The sin

First Sunday of Lent Year A

In this week’s Gospel passage, we find that the subject matter is temptation. Clearly, there are many types of temptations – each one of us is tempted to sin, almost daily (if not hourly). But there is something different going on in this week’s passage. Here, Jesus is at the start of His ministry and he is confronted by the devil with all his power. But here, unlike us, Jesus does not sin. Many biblical writers have seen a parallel here between this temptation and the very first temptation of Adam and Eve. The Bible, in fact, refers to Jesus as the second Adam, the head of a new “race” of people born into the family of God. 

Let us think for a few moments about parallels and contrasts between these two temptations; the first which plunged the human race into sin, and the second which began the way back toward salvation with victory over sin. It is at the temptation of Jesus that Satan realized that he could not ruin Jesus as he had done to the first human beings, and therefore that he could not stop God’s plan of redemption.

Some parallels are the following. For example, in Genesis, Adam and Eve were in a garden with all the food they could eat; whereas, in Matthew, Jesus is in a wilderness where he has been fasting for forty days. In Genesis, the temptation was to eat; and in the wilderness the temptations of Jesus began with eating. In Genesis, the temptation was to be like God by disobeying God; in Matthew, the appeal to Jesus was to be a king, but without obeying God. In Genesis, after the pair sinned, angels barred them from the tree of life; in Matthew, after Jesus drove the devil away, angels came and ministered to Him.

So with this history in mind, we can look now into this little passage in more detail. In this passage, we are told that Jesus had been fasting for forty days and forty nights, and was hungry. There is no reason to doubt that it was forty days and forty nights as the text says; but “forty” is a common number in the Bible for a period of difficulty, hardship, or suffering. Now let us ask; why is fasting so important? Why did Jesus forsake food and drink for such a long time?

Recall the Book of Deuteronomy. In it, we find the phrase: “man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds from the mouth of God”. If we had to go back and read Deuteronomy 8, we will also see that the topic there is about the Israelites hungering in the wilderness for forty years”. God tested them in the wilderness so that they would learn that they must obey what comes from the mouth of God. He gave them Manna; but to acquire it and enjoy it they needed to follow God’s instructions carefully. The main point is that if they obeyed the Lord, He would provide their food. And so, it was more important to obey God than to have all the food they could eat (i.e. indeed, recall that Adam and Eve chose to eat rather than obey God’s word).With all the above in mind, we can see that Jesus could defeat Satan because He knew the word of God better than the tempter. This outlines the importance of knowing Scripture well! Apart from this, we also see that there is no trivial temptation. Eating from the tree in the Garden? – such a little thing. Turning stones into bread? – it appears harmless. But each, in the case of Jesus, was a prompting from the devil to go against the will of God. And when anyone chooses to act contrary to what the living God wills, that person has chosen death. Satan knew that. We often do not; we often think something small can be winked at, easily rationalized, even though we know at the time it is not what God wants. And, in a sense, this is also why fasting is important. Because fasting can help us see things more clearly. It can help us detach from those things that are taking over our life and thus blocking away God’s loving and healing voice!

A reading from the Gospel of Matthew (Matthew 4:1-11)

Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted[a] by the devil. After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. The tempter came to him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.”

Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’ Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. “If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down. For it is written:

‘He will command his angels concerning you,

 and they will lift you up in their hands,

 so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.”

Jesus answered him, “It is also 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“. All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.” Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’

Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him.

The Gospel of the Lord
Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ

  1. Read the Gospel story so that you are familiar with it.
  2. Reflect on what the Gospel story is saying to you. Which points would you highlight and why?
  3. Above, we outlined that there is no trivial temptation. A temptation is anything that has the potential to make us defy what God wants from us. Jesus was tempted in 3 different ways in the desert – in our life we are often tempted too, sometimes with the “same” temptations. Take a moment to think about what you mostly feel tempted by. 
  4. In light of the above question, take some time to reflect more on how you can avoid falling into certain temptations. Take a moment to pray to God to free you from certain sinful tendencies and to open you more to his love and beauty!
  5. Together with your family find the right time to read this Gospel. The environment helps, so before you start, prepare;
    i. The Bible reading from St Matthew ( 4:1-11)
    ii. Cover the table with a green cloth
    iii. A computer/laptop with the readings and clips
  6. Go through the steps with your children (2 age groups are being suggested).
  7. Feel free to adapt to your situation
  8. Be creative 😊 
  9. Go to the Prayer Corner section to continue praying as a family. 

This week we begin our Lenten Journey! Here, Jesus speaks to us about the importance of fasting and to never forget His love and faithfulness.

  • The importance of trying to keep Jesus always in our mind and in our heart – in our every activity in life. This will keep us away from sin and will free us.
  • Whiteboard marker
  • Whiteboard

Who was the first person the Devil ever tricked? What happened? What was God going to do about it? Remind the children that when Adam sinned it brought death into the world. It made all of Adam’s children (that’s us) to be enemies of God. But God sent Jesus to save all sinners. So the Devil was trying to trick Jesus more than anyone else!

Read (and summarize) Matthew 4:1-11. (Read with emotion and pause often to engage the children with the reading.) Remind the children that Jesus knew his special mission to die on the cross. But if Jesus fell into sin he could not save us! So Jesus always had to obey God. Be sure to emphasize the three tricks you asked the children to listen for:

Stones to bread – not trusting God, not waiting for God.

Jump off the Temple – wanting to get famous.

Get all the kingdoms by worshiping the devil – wanting to get power.

The children should be able to repeat back the three points you emphasized. Say, “this story shows us how Jesus used his fighter verses (memory verses) to fight against the Devils tricks.”

Matching activity: 

Match Jesus’ response to the right temptation. Read the response Jesus gave and have the children recall which trick he was fighting.

You shall worship to Lord your God and him only shall you serve. #3

You shall not put the Lord your God to the test. #2

Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God. #1

Test: Ask the children to stand up if the following tricks were ones that Jesus had to battle in the story. If not from the story have the children cross their arms:

Turn these stones into break.

Turn this water into wine.

Jump off the temple.

Do not obey your parents.

Get power over all the kingdoms by worshiping the Devil.

Look: Ask the children to think of some tricks the Devil might use on people they know.How can they fight against these tricks? Take a moment to reflect upon this, then pray.

Sign of the Cross 

As we learn to make God number “1” in our lives, we are then better able to know and share God’s abundance, forgiveness, and love with others – just like Jesus did. Dear Jesus, help us to put you first in our lives, so that we can share your love with others, just like you did. Help us grow more this Lent. Help us grow closer to you!

Amen.

This week’s Gospel passage explains the 40 days that Jesus spent in the Desert.

  • That Jesus fasted in order to prepare for his ministry and in order to grow and understand God’s Will better. 
  • Whiteboard marker
  • Whiteboard

It is very tempting…start off the session with an example of forbidden items… for example, bring an unassuming box filled with donuts, and place in the center of the group. First, tell students to make sure that whatever they do, they must not look at the box. Don’t think about it or talk about it. Begin to discuss Lent and the reasons we celebrate it. Throughout the discussion, glance back at the box or walk near it, but scold anyone looking towards it. Then at last, tell students they may look in it, but they cannot touch what is inside. Pass the box around, sniff deeply of the tempting sugary goodness, but do not pick up or eat the donuts. Suffer through the temptation a bit before allowing students a donut (or perhaps wait until the end of the lesson just to up the patience factor…). Explain that today’s lesson is about the temptation of Jesus, which is essentially what we commemorate when we celebrate the practice of Lent.

Throughout the liturgical year, we honor and celebrate different times of the life of Jesus. At Christmas, we celebrate His birthday. Easter, of course, celebrates His resurrection. And as we prepare for Easter, we observe a time of reflection through the season of Lent. During Lent we can examine ourselves and consider what Christ did for us, how He suffered and sacrificed. 

In this light, it is important for us to note that Jesus was led to be tempted in the Desert (he did not fall into temptation). Indeed, and it was no accident that Jesus wandered into the desert. After His baptism, the Spirit led Jesus into a period of trial (i.e. so that Jesus prepared for his mission). This time was by no means easy for Jesus as a human, but it was further proof of His oneness with the Father and confirmation that He could withstand the Devil. 

It is certainly no joke that just as the Holy Spirit is present, Satan is a real force and will try his best to destroy God’s plan in our life.  He does this in part by tempting God’s people to sin. This he did, for example, in the Garden of Eden and he succeeded. With Jesus, though, we have opportunity for a new story! Adam and Eve had all they could possibly ask for and yet it somehow was not enough. They were created to be perfect but fell to the idea that they could somehow be God. They sinned and destroyed opportunity for complete communion. On the other hand, Jesus was also born perfect, blameless. He was, in fact, God, and came to earth in order to undo the effects of the fall. In the desert, we see Jesus lacking in everything a human needs for survival, yet successfully enduring and resisting Satan’s attacks, on three distinct accounts!

Although in our life sin can sometimes appear difficult to reject and to overcome, let us keep in mind that Jesus did the ultimate assignment first. He has been there. He knows and understands and is ready when we need Him. He will help us if we ask for his help! And because Jesus overcame temptation, we can take comfort even when we fail. Because by his grace and his help, we too can grow in to holier persons. 

We too can grow in love and in beauty, and be free from all sin. This is what we should try to do even more during Lent.

Follow-up Questions:

Why is it important that Jesus was tempted? 

It is significant that Jesus was tempted because we see a reversal from the original story of the fall. Jesus clung to God and overcame sin. Jesus came to make right what humans mess up. He did not give in and can provide us a way out of bondage to temptation.

What kinds of things are tempting to us? 

Pride, vanity, selfish ambition, worldly pleasures, success, distraction…the list goes on.

Is temptation a sin? When does it become one? 

Temptation itself is not a sin, as we know that Jesus did not sin and yet was tempted. When we make the choice to act upon temptation and follow through with what we know is not in God’s plan, temptation is realized and becomes sin.When have you felt like you were in a “desert” period? How did God guide you through? Answers may vary according to personal experience. Emphasis ought to point to God’s ability to uphold us as we trust in His unfailing love and power.

Say: This week, instead of concentrating on what you want to give up, identify something (or some things) you can add to your spiritual life.

Sign of the Cross

Dear Father, we pray that you may help us cultivate our capacity to (i.e., enter capacity here, for example, to love, to be patient, to learn, etc.). We pray, dear Father, that you may help us see Lent as a period of growth and flourishing. Help us be more like Jesus – help us love you more!

Amen.

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God speaks to us in many ways, including through the Sunday Scripture readings. Here you will find useful background and activities to better understand the upcoming Sunday's Scripture readings, helping you to connect the Scripture to daily life in a meaningful way.