The Wilderness Way, Part 3

The Wilderness Way, Part 3

Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.[1]

To be intentionally led by the Spirit into an experience of wilderness is one thing, since there must be value in going through times of chaos, suffering, and feeling out of control for reasons that make no logical sense to us at the time. To be led into such an experience for the purpose of being tempted by the devil, as is recorded of what happened to Jesus, is yet another level of testing. The first experience we must endure; the second requires us to respond. A large part of our aversion to such experiences is our mistaken belief that anything to do with the devil or with temptation could never lead to anything good. Most of us, from our earliest days, are taught to equate the devil and temptation with evil, destruction, and something to be avoided at all costs. And with good reason. There are evil forces at play in the world that intend harm to us and others for unhealthy egoic or misguided purposes. We need to be protected from such evil intentions until we are able to discern the underlying purposes of that which is tempting us.

The term devil is used to refer to an interesting mix of traits, including mischievous, wicked, disruptive, cruel, and clever. It’s companion title, Satan, means a deceiver or a purveyor of lies. What the titles share in common is a dealing in untruths or partial truths. In other words, encounters with a devil or with temptation are likely to challenge the truths we hold in significant ways – either through fear, twisted logic, or deception. For example, if we believe God is love and that love will never cause unpleasantness, then we are forced to question those beliefs whenever we suffer. Is God angry with me? Did I do something wrong? Why would anyone cause this harm to me? We must reexamine our relationship to God and others, God’s action (or lack thereof) in our lives, what is and is not love, and the very nature of suffering itself, i.e., is it always something to be avoided?

If we are not well-grounded in an open-minded and trusting faith about God and God’s loving care for us, then anything of the devil or temptation will necessarily lead to suffering because we see it as outside of God’s love for us. Alternatively, when we believe nothing occurs outside of God’s purview, then we understand that the life-experiences that include suffering are limited in how much damage they can do to us and ultimately result in needed growth and maturation. If God is truly a loving God, then we will go through periods of suffering – wilderness experiences – not because God enjoys watching us squirm but because we stubbornly resist that which leads us out of our comfortable status quo in order for us to experience life at a higher, more unified level.

Evil is initiated and perpetuated by those who project their own internal struggles out onto the world around them. The are striking back at those they mistakenly believe to be the cause of their pain and suffering. They need understanding and healing, not scorn, although we often need to use caution around them for our own wellbeing. They need to be taught that their wilderness experience is to be embraced and learned from, not resisted by demonizing and punishing those around them. Once we are able to discern where our actions and those of others are likely to lead, we gain the ability to transform the evil and isolating forces at play into forces that unite and heal. Until then we are only powerless victims who react in ways that perpetuate the evil.

As followers of Jesus the Christ, the wilderness way calls to us – inviting us into a world of uncertainty, change, and shifting understandings. It requires faith and trust that we are guided and protected by more capable hands than our own. When we seek Oneness with God, we will not be allowed to stand still for long or to get too comfortable. God’s creation and God’s nature are always changing in their specifics, even though they may be unchanging at their source. Where we get confused is in identifying with and attaching to the malleable specifics of our lives instead of anchoring ourselves to the unchanging foundation from which the specifics rise and fall. It is in God that we live and move and have our being,[2] and nothing can happen to us outside of that protective reality.

Ultimately, it is not the evil or destructive experiences that determine our spiritual trajectory. That trajectory is determined by the context in which we place those experiences and how we choose to respond.

This is the 21^st in a series titled Crucifying Christianity, Resurrecting the Way.Life Notes are my explorations into mysteries that interest me. They are not objective truths but invitations for readers to explore, too. Engage with me or explore contemplative spiritual direction at ghildenbrand@outlook.com.

---

[1] Matthew 4:1

[2] Acts 17:28