FIRST SUNDAY IN LENT

READINGS AT MASS

Gen. 2:7-9; 3:1-7 

Psalm 51

Rom. 5:12-19

Mt. 4:1-11

Theme: DID GOD REALLY TELL YOU...

Dear friends in Christ, N'wokafu YESU KRISTO...

The tendency to make God look like a liar is one of the greatest temptations of our time. In our desire to go our own way and feel good about it, we question the veracity of the instructions of God in His revealed Word. We wish to twist or adjust them to suit our erroneous ways.

Sometimes, we question the clear statements of God. We put them through rigorous logical assessment and philosophy of men seeking to punch holes in them to render them irrelevant. This temptation to question, with evil intentions, exactly what God has said is one of the temptations we encounter in our reading for today. 

In the first reading, the serpent approached the woman and posed the first question ever recorded in the Bible, “Did God really tell you not to eat from any of the trees in the garden?” A cunning question laced with evil intentions: the beginning of speculation and re-examination that will lead to the presentation of God as incredible. (But the serpent said to the woman, “You certainly will not die..”).

In the same way, the tempter in today's Gospel approached Jesus, and twice prefaced His proposition with the phrase, “if you are the Son of God...” We notice, from these two instances, the temptation to sow doubt and erode trust. It has always been the plan of the evil one to erode trust and faith by making us question the credibility of the very foundations of our faith.

Beloved, God is not a liar. His Word, like His love for us, is sure and true. Any time you feel the need to question this, just remember who might be questioning you.

PRAYER

Lord, keep us focused on your will  and help us never to doubt or question the veracity of your promise to us. Amen! 

May God bless you. 

-Rev. Fr. Kenneth Debre

Sunday, February 26, 2023. 

Holy Rosary Parish, Hohoe.