Let The Word Of God Be Your Defense – Pope Francis
[simpleazon-image align=”right” asin=”1612787673″ locale=”us” height=”375″ src=”http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41T-pK75zEL.jpg” width=”234″]Here is an English translation of the Holy Father’s address to the pilgrims gathered in St. Peter’s Square today, just before praying the Angelus .
Dear brothers and sisters, hey there!
The Gospel of the first Sunday of Lent presents us every year with an episode about the temptations of Jesus, when the Holy Spirit came down upon him and, after the baptism in the Jordan, drove him to confront Satan freely in the desert for 40 days before starting his public mission.
The tempter tries to lead Jesus far from the Father’s plan, that is, from the road of sacrifice, of the love that provides itself in expiation. He wants to lead Jesus down an easy roadway, a road of success and power. In their duel, Jesus and Satan fire rounds of Scripture at each other. In fact, Satan, to guide Jesus far from the cross, introduces him with untrue messianic hopes: financial health, shown by the opportunity of transforming bread into stones; the spectacular and miraclistic (“miracolistico”) design, with the idea of tossing himself down from the highest point of the temple of Jerusalem and being protected by the angels; and lastly the faster way of power and rule in exchange for worshiping Satan. These are the 3 teams of lures. We also know them well!
Jesus decisively turns down every one of these temptations and reaffirms his unwavering will certainly to follow the path set by the Father, without any compromise with sin or the world’s logic. Note well just how Jesus replies. He does not carry on a conversation with Satan, as Eve did in the earthly haven. Jesus understands well that you could not dialogue with Satan. Satan is rather astute. For this reason Jesus, as opposed to having [simpleazon-image align=”left” asin=”B005J6U77Q” locale=”us” height=”350″ src=”http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51OPy15m0iL.jpg” width=”350″]dialogue with Satan like Eve did, chooses to take sanctuary in the Word of God and answers with the force of this Word. Allow us remember this: in the moment of lure, in our temptations. We ought to not argue with Satan, yet constantly protect ourselves with the Word of God for this is what will certainly save us! In his replies to Satan, the Lord, making use of the Word of God, advises us most of all that “not by bread alone does man live but by every word that comes from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4; cf. Deuteronomy 8:3); and this offers us durability, it sustains us in the struggle against the worldly mentality that reduces man to the level of fundamental demands, creating him to lose the wish for what holds true, great and stunning, the wish for God and his passion. Furthermore, Jesus reminds us that “it is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test'” (Matthew 4:7), considering that the roadway of confidence also passes through darkness and is helped by determination and persevering expectation. Jesus finally points out that “it is written: ‘The Lord your God you will adore: him alone will you worship'” (4:10). In other words, we need to detach ourselves from idols, from vain things, and build our life on exactly what is essential.
These words of Jesus will then be concretely verified by his actions. His outright fidelity to the Father’s strategy of love will certainly lead him after 3 years to the final settling of accounts with the “prince of this world” (John 16:11), in the hour of the passion of the cross, and there Jesus will certainly win his difinitive victory, the victory of love!
Brothers and sisters, the time of Lent is the propitious occasion for everyone of us to take the journey of conversion, taking this page of the Gospel seriously. Let us renew our baptismal promises: let us renounce Satan and all of his works and seductions – because he himself is a seducer. Let us walk the paths of the Lord and “arrive at Easter in the joy of the Spirit”.
