When the temptation comes to mistrust God and God’s promises, how do we react?

Matthew 4: 1–11

Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil.

He fasted for forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was hungry.

The tempter approached and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command that these stones become loaves of bread.”

He said in reply: “It is written: ‘One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes forth from the mouth of God.’”

Then the devil took him to the holy city, and made him stand on the parapet of the temple, and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down. For it is written: ‘He will command his angels concerning you’ and ‘with their hands they will support you, lest you dash your foot against a stone.’”

Jesus answered him, “Again it is written, ‘You shall not put the Lord, your God, to the test.’”

Then the devil took him up to a very high mountain, and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in their magnificence, and he said to him, “All these I shall give to you, if you will prostrate yourself and worship me.”

At this, Jesus said to him, “Get away, Satan! It is written: ‘The Lord, your God, shall you worship and him alone shall you serve.’” Then the devil left him and, behold, angels came and ministered to him.

Music Meditations

Walk and Follow Jesus—John Michael Talbot
O Lord Hear My Prayer-—Taizé
Lord, I Need You—Matt Maher
Be With Me Lord—Marty Haugen
My Trust Is in You—david g (Nigerian Gospel song)
On Eagle’s Wings—Josh Groban (Walkers to Heaven)
Whom Shall I Fear—Chris Tomlin in “Burning Lights” (Praise and Worship hymn)

Opening Prayer

Lord, you know my weaknesses and vulnerabilities; you know what might convince me to stray from trust in your care, or take the easy way out of a situation that is uncomfortable. Help me to understand that, just as metal is tested and forged in fore, my mettle is tested and strengthened when I face my weaknesses head on and do not give in to them. Keep me strong in faith and hope in your goodness.

Companions for the Journey

From Living Space, a service of the Irish Jesuits:

The Gospel of today’s Mass always features the temptations of Jesus in the desert. It clearly links with the Lenten themes of fasting, penance and reconciliation with God and with our brothers and sisters.

In the First Reading, there is a striking contrast between Jesus in the Gospel, and our First Parents in the Garden of Eden. The Second Reading connects the two events: it was the sin of our First Parents which brought about the coming of Jesus to restore our relationship with God. “Oh happy fault!” (O felix culpa!) as the liturgy of the Easter Vigil says of that first sin. The weakness of our First Parents brought about the coming of Jesus and all that he means to us for our lives. It is an example of how even behind unpleasant and, in fact, evil happenings God’s love can be found at work.

It is not necessary for us to understand either the Garden of Eden story or Jesus’s experience with Satan as being strictly historical. These stories are primarily vehicles to communicate important truths to us.

Today’s Gospel story follows immediately on Jesus’ baptism and endorsement by his Father as his “Beloved Son” to whom we are to listen. Note that Jesus is led into the desert by the Spirit of God. The purpose clearly is not to lead him to do evil, but as a testing of his fitness for his coming mission. Will he fail like our First Parents or like the Israelites of old? Or will be prove himself worthy of the mission he has been given? The testing will be done not by God directly, but by the Evil One, the Tempter. It is pictured as taking place in a barren region between Jerusalem and the Dead Sea. Jesus, like Moses before him, had fasted for 40 days. He is alone in the wilderness without food. He is hungry, weak and vulnerable. Now is the time for the Tempter to move in.

Who is Jesus?

Each of the three temptations touches on Jesus’ identity as the Son of God, which had been revealed during his baptism. “This is my Beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.”

The Tempter then begins, “If you are the Son of God, why not use your divine powers to turn these large, flat stones at your feet into bread?” God fed the Israelites with manna in the desert. Surely he will feed his own Son? Why have powers and not use them? Why not take this opportunity to prove that you really are the Son of God?

It is important to realize that all temptations – and these tests are no exception – come to us under the guise of some kind of goodness. No sane person chooses the purely evil unless some positive benefit is seen to come from it. In each of the three tests today, Jesus is being led to do something which would seem to enhance his mission as Lord and Savior. In responding to the Tempter, Jesus will not just use his own words, but each time quote a saying from the Hebrew Testament. In this first test, Jesus rejects the offer by saying that “it is not on bread alone that we live”. True happiness does not consist in satisfying material wants, in having many things, but in identifying ourselves fully with the vision of life which God gives us through Jesus. Further, for Jesus to have changed the stones into bread would have been to show a lack of trust in the providential care of his Father, who will see that he has all he needs for his life and mission.

Testing

Satan’s next approach is to bring Jesus to the highest point of the Temple in Jerusalem. This is God’s very dwelling place. Surely here he will take care of his Son. “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down.” Jesus has just shown his trust in God by not changing the stones into bread. Now here is a chance really to prove that trust.

Two things would happen: First, God will not allow Jesus to be hurt. Now it is the Tempter himself who cleverly quotes Scripture: “He will command his angels concerning you, and they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.” God promises his providential care in the normal course of our lives, but he never promises supernatural intervention, when we do something unreasonable. “God takes care of those who take care of themselves.” St Ignatius of Loyola is said to have advised: “Do things as if everything depended on God and nothing on oneself and, at the same time, as if everything depended on oneself and nothing on God”.

Second, if Jesus jumps and is miraculously saved, everyone will know his divine origin and will believe in him! Jesus quotes the Scripture back again, “Do not put the Lord your God to the test.” Real faith is total trust; it is not, as Scripture scholar William Barclay says, “doubt looking for proof”.

Showdown

After the failure of the first two attempts, Satan now drops all pretense. He brings Jesus to a high mountain and shows him all the kingdoms of the world. All this can be Jesus’, if he falls down and worships the Tempter. Is not this what Jesus wants: to bring all the kingdoms of the world into his own Kingdom? Is that not the purpose of his whole life?

This is, of course, an impossible bargain. It would make no sense for the whole world to submit itself to Jesus as Lord, and then for Jesus himself to submit to the Evil One. Yet, it is a bargain we constantly try to make: to belong to God and to go to any lengths to get the things we want: material wealth, success, a recognised standing in the eyes of others, etc.

Jesus will put it differently later on:

What does it profit someone to gain the whole world and lose their real life? What can one give in exchange for the deep relationship with God for which we were born? Jesus absolutely rejects the offer: “Away from me, Satan!” It reminds one of the words said to Peter who tried to deflect Jesus from the way he had to go and was told: “Get behind me, Satan!” Symbols of real tests.

In fact, these three tests are really symbols of real tests that we find in the life of Jesus.

Jesus did produce large quantities of bread on two occasions, but not for himself but rather to feed the hungry.

He rejected calls from his opponents to prove who he was by performing some striking signs. He said the only sign would be his own death and resurrection.

After one of the feedings (as told in John’s gospel), he had the crowd at his feet and they wanted to make him king. Instead, he fled to the mountains to pray to his Father and packed his ambitious disciples off in a boat and into a storm which gave them something else to think about – survival!

Jesus passes all three tests and will continue to do so all during his life right up to the moment of his death. In the garden of Gethsemane, he will beg to be spared the horrors of his Passion, but will then put aside his own fears of suffering and death and accept his Father’s way. On the cross he will make the despairing cry, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”, and soon after, in total submission, say: “Into your hands I surrender my life.”

The way of the Father is the only way that will lead him – and us – to the life that never ends and when all tears will be wiped away.

Weekly Memorization

Taken from the gospel for today’s session…

“Get away, Satan! It is written: ‘The Lord, your God, shall you worship and him alone shall you serve.’”

Living the Good News

What action can you take in the next week as a response to today’s reading and discussion?

Keep a private journal of your prayer/actions responses this week. Feel free to use the personal reflection questions or the meditations which follow:

Reflection Questions

The Latin word used in the first verse is “tentaretur”, which is literally translated “test”.
What, for you, is the difference between temptation and test?
In what way does “testing” help us understand our strength and weaknesses and help us to grow?
What would be the benefit of “testing” for a very human Jesus as he was starting his mission in life?
Do I see the devil as my inner voice calling me to be other than I know God wants me to be because I am seduced by comfort, impressed by power and unwilling to believe in God’s care and forgiveness?
Jesus’ time in the desert was meant to be a retreat from all the noise and distractions around him as he prepared for His mission.
What things or persons, in my life, are a distraction from following Jesus more fully?
What would help me return to following Jesus more fully?
Jesus’ temptations looked like a good thing for him to accept, both for himself and for us. Have I ever experienced the pull to do or achieve something that is good for myself or others even though there was a cost, in moral terms?
Have I ever been tempted to do the wrong thing for the right reasons?
Do you think Jesus had to deal with real temptation in his life?
If yes, what kind of temptation?
In general, does society expect people to use their position for their well-being?
Do you know people who make an effort not to use their position for their own benefit?
How do you sort out the path of virtue here in your own life?
What are some common temptations that we might be prey to?
Are you aware of an area of your life where you seem to experience temptation or struggle?
Are you also aware of sources of grace or support that God has places around you to help you deal with those temptations/struggles?
What have you learned about how God is present to you through your area of temptation/struggle?
How many of Jesus’ temptations were identity temptations? (if you are the son of God, if you are the Messiah)
How many of my temptations are identity temptations?
Are you aware of signs God places in your life that let you know that God is trying to speak to you?
If not, have you ever thought of looking for some?
Are you open to that possibility?
What form might they take?
Do our problems or struggles stir up feelings of God being close to us or distant from us?
At moments like these does reflecting on Jesus’ own suffering and death strengthen us?
From Sacred Space: a service of the Irish Jesuits:
Jesus was tempted by the devil to put three values above the love of God: pleasure (bread standing for food, money, other such comforts), power (all the kingdoms of the world), and security (presuming on God to work miracles for him). What are my temptations, the indulgences that pull me from God?
Is the power of evil real?
Where do you encounter it?

Meditations

A Meditation in the Dominican Style/Asking Questions:

Sometimes we read this story of Jesus temptation in the desert as if it were a one-time thing, that the lure to evil was vanquished once and for all. But upon reflection we realize that there were several other times in his life when Jesus was tempted to back down, or to take the easy way out. Here are just a few:
When His family was embarrassed by his teaching and preaching
When people clamored for more and more healings, more and more miracles
When Lazarus was dying and He had to finish His mission where he was
When Peter begged him not to go to Jerusalem that last time
When He was seized in the garden
When He stood before the leaders or Pilate after his arrest
When He was dying on the cross

So with us, the same old temptations keep coming back to haunt us and torment us, even when we have said “no” in the past. Can you think of any recurring temptations that crop up again and again? How did you deal with them? If you succumbed to a temptation, did this cause you to give up on yourself, or did you hit the “restart” button and resolve to handle things better the next time? Do you believe, in the deepest part of your heart, that God understands when we fail? Do I understand when others around me fail? If not, what is forgiveness all about?

A Meditation in the Ignatian Style/Imagination/Consideration:

Read Matthew 4: 1-11 (The testing in the desert).

Forty days in a desert. Just imagine it. What does it look like? How hot is it during the day? What sounds are there? Does it smell? Are there any animals? Are you hungry? What do you do all day?

Night in the desert: the lonely sounds of an animal in the distance. Are you cold? Afraid? Lonely? Bored?

This is the time when Jesus was most vulnerable, and so He was tempted. Jesus was tempted to use his talents to provide for his own needs; He was tempted to test God’s love; and finally, He was tempted to forsake his trust in God in return for earthly power. How did he react? Are these temptations at all like our human temptations? Have you ever been so tempted? Have you been able to turn to God in these times of temptation? Has God been a source of strength and comfort? Close with a personal prayer thanking God for the strength you have been given to trust during the dark times.

(by Anne Greenfield, from Songs of Life: Psalm Meditations from the Catholic Community at Stanford)

A Meditation in the Dominican Style/Raising Questions:

Adapted from Songs of Life: Psalm Meditations from the Catholic Community at Stanford, by Anne Greenfield:

Let us never forget that the ordinary way to contemplation lies through a desert without trees and without beauty and without water. The spirit enters a wilderness and travels blindly in directions that seem to lead away from vision, away from God, away from fulfillment and joy. It may be almost impossible to believe that this road goes anywhere at all except to a desolation full of dry bones—the ruin of all our hopes and good intentions. (Thomas Merton, New Seeds of Contemplation, p. 235). What desert are you experiencing at this time in your life—love, creativity. Friendship, family, compulsions, insecurities? How is this wilderness experience inviting you to place your trust in God? Do you trust in the Spirit enough to give yourself totally to God? What have you held back? What are you afraid of? Speak to Jesus, who has been there too, and ask for his strength and his faith in the Father’s care.

Poetic Reflection:

Read the words by Thomas Merton and the meditation questions that follow. Can we imagine that Jesus may have had some of the same thoughts during those long 30 days in the desert?

MY LORD GOD, I have no idea where I am going.
I do not see the road ahead of me.
I cannot know for certain where it will end.
Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think that I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so.
But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you.
And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing.
I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire.
And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road though I may know nothing about it.
Therefore, will I trust you always though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death.
I will not fear, for you are ever with me, and you will never leave me to face my perils alone.

In his book Thoughts in Solitude Merton reveals that he is unsure about the journey, that he cannot see clearly ahead, that he does not know for certain where the journey will end or who he himself is. When Merton wrote these words he had lived through seventeen years of monastic discipline and contemplative prayer as a Cistercian. It is helpful for us to reflect that if such a man could be confused or insecure, there is little reason to blame ourselves for our own perplexity.

Pause now and in silence consider these points:
1. To know the outcome of the journey is to trust God less.
2. If the Spirit leads us, the journey is not ours alone.
3. A journey of clarity and ease cannot reach a God of mystery and love.
4. The experience of uncertainty brings us closer to our companions on the journey.
5. No matter how unsettling the journey may be at times, God will not permit us to be lost.

(from A Retreat with Thomas Merton by Anthony Padovano, p.10)

Closing Prayer

Sometimes it is so hard, God, not to be tempted by the values of this world and the needs of those around me. It is very hard not to put my needs first when I am tired, lonely, discouraged and upset. It is also hard to think of my mission as serving others, not always serving myself. How do I learn balance? How do I learn peace? How do I learn to place my trust in you?

Weekly Reflections

First Sunday in Lent, February 26, 2023