First Sunday Lent Gospel Readings
Genesis 2:15-17; 3:1-7
The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to till it and keep it. And the LORD God commanded the man, "You may freely eat of every tree of the garden; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall die." Now the serpent was more crafty than any other wild animal that the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God say, 'You shall not eat from any tree in the garden'?" The woman said to the serpent, "We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden; but God said, 'You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the middle of the garden, nor shall you touch it, or you shall die.'" But the serpent said to the woman, "You will not die; for God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate; and she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate. Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made loincloths for themselves.
Matthew 4:1-11
Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. He fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was famished. The tempter came and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread."But he answered, "It is written, 'One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.'" Then the devil took him to the holy city and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, saying to him, "If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down; for it is written, 'He will command his angels concerning you,' and 'On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.'" Jesus said to him, "Again it is 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 splendor; and he said to him, "All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me." Jesus said to him, "Away with you, Satan! for it is written, 'Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.'" Then the devil left him, and suddenly angels came and waited on him.
I liked that these readings were side by side. First, it really illustrates how the devil operates. Second, it reveals how easy it is to fall prey to him. And third, more importantly, Jesus shows us how defeat the devil.
It's important to understand how your enemy operates. In war, if you get ambushed, you are at a great disadvantage because you are not fully prepared. It's the same with the devil. If you get ambushed by the devil like Eve does, you are more susceptible to its influence.
What's interesting is that the devil is clever: Now the serpent was more crafty than any other wild animal that the LORD God had made. The devil's influence is just in his words, planting seeds of doubt in Eve's mind. Eve knew what was expected of her, but by the serpent's words, she "saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate." She allowed herself to succumb to temptation. In a way, the snake was right. It did make one wise: "Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made loincloths for themselves." Only after eating the fruit did they realize they were naked. But the snake only told a partial truth, enough to sway them. It didn't tell them of the dire consequences of their actions. This is why partial truths are just as bad as lies!
Jesus was also tempted by the devil, multiple times. Notice how the devil comes to Jesus during His most vulnerable time. He had fasted for forty days and forty nights. Of course, even Jesus would be hungry. So the devil comes to Him and says, "If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread." But Jesus answers him, "It is written, 'One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.'" Jesus doesn't just say no. He uses scripture as a tool to fight off the devil's temptation. This shows that reading the Bible is important. The Word of God keeps us on the right path.
But the devil is not easily deterred. Then the devil took him to the holy city and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, saying to him, "If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down; for it is written, 'He will command his angels concerning you,' and 'On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.'" So the devil is learning how to tempt Jesus. He now knows that Jesus is using the Word of God, so the devil twists the Word of God to tempt Jesus. How interesting! Isn't this exactly what non-believers and atheists do to Christians? They pull out a quote from the Bible, usually out of context, and use it to diminish the faith of Christians. Don't fall for such methods! Here is what Jesus says to this: "Again it is written, 'Do not put the Lord your God to the test.'" Jesus sees through his trickery and still uses scripture to fight off the devil.
And the devil was still not done. Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor; and he said to Him, "All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me." Remember, God will provide for all that you need. But the devil will tempt you for what you want. Know the difference between your wants and needs. Because it is your wants that the devil will tempt you with. Replying to the devil, once more Jesus uses scripture. Jesus said to him, "Away with you, Satan! for it is written, 'Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.'" Then the devil left him, and suddenly angels came and waited on him.
The devil is going to tempt us. But we must be strong in our faith. Jesus shows us how to fight off the devil. It is not a physical fight. He will use words to sway us because words are powerful, and the devil knows this. Words influence our actions. However, the Word of God is the most powerful of all. Make sure you know how to wield it. Read your Bible today!
The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to till it and keep it. And the LORD God commanded the man, "You may freely eat of every tree of the garden; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall die." Now the serpent was more crafty than any other wild animal that the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God say, 'You shall not eat from any tree in the garden'?" The woman said to the serpent, "We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden; but God said, 'You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the middle of the garden, nor shall you touch it, or you shall die.'" But the serpent said to the woman, "You will not die; for God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate; and she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate. Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made loincloths for themselves.
Matthew 4:1-11
Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. He fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was famished. The tempter came and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread."But he answered, "It is written, 'One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.'" Then the devil took him to the holy city and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, saying to him, "If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down; for it is written, 'He will command his angels concerning you,' and 'On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.'" Jesus said to him, "Again it is 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 splendor; and he said to him, "All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me." Jesus said to him, "Away with you, Satan! for it is written, 'Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.'" Then the devil left him, and suddenly angels came and waited on him.
I liked that these readings were side by side. First, it really illustrates how the devil operates. Second, it reveals how easy it is to fall prey to him. And third, more importantly, Jesus shows us how defeat the devil.
It's important to understand how your enemy operates. In war, if you get ambushed, you are at a great disadvantage because you are not fully prepared. It's the same with the devil. If you get ambushed by the devil like Eve does, you are more susceptible to its influence.
What's interesting is that the devil is clever: Now the serpent was more crafty than any other wild animal that the LORD God had made. The devil's influence is just in his words, planting seeds of doubt in Eve's mind. Eve knew what was expected of her, but by the serpent's words, she "saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate." She allowed herself to succumb to temptation. In a way, the snake was right. It did make one wise: "Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made loincloths for themselves." Only after eating the fruit did they realize they were naked. But the snake only told a partial truth, enough to sway them. It didn't tell them of the dire consequences of their actions. This is why partial truths are just as bad as lies!
Jesus was also tempted by the devil, multiple times. Notice how the devil comes to Jesus during His most vulnerable time. He had fasted for forty days and forty nights. Of course, even Jesus would be hungry. So the devil comes to Him and says, "If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread." But Jesus answers him, "It is written, 'One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.'" Jesus doesn't just say no. He uses scripture as a tool to fight off the devil's temptation. This shows that reading the Bible is important. The Word of God keeps us on the right path.
But the devil is not easily deterred. Then the devil took him to the holy city and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, saying to him, "If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down; for it is written, 'He will command his angels concerning you,' and 'On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.'" So the devil is learning how to tempt Jesus. He now knows that Jesus is using the Word of God, so the devil twists the Word of God to tempt Jesus. How interesting! Isn't this exactly what non-believers and atheists do to Christians? They pull out a quote from the Bible, usually out of context, and use it to diminish the faith of Christians. Don't fall for such methods! Here is what Jesus says to this: "Again it is written, 'Do not put the Lord your God to the test.'" Jesus sees through his trickery and still uses scripture to fight off the devil.
And the devil was still not done. Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor; and he said to Him, "All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me." Remember, God will provide for all that you need. But the devil will tempt you for what you want. Know the difference between your wants and needs. Because it is your wants that the devil will tempt you with. Replying to the devil, once more Jesus uses scripture. Jesus said to him, "Away with you, Satan! for it is written, 'Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.'" Then the devil left him, and suddenly angels came and waited on him.
The devil is going to tempt us. But we must be strong in our faith. Jesus shows us how to fight off the devil. It is not a physical fight. He will use words to sway us because words are powerful, and the devil knows this. Words influence our actions. However, the Word of God is the most powerful of all. Make sure you know how to wield it. Read your Bible today!
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