And the Spirit lead him into the Desert

I remember an image of this passage from Luke's Gospel from one of my childhood picture bibles.  Jesus stood with great dignity and determination, surrounded by rocks and sand, with a red figured devil, horns and hoofed hands, peeking out from behind a rock.  I don't know what is more moving, the cartoon like demon, or Jesus who stands up by himself, refusing the temptation.

In the passage Jesus' sojourn sets him to discover the fullness of His Father's love.  The temptations reveal he depth of the love which the Father has for the Son.  In the same way, this love relationship, and Jesus' refusal to give into the temptation, states the purposefulness and resolve that Jesus has in the mission and ministry he is to carry out.  In one of the other Gospels we are told that Jesus 'sets his face towards Jerusalem.  Jesus knows who he is and the work that he has to accomplish. 

To be sure it is this knowledge of the connection to the Father which allows Jesus to disprove the arguments of the tempter.  Jesus continues to fall back on who he is, and the texts of the sacred scripture.  Jesus' stalwart becomes a model for us too.  It is a challenge of great importance that we are aware of the scriptures, the teachings which the Gospels convey upon us, and the teachings of the Church.  I think that sometimes we hold on to a Christianity which is based in rainbows and butterflies, not fully embracing the component of the Paschal Mystery within the faith we profess.  We cannot refute the evil present in an adult world if we are still using a childhood faith.

It is important to reflect on the Profession of Faith, and even to consider basic premise of our baptismal promises.  What do any of these statements look like in real life?  If I say that I follow the teachings of the Church, and convey those same teaching to others, are there changes that I have to make in practice or attitude?  The temptations are aways to offer simple solutions, or to seek easy responses, even to the more complex or difficult scenarios of life.

The cross of Jesus says that we sometimes have to stand naked before God, recognizing our vulnerabilities, if we really want to discover what our true needs might be.  Moreso, we have to remind ourselves that we belong to God, as his adopted sons and daughters, and are created in his image and likeness.  As his special possession we have to embrace the love of God and stand up against Sin and Evil.