By Amala William csc –
Readings: Deut 26:4-10; Rom 10:8-13; Lk 4:1-13
As we enter the first Sunday of Lent, the readings of the day invite us to have communion with the Lord. In the first reading, the Israelites gratefully remember the Lord’s protective hand while passing from exile and give the best offerings to the Lord. In the second reading, St. Paul tells us to follow the scriptures and live them with both mind and heart.
In the gospel, we see the temptation of Jesus by the devil. The devil places three temptations before Jesus: physical needs, promising to provide kingdoms of the world, and testing Jesus to manifest his power. How surprising is this for us?
The devil is tempting the son of God. Gold is being tested with fire to know its purity and quality. Being fully human and divine, Jesus was put into temptation. In his human nature, Jesus did not become prey to the enticing words of the devil. Instead as a man filled with Holy Spirit, Jesus tackled every test using the scriptures.
It was possible for him to affirm his nature and combat the devil by his union with the Father. He spent forty days dedicatedly with the Father, by dialoguing and learning from him about his mission. Amidst the temptations of the world, evil is projected to us with an attractive wrapper of good, to make us deviate from the Lord’s way.
To face the devils of this world, one needs to place God at the forefront and read scriptures which are his love letters for humanity through which we can face the temptations of the world boldly.