A Battle with Temptation

Todays readings are Genesis 2:7-9; 3:1-7 and Romans 5:12-19.

God is not the author of sin, we are. We brought sin into existence when we broke Gods one rule in the garden of Eden, and we ate the fruit from the tree of knowledge of good and evil. God does not want evil; we are tempted by it, and we choose it.

But why did God allow that slithering serpent in the garden with us in the first place?  If God knows everything and he knew we would fall victim to temptation presented by the snake, why did he put us in that situation? That is because, in Gods eyes, all of us need to be able to choose.

Jesus spent 40 days in the desert being tempted by the devil. Yes, Jesus was fully divine but also fully human and this was the time when Jesus would enter in more fully to the plights and problem of the human condition. His humanity was being tested but his divinity did not leave him. In the desert He won the battle with Satan, the prince of lies, the slithering serpent and when he was hung on the cross, He won the war.

Now it is our 40 days where we confront our temptations. We pray that through prayer, penance, fasting, almsgiving, service, sacrifice and self-denial we can trim the excesses away from our life so that whatever remains will be for His glory.