Mary Magdalene

Mary of Magdalene: Part 1

I had thought that no one could understand

as I journeyed through the abyss abandoned and alone,

tormented every hour by seven demons.

They reached into the depths of my being.

Their tendrils of loathing wrapped around me.

Their hate overwhelmed me. So did my shame.

I could scarcely breathe.

Sleep was elusive and haunted by terrors,

terrors which did not abate even in waking.

Daily I thought to myself, “Why O God, why?” and “What life is this?”

Daily I cried out to Him, “In your mercy, deliver me”.

No one could bring comfort and solace.

No one could free me from my shadow-life.

No one could break the chains that entwined me.

One day I was wandering, lost, through the village.

I glimpsed a man, followed closely by twelve others.

Even from a distance, I knew he was somehow different.

The demons attempted to drive me away.

I stood, transfixed, unable to move as the man drew close.

He came alongside me, took my hands and spoke.

Words of love that knew no fear. Words of truth.

Words of life. A voice that spoke the very world into being.

“Mary, Mary, be free.”

At once, hearing his words, the demons fled, screaming.

He had spoken a deep truth that permeated my being.

And I stood there no longer alone, cleansed, no longer ashamed.

Free. Free from torment. Free to be…me.

That moment, I chose to give my life to this man.

I would follow him. I would provide for him.

I would journey with him.

Mary of Magdalene: Part 2

My journey began.

Wherever he went, freedom came.

Freedom from illness.

Freedom from anxiety.

Freedom from shame.

Freedom from lies.

Freedom from abuse.

Freedom from injustice.

Freedom from evil spirits.

Freedom.

I was in awe.

At the heart of this was a love I never knew existed.

I began to see as if before meeting him,

I had been blinded all my life.

I began to see people as God saw them.

Worthy of love, worthy of life, worthy…

There were those who recognised the truth,

those who responded to his love,

those who acknowledged his call,

those who followed.

I wept with joy because the long-awaited Messiah had come.

His disciples were people you’d least expect to follow a Rabbi.

Simple fishermen, and tax collectors.

Simple, ordinary folk.

These were the people he chose to follow him.

But there were those who rejected the truth.

Bitter and resentful.

Challenged and exposed.

Hard-hearted and hate filled.

Little did we know at the time

that they were plotting his end.

But he knew.

He knew why he had come.

He knew what he had to do.

He knew that he had come to pay the price.

And then came that day.

A day that my heart broke.

A day that I saw my Saviour betrayed.

This was no justice.

He had committed no crime.

He was unjustly tried.

And the crowd…

They cried out “Crucify him”.

They wanted to crucify the one who had come to save them.

Darkness fell in my heart as they flogged him,

as they humiliated him

as they tortured him.

They paraded him through the streets

carrying a heavy wooden cross.

It was still dark in the end.

There he hung as he gave up his last, abandoned and alone.

Abandoned and alone as I had been.

And with his last, he cried out “It is finished”.

His body was taken down in death and laid in a tomb.

No time was given for us to anoint him and lay him to rest.

But soon Sabbath was over.

That first day of the week…

we journeyed to the tomb to anoint my precious Lord.

It was empty!

Who? Why? Where?

So many questions.

I ran to Simon Peter and told him the news.

As I stood outside the tomb I wept.

Suddenly I saw two figures in white, seated where his body had been.

They asked me why I was crying. How could they not know?

Through my tears, I falteringly said,

“They have taken my Lord away, and I don’t know where they have put him.”

As I turned around, I saw another figure, standing there.

I knew he was somehow different.

He asked me why I was crying, and who it was I was looking for.

Was it this man who had carried him away?

I asked him where he had put him.

He replied with one word with a voice that spoke the very world into being, “Mary.”

It was my Lord! He was alive!!!

The darkness and the sorrow fled as once again I encountered his love.

He told me not to hold on to him.

He told me to tell the disciples the good news, “I have seen the Lord!”

My journey continued. My life transformed.

My Lord, my Saviour, my Redeemer – alive.

The Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!

Knowing Jesus through the word of God

If we look at today’s Gospel passage, it begins with a significant and powerful statement from Jesus, “Very truly I tell you, whoever obeys my word will never see death.” Think for a moment about the implications of that:

• Unless we prayerfully read and study His word, how can we know and obey it?
• Conversely, if we do not obey his word, we will see death! Perhaps this is why in the 39 Articles of Religion that are foundational to Anglicanism, we are told in Article 6 — Of the Sufficiency of the holy Scriptures for salvation, that “Holy Scripture containeth all things necessary to salvation: so that whatsoever is not read therein, nor may be proved thereby, is not to be required of any man, that it should be believed as an article of the Faith, or be thought requisite or necessary to salvation.”
• If we want to get to know Jesus, we can do so through reading the Bible and especially the Gospel accounts – although the whole of the Bible, whether the Old or the New Testament, points to Jesus and how we come to God the Father, through Jesus Christ, and in the power of the Holy Spirit.

The Jews were incensed by Jesus’ statement and claimed that he was demon-possessed. But no demon could grant eternal life. Only God himself could accomplish that, and Jesus replied, “If I glorify myself, my glory means nothing. My Father, whom you claim as your God, is the one who glorifies me. ⁵⁵Though you do not know him, I know him. If I said I did not, I would be a liar like you, but I do know him and obey his word. ⁵⁶Your father Abraham rejoiced at the thought of seeing my day; he saw it and was glad.” Jesus always laid aside his majesty and gave glory to his Heavenly Father. We too should seek to lay aside our ego, vanity and pride and in all things seek to give the glory to the Heavenly Father.

The core issue here is that the Jews had lost sight of God and did not know the Heavenly Father from whom Jesus came, even though they claimed to know Him.

When Jesus said that he existed before Abraham was born, he undeniably proclaimed his divinity. Not only did Jesus say that he existed before Abraham; but he also applied God’s holy name (I AM—Exodus 3:14) to himself. No other religious figure in all of history has made such claims. Either Jesus was God, or he was a madman. His claim to deity demands a response. It cannot be ignored. The Jewish leaders tried to stone Jesus for blasphemy because he claimed equality with God. But Jesus is God.

The paradox here is that the religious leaders were ready to exercise the punishment for claiming to be God in accordance with the law (Leviticus 24:16). They well understood what Jesus was claiming; and because they didn’t believe him, they charged him with blasphemy. However, in reality, they were really the blasphemers, cursing and attacking the God whom they claimed to serve! As a Church, we work hard to be faithful in Biblical teaching and the application of God’s Holy Word. As a Church, we work hard to encourage everyone to engage with the Bible. That’s why we give out free copies of “Our Daily Bread”. That’s why we run Biblical courses, giving us the opportunity to grow in fellowship and go deeper with God. As we approach Easter Sunday, I pray that you are able to engage with the great services we have planned. I pray that you might have a fresh revelation of Christ and worship him joyfully in spirit and in truth. Amen

For the glory of God

We should take comfort from the Gospel reading today because it makes it clear that God is in control and knows what He is doing. If we consider the many prophecies from the Hebrew Scriptures that were fulfilled by Jesus’ first coming, and his words and actions, there is no way that this could have been a mere coincidence. If there was a list of all the things a Messiah needed to do or say to fulfil these many prophecies, Jesus fulfilled some of them in his first coming and will fulfil the rest in his second coming. God’s will, his plan and purpose will be accomplished, irrespective of us, and we have the honour and privilege of being invited to be part of it.

When we consider the context of the Gospel passage, Jesus was in a perfect position to consolidate his forces and overwhelm the opposition. Yet, the paradox is that God’s plan needed to be accomplished in a very different way. No wonder the Bible reminds us of God’s words, ““For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts”” (Isaiah 55:8-9).  Jesus faced the heart-troubling hour that was now upon him because he knew that he needed to give his very life to conquer sin and death once and for all. Even in the depths of anguish, Jesus’ fervent desire was for His Father’s name to be glorified. Jesus willingly and knowingly laid aside his majesty to bring glory to God the Father. He made an incredibly bold statement, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. Those who love their life will lose it, while those who hate their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honour the one who serves me.” “Now my soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. Father, glorify your name!”

Paul wrote to the Corinthians, “What you sow does not come to life unless it dies…. What is sown is perishable, what is raised is imperishable. It is sown in dishonour, it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power. It is sown a physical body, it is raised a spiritual body” (1 Corinthians 15:36, 42–44). Jesus died to pay the penalty for our sin, and also to demonstrate his power over death. His resurrection proves he has eternal life. Because Jesus is God, he can give this same eternal life to all who believe in him. The response to Jesus’ heart cry and prayer from his Heavenly Father was “I have glorified it, and will glorify it again.”

The French Catholic Priest John Vianney, who became the patron saint of parish priests once wrote, “When we do something we dislike, let us say to God: “My God, I offer you this in honour of the moment when you died for me.”” The challenge to us then in our walk of faith is not only to recognise that being an authentic disciple of Christ is costly but also to recognise in our service and devotion to Christ that we must get our priorities in order. Our faith cannot be conditional. If we choose to love our own lives more than God, we will lose the very life we seek to maintain. True disciples must be willing to suffer and experience rejection, even unto death if need be. That means that there may be times when we need to make radical lifestyle changes. Everything Jesus did was for God’s glory. When we choose to follow him, we must live for God’s glory alone. This does not mean we have no fun, no joy, or no security. Rather, it simply means all that we seek to do is for God’s glory alone. Then God will honour us; then, and only then, will we follow Jesus where he goes—as he explains later, he goes to eternal life with the Father. We can derive real comfort and security from knowing that God observes and remembers each and every act of service we do in his name. None will be forgotten.

Jesus said, “If I glorify myself, my glory is nothing. It is my Father who glorifies me, he of whom you say, ‘He is our God’” (John 8:54). Even though Jesus was fully worthy of glory, he does not claim it. He was fully a participant in divine glory, but chose not to exercise it or even talk much about it. Jesus’ humility is weakness in the sight of competitors, but meekness in the sight of God. True power is often manifested in restraint.

Although Jesus cried out to God, asking to be delivered, he was prepared to suffer humiliation, separation from his Father, and death in order to be obedient and do God’s will. He offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears. Jesus did not seek his own glorification; rather, in all things he wanted to bring glory to God. Jesus takes us, transforms us and redeems us for the glory of God and in the love and grace of God.

Jesus is our model for true submission to God. To resist or to submit is a choice made hundreds of times each week. It is through moral training – prayer and reading the Bible that we might learn to resist overt sin and make the right choice. In response to God, resistance is always wrong and submission is always right. We must follow Christ’s example and submit to God. We must learn to hear only the word of God when there are so many other messages to distract us. Amen

Evidence that demands a verdict

I am sure we are able from time to time to make bold claims about ourselves, after all, we all like to make a good impression and give a good account of ourselves, don’t we? For example, this might happen if we go for a job interview. However, there is a world of difference between a bold claim that stems from a positive and healthy self-image and an utterly preposterous claim that stems from vanity and ego. If someone is seeking to puff themselves up and makes exaggerated claims, I usually tend to ask for evidence and testimony. That evidence can come in many different forms. It might be testimony from people who know us well, a reference much as we might consider when someone applies for a job, it might be the fruit of our labours and accomplishments we’ve achieved. Sometimes though, you encounter people where the evidence simply doesn’t stack up.

Looking back to Jesus’ day, according to Jewish law, truth or validity had to be established by two or three witnesses (Deuteronomy 17:6; 19:15). Jesus’ witness and testimony about himself could not alone validate his claims, even though they were true. For the Jewish leaders, he additionally needed the witness of another. Jesus was known by his words, his deeds, the testimony of many including John the Baptist, and a testimony that was even weightier than that of John. John the Baptist was one witness, but the one to whom Jesus was referring here is his Heavenly Father (see 5:36). The key point is that the whole of Jesus’ being and doing testify to the one who had sent him. In addition, this was supported by the whole of the Hebrew Scriptures. Jesus said, “You study the Scriptures diligently because you think that in them you possess eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life.” The implication here is that to refuse to come to Jesus is to reject life itself because Christ is the giver of eternal life (1:4; 5:25; 14:6).

The Father gave direct witness to his Son Jesus at his baptism (Matthew 3:16–17), on the Mount of Transfiguration (Matthew 17:5), before his crucifixion (12:28), and in his resurrection (Romans 1:3–4); indirect witness came through Jesus’ works (see 3:2). To recognise Jesus is to realise his divine origin and commission. So, to believe in Jesus is to believe in the one who sent him; to reject the sent one is to reject the sender, God. This begs the question, what more evidence do we need? An equivalent analogy would be if we saw a doctor who had the only cure for our fatal disease and was offering it for free, but we decided to try every home remedy and self-help program we could find instead of accepting the cure that the doctor was offering.

We have been presented with the problem of sin and the brokenness of this world. God repeatedly offers us the solution. God sent the patriarchs, and the people didn’t believe. God sent the judges, and the people didn’t believe. God sent the prophets, and the people didn’t believe. Moses had written about Christ, but since they did not believe in Christ when he came, they did not really believe in the writings of Moses. This was Jesus’ final condemnation.

2 Chronicles 24:19 states, “…the Lord sent prophets to the people to bring them back to him, and though they testified against them, they would not listen.” God sent himself and they still didn’t believe. 2 Corinthians 4:4 states, “The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.”

For me, central to all of this is the need for us to know Jesus personally. He is our friend, our brother, our Lord, our Saviour, and our Redeemer. With Jesus there is that invitation that demands a response, evidence that demands a verdict. Do we believe? Does that belief affect our being and our doing? Wisdom comes from making the right choice with all our being and not a response borne out of empty religious observance, with us merely ‘going through the motions’.

In our house group, we are currently working through a course called Discipleship Explored. It has taken us into some deep places and at times has been challenging. Discipleship is not a game. It is the stuff of life and a life worth living in which we seek to be authentic and express genuine belief in Christ. There is no one better to follow than Christ. So may God give us ears to hear, a mind to understand, a heart to receive, and a spirit to embrace his truth in all fullness. Amen

Do you want to get well?

In Jesus’ day, it was custom and practice for all Jewish men to come to Jerusalem to attend the key pilgrim feasts and festivals in Spring and Autumn, including the Feast of Passover and Unleavened Bread, the Feast of Weeks (also called Pentecost), and the Feast of Tabernacles. These were times when thousands of people gathered in Jerusalem, both people who were healthy, as well as people who were sick. It wasn’t unusual for those who were sick to make pilgrimages to the pool of Bethesda to receive the healing benefit of the waters. Bethesda means “house of mercy”, “house of grace”, or “house of flowing water”. This sets the scene and setting for today’s reading.

This pool, surrounded by five covered colonnades, was a place of collected human suffering—the sick attracted by the hope of being healed. As is so often the case, Jesus stepped down into the brokenness and was present amidst the suffering, coming to this place with purpose and intention, where he offered the grace and mercy of God in bringing healing of all kinds: healing the sick in mind, sick in body or sick in spirit. St Francis reminds us, “We have been called to heal wounds, to unite what has fallen apart, and to bring home those who have lost their way.” This is precisely what Jesus did.

In this passage, Jesus encounters a man who had been an invalid for thirty-eight years – in those days, almost his whole life! After such a long time, this man’s problem had become a way of life. The things that we might struggle with so often end up wrongly defining us. Here was this man, who no one had ever been able to help. The context of the passage suggests that he had lost hope and had lost the desire to reach out and ask for help as a result of that. The irony that we see is that the man was doubly paralysed; paralysed by his physical condition, and paralysed in this place of healing. That must have been harrowing and heart-crushing – to be so tantalisingly close to healing, and yet so far – a living torment.

Among the many trying to be healed, Jesus chose the one who had lost hope and was living in torment and asked him directly “Do you want to get well?” This is a profound question framed with respect, compassion, and concern. Jesus always notices these things doesn’t he, drawing alongside and asking questions that evoke a response that takes us straight to the heart of the situation? The man’s hope for healing was stuck behind his hopelessness since he never received help to get to the water in time and get through the clamour. No wonder he said, “I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me.”

But there is also the underlying question which is, “Was the man who had suffered for so long ready to be healed?” Sometimes we get so acclimatized to the suffering we endure, that the prospect of that burden being taken away scares us. Jesus’ response was to say to the man, “Get up! Pick up your mat and walk.” And at once the man was cured; he picked up his mat and walked. Thirty-eight years of suffering, gone, in an instant.

Instead of the Jewish leaders taking delight in such compassionate relief of suffering, all they were concerned about was seeking to obey the letter of the law, in the way that they chose to uphold it – completely losing sight of the spirit of the law. The Pharisees were more concerned about their petty rules than the life and health of a human being. It is easy to get so caught up in our man-made structures and rules that we forget the people involved. Their response was one of criticism, saying to the man who had been healed, “It is the Sabbath; the law forbids you to carry your mat.” Instead of looking at the fruit of Jesus’ ministry, the leaders instead began to persecute him because he was doing these things on the Sabbath. Having healed the man physically, Jesus also wanted to heal the man spiritually and in his subsequent encounter with the man in the temple, Jesus declares, “See, you are well again. Stop sinning or something worse may happen to you.” Jesus’ declaration was that the man’s thirty-eight years as an invalid would be nothing compared to something worse—that is, eternity in hell. The man needed to stop sinning and come to salvation in Christ. Yes, he had been lame, but now he could walk. This was a great miracle. But he needed an even greater miracle—to have his sins forgiven. We too always need to look to eternity.

Augustine of Hippo said, “…the true health of bodies, which we are expecting of the Lord, will come at the end in the resurrection of the dead. What comes to life then will not die; what is healed then will not get sick; what is filled then will not get hungry or thirsty; what is made new then will not grow old. Now though, notice the deeds of our Lord Jesus Christ: the eyes of the blind that were opened have been closed in death; the limbs of the paralyzed that were steadied have fallen apart in death; and whatever was healed in mortal limbs in this world of time has ended up as nothing; but the soul which believed has won its passage to eternal life.” Amen

Cross the line

If a demonic presence possesses someone it can manifest itself in several different ways. A negative behavioural change, an uncharacteristic change in voice, a negative change in things said, or as in this case of today’s Gospel passage, a man who had been perfectly capable of speaking being made mute. All these cause the person being possessed to be diminished in their humanity.

Jesus drives out the demon and the man who had been mute spoke, and the crowd was amazed. It’s quite shocking that even though this compassionate act represents the restoration of a man’s dignity and humanity, setting him free to be how God created him, some of the people went on to say, “By Beelzebul, the prince of demons, he is driving out demons.” This statement is shocking for the following reasons:

• It betrays total ignorance of who Jesus is and why he had come.
• It is deeply insulting in the extreme to accuse Jesus, God incarnate, of being able to do this “by Beelzebul, the prince of demons.” We know that Jesus exercised his earthly ministry full of the Holy Spirit, and Jesus said, “…every kind of sin and slander can be forgiven, but blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come” (Matthew 12:31-32).
• It suggests the crowds couldn’t appreciate the restoration of the man and the dignity and freedom he was now able to enjoy. The fruit of the Spirit was in evidence and the crowds failed to recognise it.
• The statement from the crowd was a blatant lie, and slanderous. The fact that we are told that “Jesus knew their thoughts” implies that the statement was being whispered behind his back, and not said to his face. You sometimes find that when people are against what you are seeking to achieve for the glory of God, they resort to speaking behind your back with lies and slander to try and bring division and undermine you. Lies often come to the surface and reveal the dark heart of the accuser. In reality, all that they achieved was to lose credibility in themselves because Jesus’ response, said with some grace, served to illustrate how absurd their accusation was.

We are also told how others tested him asking for a sign from heaven. My response to this is, how many signs from heaven did they need to see when they had already witnessed everything that Jesus had said and done in his earthly ministry up to that point, and yet they still didn’t believe? The irony, of course, is that no matter what kind of sign Jesus might have given, they would have stubbornly refused to believe. We will sometimes encounter people who have stubborn and hardened hearts who still refuse to believe even when presented with an abundance of evidence in black and white.

Jesus then goes on to explain that their whispered accusation was both illogical and nonsensical because any kingdom divided against itself would be ruined, as would a house divided against itself. If Jesus was indeed driving out demons by Satan, then the only conclusion would be that Satan is divided against himself. If that were true, it would mean civil war in the kingdom of evil. No king would throw his own soldiers out of his kingdom; neither would Satan throw his soldiers out of a person they had possessed. Such a kingdom could not stand.

In stark contrast, Jesus’ exorcisms were specific evidence of the long hoped-for, long-awaited Kingdom of God breaking through, in the power of Jesus’ authority. That Jesus was powerfully casting out demons and plundering Satan’s kingdom revealed that the Kingdom of God had begun and was being ushered in.

In Jesus’ first coming, the battle line was drawn. There are two kingdoms—God’s and Satan’s. Satan may well be active and powerful in the world, but the truth is God’s kingdom is far stronger and will eventually triumph. We cannot be neutral in this matter. It is a binary choice. Either we choose to side with God, or we do not. Those who choose not to side with God or simply attempt to remain neutral side with Satan. That is the meaning of Jesus’ ominous words: “Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.”

In the movie Hook, a revived Peter Pan draws a line in the sand. Everyone who believes must cross. In the account of the Texas Alamo, Colonel Bowie does the same, asking defenders to commit to dawn’s battle. In neither case is it possible to stand on the line. If we’re considering Jesus, weighing the options, and exploring the possibilities— we must take the step, cross the line, and trust God today. Our unanswered questions are still important. If we seek, we shall find. Our doubts are still to be settled. If we knock, the door of knowledge will open. Our unmet needs are vital and known by God. If we ask, it will be given.

Foolishness to those who are perishing

Jesus went up to Jerusalem to attend Passover, one of the most significant pilgrim feasts, and, “In the temple courts he found people selling cattle, sheep and doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging money” (John 2:14). Although this practice arose from a desire to fulfil the commands as literally as possible, its outworking gave rise to some serious issues:

• Firstly, the shekel that was used to pay the temple tax was the Tyrian shekel, used because of the purity of its silver—but it was a coin with the image of a person on it, and its inscription exalted the city of Tyre, which was one of the historic foes of Israel. Its very use would have been offensive. The temple was a place of worship, where people were to come to worship the one true God.
• Secondly, with the money changing and animal sales, the temple amassed a huge treasury, and many people became indebted to the temple authorities to fulfil their obligations. The merchants and money changers were dishonest and over-charging. This was not how God’s temple was supposed to be.

This practice suggests that the temple authorities had lost sight of the purpose and significance of the temple, and the fact that they were allowed to do this by the religious authorities and teachers of the law suggests that they were complicit in supporting it. The focus had shifted from worshipping a Holy and awesome God to what had become nothing more than a commercial enterprise for some and in the place of worship.  Remember Jesus’ words recorded in both Matthew’s Gospel and Luke’s Gospel, “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money” (Matthew 6:24).

Not only that but their presence and practice detracted from the opportunity to worship. How was this demonstrating wisdom, responsibility, and a holy and rightful reverence for God? They had turned the house of God into a marketplace! This ‘mess’ is an inevitable consequence of when we seek to apply worldly wisdom and collude with its folly. What message would this have sent to people coming to Jerusalem to attend Passover?  That allows us to pause for thought and reflect on what the message is that people receive when they come to our Church. We cannot and should not seek to define the Church in our image and on our terms. We should be mindful that we are the body of Christ and that he is the head of the body, and it is him whom we are called to worship.

‌Sometimes we need to have a short, sharp shock to stir from complacency and spiritual slumber and come to our senses.  I think there’s something of God’s grace in that. That’s precisely what happened with the temple. There are so many parallels between what Jesus did next and the practice of purging the leaven and people ‘getting their house in order’. Jesus brought that short, sharp shock: “So he made a whip out of cords, and drove all from the temple courts, both sheep and cattle; he scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables.  To those who sold doves, he said, “Get these out of here! Stop turning my Father’s house into a market!” His disciples remembered that it is written: “Zeal for your house will consume me”” (John 2:15-17).  Jesus was cleansing the temple, and in a time of Lent we have an opportunity to ‘purge the leaven’ and ‘get our spiritual house in order too’.

We should always be mindful that “…it is time for judgment to begin with God’s household; and if it begins with us, what will the outcome be for those who do not obey the gospel of God?” (1 Peter 4:17) Judgement begins in the house of the Lord because we should all know better. As the Church, we are called to be a light to the nations. It was only by ‘destroying the temple’ that Jesus would be able to restore free and unfettered access to all believers to God in the right way and in the right spirit. This could only be achieved by Jesus himself becoming the perfect and ultimate sacrifice for all mankind. The eventual destruction of the temple in 70 AD was the final evidence that the old system had been superseded by Jesus’ work on the cross and in the lives of those who believed in him.

‌We are reminded that “The message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God…Jews demand signs and Greeks look for wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength.”

My brothers and sisters in Christ, may we together pray for wisdom and discernment recognising that God has “made foolish the wisdom of the world.”  We need to fervently desire to be blessed with Godly wisdom. May we always seek to worship a holy and awesome God in spirit and in truth, with fear and reverence.  And in this, we might “continue to work out our salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in us to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose” (Philippians 12b-13). Let’s remember that we don’t worship God because God needs it, we worship God because we need it.

Collect

Almighty God, whose most dear Son went not up to joy but first he suffered pain, and entered not into glory before he was crucified: mercifully grant that we, walking in the way of the cross, may find it none other than the way of life and peace; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.

The rich man and Lazarus

Some years ago, I used to travel down to London on business regularly. I often encountered homeless people in or outside the train station. They would typically be sat on the floor, even in cold and wet conditions, with a cardboard sign asking for money and a container for people to put money in. In Matthew 26:11, Jesus said “The poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have me.” This text, along with other similar texts, is often wrongly used to justify the inevitability of inequality and to provide religious sanction for the dispossession of the majority for the benefit of the few. For some, it might seem that in this statement Jesus is in some way justifying poverty – but I believe that they have completely missed the point. It might be a controversial statement to make but I think we see something of that flawed thinking in politics today.

Jesus’ response to his disciples in some way captures the theme of Jubilee and restoration we find in Deuteronomy 15 – one of the most liberating “Jubilee” passages in the Old Testament. Deuteronomy 15 explains that if people follow God’s commandments there will be no poverty. In fact, Deuteronomy 15 lays out the Sabbath and Jubilee prescriptions that are given so that the people of God know what to do to ensure that there is no poverty – that God’s bounty is enjoyed by all. It concludes that because people do not follow what God has laid out, “there will never cease to be some in need on the earth” (or “the poor you will always have with you”), and because of that, it is our duty to God to “open your hand to the poor and needy neighbour.” We can see why it is important to quote text in context!

It’s helpful then in light of that to turn to today’s Gospel reading. Here we are told of “a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day.” It’s clear that this man showed no concern for the beggar at his gate, who was “covered with sores and longing to eat what fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores.” To one who is starving, even a crumb might seem like a feast. What we learn of is the rich man’s total disregard for the teaching of Deuteronomy. In no way was he opening his hand to the poor and needy neighbour.

When Lazarus and the rich man died, the beggar was carried to Abraham’s side by the angels – an incredible honour, whereas the rich man was in Hades in torment. From this place of torment, “he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side.” It is nothing short of astonishing that only then does the rich man cry out to Abraham from his place of torment: “have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.” The rich man’s sense of entitlement beggars belief. He certainly ignored the wisdom and teaching of the patriarchs and the prophets up to that point!

Abraham’s response is clear and direct, “Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony. And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been set in place, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us.” Let me ask you a rhetorical question. Whose fault is that? It is the rich man’s fault. He was responsible for himself and for his plight.

The rich man is still not silenced. Instead with considerable audacity asks Abraham to send Lazarus to his family to warn them, as if Lazarus is some servant at his beck and call. Abraham’s reply effectively reminds the rich man that they, like him, did not need a warning because they, like him, “have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.” How many times do we need to be told before we accept the truth?

In desperation, the rich man is still not silenced. He goes on to disagree with Abraham, “but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.” The discourse ends with Abraham proclaiming, “If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.”

The canon law of the Church of England begins from the assumption that scripture contains ‘all things necessary to salvation’. God’s Holy Word contains words of truth, words of wisdom, and words of life that lead to salvation. This is why it is so important for us to read the Bible and seek to write the words on the tablets of our hearts. We are called to live it out in word and deed. I’ve said before that when I was a chaplain of a local foodbank at the opening event I prayed that the foodbank would close as soon as possible. People were shocked. But in the 21^st century, it is a travesty that foodbanks need to exist. It is a travesty that there are people who are homeless. We must do all we can not to ignore the plight of the poor, the widow and the orphan. I’m glad that we are able to support our local foodbanks. Pray though, that there might be reform so that these are no longer needed and that there might be no more homeless. And in this time of Lent consider acts of service that might help them in the here and now until that time. Amen

Living out the faith, in hope and love

There will be times in life when even though we might spell something out very clearly, people will still fail to understand and take on board what we are saying. There may be a whole multitude of different reasons for that. Were they listening? Were they in a place to receive that message? Were they carrying their own baggage – worries, concerns, and expectations – that clouded their understanding? Were their hearts hardened? During Lent, we are invited to examine our hearts, to pray that God might create in us a clean heart so that we might be renewed.

Jesus wanted to make his mission and purpose abundantly clear to his disciples and they still didn’t understand. He said, “…the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and after three days rise again. He spoke plainly about this.” You can’t get much clearer than that. It even ends with “he spoke plainly about this”.

The only response we learn about is Peter’s. Peter had the temerity to take Jesus aside and rebuke him, even though immediately before the events we hear about in this passage, Peter said to Jesus, “You are the Messiah” (Mark 8:29). Peter was clearly carrying his own baggage – worries, concerns, and expectations – that clouded his understanding and influenced his response. Peter had lost sight of who Jesus was. Jesus’ response defines the heart of the issue. He in turn rebukes Peter, and says, “You do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.” We spend far too long trying to superimpose or force our expectations on God when instead we should be spending all our time seeking first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness and praying “may your will be done.” We have to try and cultivate the mind of Christ.

As authentic disciples of Christ, we must be prepared to “die to self”. That means there is no space for ego. It is not, and never should be, about us. In all that we think, say or do, it should be for the glory of God and His Kingdom. This is precisely why Jesus said, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me and for the gospel will save it.”

The truth is though that we can’t do this in our own strength: “‘Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the LORD Almighty” (Zechariah 4:6b). We seek to live out our faith through Jesus Christ and in the power of the Holy Spirit, and “work out our salvation with fear and trembling” (Philippians 2:12) And there are 3 hallmarks that in God’s grace underpin this: faith, hope and love. Our reading from Romans reminds us that “It was not through the law that Abraham and his offspring received the promise that he would be heir of the world, but through the righteousness that comes by faith.” And since Abraham is “the father of us all” we are his spiritual offspring, “Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as it had been said to him, “So shall your offspring be.”” And we are reminded in James, “As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead” (James 2:26). The faith that we profess and seek to live out must have an impact on us. We must walk the walk as well as talk the talk. In that, and through grace and in humility the fruit of the Spirit must be in evidence – “…the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law” (Galatians 5:22-23).

I want to conclude by talking about hope and love. Do we realise the incredible hope into which we are called, the kind of hope that is “against all hope”? You see, “…because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace we have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace we have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do” (Ephesians 2:4-10). We are called to be surprised by hope, awakened by grace, set free by love and live in faith – a faith in which we walk closely with Christ, even to the cross. This Lent may we have the courage to do that, for there to be that heart change within us as we journey to the foot of the cross, mindful of why Christ came and what he accomplished.  Amen

Ask, seek, and knock

Both our readings today feature the verb “to seek”, with our Gospel reading presenting us with an approach we might adopt in prayer – to ask, to seek and to knock. These verbs are given in the present tense, indicating that this is something that we should continuously do – highlighting the importance of persistence in prayer.

‌I’ve said before we live in a time where many people expect instant results, and instant gratification. People so often give up after a few half-hearted attempts and conclude that it’s not worth it. We see that attitude in many areas of life and it is an attitude that we might encounter in prayer too. For some people, if prayer isn’t answered immediately, they give up.

‌It’s perhaps helpful to think about what prayer is and why we might pray. As we pray, do we come before the Lord expecting him to change, or change something, or are we willing that it is us who might be changed as a result of our prayer? Pray is an opportunity for us to develop our relationship with God. We pray that we might know God’s heart and bring before him our praise, penitence, and petitions. We don’t pray may MY will be done. We pray may YOUR will be done, YOUR kingdom come.

‌With that in mind, there are 2 key points I wanted to make about prayer. Firstly, we must be in the right place to pray – which is why our reading from Isaiah tells us, “Let the wicked forsake their ways and the unrighteous their thoughts. Let them turn to the LORD, and he will have mercy on them, and to our God, for he will freely pardon.” We have to be right with God and right with one another. The wicked must forsake their ways, and the unrighteous must forsake their wrong thoughts; both have to repent – i.e., turn to the Lord. Now, of course, we might say and believe that this doesn’t apply to us – but the Bible makes it very clear – “ALL have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23) We must all therefore examine our hearts and repent, and Lent provides us with incentive, time, and space to do just that.

‌Secondly, we must acknowledge and accept that God might not necessarily answer prayers in the way that we might want or expect – but He will answer prayers in the way that we need. If we truly know God’s heart, we would never ask him to do anything that would not be in keeping with who he is. We must pray in harmony with God’s will and character. That’s why the passage in Isaiah goes on to say, ““For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the LORD. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”” Prayer is answered on God’s terms, not ours. Furthermore, there may be times when God does not answer our prayers immediately; sometimes we must keep on knocking, awaiting God’s answer. However, if we continue to trust God through prayer, Jesus promises that we will receive, find, and have an open door. We may find that through prayer, we are ourselves changed and transformed – part of the renewing of our minds and that intentionality to be right with God that is so integral to that asking and seeking.

‌In this we see submission of ourselves to God; we cannot be selfish in prayer – it is only through prayer that we stay in contact with God and maintain that lifeline. It is through prayer that we might better discern what God wants us to do. It is through prayer that we might be better equipped to do God’s will in all areas of life. God will answer believers who persistently ask, seek, and knock. Jesus promised, “For everyone who asks receives; those who seek find; and to those who knock, the door will be opened.”

‌Getting to know God more deeply takes time, effort, faith, focus, and follow-through, and Jesus assures us that it will be worth it and, we will be rewarded. There may be things that are on your heart. As we journey through Lent, I invite you to ask, to seek, and to knock – to get to know the Father-heart of God. Don’t give up in your efforts to seek Him, even if the doors seem closed.  Seek first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness. Trust in him. Continue to ask Him for more knowledge, patience, wisdom, love, and understanding. He will truly give them to you. May our hearts be changed and renewed as we are ever transformed into the likeness of Christ as through prayer we seek to “do to others what we would have them do to us.” Amen