Take a moment to centre your heart and thoughts on the image of a journey:
a rocky path...
a steep climb...
a positive or negative destination...
a companion by your side...
Prayer:
Journey with us, O God, through this day, through this season. When we find ourselves in a wilderness of questions or doubts, you are there to walk with us. When we find ourselves self-righteous and full of knowledge, you are there to unsettle us. When we feel ourselves alone and isolated, you are there to offer strength and peace. Ever our companion, ever our compassion, we pray to you in Jesus’ name, Amen.
Lent: The word comes from the old English “lencten” which refers to the lengthening days of spring. Most church seasons are not tied to a physical season, but this one really fits for those of us in the Northern Hemisphere, where we long for more light and see the promise fulfilled, day by day, in the unfolding of our spring.
The colour of Lent is purple, symbolizing repentence and royalty.
For Mardi Gras, the colour purple symbolizes justice!
Lenten symbolism includes wilderness or desert imagery, ie. rocks, footprints, sand. In many churches no flowers are found in the sanctuary during Lent, and anything ornamented is draped with simple cloths. In Lent, we also use some of the Passion story imagery: tenebrae candles are snuffed out a week at a time, to symbolize the growing shadows as we grow closer to the cross, a rope or bag of coins, the crown of thorns.
Shrove (or Pancake)Tuesday tradition comes from using up butter and eggs before the time of restraint, also Mardi Gras or Carnaval (Quebec).
Traditionally, the restraint of Lent was not observed on Sundays – its 40 days are based on a 6 day week, Monday to Saturday. Every Sunday is considered a little Easter.
The gospel readings on Lent 1 tell the story of Jesus’ temptation:
READ Luke 4:1-13
What Luke is emphasizing in particular, compared to the other synoptic gospels –
Jesus is “full of the Spirit” – the Spirit is within, not external. We see this in both the beginning (v1) and the end (v14) of the passage.
Luke reverses the order found in Matthew of the 2 last temptations, so that the final temptation will take place in Jerusalem, and Jesus will “choose” to return to Galilee to begin his ministry.
For Luke this is the final stage of Jesus’ preparation for ministry: he had an “ordinary human” childhood and early adulthood – he was proclaimed by John the Baptist – he was baptized and heard God’s voice– and Luke affirms his heritage through his version of the begats – then Jesus is tested for readiness in the temptation story.
He began in the wilderness – like Moses (who represents the law) and Elijah (who represents the prophets) this is where Jesus’ active ministry begins, as the fulfillment of the law and the prophets.
Luke uses the greek word peirasmos meaning “testing” more than “tempting” – a more neutral word, less laden with judgements about right and wrong. Can he be lured into a more comfortable vision of messiah-hood? Will he choose to do what is good for him but not God?
Satan’s Challenge: “if you really are the son of God…”
Jesus demonstrates that his identity does not have to be proven, it can only be believed.
Question for reflection: Are there times when people ask us to “prove” our faith? Do we fall into that temptation to prove ourselves right?
Who is Satan?
Mark uses the legal term the satan, tou satana, which in secular terms means an adversary or prosecutor. Satan is not a personal first-name, but a descriptive noun.
Matthew and Luke use diabolos, which literally means “to tear apart” (ie. the force that makes our choices absolutely clear – you cannot have both, you have to give something up.)
A similar name is found in the Hebrew book of Job, where “ha-Satan”(in Hebrew meaning the accuser) is actually an angel, one whose role is to point out to God all the contradictions and weaknesses of human nature.
First temptation: Feed yourself!
Jesus’response: Bread is good but I did not come to fill people’s physical hunger…
Second temptation: Rule the world better than Caesar IF you will worship me, not God.
Jesus response: There is only one God.
Third temptation: (in the Jerusalem temple – why?) Make God prove LOVE
Jesus response: I don’t need to.
In the end, Jesus did feed the hungry, he does “reign” from God’s kingdom, he did trust that God would redeem him from death – but he would not let the tempter be the one to set the timeline.
Question for reflection: All three temptations are about trusting God to fulfil a promise. Do we trust God and work with God, or do we try to do things on our own, because we’ve given up on God actually having power in our lives?
READ Deuteronomy 26:1-11
This passage is set in the time when the Israelites are ready to come out of the wilderness, after wandering there for forty years. They are being instructed the appropriate attitude to take towards the promised land – to understand to whom their loyalty belongs and how to show their thanks.
Verses 5-9 contain a re-telling of their history, set in the kind of poetic language that it indicates a creedal statement shared in the community over many years. In this passage the creedal statement is paired with two sets of instructions for offering first-fruits, one before and one after the creedal affirmation – ie. “if you believe this, then you should do this!”
The passage continues (v 12ff) to describe the offering of the tithe, every three years, giving a tenth of one’s income/produce to support the religious personnel (Levites), the poor, the widows, the aliens. This chapter is actually the conclusion of a very long section of the Law on worship (chs 12-26).
Question for Reflection: The Israelites believed that God rescued them from oppression in Egypt because God had compassion for their suffering. THEREFORE the only suitable thanksgiving was one that would offer compassion to those who were suffering in their midst. Do you/we have the same kind of understanding for our offerings or charitable givings?
READ Psalm 91
I know my impression of this psalm is coloured by the beautiful hymn: “On Eagles’ wings”, which paraphrases much of the psalm in its verses. The chorus, however, is based on Isaiah 40, which has the eagles’ wings and hollow of God’s hand imagery.
Don’t be disappointed! There is still lots of interesting imagery to explore in the psalm. It also mentions God’s wings (v.4) and pinion feathers.
The main theme is safety – possibly sung on entering the temple as an expression of thanks for getting there safely, or on leaving the temple, expressing the hope to make the journey home the same way. It is also an expression of trust in God that runs much deeper – throughout all of life’s journey, not just our comings and goings from worship.
The first 13 verses are directed by a leader to the worshipper/s; the last verses by God to the people God loves. The psalm contains elements of wisdom theology – where those who are faithful to God prosper in life and those who are evil are punished in life (v.9-10.)
Question for Reflection: The use of God’s voice in the final verses poses an interesting question: Do we trust God first, then because of our trust, God protects us? Or does God protect us or offer us compassion in times of suffering, and then we learn to trust God?
READ Romans 10:8-13
Marcus Borg suggests in The Heart of Christianity (Harper Books, 2003) that there are different ways to understand the word “believe”. Given Western post-Enlightenment attitudes to science as the basis of truth, we are inclined to hear the word “believe” and think of something that has been proven to be true to our intellect. We give intellectual assent to a statement because we are convinced it is correct or true – ie. I believe that… However, Borg points out that it can also mean I believe in…, which is a statement of trust or relationship.
When Paul says: “if you confess with your lips/if you believe with your heart” it sounds more like the relational, trusting definition of believing in Jesus, rather than the one that finds its truth in intellectual proof.
It defies logic to suggest that salvation should be based entirely on faith – what about all those good works? What about paying the tithe, observing the Sabbath, maintaining celibacy? Paul suggests to the Christians of Jewish and non-Jewish origins who were living in Rome that what unifies them is not what they do, but the one thing they really have in common – a deep and loving relationship with God through Jesus Christ.
Question for Reflection: Have you ever worshipped with a different faith community or cultural group, where the practice of faith seemed very distinct from your own? Were you able to find an underlying unity in spite of the many external differences?
Closing Prayer:
O God, eternal presence, we never journey alone. Even in the wilderness, the place made sacred by Jesus’ faithful choices, we know that you will be with us. In the silence we encounter your Spirit deep within. In the clamour we absorb your energy and diversity. In voices of suffering we hear your call to serve. Guide our Lenten steps in love, O God, as we change our lives and lift our hearts to you, Amen
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