Luke 4:1-13 | Tempted Like Christ? How Your Struggles Reveal Your Divine Purpose

Sermon from the First Sunday of Lent

Well this is our first Sunday of Lent, and what an opener it is for all of us.

Let's focus on the gospel in our reflections today, and the temptations that the Lord went through.

Why, of all the people, would the Lord who has all the divinity in him, be tempted?

Why go through this exercise?

How could the devil even think he could win?

Remember, Jesus is God and man, but regardless, maybe there is something about temptation that helps us to discover who we are.

Let’s examine each temptation.

If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.

In other words, let me give you something that you haven't worked for, and that's always a temptation.

Let me give you the reward that you constantly pray for. “Lord, give me this. Lord, give me that.”

And of course, that's the devil.

The devil, remember, the devil always mocks God. The devil always insults God.

Like God says, love one another. The devil will say it's much easier to hate, and much more powerful to hate, and we know, or at least I know, it's a lot easier to hate someone than to love someone, and it's a lot easier to have that hatred last longer than love.

So it's always, the devil is always insulting God's plan for us, and mocking it.

Of course, what does the Lord say?

“If you want something, work towards it. I gave you a heart, I gave you a brain, I gave you hands, I gave you feet, work towards it.”

But the devil always says which is easier, tell the truth or tell a lie?

Tell a lie.

What's easier, work for something or steal it?

Steal.

Does my prayer resemble more of something where I'm seeking constantly things I don't deserve?

Maybe I need to reflect on that.

It's not intentional, but it's just part of our fallen human nature.

I'm always seeking things, looking for rewards that I haven't really worked for.

What does Jesus say?

“One does not live by bread alone.”

It's not the material things; it’s not the luxury that you're really looking for.

We're constantly meditating on our ministries here at Mary Immaculate, especially the school, which is one of the largest ministries. I ask myself, what's its goal?

What is the goal of teaching and educating young people? That they go to a good high school? That they go to a great college? That then they get a good job? Is that the goal?

Is it the material things that matter?

The materials are very easy to measure. 99% of our kids go off to this, 100% of our kids do that, 100% of our kids make over $80,000. But is that the goal?

No. I realized the goal is that we discover who we are and that we're, we know it well.

What do we want from our children? That they know that they are a child of God.

When you know that, you are capable of doing great things. No one in this world is going to crush you.

We want them to realize that God loves them, and that they're a child of God. When you realize that you, you realize what you are, the reason why you're put on this planet, the reason why you have a life.

It wasn't to go to high school or college or to have a job.

Of course, that's the minimum. Don't get me wrong. Those are important.

But it's not the goal.

The goal is for every child to discover who they are.

“One does not live by bread alone.”

Some of us, we already got the golden pot?.We already got the treasure. We're all set for retirement, and we tell the young people what we know better than anybody else.

That's not what makes you happy.

In the devil’s second temptation, “[H]e took him up and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in a single instant. The devil said to him, I shall give you all this power and glory for it has been handed over to me. All you have to do is worship me.”

You can have all the power you want, just do the wrong things.

We see how people in powerful positions can manipulate other people.

Let me tell you, growing up, my dad would embarrass the cashier at a grocery store if she made, or he made, one penny of a mistake.

“You don't know how to count. Where did you go to school? You're such an idiot. You don't know what you're doing!"

And I would just walk away, because I was embarrassed.

But let me tell you something, he got what he wanted every single time.

It works.

It works.

Be loud, be obnoxious, be arrogant, and you will get what you want.

Get the power you're looking by doing all the wrong things, and you will succeed.

That's the temptation, right?

Hey, we have only one life to live. We “need” that power at any expense.

And then finally, the devil “led him to Jerusalem, made him stand on a parapet of the temple, and said to him, if you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here. He will command his angels concerning you, and they will catch you, support you.”

What's our prayer?

What's the prayer sound like?

Lord.

I read this wonderful reflection from someone, that said, “Lord, save me from this. Save me, so I can do it again.”

We have a temptation to ask God to save me from my stupidities. Why? So I can do it again.

“Lord, don't let anybody know.

Don't let anybody know.”

Why?

“So I can keep doing it.”

Throw yourself, right?

In other words, screw up, and God will catch you.

And what does the Lord say?

“You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.”

Don't test God.

Why?

Why are these temptations?

Because temptations are always a shortcut to a counterfeit.

It's a counterfeit, right? Sometimes we can be perfectly content with the counterfeit. But temptations don't allow us to experience what we are capable of achieving.

That's it.

When you cheat at school, you’re never experiencing that you are more than capable of doing this. I've actually had a student say to me, “Father, if I didn't cheat, I would fail.”

And I said to him, “You don't know what you're capable of doing.”

It requires hard work.

The Lord was in the desert for 40 days.

Why?

He was God. He didn't need to be there, but he wanted to discover what he is capable of achieving, to realize the fullest potential of who he is.

My brothers and sisters, you can notice a pattern in some of the greatest saints. 

St. Ignatius of Loyola, he spent nine months in a hospital after suffering a war injury. He was a career soldier. After spending nine months in the hospital, what happened? He became a soldier for Christ.

When you reflect and you meditate on your life, all of a sudden, things that you never imagined you could do, and the people you could serve, becomes as clear as day.

St. Francis of Assisi.

What did he do? He was imprisoned for one year during battle. He was a knight from a wealthy family. And he was captured and put to prison, sent to prison for one year. That one year he called a grace of God. It turned his life completely around. He rejected all the stupid things he was fighting for, and looked at what he was doing with his life.

This first Sunday of Lent, these temptations remind us: spend time in prayer and discover who you are.

It is never a waste of time. Never. Don't ever feel guilty spending time in prayer. Don't ever feel guilty taking time to reorient your life and see a clearer path to move forward. It is not a waste of time.

And of course the devil says, “No, no, no. There's so much to do. Get going. Come on. Move it.

You only have so many days of your life, right? Why would you waste it? Come on.”

And of course the reality is, take time to pray.

Take time to clear your mind.

Take time to get away from the distractions.

Maybe during this Lent, when you're driving, turn off the radio.

Turn off the music and think and reflect.

It's scary, the results that can come from that.

But in the end, I guarantee you, it will clear your mind and give you a clear path, a clearer path of how to move forward.