In the Gospel reading yesterday (the first Sunday of Lent) we were told the account of when Jesus retreated to the desert for 40 days. During this time he fasted and the gospel says he was “tempted by Satan”. Later it says he returned to Galilee after John had been arrested and began to proclaim the gospel by telling people that the time to repent and believe is now. This was the message that John the Baptist preached and then Jesus later fulfilled.
Satan is not a very popular subject with today’s Christians. We live in a society that seems to be moving more and more toward a belief that you’re ok, I’m ok and whatever anyone chooses to do is ok too. However, the reality is that some things are “wrong” no matter what and the spiritual battle between good and evil continues to this day. Pope John Paul II said;
“The battle against the devil, which is the principal task of Saint Michael the archangel, is still being fought today, because the devil is still alive and active in the world. The evil that surrounds us today, the disorders that plague our society, man’s inconsistency and brokenness, are not only the results of original sin, but also the result of Satan’s pervasive and dark action.”
From the moment that Satan (a fallen angel) was cast out of Heaven by Michael the Archangel, up until now, he (Satan) is present and his ultimate goal is to keep us from having a real and life changing relationship with God. This becomes very apparent when we attempt to do things that draw us closer to God.
This idea is very clear in the reading. Jesus goes into the desert, a place free from distractions, in order to fast, pray and draw closer to His Father in Heaven. The Gospel makes it a point to tell us that this caused him to be tempted. No doubt, Satan attempted to distract Him from his mission and his focus on God, just as he does with us today.
During this time of Lent, I challenge you to find time to go to your own desert where you can completely focus on God, even if only for a few minutes each day. I challenge you to remove things from your life that stand in the way of spending time with God. I challenge you to pray more, love more and spend less. However, as you do these things, remember that there is one who will be unhappy that you are making an effort to draw closer to God and he will do all within his power to keep you and God at a distance. In spite of this, you can rest easy knowing that God watches over and protects you in every way possible. When we make the effort to make our relationship with God stronger, God shows up to protect us when we are faced with temptation or doubt. In the Gospel it says that even the angels “ministered to Jesus” among wild beasts. I can’t help but wonder if God even used the animals to provide some comfort to Christ.
A Reading from the Holy Gospel According to St. Mark (1:12-15)
The Spirit drove Jesus out into the desert,
and he remained in the desert for forty days,
tempted by Satan.
He was among wild beasts,
and the angels ministered to him.
After John had been arrested,
Jesus came to Galilee proclaiming the gospel of God:
“This is the time of fulfillment.
The kingdom of God is at hand.
Repent, and believe in the gospel.”
About The Tattooed Catholic…
Jean Pierre “Pete” Espil is a Catholic Youth minister who has worked with teenagers and youth for the last 16 years. He has spent the last 9 years in full time ministry but prior to that he worked with teens in shelter homes, treatment centers and detention centers. He grew up in the state of Idaho (USA) and currently lives in Salt Lake City Utah (USA) where he works as the Campus Minister at Judge Memorial Catholic High School. He also travels to speak to Catholic youth in different states and countries when time allows.
His approach to youth ministry and the practice of his Faith falls somewhere between St. Benedict and Dog the Bounty Hunter. Unorthodox in style and appearance, Pete loves to break down stereotypes about what a “Christian” should look and act like. He has a BA degree in Linguistics from Boise State University (Boise, ID) and is an Oblate in the Benedictine tradition.
When he isn’t working with teens you can find him practicing Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, playing his drums, or spending time with is wife, Catholic Recording artist Jaime Thietten.
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Pete, this is just one more of those bits of the bible I find truly unbelieveable.
Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. “All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.”
Yet we are expected to believe Jesus was the son of god, was, in fact, god incarnate. What could this devil give Jesus that he did not already posses?
So, once more, the bible gets its own stuff wrong.
I fail to see your point, how does Satan’s lack of understanding and his self-deception in any way mean the bible gets its own stuff wrong. This account of Satan trying to tempt Christ is entirely consistant the bible’s other accounts of trh devil’s nature ie rebellious , willful, self serving and ulttimately deluded.
Further, one of Satan’s other titles is Father of Lies, promising what he cant deliver is entirely in keeping with this.
David, I also struggle to see any contradiction here.
Surely the whole point is that Satan is trying to tempt Christ in the very same way that he himself fell – he is suggesting to Christ that rather than just being merely the Son of God, he can become a god in his own right, independent of God, without having to suffer for mankind.
It’s the same sin of pride that brought Satan down – ‘you can be more powerful than you already are’, ‘why be a servant when you can be the master’, etc.
Pretty good Brendan, 50 words or less to undo 2000 years of appologetics and the doctrine of the trinity!
If christ was god, then nothing could tempt him. If he were not god, then he could be tempted by anything (I suppose).
Say the de’il were to arrive at your home tonight and offer you your own home if you bowed down to him? Would you? Of course not. But poerhaps if he offered you that which you desire but do not posses, you would at least consider the offer.
Shot yourself in the foot there David by overlooking the Christology. Jesus was both fully God and fully human. On the subject of the trinity, Jesus did not count equality with God something to be grasped but humbled himself and took the form of a servant…. He subjected himself to our limitations precisely so that Satan and his temptations could be defeated.
Jesus could have said to Satan. “Really? You’re promising to give me what I, as God, already possess if I’ll only fall prostrate and worship you, an inferior being that I created? That’s rich! Hahahaha!”
It would have been equally honest, to be sure. But it would have been completely opposite of the humble example he was providing for us. In giving the response He did, Jesus showed us, His children, the only true, sure-fire, never-fail way to stand up under Satan’s temptation. Claim the word of God. In the presence of the Word, Satan knows he is powerless, so he flees. And when he fled from Jesus, Heavenly servants came down and care for Jesus’s needs, restoring and strengthening Him to continue His work.
I think it’s important to note that Satan doesn’t run off with his tail between his legs after just one try. He comes back again, and again. If he lasted three rounds with Jesus, God incarnate, the Almighty, imagine how long he’ll last when he comes up against a mere mortal like me.
But I have this promise, if I lean on and hide behind the Word of God EVERY TIME Satan tempts me, he will ultimately flee, and I will receive Heaven’s blessings.
I just read the account in Matthew my morning study, and it’s got me all fired up!
Great column, Pete!