Our High Priest!
On Wednesday we began our Lenten journey to the Crucifixion and Resurrection of our Lord, Jesus Christ. Will we make this pilgrimage new and unique, or will it be just another commitment on Ash Wednesday and then a ho-hum forty days till Easter! If we are unable to attend daily Mass, maybe we can read the daily Scriptures. Our bulletin contains the Scripture readings for the following Sunday. How often do we prepare ourselves for Mass by reading the Sunday Scriptures before arriving at the church? Or maybe we can arrive 10 minutes early and read and pray about them before Mass!
If we do this, then we can sit and let the Holy Spirit bring the readings and the Gospel into our hearts.
Often, we only break open one of the readings, or at most two.
But, as we began our Lenten pilgrimage, I think that we should take a look at all of the parts, including the Psalm Response and the Alleluia verse.
The first reading is about the “Confession of Faith” of the chosen people, an example of our absolute dependence upon the Lord. The Israelites were to bring their offering to the Lord and profess their faith in God who rescued them from slavery in Egypt.
It was the Lord that did this for them. They did not do this for themselves with their on strength and cunning.
This is the exact opposite of what Satan tempts Jesus to do in the Gospel reading. He seeks to force Jesus to use his power to assist himself and not to trust in the Father.
This is the difference between having true faith and living a self-centered life. In the first case, we recognize that all we have and all we are, comes from God. Everything is a gift, which we should be profoundly grateful. With the latter, one thinks that we have are comes from our own efforts.
The Psalm Response contains the saying that Satan would quote when he was tempting Jesus in the desert. “For to His angels He has given command about you, that they guard you in all your ways. Upon their hands they shall bear you up, lest you dash your foot against a stone.”
Satan knows who Jesus is and he tries to get him into a situation, which would force the Father to rescue him. This would not be a form of trust but of manipulation. When we truly trust and love another, we do not play games with that person’s love.
St. Paul says that if we believe in our hearts, we are justified, which means that we are at peace with God, for we have accepted the peace and forgiveness He offers… If we profess that Jesus is Lord, we will be saved.
Lent is a time to ask two questions: what do I really believe and what do I really express with my life. This is a time to transform both our hearts and our lives!
And, the Alleluia verse quotes the saying Jesus said to the devil that we need the word of God to survive. Do we need to hear any more to get us to regularly read the Scriptures?
In today’s Gospel we hear Satan’s three temptations where he asks Jesus to misuse the power that he has been given by the Father. Satan tells him to think of himself and to seek his own comfort.
He tells Jesus to put the Father’s love to the test (trying to put a little doubt in Jesus’ heart). In all of this, Satan tries to show himself reasonable. But Jesus, not using the logic of this world, placed himself entirely in the Father’s hands.
It is important for us to remember that Satan’s temptations often sound reasonable and even logical. He says we are fools for not thinking of ourselves, that we deserve to enjoy all of the things that this world offers. In fact we deserve them.
Jesus reminds us that God’s logic goes beyond earthly logic and calls us to sacrifice and trust in God!
And so today’s readings teach two important points about Jesus that we must never lose sight of.
First, he is someone whom we can relate.
He became one of us. He took upon himself our humanity and all that goes with being human.
He did not pretend to be human; he became human in every way except sin…
Second, because he became human, Jesus suffered just as we do. He became cold, thirsty and hungry.
So, he is someone we can turn to for inspiration and encouragement –
In closing, these inspiring and encouraging words from the Letter to the Hebrews:
Our High Priest is not one who cannot feel sympathy with our weaknesses.
On the contrary, we have a High Priest who was tempted in every way that we are, but did not sin.
Let us be brave, then, and approach God’s throne, where there is grace.
There we will receive mercy and find grace to help us just when we need it. Hebrews 4:15—16