The Strength of the Word

A Reflection on the Gospel for Sunday, February 26th, 2023:
The First Sunday of Lent

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Matthew
4.1-11 

​Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. He fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was famished. The tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” But he answered, “It is written, ‘Man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”

Then the devil took him to the holy city and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, saying to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down; for it is written, ‘He will command his Angels concerning you,’ and ‘On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.’” Jesus said to him, “Again it is written, ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’”

Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendour; and he said to him, “All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.” Jesus said to him, “Away with you, Satan! for it is written, ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.’”

Then the devil left him, and suddenly Angels came and waited on him.

It is now the time to begin our Lenten pilgrimage, walking through the desert for 40 days with Jesus. Today’s Gospel passage is such a beautiful and rich part of God’s word, and there has been so much good teaching on the meaning of the three temptations Jesus faces in the desert. In my reflection on this passage, I was struck by the power of the Sacred Scriptures. Jesus is victorious against the temptations of the devil by proclaiming the truth in the face of Satan’s subtle lies. In fact, in Jesus’ response to the devil’s first temptation, we recall that man lives not by bread alone but by every word that comes from the mouth of God. Reflecting on Jesus’ responses, we may be led to ask ourselves: do we keep God’s words in our minds? Are the Scriptures readily on our lips when temptation comes our way? 

Jesus compares Scripture with the food of the body. While food becomes the physical strength that our body needs to flourish, the Word of God is nourishment for our minds, hearts, and souls. It is what we need in order to live the Gospel. There is a common saying: “You are what you eat.” The saints point us to the truth that “you become what you contemplate.” Setting the gaze of our souls on the face of God, we gaze into the truth itself and become more and more like Him. While the saints were still human beings with faults and weaknesses, they became more and more like the One they contemplated. We can imagine many of the saints battling the temptations of the devil faithfully – as Jesus did, whom they contemplated in the Gospel.

As we set out at the beginning of this season of Lent, let us remember to nourish ourselves every single day at the banquet table of the Word of God. Whatever forms of prayer, fasting, or almsgiving we have taken up, we are going to need the strength that comes from contemplation of God through His word. His word is not only healing and guidance for us, but is a protection against temptation, and the strength we need to reach the glory of Easter at the end of these 40 days.




Sr. Angela Burnham

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