READINGS: Deut 26:4-10; Psalm 91:1-2,10-15; Rom 10:8-13; Luke 4:1-13
THEME: FORTY DAYS OF SPIRITUAL EMPOWERMENT
- FROM THE WATER OF BAPTISM TO THE WILDERNESS OF TRIAL
Today’s gospel reading calls us to reflect on the Temptation of Jesus in the wilderness. According to the three synoptic gospels, there is a big jump from the birth and early childhood days of Jesus to the beginning of his public ministry.
After the narration of the birth of Jesus and his early childhood days, comes the story of the baptism of the adult Jesus (cf Matt 3:13-17; Mk 1:9-11; Lk 3:21-22).
With the baptism, we see the manifestation of the Spirit and the testimony of the voice (of the Father). Hence, with this confirmation of the unity of Jesus with the Father and the Spirit, Jesus was set to begin his public ministry after hidden years most probably in the house of Mary and Joseph.
But first he had to go through desert/wilderness experience where he had to denounce the evil one. At baptism, the Spirit and the Voice (of the Father) affirm their full presence and companionship with Jesus.
In the wilderness of his temptation, Jesus denounced the control and friendship of the devil. No wonder the Church continually asks us “Do you believe in God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit?” and then “Have you denounced Satan and all his influences?”
These two things must be clear in our Christian life. Our accepting God must be cemented by our denouncing Satan. God says always to each one of us: “You are my beloved daughter/son”. The question is “do we, every day of our life, reject Satan and all his worldly attractions and cling to God who has given us his Spirit?”
With this narration sequence, the Synoptic authors wanted to make an analogy between the people of Israel and Jesus. Just as the people of Israel passed through the Red Sea where God showed them to be his people, Jesus went through River Jordan where the Voice of the Father spoke of him as his beloved son.
And just as the people of Israel moved through the wilderness for forty years where they passed through tests and trials as to prove themselves as God’s people, so also did Jesus go through desert for forty days and forty nights in order to reject the friendship of the devil and uphold himself as truly the Son of God.
- “JESUS WAS LED BY THE SPIRIT IN THE WILDERNESS”
The Spirit led Jesus into the wilderness for one purpose: to be tempted. It is like saying that the Spirit of God drove Jesus to the desert and handed him over to the devil for him to tempt Jesus. It was not an evil spirit, but the Spirit of God that led Jesus into the desert.
The Spirit of God does not only bring us to divine throne, rather he also places us to situations and circumstances where we would have opportunity to affirm our love for God.
Hence, some of our trials are willed by God. In fact, sometimes God’s Spirit positions us where we shall undergo temptations. But the aim is to give us the opportunity to deny, reject and freely denounce any tie with the evil one.
- “AND THE DEVIL SAID TO HIM (JESUS)…”
In all the three trials, the Scripture always says that the devil said something to Jesus (cf vv. 3, 6, 9). That is the only thing the evil one does during our trial moment: he only says something. The evil one has no control over our faculties and organs. Our acting or reacting based on the words of the tempter is entirely our decision. That is why we are always held responsible for our actions.
This becomes clearer when we study the second and the third temptation. In the second, the devil wanted Jesus to bow or genuflect and worship him. He could only use his words and not force Jesus to be on his knees before him (devil).
In the third, he took Jesus up to Jerusalem pinnacle and wanted Jesus to throw himself down from the pinnacle. He could not push Jesus down… he was only hoping that his words could make Jesus take the actions.
This is exactly what the devil does when he comes to us: he cannot bring us to the action, he can rather only hope and wish that his words would give us the conviction to act accordingly. Hence, our deciding to act or not is totally our free choice. We can decide to ignore the stimulations of the devil, or to heed and act on them.
- Going through the three temptations, we have to ask ourselves:
First Temptation:
- The devil wanted Jesus to prove to him that he (Jesus) is the Son of God. In our prayer, do we ask God to prove to us that he is God through his performance of miracle for us or do we simply and humbly pray “thy will be done?”
- Do I have control over food and drinks or am I a slave to my stomach and sensuality?
Is my entire life about what to eat and drink such that I am ready to do anything it takes in order to satisfy my stomach? What do I have more hunger for, the things of the world or the Word of God?
Second Temptation:
- Am I so obsessed with the glories of this world that I do not mind to whom I give my reverence insofar I get the honour, glory, power, authority etc of this passing time?
Third Temptation
- Do I tempt the Lord my God by throwing myself to danger hoping that God will save me? Do I silence the wisdom and intellect God has given me to apply in solving life-problems only to always wait for extra-ordinary miracles from God?
- “THE DEVIL DEPARTED FROM HIM UNTIL AN OPPORTUNE TIME.”
When the devil saw that he has failed, he left Jesus. But the evangelist (unlike other Synoptic writers) added that the devil left but would come back at an opportune time (Kairos).
Going through the gospel of Luke, this Kairos of the return of the evil one could be traced to the time of the passion of Jesus when Satan entered Judas, one of Jesus’ disciples, in order to get Jesus through him (cf Lk 22:3).
Having looked for a way to get to Jesus, and not finding any, the tempter entered into one of the people who were close to him and used him to deliver Jesus into the hands of his enemies.
Dearest in Christ, insofar we are still living in this bodily form, the evil one keeps on coming to tempt us with the intention of gaining access to our souls.
That we win him on one trial does not mean he will not come again. There are already many opportune moments (Kairos) in our lives which he targets, and he employs every means available to him to attack us.
We do not know those opportune moments, but we are pretty sure that the devil does not rest until he gets us to his camp. And because of that, the holy apostle Peter warns us to “be sober and vigilant because your adversary, the devil, prowls about like a roaring lion, seeking for whom to devour” (cf 1 Pet 5:8).
Therefore, brothers and sisters, we must heed to the words of the Master who continually says to us “watch and pray so that you may not enter into temptation.” (Matt 26:41)
Wishing you a very wonderful season of Lent
Fr. Henry Chukwuezugo Nnamah
Catholic Diocese of Aguleri