Homily for Sunday 1^st Sunday of Lent

Readings: Deut 26:4-10, Rom 10:8-13, Lk 4:1-13

Fighting temptation

 We are in Lenten season, a time we commemorate Jesus’ suffering, death, and consequent resurrection, to save humanity.

As is a commemoration, we recall all that Jesus went through and try to live it ourselves as a sign of our remorse for the sins committed.

In the first reading, Moses calls all the Israelites to remember their history as they live in the promised land. This is a call for the people to thank God for bringing them to their land. Moses makes them recount all that God had done so that they may repay His goodness.

The church recalls all of us the wonderful treasure of our salvation in this season. We are being reminded of how it only had to take God’s mercy and kindness for us to be saved. We deserve nothing of God’s grace and love. Just as the call by Moses was not a mere remembrance, so too the call does not oblige us to remember our history of salvation only, we are called to repay this goodness by worthy living.

In the gospel reading, Jesus retreats to the wilderness to prepare for his saving mission. This was an opportunity for Satan to tempt him. By undergoing temptation and winning the battle, Jesus sets the standards of the Christian life. Our life will be full of temptation and we have to fight them. In our efforts to live the history of salvation through Jesus’ death, we are called to fight temptation. We need to place ourselves right so that we can fight the devil. The key to this is to keep close personal relationships and trust in God.

The second reading emphasizes the importance of faith in Christian living.

Let us be people of faith to fight temptation and then be able to live our salvation which we commemorate this lent.

God bless you all