A sermon on the First Sunday of Lent, Matthew 4:1-11
Fr. Mike Paraniuk
HCP columnist
Imagine what you would feel if you knew 1 billion people worldwide were watching you at the 2026 Olympics, expecting you to win the gold medal with a spectacular victory. Imagine the disappointment when those one billion fans witnessed you giving the worst performance of your life.
That's what happened to U.S. ice skater Ilia Malinin. He was expected to wow the world with his signature move, the quadruple axel. He is the only skater in history to perform this in competition. A quadruple axel is the pinnacle of the jump, requiring four-and-a-half rotations in order to complete. It's so difficult, in fact, that it was once considered impossible to perform.
Malinin failed. He failed so badly that he fell twice on the ice, dooming him to defeat. His hopes and dreams along with one billion people around the world fell with him. Ilia immediately put his face in his hands after his performance and cried. He said, "The first thing that came to my mind was 'I blew it.'"
My heart bled for him as his contorted face reflected the disappointment he felt.
Jesus also was subject to extreme pressure as the devil threw everything he had to make Jesus fail. If Jesus failed, we fail to live forever.
The devil temped Jesus at His weakest point. The devil was tempting Jesus to make His life easier by rejecting the Cross of suffering that would save us. Satan tempted Jesus to use His divine powers for himself. "Jesus you must be starving. Turn these stones to bread." "Jesus, work a miracle where your Father would have to save you. Throw yourself down from the Temple roof." "Jesus, I'll give you all these kingdoms. A life of luxury awaits you." "Jesus, It's simple to make these things happen. Just worship me."
Jesus overcomes each temptation with complete trust in His Father. We call this Faith.
What Matthew wrote at the end of the desert temptation story raises two questions for me. Matthew wrote, "Then the devil left Him, and angels came and ministered to Him." (Matthew 4:11.)
If the Holy Spirit was with Jesus through His ordeal, why did He need angels and what did they do for Jesus?
God used angels to show He cares for us when we need it. Jesus was fully human. He was in pretty bad shape when the fast ended. He needed help. Food, water and a bath. There is a profound truth about God I firmly believe. It is the basis of my faith in God. It is this. Divine aid takes over when my human strength ends. Angels are more than messengers. They minister God's protection and care when I am too weak to care for myself.
I have never seen an angel. But I have felt a peace and calm when I have carried a cross that should crush my spirit but doesn't. I remember what I felt when a colonoscopy revealed a big tumor was found in my large intestine. The doctor was convinced it was cancer.
I believe my Guardian Angel was watching over me, soothing my emotions that took fear away. I was not afraid. Whatever my future be, I knew it would be OK. I felt total peace. Thank God it was benign.
God comforted me with His "Divine aids." I felt the presence of His Angels that strengthened me. The angels reveal who God is – the Comforter.
"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God." (2 Corinthians 1:3-4.)
God gives you a special call when He and His Angels comfort you. He calls you to comfort others who are in trouble. You are called to be "An Angel in the flesh." Malinin said he was working through "the darkness" because of the "unwavering support" of fellow teammates. One teammate said, “A lot of times we as athletes tie so much of our performance...to our own self-worth, and I just want Ilia to know that we love him and we support him and it (his performance) doesn’t matter.”
Eucharistic Prayer No. 2 says, "We offer you, Lord, the Bread of life and the Chalice of salvation, giving thanks that you have held us worthy to be in your presence and minister to you."
You directly minister to God when you minister His Comfort to someone in need. "You can be sure that whoever gives even a drink of cold water to one of the least of these my followers because he is my follower, will certainly receive a reward." (Matthew 10:42.)
This Lent, redirect your heart to love. There are so many who thirst for it.
(I invite you to tune in WLRU 106.9 for a live Mass I broadcast from the studio every Wednesday at 7 pm. WLRU streams at wlru.radio12345.com Be sure to download the Wave which is right above the arrow.)