Lectio Divina – 23

Fr Martin Kallunkal

Reading
“Then Jesus was led by the Spirit out into  the desert to be put to the test by the devil. He fasted for forty days and forty nights, after which He was hungry, and the tester came and said to Him, ‘If you are, Son of God, tell these stones to turn into loaves.’ But He replied, ‘Scripture says: Human beings live not on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of God…’ (Mt. 4:1-11).

Reflection
St Matthew’s account of the temptation of Jesus in the wilderness reflects Israel’s experience in the wilderness. Perhaps, the most striking similarity is in the order of temptations. Jesus was tempted, first, to change stones to Bread, second, to throw Himself from the pinnacle of the temple, and third, to worship the devil. Israelites were tempted, during their Exodus from Egypt, first, to doubt God because of hunger, second, to test God’s power and providence, and third, to worship an idol (Ex. 16;17;32). The main point of the temptation of Jesus is not whether Jesus is the Son of God or not, but, rather what would the Son’s faithfulness to the Father and to His mission look like. Devil’s words, “if you are Son of God” actually means, “Since you are Son of God.” Jesus was tested after His anointing, empowering, and legitimation as the Son of God. Testing was a surprise for Jesus; for, He should have known what Abraham, Moses, and others had to go through, and, especially what the scripture says about testing – “My child, if you aspire to serve the Lord, prepare yourself for an ordeal” (Sir. 2:1). The testing that God allows is meant for helping humans to know how much they love God. Look, what Moses tells Israelites: “Remember the long road by which Yahweh your God led you for forty years in the desert, to humble you, to test you and know your inmost heart whether you would keep His commandments or not” (Dt. 8:2-3). Jesus refused to change stones to bread saying that “human beings live not on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.” This should have given Jesus the confidence to tell His followers later: “Set your hearts on His Kingdom first, and on God’s saving justice, and all these other things will be given you as well” (Mt. 6:33). In the second test, the devil reminds Jesus once again that He is the Son of God. In addition, taking Jesus at His word, the devil quotes God’s words, precisely Ps 91.11-12. But, Jesus ignores the Devil’s appropriate and reassuring quote from the Scripture. Jesus rebuts the Devil’s words with another verse from the Bible. In the third test, which Jesus found to be the most blasphemous and spiritually dangerous, the Devil is asked to stop and leave. Jesus says, reminding us of His exorcisms (Mt. 8:32): “Away with you Satan.” And, Jesus instructs Satan to worship and to serve God.

Prayer
O’ my Master and Lord, how peacefully you let yourself to be tested, and, how smoothly you emerge out of it. Reveal to me, Lord, the states of your mind when you faced temptations. Were you not afraid to meet the Devil face to face? Were you not annoyed and disturbed when you were tempted for more than once? What helped you not to lose confidence, especially when the Devil began to quote the Scripture? Did you not feel angry when you had to hear your Father’s words from the mouth of the Devil? How could you remember and quote many verses from the Book of Deuteronomy in sequence? I am weak, Lord; do not lead me into temptations!

Contemplation
Contemplate on the easiness of heart with which Jesus overcomes temptations. Know that things that you are afraid of haveing control over you.

Action
All the temptations are about the use of power, testing one’s own power and testing God’s power. Restrain from power games of all sorts. Stop conceiving your position and relationships as privileges to be exploited.