked them, saying, Why do you put God to the test?

And Moses warned them, saying, Do not test the Lord your God.

Deuteronomy 6, verse 16.

Deuteronomy 6:16

And yet Satan continues to use the same temptation against us.

He plants doubt in our minds. He whispers, is God's word really true?

Can you really trust it? Maybe it's just a human book.

Maybe it contains error and faults. Maybe it's outdated. Maybe you can't rely on it.

Satan sends false teachers to twist the scriptures to say what they really don't

say. He causes us to question God's promises, especially in times of trouble.

The devil will also say, where is your God?

Does he really love you? Are you really his child?

Do you really do what you want to do?

Well, and we, like Israel, have fallen and given into these temptations,

and our prayer is always, Lord, have mercy.

But again, Jesus steps in for the rescue. The devil took Jesus to the pinnacle

of the temple, and he told them, if you are the Son of God, Throw yourself down

because your Heavenly Father will rescue you.

And then Satan quotes scripture. He quotes Psalm 91, our intro,

our gradual and our tract for today.

Satan said that your heavenly father will command his angels concerning you.

But what he left off, what he left out is what follows according to the ways of God.

The ways of God, God the Father does not want Jesus to test him and throw himself off the pinnacle.

It's not according to the ways of God.

And so Jesus answers with a word from Deuteronomy 6, verse 16,

Deuteronomy 6:16

quote, and it is written, you shall not put the Lord God to the test.

So Jesus does not test his heavenly father by throwing himself off the cliff. This is ridiculous.

Rather, he trusts his heavenly father, and Jesus is willing to follow and to

walk on the way of his heavenly father, and that way leads to the cross.

Dearly beloved, you trust in God's word. He does love you.

He has proven it by the death and resurrection of his son. The cross defines God's love for you.

He has claimed you in baptism. He has promised to never leave you nor forsake you. He protects you.

And so when doubt comes, and they will, don't test God. Rather,

rely on his word and his promises.

His word is sure, it's certain, and it will never fail.

The third temptation is to choose glory over suffering.

At Mount Sinai, when Moses was

on the mountain, the people grew impatient and they made a golden calf.

And they said, these are your gods, O Israel. They were looking for a God that

they can see and touch and who will allow them to continue in their sinful pleasure.

Moses warned them, Deuteronomy 6, verse 13, he said, Worship the Lord your God and serve him only.

Deuteronomy 6:13

But Satan still uses this temptation today.

He will say to us, look at the world, look at its pleasures,

look at its power, look at its glory.

You don't need to deny yourself.

You don't need to suffer for the sake of Christ. you can have sinful pleasure

and power and glory right now.

And how often have we given into this temptation?

We have chased after comfort, success, and approval from others and the pleasures of a sinful world.

And we have avoided suffering for Christ. Lord, have mercy.

Well, once again, Jesus stands firm. The devil showed him all the kingdoms of

the world and the glory and said, all these I will give to you if you fall down and worship me.

Imagine the temptation for Jesus, a crown without a cross, glory without suffering,

and power without sacrifice.

But Jesus refused. He said, Be gone, Satan, for it is written,

Deuteronomy 6.13, You shall worship the Lord your God, and him only shall you serve.

Jesus chose the cross. Jesus chose suffering.

He chose sacrifice for your sake and mine. And this was the Father's will.

Dearly beloved, the good news is this, that Jesus, Jesus has won.

He was tempted as we are, yet without sin. And where Israel failed, Jesus succeeded.

Where we have been unfaithful, Jesus was faithful.

And his victory is your salvation. He went from the wilderness to the cross.

And there on the cross he bore your sins of greed and doubt and idolatry.

He was beaten and bruised. He was crucified.

And in our Old Testament reading for today from Genesis 3, that's the cross

was how Jesus was bruised.

And yet by means of the cross, Jesus crushed the head of Satan.

And then on the third day, he rose from the dead and he lives forevermore.

The tomb is empty. The devil is defeated.

Sin is forgiven.

Death is conquered. Christ's victory is your victory.

So when Satan comes to you, and he will, you say to him, be gone, Satan.

Jesus is my Lord and Savior. He will defend me.

You have no claim on me. and then quote the scripture against the devil.

So dearly beloved, you are baptized.

You belong to Christ. You are forgiven. You are his. And yes,

you will still face temptation.

You will still suffer and you will still struggle. But your suffering cannot

be compared with a glory that shall be revealed to us in heaven.

Christ is with you. He feeds you with his word and sacrament.

He strengthens your faith. He keeps you in his grace.

And he gives you armor to fight against the devil, namely his word,

his sacrament, faith, and prayer.

For the Israelites, the battle in the wilderness ended when they crossed the

Jordan River and they entered the promised land.

And one day, your battle will be over, the wilderness will end,

and you will enter into the promised land of eternal life in heaven.

But until that day, cling to Christ.

Trust his word.

Receive his gifts. he has fought for you he won the battle and he stands with

you forever and evermore thanks be to God Amen.