Put your complete faith and trust in the Lord

Mar 04, 2022

                            Reflecting on our Sunday Readings with Fr Leonard Lexson

1st Sunday of Lent (C)
Readings: Deuteronomy 26:4-10;
Romans 10:8-13;
Gospel: Luke 4:1-13

In today’s reading of Luke’s gospel, after fasting for 40 days, Jesus was tempted in every way by the devil to renounce His divine calling and mission to be our Saviour. The devil preyed on Jesus’ most vulnerable moment in the wilderness, waiting for Jesus to fall like the first Adam (pride and disobedience) but Jesus claimed victory over the devil and, in doing so, made the wilderness a triumphant place where God dwells.

In this season of Lent, we too are being led by the spirit into the wilderness of our lives. For God calls us to Himself for a renewing and purifying of hearts. The wilderness is not a bad place, it is a place where we come to recognise the God of mercy and compassion who challenges us to turn away from the snares of the devil. The devil recognises and fears holiness and will do all in its power to drive away holiness from our lives. He will disguise himself to attract hearts to a lifestyle that is in opposition to the kingdom values. The devil is a deceiver, the father of lies who will prey on our weakness to draw us away from God.

As Luke’s gospel relates, the devil lured Jesus to doubt the providence of God when he tempted Jesus, who was hungry and weak, to rely on his power as Son of God and not wait for God to satisfy his human needs. The devil lured Jesus to deny his filial relationship with God by enticing Jesus with power and dominance over everything without the need to go to the cross but with the condition that Jesus must subject himself to the devil. The devil mocked Jesus’ identity as Son of God and uses the occasion to manipulate the Word of God. Jesus responded with a total dependence on God and surrendered Himself completely in loving obedience to the Father’s will and not on his own ability.

As the devil tried to drive Jesus from the way of obedience and dependence on God, and failed, so too does he with us in the wilderness of our lives. And you know what, the devil will also fail in his conquest with us as long as we put our complete faith and trust in the Lord. While we know that we will never be free from temptation, following Christ every day and from learning to build our life through Him, with Him and in Him, we will reign victorious. Let us be conscious of God’s holy presence and make time to deepen our communion with God and with one another through the Lenten observances; an interior penance of prayer, fasting and almsgiving.

The Church, during Lent, helps us to recognise our need for purification from our weaknesses, wrongdoings and sin by calling us to a life of prayer. Prayer is a lifting up of our minds and hearts to God, to adore Him, to thank Him for His benefits, to ask His forgiveness, and to beg of Him all the graces we need whether for soul or body. Put God first in your life as you make time for prayer in your homes and in your Basic Ecclesial Community. Participate at daily Mass, the source and summit of our Christian life. Pray the Rosary, Divine Mercy chaplet, Stations of the Cross that helps us to meditate on the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Christ. Meet the Lord in the Blessed Sacrament or find a place of solitude to be with the Lord in quiet time, “Be still and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10).

Fasting helps us put our house in order, that is, draws us closer to God, strengthens our resolve to pray and to grow in virtue. Daily, we are bombarded with the culture of enslavement (alcohol, drugs, sexual promiscuity, internet porn, excessive time spent on social media or with other forms of entertainment) which can cause us to neglect and even reject our relationship with God. When we fast from selfish human desires and deeds, we are in fact detaching ourselves from material things. We also begin to cultivate good habits and we have more energy to devote to God's purposes and order our lives in the image of Christ. During this Lent, practise fasting from the excessive use of social media and other forms of social entertainment and grow in virtues of self-denial, humility and patience.

Almsgiving demonstrates our gratitude to God for all He has blessed us with as we practise acts of charity towards the poor and needy without counting the cost. In giving alms to the poor:

a. We forgo our own desires and make sacrifices for the good of the other since “everyone should look upon his neighbour (without any exception) as ‘another self,’ above all bearing in mind his life and the means necessary for living it with dignity”. (CCC #1931)

b. We depend on God to direct our action for almsgiving “is a witness to fraternal charity….a work of justice pleasing to God.” (CCC #2462)

Apart from providing material blessings in cash or kind, let us also be charitable through acts of kindness. Visit the homebound, sick and elderly in your BEC and pray with them. Offer a kind word or thanks to those who go about doing the most menial task unnoticed. Take time to listen to someone who needs a listening ear.

May the renewing and purifying of our hearts through the Lenten observance of prayer, fasting and almsgiving help us embrace the mystery of Christ’s passion, death and resurrection. May we always walk humbly, act justly and love tenderly as disciples of the Lord.

Fr Leonard Lexson, MA Th spec. liturgy, is the parish priest of the Church of the Assumption, Petaling Jaya. He is also the Ecclesiastical Assistant for the Archdiocese Liturgy Commission.