Lent begins on Ash Wednesday, which is 46 days before Easter. The temptation of Jesus is believed to have occurred during the 40 days leading up to Easter. So, Christians observe the temptation of Jesus during the Lent season around 40 days before Easter. Answer: Forty. Lent is a season of forty days, not counting Sundays. The Sundays in Lent are like any other day in the week: they are part of the forty-day period leading up to Easter.