March 9th, Sermon & Ministry Resources

"Tested in the Wilderness" Text: Luke 4:1-13

Lectionary Readings — First Sunday in Lent — March 9, 2025

Deuteronomy 26:1-11; Psalm 91:1-2, 9-16; Romans 10:8b-13; Luke 4:1-13

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Call to Worship (based on Luke 4:1-13)

Leader: Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, was led by the Spirit into the wilderness,

People: Where for forty days he was tempted by the devil.

Leader: When tempted with bread to satisfy his hunger, Jesus answered,

People: "It is written: 'Man shall not live on bread alone.'"

Leader: When offered all the kingdoms of the world, Jesus replied,

People: "It is written: 'Worship the Lord your God and serve him only.'"

Leader: When challenged to test God's protection, Jesus responded,

People: "It is said: 'Do not put the Lord your God to the test.'"

Leader: In this season of Lent, we too journey into the wilderness,

People: Confronting our temptations and remembering our dependence on God.

Leader: Like Jesus, we are filled with the Holy Spirit,

People: And through God's Word, we find strength to resist evil.

Leader: When the devil had finished all this tempting, he left Jesus until an opportune time,

People: But Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit.

All: May we also emerge from our wilderness stronger in faith, guided by Scripture, and empowered by the Holy Spirit to do God's will. Amen.

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Opening Prayer (based on Deuteronomy 26:1-11)

Let us pray:

Gracious and Loving God,

As we enter this Lenten season, we come before You with hearts of gratitude. Like the Israelites who brought the first fruits of their harvest, we bring our whole selves into Your presence today.

We remember the journey of Your people—how You delivered them from bondage in Egypt with Your mighty hand and outstretched arm. Just as You heard their cries and saw their affliction, we trust that You hear our prayers and see our struggles today.

Lord, we confess that we often forget the paths that have led us here. We forget to acknowledge that every blessing we enjoy has come from Your hand. The lands we inhabit, the food on our tables, the communities that sustain us—all are gifts from You.

In this season of reflection and repentance, help us to remember our story—both our wanderings and Your faithfulness. Like the ancient Israelites, we too have known wilderness times. We too have experienced Your guidance and provision.

As we journey through these 40 days of Lent, teach us to bring our first fruits to You—not just material offerings, but the firstfruits of our time, our attention, our devotion. May we worship You with grateful hearts, acknowledging that all we have comes from Your generous hand.

We pray for those who still wander in deserts of uncertainty, hunger, or oppression. May they find in You a deliverer who hears their cries. And may we be Your hands and feet, sharing the bounty You have given us with the stranger, the orphan, and the widow in our midst.

Guide us through this Lenten wilderness, Lord, that we might arrive at Easter with renewed hearts, deeper faith, and a more profound understanding of Your sacrificial love.

In the name of Jesus Christ, who fasted in the wilderness for forty days and knows our every need, we pray.

Amen.

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Sermon Outline: [NOTE to Paid subscribers — scroll down for the full manuscript sermon].

[Note: All Scripture is taken from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible.]

Sermon Outline: "Tested in the Wilderness" (Luke 4:1-13)

Introduction:

• Begin with the significance of Jesus' 40 days in the wilderness as we enter the 40 days of Lent

• Set the context: Jesus has just been baptized, affirmed as God's beloved Son, and is now led by the Spirit into a time of testing

• Thesis: The wilderness experience reveals how Jesus confronts temptation and demonstrates the pattern for our own spiritual battles

I. The Preparation for Temptation

A. Filled with the Spirit (v. 1)

B. Focused in isolation

C. Fasting in discipline (v. 2)

II. The Pattern of Temptation

A. Provision: Turning stones to bread (vv. 3-4)

B. Power: Gaining worldly authority (vv. 5-8)

C. Prominence: Spectacular display (vv. 9-12)

III. The Principles for Triumph

A. Relies on Scripture

B. Recognizes the tactics

C. Refuses shortcuts

D. Remains steadfast

IV. The Parallels for Today

A. Personal temptations

B. Purposeful testing

C. Powerful testimony

Conclusion

• Jesus emerges from the wilderness "in the power of the Spirit" (Luke 4:14)

• The wilderness not as a place of defeat but transformation

• Invitation to embrace Lent as a time of honest confrontation with our temptations

Full Manuscript Sermon Below for Paid Subscribers