Rescue Me

Fellowship – Snacks or a Meal (10 minutes with snacks; longer, obviously, if there is a meal).

Gathering Time (5-10 minutes). In pairs or groups of three, have participants answer, “What tempting food is impossible for you to resist?”

Group Dialogue (Approximately 30 minutes). Read Psalm 91:1-2, 9-16 and Luke 4:1-13.

• What are the different ways the devil tested Jesus in the wilderness? How did Jesus respond? [The devil offers an unfolding narrative of self-indulgence (make yourself bread from stones), self-aggrandizement (all the nations of the world will belong to you if you worship me), and self-interest (if you are the son of God, cast yourself from the top of the temple). Jesus responds as a student of scripture and relies on scripture to answer the devil’s temptations.]
• Jesus didn’t face these tests on his own power. The text says that Jesus “was led by the Spirit in the wilderness.” What are some ways we experience God’s guiding Spirit in our lives? [inviting God’s Spirit to reshape our inner attitudes, praying scriptures like Galatians 5:22-23, following inner promptings or holy nudges, exercising our unique gifts from the Spirit—such as those mentioned in Romans 12: 6-8, listening to and heeding timely words from others.]
• Jesus’ answer to the devil’s first test is “one does not live by bread alone.” In other words, living is more than satisfying our basic needs or our needs for comfort and security. How does following Jesus invite us into “more and better life than we ever dreamed of”? (John 10:10)
• As a final test, the devil uses the promises of supernatural protection in Psalm 91 against Jesus. But Psalm 91 doesn’t promise us a life without trouble (v. 15), does it? With his answer, Jesus invites the devil to join him in trusting God in all things. How do we experience God’s rescue during trouble?
• Verse 13 closes on this note: “he [the devil] departed from him until an opportune time,” which signals to the reader that more tests are ahead for Jesus. How do tests and temptations take on different forms throughout our lives?
• Both Jesus and the devil quote Scripture. In response to temptation, Jesus quotes from Deuteronomy, but it is not enough to know scripture. The devil, who quotes from Psalm 91, also knows scripture. What are helpful guardrails for us in our use of scripture? [Scripture must be read through a “God is love” lens and with an eye to the “love your neighbor as yourself” life envisioned for God’s people. Hearing scripture interpreted by wise preachers and listening to the voices of others in small-group settings are always helpful.]
• This week’s preaching note reminds us: “We know that God’s love is constant and unconditional. Psalm 91 says there is nothing that can happen to us to take that love away.” How can you remind yourself and others this coming week of God’s constant and unconditional love?

Optional – listen to this week's playlist song, “Rise Up” by Andra Day.

Rescue me. Perhaps Jesus said it during his temptation in the wilderness. Certainly, the psalmist says it over and again in many ways. We call out to God to rescue us today, sometimes with a certainty that God will answer and other times out of desperation, hoping God will listen when it seems no one else will.

As you listen to Andra Day’s “Rise Up,” let the words wash over you as a prayer and as an answer to prayer, and consider: “Where in your life are you calling out for rescue, and how might God be calling you to reach out in love to rescue your neighbor? (Source: Social Media Posts for Lent 2025)

Prayer (10 minutes). Share prayer requests and respond appropriately.

Sending Forth (2 minutes). End with the following prayer, a similar prayer, or the Lord’s Prayer:

O God, in moments of uncertainty and testing, we choose to lean on your faithfulness and trust in the leading of your Spirit. Help us find peace in knowing that when we call to you, you will answer us and be with us in every time of trouble.

Rev. Joe Hamby is the Director of Community Education at Roof Above, a comprehensive homeless service provider in Charlotte, NC. In his first career, Joe was a youth pastor at several United Methodist churches in the Western North Carolina Annual Conference. Joe’s other ministry interest takes him to Cabarrus Regional Juvenile Detention Center twice a month.