Homily for 1st Sunday of Lent Year C (3)

Theme: Being Led by God in Moments of Hardship

By: Fr. Luke Ijezie

Homily for Sunday March 6 2022

Deuteronomy 26:4-10
Resp. Psalm: 91:1-2,10-15
Romans 10:8-13
Luke 4:1-13

1. Life is hard and full of trials and moments of hardship. One needs proper divine guidance in such moments in order not to end up in disaster. This idea runs through the readings of this first Sunday of Lent.

2. The first reading from Deut 26:4-10 narrates in liturgical form how God led the people of Israel in moment of oppression and hardship in Egypt, leading them through the desert and bringing them to a land flowing with milk and honey. As long as the people remained attached to God, He always came to their rescue. Being led by God does not mean that evil will not try to come near, rather, when it comes it will not reach the target as one has the wherewithal to conquer.

The psalmist of Psalm 91 makes this abundantly clear, as he sings the favours of one who has God as refuge and stronghold: “Upon you no evil shall fall, no plague approach where you dwell. For you has he commanded His angels, to keep you in all your ways.”

3. The same point is stressed in the second reading from Romans 10:8-13. Faith in Jesus is our strongest weapon in moments of adversity and our only hope of salvation. All who believe in him will have no cause for shame. This is stated in Psalm 25:1-3: “To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul. O my God, in you I trust; do not let me be put to shame; do not let my enemies exult over me. Do not let those who wait for you be put to shame; let them be ashamed who are wantonly treacherous.”

4. The Gospel text from Luke 4:1-13 dramatizes the human predicament in the face of trial in the account of the temptation of Jesus in the wilderness. The important element in this account is the stress on the fact that Jesus was led by the Spirit. He was in the power of the Divine Spirit when the Devil came to tempt him. Another fact is that he was hungry. The evil force knows when to attack. The devil came and tried to take over the leadership by suggesting to Jesus how he should carry out the ministry: changing stone into bread, worshipping Satan to gain worldly riches and glory, and brandishing his power by doing the impossible just for fame. Three times the tempter tried to mislead Jesus, but in all Jesus won with better arguments.

5. The interesting thing in these temptations is that they came to Jesus while he was in a most holy state, having fasted for forty days and forty nights. However experts interpret these figures the message is that the tempter does not spare anyone even the holiest of persons. He actually wanted Jesus to use his extraordinary divine endowments to his own advantage. The urge to dive into miraculous exhibition of food for all is always an attraction even when it goes contrary to one’s particular mission. The lure of worldly riches and pleasure makes it difficult for us often to worship God alone. Unfortunately, our present society is littered with gory incidents of diabolic activities aimed at amassing wealth and fame. It also the case that many use God’s given powers to showcase themselves just as the tempter wanted Jesus to do by throwing himself down from the parapet of the temple.
The triumph of Jesus is an assurance to us all in our own trials, that as long as we remain led by God, as long as we remain attached to the Spirit, the enemy cannot overcome us.

We pray that the God who called us to be His own may continue to stand by us in every moment of hardship and trial! Through Him may we continue to renew our strength in the battle to win the crown for which He has called us! Amen!

Fr. Luke Ijezie