Mighty to Save

Scripture — Matthew 4:1-11 (NRSV)

Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. He fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was famished. The tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” But he answered, “It is written,

‘One does not live by bread alone,
but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”

Then the devil took him to the holy city and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, saying to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down; for it is written,

‘He will command his angels concerning you,’
and ‘On their hands they will bear you up,
so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.’”

Jesus said to him, “Again it is written, ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’”

Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor; and he said to him, “All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.” Jesus said to him, “Away with you, Satan! for it is written,

‘Worship the Lord your God,
and serve only him.’”

Then the devil left him, and suddenly angels came and waited on him.

Devotion

Yesterday I introduced you to a piece of Anglican liturgy called the Great Litany. Today I want to talk about a certain kind of prayer that is very characteristic of the Anglican tradition—collects.

You may not know it, but you’ve already experienced a great many collects, because collects from the Book of Common Prayer (BCP) are what I use for the “Pray” section of these devotionals. On Fridays I use the collect that will be said that coming Sunday in church, and on Thursdays I usually pick out another collect from the BCP that goes with the topic I’m writing about that week. (I’ve been writing devotionals for De Pree and using the lectionary to choose my scriptures since 2019, but only started regularly using collects as the ending prayers in early 2023.)

So what is a collect and why the weird name? And what does any of that have to do with this Sunday’s Gospel, the story of the temptation of Christ? Once again, Anglican Compass will give you a longer explanation, but basically a collect is so called because it “collects” all the prayers of the people into a prayer which is said by the worship leader. Collects follow a very specific pattern. They name an attribute of God or say something about how God acts, they make one specific request connected to that attribute or action, and they conclude with a doxology in praise of the Trinity.

There are many beautiful collects in the BCP; in fact, there is one for every single Sunday in the Christian year, as well as many other feast days and certain other occasions or times of need. But today’s is one of my favorites. It follows the classic pattern:

Almighty God, whose blessed Son was led by the Spirit to be tempted by Satan: [addresses God and names something about God and how God has acted in the world]

Come quickly to help us who are assaulted by many temptations; and, as you know the weaknesses of each of us, let each one find you mighty to save; [makes a request related to the attribute or action]

through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. [concludes with a doxology]

So how about that request, anyway?

On the first Sunday of Lent, those who use the lectionary usually hear the story of the temptation of Christ. If you’re a longtime churchgoer it is probably familiar to you; Jesus fasts forty days and forty nights (the fact that he did so later became one of the influences on the development of our practice of Lent) and then the devil appears to him and offers three temptations: turn these stones into something you can eat, turn your life into a spectacle for the masses, and turn yourself into the king of the world (which, incidentally, apparently is the devil’s to offer).

And Jesus—hungry and tired and worn though he is—refuses every single temptation. But he doesn’t _escape _the temptations. He knows them before he refuses them. And because he knows what it is to be tempted, he can help those of us who are tempted. And when we are tempted, and when we ask him to help us—whether in the words of this collect or not—we will indeed find him mighty to save.

I’ve told the story before of how I bought a crucifix on a trip to Chihuahua, Mexico, many years ago, and, when asked why I was wearing it, told those I was with that it was my “Jesus knows my every weakness” cross. Keeping my crucified Savior before my eyes, I could remember that, even in the deepest and darkest of times, my Lord could and would and did triumph.

So spend time in repentance this Lent. Ask the Lord to spare you. And then rest in the knowledge that when you are beset by temptations and sorrow, persecution and despair, injustice and wrong, and call out for his help, you will find him mighty to save.

Find all Life for Leaders devotions here. Explore what the Bible has to say about work at the unique website of our partners, the Theology of Work Project. Reflection on today’s Life for Leaders theme can be found here: Jesus Calls the Disciples (Matthew 3-4).