JUST BEFORE YOU BEGIN TO BLAME THE DEVIL…

by Fr. JohnBosco Ezeonwumelu · February 11, 2017

⏰Saturday of the Fifth Week in Ordinary Time 1 (11 Feb 2017)

????Gen 3:9-24; Ps 90:2, 3-4, 5-6, 12-13 (R.v.1); Mark 8:1-10

My dear, if you read the account of the temptation of man in Gen 3, you would discover that the devil did not force the woman to eat the forbidden fruit. The serpent only did some sort of preaching to her and it was the woman who made the conclusion when she “saw that the tree was good for food…a delight to the eyes and…was to be desired to make one wise…” (Gen 3:6).

The man on his own was the person who received the direct instruction not to eat of the tree even before the creation of the woman. So he should know better. And we were not informed that the woman forced him to eat the fruit. So why the apportionment of blames as we see in Gen 3:12-13?

God created us with a strong will to accept whatever we want and reject whatever we don’t want. That is why even after they had finished blaming one another, they all still received punishments due to their sins.

Do you not think their punishment would have been less if they had accepted their mistakes and ask for forgiveness? Do we not like them also transfer blames to the devil and other people? It is time to begin to take responsibility for our actions and ask God for mercy and strength not to sin again.

May the love of God continue to reign in your life as you make effort to spread his love on earth. Amen.

I wish you a lovely and blessed weekend with God who is love (1 John 4:16). It is well with you.