1st Sunday of Lent Year B Homily

Today we celebrate the 1st Sunday in Lent. Each year we have the temptation of Jesus in the desert accounted for us. The first words of Christ according to the Gospel of Saint Mark are found from this account and so we hear, “This is the time of fulfillment. The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.”

All of humanity had been longing for this day of fulfillment which was now set before them. This time of fulfillment does not call us to complacency, but to action. Through the passing of time it is so easy to forget what is important and what we are truly called towards. We thus so easily get caught up in procrastination, complacency, self-satisfaction, and we find ourself in a state of of slumber.

Christ entered into the desert for a period of forty days and nights and there He prepared for His public ministry which He would soon undergo which would lead towards His sorrowful passion. Throughout the Lenten season we have the opportunity to join with Him in this period of preparation. We ought to remain attentive to the reality of sin and the hope of repentance. So easily we forget what was begun in us at our baptism as we toil about in the ways of the world which lead us away from God.

There is none more cunning then the devil who desires to lead us away in thought and deed. The devil never tells the truth, but twists it. He attempts to do this to Christ in the desert to no avail. He continues to do this to us as we continue to make excuses to why our salvation is not important as we live out a life which wants nothing to do with God.

Therefore, each of us need to be stirred out of our slumber. As the Collect in the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite states on this 1st Sunday of Lent, “O God, who does purify.” It is through self-denial and works of mercy that we are aided in overcoming temptation and being found receptive of the graces that God is constantly pouring out upon us. Lent aids us in this realm for it challenges us to be found attentive through acts of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving.

Hopefully each of us we come to realize the importance of this time that has now been set before us. We should use it to reach our goal of Easter and thus the celebration of the Lord’s Resurrection which also serves as preparation for the reward of Eternal Life. There are so many who have forgotten about the importance of this time of fulfillment that Christ has ushered in. We are given every opportunity to know, love, and serve Him, but we so often we forget what is most important.

As we continue this Lenten journey may we always remain attentive to the time that has been set before us. Let us realize the need to be shaken out of our complacency and moved towards a spirit of action. What ways do you continue to be complacent in your faith? Tomorrow is not the time for conversion because now is that time. Make use of the Sacrament of Confession, begin to fast in order to develop a true hunger for God which displaces our longing for disordered things, begin to devote time to prayer, and give alms in order that your heart may grow to be more like that of God. This is the time of fulfillment may we repent and believe in the Gospel.