1st Sunday of Lent: Temptation In The Desert

Filled with the Holy Spirit, Jesus returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the desert for forty days,to be tempted by the devil.He ate nothing during those days, and when they were over he was hungry.

The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.” Jesus answered him,“It is written, One does not live on bread alone.”

Then he took him up and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in a single instant.
The devil said to him,“I shall give to you all this power and glory;
for it has been handed over to me,and I may give it to whomever I wish.
All this will be yours, if you worship me.”

Jesus said to him in reply,“It is written:You shall worship the Lord, your God,
and him alone shall you serve.”

Then he led him to Jerusalem, made him stand on the parapet of the temple, and said to him, “If you are the Son of God,throw yourself down from here, for it is written:
He will command his angels concerning you, to guard you,and: With their hands they will support you,lest you dash your foot against a stone.”

Jesus said to him in reply,“It also says, You shall not put the Lord, your God, to the test.”

When the devil had finished every temptation, he departed from him for a time. - Lk. 4:1-13

The temptation in the desert is read every 1st Sunday of Lent. We are reminded that Jesus, like us, is tempted by the Devil to forsake God and give in to our earthly wants and desires. Yet, one aspect that is often overlooked is how the showdown begins.

Filled with the Holy Spirit, Jesus returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the desert for forty days, to be tempted by the devil. He ate nothing during those days,and when they were over he was hungry.

Jesus is led by the Holy Spirit out into the desert for forty days with the intention of having Satan tempt Jesus. This wasn't a simple "devil on your shoulder" temptation. This was the final training for Jesus in order to begin his mission (The synoptics all begin his public ministry with this event). Jesus is out in the hot, lonely desert with the only purpose of having his faith tested. To make it even more of a challenge, Jesus forsakes eating anything for those forty days. By the time the Devil appears to tempt him, Jesus has weakened his body to the point that a mere human would have already been dead, let alone be opening to salvation from even the Devil.

The message of today's gospel isn't "Look at how powerful Jesus is over the Devil." It is actually look at how weak Christ is physically, to a point that we cannot even fathom, but yet he refuses to give into the will of Satan and finds solace in the will of God. He shows us that even when we believe we are at our most vulnerable or weakest moment, we still have no excuse to give into the Devil's wants and desires. We must be like Christ and stand firm and resolve in our faith in the Lord. We must also welcome the Devil's temptations as a sign of growth and development in our relationship with God. When we too can refuse the Devil's charms and offers, we can grow closer to God and be fit to carry on the mission of Christ today.