Temptation In The Wilderness

 

Here we are on the first Sunday of Lent, and with it Christ's temptation in the wilderness. After fasting for forty days we read that Jesus was "hungry," admirable understatement from St. Luke. Then Satan appears on the scene and tempts Our Lord three times. In sum:

The unclean spirit appeals to Jesus' bodily appetite, "If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread." Rebuked, the Devil takes Christ to the top of a tall mountain and offers him all the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them, but there's a catch, Jesus must worship him.  Failing in this, Lucifer takes Jesus to the pinnacle of the Temple and urges Christ to "throw himself down... for it is written, 'He will give his angels charge over thee lest thou dash thy foot against a stone.'" Again, Jesus says no, and the Serpent leaves him and the angels minister to him.

Reflect on this in the light of Luke's account, in which the mountainous temptation plays a central or pivotal part. See it if you like as a head and shoulders graph with the all time high being Devil worship, flanked by gluttony on the one hand and faithlessness on the other. What does this suggest? A diabolical Sinai, an anti-Sinai, in which Satan inverts the giving of the Law to Moses on the mountain top. What was this God-given Law?

It's summarized thus, "Love the Lord your God with all thy heart and with all thy soul and with all thy mind." And, "Thou shall love thy neighbor as thyself." Love God, love neighbor, two essential commandments given to us by God. What's suggested by Satan is the exact opposite of this.

Again, we have two commandments, but what are they? Stones to bread, gluttony, and throw yourself from the Temple, faithlessness, the former precluding love of neighbor and the latter love of God. I say again, the satanic mountain intends and produces the opposite of the heavenly. What are we to do with this?

Be aware that as we go out into the wilderness to confront evil, we'll be tempted in the same way as Christ, by the Devil. Say no to this and beat the Serpent back by fasting, charity, and prayer, and in doing so align yourself with Christ and walk the way of the Cross which leads to new and everlasting life.

Stand strong in the Faith,

LSP

A Short Sunday Homily - Christ Walks On The Water

 

Christ walks on the water to his Apostles in the midst of the lake, at around 3 am, the fourth watch, as they toil, tormented, against the storm. Behold the miracle, but we have to ask, why did Christ perform it, why did he choose this particular way to cross the sea of Galilee?

Consider the Old Testament context, where we find many aquatic miracles, including Elisha parting the Jordan with Elijah's mantle, Joshua parting the Jordan and preeminently Moses, who famously parts the Red Sea so that the Israelites can pass through, unscathed.

Granted, great signs of divine power in the persons of God's messengers and leaders, but Christ is more than this, and he does something only God can do, he walks on water. Scripture is clear, this is God's domain, "The Lord alone stretches forth the heavens and walks on the waves of the sea," (Job 9:8) which is exactly what Christ does. He says as much.

In the fourth watch, in the dead of night, as the storm blows fiercely, Jesus comes to the men on the boat and says, "Take heart, it is I, Have no fear." It is I; in the Greek, ἐγώ εἰμι, literally I Am. We've heard this before, Christ is telling the Apostles that He is the same God who spoke to Moses from the burning bush. Accordingly, they should have no fear. Our Lord then gets into the boat and the storm is stilled, leaving them "astounded."

Yes indeed, here is a man who is also God and the Apostles attempt to grapple with this fact. We leave them, astounded, in the boat. The same boat which we see from our vantage point as a model of the Church, making her progress through the waters of the world. The Church to which Christ comes in the fourth watch of Antichrist's storm and saves her, at his second coming, putting an end to evil and sin for all time.

Christ comes to us today, no matter how high or fiercely the tempest blows against us, and says as he said to his Apostles, "Take heart, it is I, Have no fear." And neither should we. In him, Jesus, who died and rose again we have found salvation, the forgiveness of sins and resurrection to eternal life. Nothing, not even the Olympic marketing team itself, can take that from us.

So be of good cheer and give God the glory.

Your Apocalyptic Pal,

LSP

I Am The Bread Of Life

 

"I am the bread of life," says Christ in the sixth chapter of John's Gospel. It's a remarkable statement. Jesus claims that he is the spiritual food which came down from heaven, sent by his Father. That he is true manna, "not such as your fathers ate and died, he who eats this bread will live forever." 

He, Jesus, is the very food which endures for everlasting life, the fulfillment and embodiment of the Law represented by the 5 loaves of the miracle performed the day before. 

He is the glory of God which passed by Moses, who was hidden by God in a cleft in the rock, and spoke through the unquenchable fire of the burning bush. He is now unveiled, present, incarnate, "and we beheld His glory, a glory as of an only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth." Glory that's given to us in sacrifice for our atonement on the Cross, "the bread which I shall give for the life of the world is my flesh."

Bread which we receive by faith, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.” And that's just it. Do we dare to believe, to put our humble, perhaps desperate and fearful faith in the Son of Man who came down from heaven that we might live. To put it another way. Do we labor for earthly food, for bread and power, or for the heavenly food which is the life of God himself? 

Christ faced this temptation in the wilderness and answered Satan, "Man shall not live by bread alone but by every word which proceeds from the mouth of God." He said no to "all the kingdoms of the world and the glories therein," and went to the Cross, which became his throne. He invites us to do the same, "take up your cross," so that we, in him, will have life, divine life.

Of course you might want to choose bread and power instead, thus cunningly marking yourself with the number of the beast. Your call, good luck. But remember, it's all a Big Pharma congressional larf until you wake up and a demon's gnawing on your inner thigh.

God bless,

LSP

Melania Mondays! Halloween

It's Monday and time for some welcome relief from the insanity that's become the news cycle. Fortunately for us, Melania's here to help and she's not been idle.

Well known for her love of children, America's popular and glamorous First Lady stepped out in style at the White House Halloween party, handing out candy to children.

President Trump got in the Halloween spirit too, waving a serpent staff over the trick-or-treaters. Some observers describe this as a "hex" or a "spell." 

But the President was only emulating Moses, whose serpent staff, the Rod of God, devoured the snakes of Pharoah's magicians and protected the Israelites in the Exodus and beyond.

Melania, who's regularly attacked by snakes in the lying, corrupt, smug, elite, mainstream media, clearly enjoyed the imagery and went on to bring happiness and smiles to lucky children.

Well done First Lady, for doing your bit to make America great again.

MAGA,

LSP

Transfiguration

Today's the last Sunday of the Epiphany and Jesus appears in the Gospel, transfigured and standing between Moses and Elijah, as the fulfillment of prophecy and the law. I preached on that, emphasizing the spiritual ascent of the faithful up Mt. Tabor, culminating in our own transfiguration.

Easier said than done, of course, as we fall back down the mountain from time to time. "The Devil made me do it the first time," I told the congregation, "the second time I done it all on my own." 

Some say that a sermon's only half a sermon if it doesn't include at least one line from Waylon Jennings.

Enjoy the game,

LSP