Is it not surprising that the devil claims that the “glory” and all “authority” (power) of the “kingdoms of the world” have been given to him and that Jesus does not contradict him?
Do we not pray to God “thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory”? Those are the same three words. In an “instant” the NRSV says Jesus is shown the kingdoms. Literally it is in a “point” or “moment” of time.
I wonder what he sees in that moment when time seems to collapse. Does he see the empires that he knows from stories: Persian splendour, Egyptian pyramids, Greek temples, Roman armies or does he also see Amsterdam at the height of the Golden Age (16th century) and London when it was the hub of a world Empire; America and China in all their diverse riches.
If the glory and the power of these kingdoms is in the devil’s possession, then maybe the virtues and the ideas of these kingdoms are of God? How tempting is worldly glory and might, how different is the glory and power that Jesus shows us on the cross.
14 February 2016
Luke 4:1-11
This weekly blog on one of the lectionary readings is by Anne Claar Thomasson-Rosingh, Programme Leader for Lifelong Learning at Sarum College.
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