Sunday Reflections - FIRST SUNDAY OF LENT – YEAR A

 LIGHT FOR THE LIVING

FIRST SUNDAY OF LENT – YEAR A

(Genesis 2:7–9; 3:1–7; Romans 5:12–19; Matthew 4:1–11)

My beloved in Christ,

In a lakeside community in Oguta LGA of Imo State, there once lived a fisherman called Nwokoma. Nwokoma loved roasted fish—especially the ones he did not catch. Whenever his neighbour’s fish smoked sweetly over the fire, he would mysteriously develop “friendship visits.”

One evening, as his neighbour’s wife stepped away briefly, Nwokoma looked at the golden fish on the tray. He whispered to himself,
“Just one piece. After all, we are all one community.”

His hand stretched forward. His stomach agreed. His conscience protested. His eyes admired. His mouth watered.

Just as he touched the fish, the woman returned and shouted,
“Nwokoma! Is your house on fire?”

Embarrassed, he replied,
“No… I was only testing whether it was properly cooked.”

The whole village laughed for weeks.

An elder later told him gently,
“My son, temptation always looks roasted.”

 

The First Temptation: Desire Without Obedience

That village humour reflects the deeper truth of the First Reading. In the Garden of Eden, God created man with dignity and abundance:

“The Lord God formed man out of the clay of the ground and blew into his nostrils the breath of life.”
(Genesis 2:7)

Everything was available—except one tree. Yet the serpent stirred desire:

“You will be like gods.”
(Genesis 3:5)

The problem was not hunger. It was inordinate desire—the craving to be what God had not permitted.

Desire without obedience led to disobedience. Disobedience led to loss. And humanity fell.

 

Christ in the Desert: Obedience Restores

In the Gospel, Jesus Christ enters the desert and faces temptation directly:

“He fasted for forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was hungry.”
(Matthew 4:2)

The tempter challenges Him three times—appealing to hunger, pride, and power. But Jesus responds each time with obedience to the Father:

“One does not live by bread alone.”
(Matthew 4:4)
“You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.”
(Matthew 4:7)
“The Lord, your God, shall you worship and him alone shall you serve.”
(Matthew 4:10)

Where Adam fell in abundance, Christ stood firm in hunger. Where the first man grasped at divinity, Christ embraced obedience.

 

From Disobedience to Redemption

Saint Paul explains the contrast beautifully:

“Through one man sin entered the world.”
(Romans 5:12)

But he continues:

“Through one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous.”
(Romans 5:19)

Temptation is not sin. Yielding is. Christ shows us that obedience is stronger than desire when rooted in God’s will.

 

Lent: A Season of Decision

Back in Oguta, Nwokoma eventually learned to roast his own fish instead of coveting another’s. He discovered something simple: temptation loses power when discipline grows.

Lent is our spiritual desert. Temptations will not disappear because we are holy. They may even intensify. But firm resolve and positive action—prayer, fasting, charity—strengthen our obedience.

The question is not whether temptation will come. It will.

The real question is: Is your desire to do God’s will?

 

Sunday Reflection

My beloved,
Temptations are realities that we encounter every day through our inordinate desires that crave for satisfaction. The desire to be like God denied man of God’s happiness until Christ, who became obedient to His Father despite the temptations He encountered, led us to our redemption.

It is our firm resolve and positive actions towards obedience to God that can help us withstand temptations that will come our way.

Is your desire to do God’s will? How prepared are you, because temptations will certainly come?

May God bless you.

Happy Sunday and Happy Lenten Season.

Rev. Fr. Chinedu Ibearugbulem, C.S.Sp