On Perfect Power
February 22, 2026
Rev. Traceymay Kalvaitis
Psalm 32: 2, 10-11
What joy for those whose record the Lord has cleared of guilt, whose lives are lived in complete honesty. Many are the torments of the wicked, but steadfast love surrounds those who trust in the Lord. Be glad in the Lord and rejoice, O righteous, and shout for joy, all you upright in heart.
Matthew 4:1-11
Then 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.
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Today’s sermon is titled On Perfect Power.
In 1972, at Stanford University, the Marshmallow Experiment was conducted for the first time. The children who participated in the first round of the experiment were between the ages of 4 and 6. They were led into a room that contained four things: an overhead light, a table, a chair and one marshmallow on the table. The children were told that if they could wait for 15 minutes without eating the marshmallow, they could have two instead of one. 600 children eagerly participated in this experiment and roughly a third of them (200 out of 600) were able to wait for what must have seemed to them an eternity. Some sat and stared at the marshmallow, some sniffed it, some took teeny tiny bites, some played with it, and some made obvious attempts to distract themselves from the sugar coated treat sitting right in front of them. In the end, one of every three children were successful in waiting the fifteen long minutes and they were rewarded with two marshmallows instead of just one.
Neuroscientists have discovered an area of our brains that may be responsible for helping us to resist temptation. Just over our left ear is an area of the brain called the left lateral prefrontal lobe. It is one of the last areas of the brain to fully develop, and not until the late teens and early twenties. At those ages, marshmallows are not as tempting anymore but the results from many subsequent studies have been published that use rewards of money and perceived power. One study, listed among the 25 most influential psychological experiments, also came out of Stanford. The basement of a school building was turned into a realistic prison setting. Participants were given the authority of a prison guard for two weeks and instructed not to hurt the “inmates.” After just a few days, the participants who were guards were completely caught up in the experiment and in their newly found position of power; they were showing such an increase in aggressive behavior that in many cases the experiment had to be cut short.
Power and the influence that accompanies power are among the most coveted by humankind. In the Gospel story we are offered today, on this first Sunday of Lententide, we meet Jesus just following his baptism in the river Jordan by his cousin, John. Tensions are building around the controversial teachings of John, so far from the seat of temple power in Jerusalem. John is pointing to Jesus as the lamb of God, the one they have been waiting for. So Jesus, on the threshold of entering into public ministry, is “led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.” The translation of devil here would be tempter, adversary or accuser. We are unsure if this Tempter is an internal force or an external force, or a mix of both. What is clear is that before Jesus goes public with his ministry, he is challenged to work through his relationship to power and how he will use it. We read that Jesus, after forty days of fasting, is goaded by the Tempter three different times to use his divine powers. The first time is simply to feed himself, to turn the stones to bread, to satisfy his own gnawing hunger. The second time appeals more to Jesus’s potential hunger for recognition as the “Son of God” when the Tempter takes him to the highest pinnacle and dares him to jump. Then, lastly, the Tempter offers what has lured want-to-be leaders and superhero villains for millenia: dominion over all the earth. In exchange, Jesus is asked to “fall down and worship” the Tempter. Earthly power is one thing, but to be worshiped, to be honored, to be beloved is what the Tempter wants most of all.
The Tempter uses scripture to coax Jesus and Jesus responds in what turns into a battle of the verses, but what this really is is a battle for power, a battle for who holds power over whom. What this presents to us is the chance to examine the power dynamics within and around us, in particular where and when the quest for power and influence eclipses our more civil inclinations. Theologian Marcia Riggs says “there is no surer path to internal contradiction and self-destruction than the quest for power over others.”
I can see this play out in my own life as I am continually trying to find the line between guiding my children and controlling them. Even with my parents, I find myself sometimes trying to exert the power and influence that youth assumes. Moving out in ever-widening circles, it is interesting to ask the question, “Who and what has power over me?” “Who and what holds power in our family?” “Who and what holds the power in our town, in our nation and in our world culture in this 21st century?” As we witness the rise of authoritarianism, here and abroad, it is imperative that we consider both our own relationship to the power we have, how we are using it, and how those in positions of power are using theirs.
Are we using our own personal power to encourage one another and strengthen relationships within our families and our communities? Are those in positions of power, especially elected officials…are they using their power to strengthen our communities? Are they honoring their oaths “to support and defend the constitution of the United States”? Are those in positions of power granting equal protection under the law to all, as the constitution mandates? As 38 billion tax-payer dollars are being used to construct detention centers for immigrants, including one here in Merrimack, NH, we would be wise to question how those in positions of power are using their influence. We would be wise to question how these detention centers are different from the internment camps of the 1940s. It took nearly 50 years for us to publicly recognize that these camps were a violation of rights, for both citizens and non-citizens. If we do not speak against these decisions, then we are complicit. How are we using our personal power? How are we holding those in public positions of power accountable for decisions that are being made on our behalf?
The question of how one uses one’s power is at the very heart of our lesson today. Jesus was goaded by the Tempter three times, first, to use his power for his own gain, then to prove his authority by a display of power, and finally to worship the evil one in exchange for political influence. Jesus knew there was a greater power, a perfect power, a power that is not based on the progress of some at the expense of the many, a power that is not rooted in spectacular displays designed to impress and persuade, a power that is not grounded in the need to oppress the other to protect the self. Jesus’s words bring us back to the power of goodness, the power of God-ness. Jesus says, “Serve only God.”
In closing, I share a short story that touches on greatness, on goodness. During the Ash Wednesday candlelight service, I was letting my thoughts stream around the themes of temptation, the longing for power, and the conflict that follows in its wake. In the midst of my meditation, a Friend came into the sanctuary and said the following words to me, words I later found out to be the words of another prophet, Baha Abdul’a. “Greater is God than every great one.” Greater is God than every great one. In God is perfect power; if our aim is to serve God, to serve Goodness, we are safe from the trappings of power within and without. So be it. Amen.
https://www.livescience.com/8174-seat-temptation-brain.html
The 25 Most Influential Psychological Experiments in History
Pastoral Prayer
Dearest Beloved, we come again to this quiet place, where the concerns that press most heavily upon us can rise to the very surface of our awareness. With the illumination of Your Holy Light, help us to see more clearly what we need to hold onto, what we need to work through, and what we need to let go of. Remind us, when we question, that Your presence is alive within us, preceding before us, inspiring us in the moment, and supporting us when we falter. We ask blessings on those who are without, those who are in pain, and those who are frightened. May we be receptive to Your Holy Spirit working through us to nurture them and nurture ourselves, in ways unexpected and profound. This I ask in Christ’s name. Amen.
Benediction
I leave you now with the following words from Numbers 6:24-26:
The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.