Eve was tempted by the devil by telling her that she will not die if she eats the fruit of the forbidden tree though God said she would, that eating the fruit would make her like God - knowing good and evil, and enticed her to focus on the fruit which looked very pleasing to the eye and very good to eat.
The Lord was tempted by the devil by telling the hungry Jesus to turn stones to bread, by offering Him power and rule over all the kingdoms of the world, and by challenging Him to do a marvelous deed by jumping off from the tall parapet of the temple even quoting the Scriptures whereby it is stated that God's angels will never let Him be harmed.
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| Image from ocarm.org |
Food is indeed necessary for us to stay alive. Our basic needs are indeed important. But they are not essential needs, that is, they do not respond to our primary needs in accordance with our nature as human beings, that of being rational. Moreover, the source of food or of anything that can satisfy our basic needs are far greater than the provisions: God Himself. Jesus tells us, "Set your hearts on his kingdom first, and on God's saving justice, and all these other things will be given you as well." [Matthew 6:33]. He also tells us not not to worry about anything like what to eat and what to wear because life is more precious than food and the body more important than the clothing [Matthew 6:25].
Respect and appreciation by others is indeed worth fighting for. But Christians do not seek these for their own sake. Christians believe that respect and appreciation stems from our dignity as God's created beings in His own image and likeness [Genesis 1: 26-27], as men and women saved by the Lord Jesus Christ [Romans 5:8], and as people whose bodies have been made temples of the Holy Spirit [1 Corinthians 3:16; 6:19]. Christians do not seek challenges, trials and sufferings just to become famous and awarded as St Paul wrote to the Corinthians, "even give up my body to be burned - but not have love - it won't do me any good" [see 1 Corinthians 13, particularly 3b]. Christians willingly undergo all the troubles in the world to give glory to God and to follow the footsteps of the Lord Jesus Christ [see Matthew 5: 10-12; Romans 8: 35-39; 2 Corinthians 4: 8-11, 12:10, etc].
Power and control belongs to God alone [see Psalm 62:11]. No human being deserves to rule others or control his or her life unless it's in accordance with the Father's will. The Lord could have changed the course of history by summoning legions of angels to save Him from the arresting guards and soldiers [see Matthew 26:53]. But He did not. The Father's will was far more important than showing His power and capacity to control the situation [see John 18:11]. In fact, He was able to manifest true power by not giving in to enticements of using His divinity against mere humans and His control of the situation by consistently manifesting meekness amid the many hardships [see Isaiah 53:7].
One important thing that we must never forget: Eve failed because she did not hold on to what God wills but gave opportunity for the devil to seduce her to sin while the Lord Jesus Christ kept His arguments founded on God's will and not on His own ability to overcome the devil hence He was able to overcome the tempter. When the snake told Eve about what wonderful things she could have if she eats the fruit, she looked at it and desired for it. Jesus on the other hand did not pay attention to the stone but responded at once about the primacy of spiritual nourishment through the Word of God above that of corporeal bread. Eve was enticed by the wisdom that the fruit could provide while the Lord did not bother about the power that ruling all the kingdoms could give. Eve was enticed by the promise of becoming like God while the Lord responded that God alone deserves to be worshiped. In fact, because of God's great love for mankind [John 3:16] Jesus our Lord gave up His divinity and became one like us [see Philippians 2: 6-11].
One important thing that we must never forget: Eve failed because she did not hold on to what God wills but gave opportunity for the devil to seduce her to sin while the Lord Jesus Christ kept His arguments founded on God's will and not on His own ability to overcome the devil hence He was able to overcome the tempter. When the snake told Eve about what wonderful things she could have if she eats the fruit, she looked at it and desired for it. Jesus on the other hand did not pay attention to the stone but responded at once about the primacy of spiritual nourishment through the Word of God above that of corporeal bread. Eve was enticed by the wisdom that the fruit could provide while the Lord did not bother about the power that ruling all the kingdoms could give. Eve was enticed by the promise of becoming like God while the Lord responded that God alone deserves to be worshiped. In fact, because of God's great love for mankind [John 3:16] Jesus our Lord gave up His divinity and became one like us [see Philippians 2: 6-11].
This Lenten Season, let us reflect on the temptations that lead us away from the Father. Let us meditate on how we could avoid or counter these temptations not through our way but through His way. May we never lose sight of the truth that while we may be trying to avoid or counter temptations, we might instead be falling into the trap of the devil who even used the Scriptures to lead Jesus our Lord astray.
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