TEMPTATIONS

Matthew 4:1-11

Today’s reading comes just after the baptism of Jesus in the gospel of Matthew. We read that after Jesus was baptized “the Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. And while he was in the wilderness praying and fasting for forty days, he was tempted by Satan. In this story, I would like us to focus on the meaning of the temptations in our Christian life. By definition and in this context, temptation is something that appeals to us. The first temptation Satan appeals to the desires of the flesh. Having fasted for forty days, Jesus was naturally hungry and Satan challenges his divine identity: If you are the son of God command that these stones to become bread. He is tempted to use his power or his ability for His own convenience.

Jesus responds with Scripture quotation: "Man shall not live by bread alone..."  In other words, there is more to life than just fulfilling physical desires; there is more to life than just satisfying our bodies. Satan often takes advantage of our circumstances. He takes our need and tempts us to meet them in wrong ways. Today, there are many people who tell a lie in order to achieve certain things. This temptation is about how we use our God-given gifts, talents and abilities. All of us have certain desires, wants, needs, both physical and emotional. Do we see our talents and abilities, our jobs and professions, as means to serve others or simply as means to satisfy our desires? How do I use the power that God has given me? Whether it is physical power, or financial, or mental, or spiritual, Do I us it for myself or for the well-being of others in the community? That is the means of the first temptation for us.

Second temptation, Satan asks Jesus to jump from the pinnacle of the temple. This is a temptation to tempt God. The devil was suggesting that on the basis of Scripture Jesus must believe in divine protection. Suffering and death would be a sign of weak faith. Vulnerability to life-threatening situations would be a sign of divine weakness. He after all is the Son of God! As Son, the least he should expect is safety and protection from his heavenly Father. Jesus responds that you should not put the Lord your God to the test. Sometimes we put God to the test and say: “If you do this for me Lord, then I will serve you. Most of time in our prayers we ask God to act according to our will. Not his will. This is tempting God. Jesus shows us today that to serve God is to surrender ourselves to Him unconditionally and in all situations.

Third temptation Satan asks Jesus pay homage and in return he will give him sovereignty. This is idolatry. It’s a temptation to have power. We know that Jesus is King, but his kingship is through suffering and death. In this temptation Satan is proposing the kingship right now in an easy way. Just pay homage and this is yours. The plan of God was different. Jesus would fulfill God's plan as Servant before becoming king. The proposal of immediate and easy gratification is idolatry. This temptation always comes to us. We most of times compromise Christian values in order to gain certain advantages. We most of time sacrifice the truth because of what we want to gain. We want things come to us easily. And in the process we reject our faith and take the easy path. This is idolatry.

To be able to overcome all these temptation, Jesus gives the way: Go to the desert, pray and fast. In the desert we come to know ourselves, our strengths and weaknesses, and our divine calling. In the silence and recollection of the desert we come to terms with ourselves as we really are. Lent is the time for the desert experience. We are called to create a desert space in our overcrowded lives. We are called to set aside a place and time to be alone with God, a time to distance ourselves from the many noises and voices of our lives, a time to hear God’s word, a time to rediscover who we are before God, a time to say yes to God and no to Satan as Jesus did. May this Lent really be a new springtime in the lives of each of us. Through prayer, through fasting, forgiving others and through donating from our surplus to help the poor, may we, like Jesus in the desert, overcome temptation and thus be well prepared to celebrate Easter.