40 Days in the Wilderness
The season of Lent has arrived! During this time, we choose to give up something that tempts us in order to honor and imitate the 40 days and nights Jesus spent fasting in the desert. But do we understand just why Jesus went to the desert to begin with?
Why 40 Days?
The number 40 is shown repeatedly throughout the Bible: there were 40 days and nights of rain during the flood, Jonah preached to Nineveh for 40 days, and the Israelites spent 40 years wandering in the desert on their way to the promised land. This number often indicates an upcoming transition! When we see the number 40, we know that something extraordinary is right around the corner.
Why Did He Go to the Desert?
After getting baptized, Jesus listened to God’s instruction and went to the desert. Matthew, Mark, and Luke tell us in their gospel accounts that the Holy Spirit led Jesus into the barren desert, where he stayed for the next 40 days. Mark 1:12 states it very directly: “The Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness.” This was a time of solitude, prayer, and fasting in a desert where daytimes were scorching, nighttimes were freezing, and wild animals and scorpions were a constant danger.
During His time in the desert, Jesus was tempted by Satan multiple times. The original word used in this Scripture translates to “test” in English, but in its original meaning, it also means to test in the sense of proving and purifying someone to see if they are ready for the task at hand. Jesus showed that He was ready for His ministry and to be the Lord’s loyal servant; He never caved to Satan’s temptation.
The Desert and Lent
As Pope Benedict said, “Lent is like a long ‘retreat’ in which to re-enter oneself and listen to God's voice in order to overcome the temptations of the Evil One and to find the truth of our existence.” It’s important that we remember that Jesus freely entered the barren wilderness, and He did so because of how much he loved us. As we struggle over the next 40 days to resist our own temptations, we must remember the strength of Jesus, and we can show God that we want to rely on Him more than any worldly possession.
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