The Lord in the
desert and the Our Father
The Scriptures tell us that our
Lord decided to spend forty days in the desert “moved by the Holy Spirit.” Our
Lord spent these forty days in prayer and fasting to “pray to his Father in
secret,” just like he advised us to do. He looked for the most suitable place
to direct his attention as a man “full of grace and truth” to speak with his
Father. He sought out a place to be in communion with the Father; the devil
followed him. This happens.
Saint Luke tells us that the
devil came “when those days were completed.” This means that when his time of
prayer and communion with the Father was over, the devil, like a snake waiting
for its moment to strike, was ready. The Lord was hungry. Perhaps the Great Deceiver
anticipated being able to insinuate himself into the Lord’s soul on account of
his physical weakness. He did not succeed, as we know. The Lord shows us that
the power of the soul strengthened by a full communion with God fortifies the
weakened body.
It is worth noting that the devil
presented three temptations to the Holy Son of God. The first has to do with
bread, because he tempts the Lord with turning stones into bread to satisfy his
bodily needs. The second temptation has to do with the kingdom, because the
devil offers the Lord all the glory of the kingdoms on the earth. And the third
temptation has to do with the avoidable danger, because the devil suggests that
it would be good if the Lord would plunge himself from highest part of the
temple, giving the Heavenly Father an occasion to manifest his care over his
eternal Son made flesh.
It is not a mere coincidence of
words that the three of the petitions of Our Father correspond to these same
realities: the bread, the kingdom, and danger. The Fathers of the Church used
to say that the Lord’s Prayer is a short summary of the whole Gospel. In fact,
we realize that the devil’s strategy is to overturn the foundations of what the
Lord came to offer us in his Gospel, and in the prayer that He taught us.
The Lord teaches us in the Our
Father that the Father loves us and is watching over us. God provides, and he
gives us the necessary resources to maintain our life in body and soul. The
devil wishes to introduce fear in our Lord’s soul; he wants to create doubt
about the Father’s actual care. By rejecting this temptation Our Lord teaches
us that the temptation to manipulate nature does not help mankind if it is
motivated by fear; on the contrary, trust in God should inspire human beings to
obtain the resources necessary for the body’s well been. It seems to me that
this is a vital lesson for today’s world when we have so much scientific power in our
hands. Sadly, this power is frequently used to destroy life, not to promote
life. I think, for example, about the manipulation of human embryos, something
that should horrify a healthy mind. But such efforts arise from an attitude
that says there is no God who is looking after us, and thus we dare to control
the world’s resources with no reference to the dignity of human life.
Technology is good, but without reference to God it can become destructive.
The devil offers the Lord the passing
glory of the world. The temptation to dominate and control has ever been strong
in the human heart. Nowadays it shows itself in many ways. But the Father is
not pleased with the self-glorification found in those kingdoms which are based
on the desire to dominate, to accumulate riches, and to control the resources
that are destined to the general well-being of all. God wants a people free to
cultivate and attain what is good, not a people anxious to seek a way to exalt
our own selfishness. Notice that we ask the Lord that “thy kingdom come” and
with this petition we reject the kingdoms offered by the devil. God’s kingdom consists
of “righteousness, peace, and joy in the holy Spirit” as St. Paul says in his
letter to the Romans (14: 17). In God’s kingdom we live to seek not so much our
own interests, but rather the interests of all.
But to advance in the kingdom of peace and justice among human beings,
first it is necessary to dedicate ourselves to cultivate a living relationship
with God. That is why, by rejecting this temptation, the Lord tells the devil “you shall worship the Lord, your God, and him alone shall you
serve.”
We ask the Lord not to let us
fall into temptation. This means that we ask the Lord’s help to avoid mortal
danger. Well, this is precisely what the devil seeks: to invite Jesus to seek danger
and thus force the Father to make evident his personal care. The Lord rejects
the attitude that says that God must prove his love by the whimsical standards of
men. God takes care of the world, but
his wisdom and his power are beyond our reach. To tempt the Lord means that we
would deliberately put ourselves in dangerous situations with the idea that
ultimately, God will save us. Dangers exist in many forms. Some dangers threaten
the body, others the soul. Asking for
the grace to avoid temptation implies a plea for help to avoid the
circumstances that invite danger, either to the body or the soul. At the same
time, it seems to me that in reality this temptation shows itself as a kind of assault
on our use of common sense. There is no need to look for dangers and temptations;
they are plentiful enough as it is. By rejecting this temptation, our Lord
vindicates the value of the common sense that God himself has given to us to
guide our daily decisions.
The Lord rejects the three
temptations and demonstrates that the path that he came to establish is a path
of full trust and communion in the goodness of the Father. The Son, and we, the
sons and daughters of God, don’t need to tempt the Lord, or seek kingdoms of
ephemeral glory, or doubt God’s providence. This is why I recommend you
meditate frequently on the petitions in the Our Father during Lent. It serves
as a good guide and as a pillar of strength to reject the temptations we face
daily. Our Lord Jesus Christ triumphed over these temptations and with the help
of his grace, we will overcome them also.
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