1st Sunday of Lent, Year A
Today we celebrate the First Sunday of Lent. Lent is a time of repentance, reconciliation, reformation and renewal of our lives as Christians. It is a 40 day season of prayer, fasting and acts of charity (almsgiving). Our First reading and Gospel reading today tell us two different stories on temptation and its effects. In the First reading from the book of Genesis 2:7-9; 3:1-7, we hear the story of the creation of man, the temptation of man by the serpent and the fall of man. In our gospel reading from the gospel of Saint Matthew 4:1-11, we hear the story of the temptation of Jesus Christ and His victory over the devil. These readings while telling us two different stories on temptation, remind us of the following: that we will be tempted by the devil just like Jesus, Adam and Eve were tempted; that the temptations we go through strengthens and deepens our faith in God; and that God is with us in our times of temptation.
If Jesus the Son of God, Adam and Eve our first parents were tempted by the devil, then we will definitely be tempted as well. Temptation is a general phenomenon in our world today for everyone, both Christians and non-Christians. It has also been seriously overlooked by many Christians but with humility and steadfastness in God we can overcome all the temptations that come our way.
Temptation truly strengthens and deepens our faith in God, to have Him be the center of our lives and not our desires and wants. It also helps remind us that our needs and human weakness could be preyed upon by the devil. Hence in time of temptation, trust, hope and have faith in God and not in yourself to overcome it.
Lastly, in our moments of temptation, God doesn’t abandon us, He is always with us. But we need to arm ourselves against the temptations of the devil with prayer, fasting and almsgiving. Pope Francis clearly explains these three practices of Lent stating what they do in our lives. According to Pope Francis, PRAYER teaches us to abandon idolatry and the self-sufficiency of our ego and to acknowledge our need of the Lord and His mercy. FASTING invites us to change our attitude towards others and all of creation, turning away from the temptation to 'devour' everything to satisfy our voracity and being ready to suffer for love, which can fill the emptiness of our hearts. ALMSGIVING helps us escape from the insanity of hoarding everything for ourselves in the illusory belief that we can secure a future that does not belong to us. My brothers and sisters, we are reminded today by the readings that we will be tempted by the devil just like Jesus, Adam and Eve were tempted; that the temptations we go through strengthens and deepens our faith in God; and that God is with us in our times of temptation. Hence, let us intensify our Lenten practices of prayer, fasting and almsgiving so as to repent of our sins, reconcile ourselves with God, reform our actions and lifestyle and renew our lives in God. Amen!
