First Sunday of Lent

Lent 1^st Sunday

Gen 2:7-9, 3:1-7; Rom 5:12-19; Mat 4:1-11

The Tale of Two Adams

A family was struggling to make ends meet when one day the wife came home with an expensive new dress. “How could you do this?” her husband asked. “I saw it in the window and tried it on,” she said. “Satan whispered, ‘You look fabulous—buy it!’” Her husband replied, “You should have said, ‘Get behind me, Satan!’” “I did,” she answered, “but then he said, ‘It looks fabulous from back here, too!’” Today’s liturgical readings show how Jesus faced His temptations—and, unlike Adam, overcame them.

A family was having a hard time meeting their expenses with their limited income. One day, however, the woman came home having bought an expensive dress for herself. Her husband asked her, “How could you do this?!” “I was outside the store looking at the dress in the window, and I found myself trying it on,” she explained. “It was like Satan was whispering in my ear, ‘You look fabulous in that dress. Buy it!’” “Well,” the man replied, “you know how I deal with that kind of temptation? I say, ‘Get behind me, Satan!’” “I did,” replied his wife, “but then Satan said, ‘It looks fabulous from back here, too!’” Today’s liturgical readings show how Jesus handled His temptations and became our new Adam.

A Striking Contrast: The Bible speaks about the destiny of the human race as the tale of two “types” of men — the first man, Adam, and the new Adam, Jesus. By the disobedience of one man, sin and condemnation entered the world, and death came to reign over all. The obedience of another man, Jesus, produced grace in abundance; all were justified, and life came to reign for all. This striking contrast is unfolded in the liturgical readings. Formed from the clay of the ground and filled with the breath of God’s own Spirit, Adam was a son of God (Lk 3:38), created in His image (Gen 5:1). Crowned with glory, he was given dominion over the world and made to worship God alone.

Adam, however, put God to the test. He gave in to the serpent’s temptation, trying to seize for himself all that God had already promised him. Jesus, in His hour of temptation, prevailed where Adam failed and drove the devil away. This is the contrast between the first Adam and the new Adam. St. Paul, writing to the Romans, connects these two events. It was the sin of our first parents that brought about the coming of Jesus to restore our relationship with God.

In the liturgy of the Easter Vigil, we pray: “O happy fault!” The weakness of our first parents brought about the coming of Jesus and all that He means for our lives. It is an example of how, even in the midst of unpleasant and evil happenings, God’s love can still be found at work.

Symbols of Real Tests: Because He was obedient to His Father, when Jesus was tested, He was able to turn down the devil and all his evil promises and suggestions. Jesus was tempted by Satan three times before beginning His public ministry. He was led into the desert to be tested for forty days and forty nights.

He faced the same temptations that had confronted the Israelites during their years in the desert. He was hungry and tempted to grumble against God for food — even to the point of turning a rock into bread (Ex 16:1–13). Next, as the Israelites quarreled at Massah, He was tempted to doubt God’s care (Ex 17:1–6). Finally, when the devil asked Jesus to do him homage, He was tempted to do what the Israelites did in creating the golden calf (Ex 32). Instead of yielding, Jesus fought the devil with the Word of God, three times quoting from Moses’ teachings about the lessons Israel was supposed to learn from its wilderness wanderings (Deut 8:3; 6:16; 6:12–15).

These three tests symbolize the real trials in the life of Jesus. He did produce large quantities of bread on two occasions, not for Himself, but to feed the hungry. He rejected calls from His opponents to prove who He was by performing striking signs, saying that the only sign would be His own death and resurrection. After feeding the hungry crowd, they wanted to make Him king. In response, He withdrew to the mountain to pray to His Father (Jn 6:1–15). Likewise, in the Garden of Gethsemane, He did not yield to Satan’s demands. All three tests continued throughout His life and right up to the moment of His death, proving that He is indeed the Son of God. Hence, Jesus is the new Adam, and He has taken away the transgressions of the first Adam.

Are We Ready to Change? The Church gives us this story on the first Sunday of Lent because these forty days are a time of trial and purification. We are sinners through the fall of Adam, and like him, we let sin in when we doubt God’s promises or forget to call on Him in temptation. Today we must choose: will we follow Adam, the first man, or Jesus, the new Adam? Lent is our opportunity to begin anew. Change can be slow and painful, but without it, we remain trapped in our old ways. Our goal is not simply to drive the devil out, but to keep him out—by guarding our hearts and strengthening our spirits through prayer, penance, and God’s Word, as Jesus did.

A Call for Our Lenten Journey: Therefore, during this Lent, let us: 1. Confront our evil tendencies through prayer, especially by participating in the Holy Mass. 2.Meditate on the Bible. 3. Grow in holiness through reconciliation and sharing. 4. Clean out all the “unwanted stuff” ruling our lives, to weed the garden of our souls. 5. Not place material goods over spiritual priorities. 6. Balance our emotional and spiritual needs with the needs of those around us. 7. Leave behind addictions, unhealthy behaviors, and the rubbish of selfishness, pride, anger, hatred, gossip, and self-justification. Let us be cleansed and liberated by the ever-compassionate Lord. We pray that our “desert time” with God throughout the next forty days will help us to replenish our minds and spirits with His wisdom and grace.