Things to Ponder
I use this page to share messages of an inspirational nature, or simply something to ponder. It is my hope that you will always be inspired.
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Homily Reflections – Luke 4:1-13
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Introduction: Lead Us Not into Temptation
This Sunday’s Gospel passage opens our Lenten journey with the Spirit who descended upon Jesus at his baptism now leading him into the desert for forty days. In the opening verses, Luke creates an intentional link between the two events – Jesus is first baptized and then, filled with the Holy Spirit, is sent out to undergo a series of tests. In translation from Hebrew, the words are quite striking: “Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted.”
Have you ever experienced being led by the Spirit?
He remains in the desert for forty days – a number in the Bible that symbolizes completion and alludes to the Israelites’ forty years in the desert. In the Jewish tradition, the desert brings life right to the edge. It can be a place of divine encounter – such as Moses and the burning bush, or it can be a place of death – a stripping away of all that keeps us far from our true selves and the God who created us. A desert experience is often a time to focus on one’s identity, purpose, and mission.
When have you experienced a desert experience?
What happened to you? Any self-discoveries?
Jesus’ sojourn in the wilderness brings into clearer focus for him what his mission on earth will be. And it is here—in the stark desert—that Jesus is tempted by the devil to compromise his identity and mission. In fact, this is our first introduction to the devil in Luke’s Gospel. From the text, we see that the devil is bold, cunning, clever, and powerful.
In the desert, Jesus is severely tested even before his public ministry begins. As it stands in this passage, the three temptations are to riches, glory, and power – represented by bread, rule, and defiance of nature respectively. And Jesus’ reply to each of the temptations, all from the book of Deuteronomy (8:3; 6:13; 16) connects his experience in the desert with that of the wandering Jews centuries ago.
Which of these three temptations trips you up?
Luke concludes this Gospel passage with these ominous words: “When the devil had finished every temptation, he departed from him for a while.” This encounter in the desert is Jesus’ first experience with the devil – but certainly not the last. For Jesus will continue to be tempted throughout his life. Likewise – you and me!
As you begin this Lenten season, can you relate to the sense of being in the desert, a space of transition time, refocus, renewal, rebirth?
I would invite you to take time to read and ponder the words from the Gospel of Luke 4:1-13.
What word or words caught your attention?
What in this passage comforted you?
What in this passage challenged you?
Further Questions and Reflections:
The temptations that the devil presented are aimed at the heart of Jesus’ identity. What’s his identity?
Jesus’ responses are rooted in an underlying narrative that he is dependent on God rather than self for life, glory, and identity.
What is your own underlying narrative?
In the wilderness, Jesus did not engage with the devil’s temptations. He simply quoted the Word of God in scripture. God’s Word has power.
When tempted, where do you find strength?
Jesus’ experience teaches us that there is nothing wrong with being tempted. It’s how we react to temptation that matters. A short prayer or a quote from God’s Word will help us let it go. For example, “Lead me not into temptation.”
We can find comfort in our trials when we realize that Jesus was tested throughout his whole ministry. “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weakness, but we have one who in every respect has been tested as we are, yet without sin.”—Letter to the Hebrews.
Deacon David
Deacon David Suley
St. Patrick Catholic Church
Rockville, Maryland
Published with Permission
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