Lent I B [Mark 1:12-13] (18-Feb-2018)

This sermon was preached at St Matthew's Lutheran Church, Maryborough, 8.15am, and Grace Lutheran Church, Childers, 10.30am.

Grace, mercy and peace be to you from God our Father, and from our Lord Jesus Christ.

The Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. And he was in the wilderness forty days, being tempted by Satan. And he was with the wild animals, and angels were ministering to him.

Prayer: May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable to you, O Lord, our Rock and our Redeemer. Amen.

Today we are celebrating the First Sunday of Lent. And for many centuries, it has always been a custom of the church to read about Jesus’ fasting and temptation in the wilderness. Our Gospel reading today is from the Gospel of Mark. Mark actually doesn’t tell us very much about Jesus’ temptation. He simply says: The Spirit immediately drove [Jesus] out into the wilderness. And he was in the wilderness forty days, being tempted by Satan. And he was with the wild animals, and angels were ministering to him. That’s it. In the Gospel of Matthew and Luke we find much more detail of the exact conversations that Satan and Jesus, and what the specific temptations were. So in our sermon today we’re also going to look into those passages in Matthew and Luke.

Jesus temptation happened immediately after his baptism, when the Holy Spirit descended on him like a dove. Even though Jesus was true God and always lived in unity with the Holy Spirit, the same Holy Spirit now comes upon Jesus for a special purpose: to show that Jesus is the true Son of God, and to anoint Jesus for his work of preaching, healing, comforting, suffering and dying. We read that this same Holy Spirit then immediately drives Jesus out into the wilderness. John says in his first letter that the reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil. As soon as Jesus is baptised, he is driven by the Holy Spirit to confront the devil, and destroy him, and to show us for all time how he is defeated.

In Hebrews 4 we read that Jesus has been tempted as we are in every respect, yet without sin. Today we see Jesus being tempted, and tempted just as we are. However, Jesus does not fall into sin, but fights off the temptation, and overcomes it. Jesus has a real fight with Satan—the temptations were real and sharp and cruel. And yet there is no doubt who is going to win. Sometimes, people think that if Jesus were a real human, it must have been possible for him to fall. But that’s not true, because Jesus is not just a human being like us, but also true God. And yet, the temptation was real. The devil can only fight battles that he is going to lose, and yet he fights them anyway.

Now during these 40 days, Jesus fasted and ate nothing. During the season of Lent, Christians have often fasted too: maybe they eat less, or give up some favourite food, or some habit. But the fasting of Jesus is a miracle. When the bible speaks about fasting for us, we don’t need to copy Jesus here! Jesus performs a special miracle in his fasting, and shows us his power as true God. Moses and Elijah also fasted for 40 days, being strengthened by God’s special supernatural power. However, after Jesus shows his divine power and fasted for 40 days, then we read he was hungry. He is true God, but also wants to sympathise with us. He has a special task, and he shows us that he feels the same kinds of normal pains as us.

The amazing thing about this is that Jesus didn’t have to suffer, or feel weakness, or hunger, or experience temptation, if he didn’t want to. When he was arrested Jesus said to Peter: Do you think that I cannot appeal to my Father, and he will at once send me more than twelve legions of angels? Jesus also said: No one takes my life from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. And so, even though Jesus is true God, he experiences hunger, feels pain and endures temptation because he wants to encourage us and sympathise with us. He wants us to trust him, not just as our God above us, but as our brother alongside us.

And so, this reading teaches us something very confronting: you are not immune to Satan’s attacks. The devil didn’t hold back from seducing Adam and Eve, even though they were sinless, and we are not. After the last Supper, Jesus said to Peter that Satan wanted to have him to sift him like wheat. The apostles weren’t immune to Satan, and he destroyed Judas. Even at Jesus himself—who is both man and God—the devil didn’t hold back from firing his darts. And so, this reading today is very important, because if want to get the devil off our back and win, we can’t do it by ourselves. We need to have Jesus our army General on our side, and we need his weapons. Then we can win, because we are saved by the winner.

So let’s now read about the first temptation of Jesus, and how Jesus fights this temptation off.

I.                   The first temptation.

So we read: [Jesus] was hungry. And the tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” Satan wants Jesus to prove himself. But Jesus doesn’t need to prove himself to him! And you too never have to prove to Satan that you are true Christian. The devil wants to sow doubt: If you are the Son of God. If you are really God’s Son, then do what I tell you. Jesus is hungry, and Satan tempts him to eat. But instead of Jesus just going home and eating some bread, Satan wants him to use magic powers, to change many stones into a banquet of bread, so that Jesus will not just eat, but pig out and make a proper fool of himself.

Now here’s what’s amazing: Jesus doesn’t silence the devil with supernatural power. He fights him off with something that all of us have access to: the clear word of God, a simple little bible verse. He says: It is written, Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. This is a quote from Deuteronomy 8:3. And one little bible verse like this skewers the devil in his tracks. You see, God’s word has power. It has divine authority, and the bible requires the same obedience as we would give to God himself, because this is God’s word. Jesus says: If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples. And so Jesus shows us that all the power against Satan is contained in God’s Word.

Jesus says: It is written. Jesus shows us here just how highly He views the Scripture, the bible, God’s Word. Even though Deuteronomy was written by Moses long before this event, it was not simply Moses that Jesus was quoting, but the Holy Spirit himself, because the Holy Spirit inspired Moses. 2 Timothy 3:16 says: All Scripture is inspired by God. It could also be translated: breathed out by God, or breathed out by God’s Holy Spirit. Jesus also said once that the Scripture cannot be broken. When Jesus was praying to his Father, he prayed for his disciples and said: Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. And so, because the Scripture has all this power behind it, Jesus doesn’t need to use supernatural power against Satan—all he needs is the Word.

Now it has always been a practice in the church until recently for Christians to learn bible quotes from memory. In Deuteronomy 6, it says: These words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You can see from our reading today how useful it is for us to learn bible verses and to commit them to memory, not just to be intellectual, but to be equipped and armed and to have weapons against the devil in our hearts and minds. Jesus doesn’t have a theological argument with Satan; he just quotes the Scripture. He says: It is written.

Jesus quotes the words: Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. This passage from Deuteronomy talks about when God sent manna—heavenly bread—to the Israelites in the desert. God wanted to teach them that their daily bread comes from him. But God also provides us with bakers, and with flour, and wheat, and so on. But when those means are taken away, and there is no one to make bread, then we can start to think: God has abandoned me! Now I need to use the devil’s tricks—and lie and cheat—to get bread and money and stuff. No—God provides for us, his word says it, and we can ask him for what we need. He is faithful and will provide everything.

Now, let’s come to the second temptation, and how Jesus fights off this one.

II.                 The second temptation.

We read: Then the devil took him to the holy city and set him on the pinnacle of the temple. Sometimes we look back on something that happened to us and we think that the devil must have orchestrated the whole thing. Notice here in our reading that the devil takes Jesus up on the top of the temple. The devil seems to have even physical power over people’s bodies. But we learn also from the book of Job that Satan only causes mischief as God allows it, and if God allows it, then it is not for evil, but for good. At the end of the book of Genesis, Joseph says to his brothers: You meant it for evil, but God meant it for good. In the same way, Satan takes Jesus up on top of the temple for evil, but God allows it for good, to win a victory over Satan.

Now also it says that the devil set him on the pinnacle of the temple. The temple was the holy place which God had told his people to build so that they could have access into his sacred presence. But Satan doesn’t take him inside where the holy ceremonies and sacrifices are going on, but puts him on top. The temple may as well be a big-top or a circus tent, and devil turns this holy building and this holy place into a play-thing, into a jungle-gym, into a trapeze-show. This is a temptation that the devil often sends: to get people to despise and profane holy things from God, and treat them like they are nothing.

Now what does Satan say to Jesus? He says: If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written, “’He will command his angels concerning you,’ and “’On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.’” Satan wants Jesus to give up his mission to save the world from sin by dying on the cross and to go “splat” on the pavement below. Then everyone would say, not “Behold, the Lamb of God”, but, “Tsk, tsk. What a tragic, silly early death of a promising young life!” Or Satan wants Jesus to prove just how powerful his prayers have been, so that when he jumps, the angels will catch him and provide a safety net. If Jesus is the Son of God, then surely the angels must come.

Now to add to the temptation, Satan quotes the bible. Just like Jesus before, Satan says: It is written. And he quotes from Psalm 91: He will command his angels concerning you. Actually, this is a misquote. Satan leaves out some words. The psalm says: He will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways. Now, Jesus has been anointed by the Holy Spirit to be our Saviour. That is the way he is to follow. And as long as he continues in that path, God will send his mighty armies of angels for his protection. And the same for us: God doesn’t promise angelic protection whatever we do, but he does promise to send the angels to guard us in all our ways, as we walk with God.

Sometimes people think the bible isn’t reliable, because even “Satan can quote the bible”. The devil only twists the bible, and turns thing around to make it says what it doesn’t say. Jesus doesn’t argue with the devil, but just quotes the Scripture: Again it is written, “You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.” God gave Jesus a calling: to be the Saviour of the world. And God has called you to follow Jesus wherever you are in life: to be a faithful spouse, or a parent or grandparent, or a child, or a citizen, or whatever. God sends angels to protect you daily as you trust and follow him wherever he has called you. He won’t prove that he looks after you by you jumping off buildings; He has promised it.

Now, let’s come to

III.              The third temptation.

We read: Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. And he said to him, “All these I will give you, if you fall down and worship me.” Now the devil pulls out a particularly nasty trick. He pretends to be God, he pretends to be an angel of light. St Paul says that Satan even manifests himself as an angel of light. He shows Jesus a beautiful view, the wonder of God’s creation, great forests and lakes, great cities and beautiful things. And Satan makes himself into an inspirational speaker. He says: All these I will give you. Do you like it? You can have it! You can have it all: riches, fame, glory. Ask what you want and it’s yours.

But there’s always a catch with old Nick… He says: All these I will give you, if… He’s like one of those slick salesmen who says: “Absolutely free!” But then in the footnote there’s this fee, and that fee, and every other fee. When the devil gives something to someone it always comes at the expense of their soul. He says: All these I will give you, if you fall down and worship me. Every false God demands a sacrifice. Jesus says: What does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? And even in the church, the devil always tries to make falling away from the faith into the most holy Christian work. He makes apostacy and denying Christ into a beautiful work of Christian piety and worship.

And so Jesus once again quotes the Scripture. He says: Be gone, Satan! For it is written, “‘You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.’” Here the devil comes straight out, and tempts Jesus to worship him. But Jesus also shows us here that worship belongs to God and to him alone. Many people won’t go all out and worship Satan, and become Satanists. But then they’ll pray to angels or people who have died or even saints or their ancestors. And because they’re not worshipping the devil, they think it’s OK. But behind anything that is not the worship of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, the devil is hiding. And so Jesus calls us all back to the First Commandment: You shall have no other gods. 

Now Jesus also says: Begone, Satan! Somewhere else Jesus also says: Get behind me, Satan! You don’t argue with the devil. Sometimes we can sit around for hours, days, weeks, months, being harassed by Satan. We didn’t need to argue with him, we didn’t need to reason with him, we didn’t need to think everything through. All we needed was to tell him to rack off! (Or whatever colourful language you prefer!) Jesus says: Be gone, Satan! Clear out, get out of my face, hit the road! This is a very important thing in what we call “spiritual warfare”. James says: Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Here Jesus takes the sword of the Spirit, the Word of God, like a fly-swat, and smacks him. The job is done. That’s all it takes.

At the end of our reading, it says that Jesus was…being tempted by Satan. And he was with the wild animals, and the angels were ministering to him. In Luke it says: When the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from him until an opportune time. This opportune time was when Satan put it into the minds of different people to work to have Jesus crucified. But Jesus’ death was not Satan’s victory, but Jesus’ victory over Satan. And so Jesus was out in the wilderness there with wild animals. Since the devil had been silenced, the wild animals couldn’t be used by the devil to attack Jesus. So they were silenced too. Even a den of lions couldn’t harm the prophet Daniel, and Jesus could quietly sit with any wild animal that came along.

Also, it says: And the angels were ministering to him. There are only two places where the angels come and help or assist Jesus: here, and when Jesus sweat blood during his bitter prayers in the Garden of Gethsemane. It seems as though the devil’s attacks “took it out of” Jesus, and took its toll. Sometimes the devil attacks us as Christians, and through Jesus and his word, we are able to win the victory. But it can leave us exhausted. And so we see in our reading that even Jesus was assisted by the angels. Likewise, when we are feeling weak and exhausted and beaten about by the evil one, we can rest in the wonderful truth that Jesus has won the victory, and he surrounds us with the mighty protection of the heavenly hosts.

So let’s thank Jesus for that victory, and sing to him: Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of hosts! Heaven and earth are full of your glory. Hosanna in the highest! Amen.

Dear Jesus, the old prince may still scowl fierce as he will. He can harm us none; he’s judged forever undone. One little word can fell him. Amen.

Ash Wednesday [Matthew 6:1-8, 16-18] (14-Feb-2018)

This sermon was preached at Grace Lutheran Church, Childers, Tuesday 13 Feb, 7pm, and St Matthew's Lutheran Church, Maryborough, Wednesday 14 Feb, 7.30pm.

Grace, mercy and peace be to you from God our Father, and from our Lord Jesus Christ.

Beware of practising your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.

Prayer: May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable to you, O Lord, our Rock and our Redeemer. Amen.

Tonight for our Ash Wednesday service, we read a very helpful reading from Matthew 6. This chapter is from what we call the Sermon on the Mount, which takes up all of chapters 5, 6 and 7 of Matthew. The Sermon on the Mount has many well-known passages and verses, which many of us will know well. And tonight we’re going to focus on the three topics which Jesus talks about:

I.                   Giving to the poor.

II.                 Prayer, and

III.              Fasting.

However, before we get there, let’s just go back and see what Jesus is talking about before our text tonight so that we understand the context. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus particularly preaches very strongly the law of God. Much of what Jesus says is what we should do, and what we shouldn’t do, and how God threatens to judge people who don’t think, speak and act according to his will. A few weeks ago, we were talking about how Jesus went out and said: Repent, and believe the Gospel. We have two things here: the preaching of the law, when Jesus says, “repent”, and the Gospel, where Jesus calls us to believe in it. Much of what Jesus says in the Sermon on the Mount is a call to repent.

Jesus says many things in the Sermon on the Mount, where he cuts his knife right into people’s hearts, and shows them the very depths of their sinfulness. He says: I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. And then Jesus goes on to preach the law of God right in the hearts of people, to jab in that sharp knife and twist it. He preaches about anger, lust, divorce, speaking the truth and taking oaths, about vengeance and retribution, and about loving even our enemies and those who hate us. He shows us the very depth of our sinful condition and wants to lay us complete bare before God’s judgement. Now this is what the season of Lent is about and Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent. It is a call to repentance, as we remember Christ’s suffering and death, and look forward to the celebration of Easter.

Now, before we look at what Jesus teaches about giving to the poor, and prayer and fasting, let’s remember the words that Jesus says: I have not come to abolish [the law and the prophets] but to fulfil them. Now, how did Jesus fulfil the law? What did he do? He made a complete, perfect, sufficient sacrifice on the cross for us, and he has made atonement for every single sin that anyone has ever even conceived and thought of in the whole world. So because of Jesus, and what he has done for us, there is absolutely nothing that we can do to earn God’s forgiveness. Everything has already been paid for, and there is absolutely no reason for it to be paid again by you. Everything is given to you completely and totally freely, without any of your works. Jesus preaches the law and he shows you your sin because he wants you to know how much you need him. If you don’t know that you are a sinner, why would you need a Saviour? And so, Jesus has taken every single sinful thought, word and deed on his shoulders, and he has died for all of it, in total, in full. And so when you look to him and put your salvation and your trust in him, then it’s all yours. You have done nothing, he has done everything, just as he raised Lazarus by the dead and spoke to him. Lazarus did nothing because he was dead—Jesus did everything because he is the giver of life.

And so—as Christians, there are certain things that Jesus teaches us about, and what we should do. Now that we believe in him, and he has given us the Holy Spirit, we are made free, and we have a wonderful opportunity to do all kinds of good things for people. But we do all these things, not because we are trying to earn God’s grace, or because we’re trying to get God to notice us, or because we’re trying to twist God’s arm to do what we want. The sacrifice for sins has already been made and now we do all kinds of good works freely, without condemnation, without needing to be afraid of messing them up.

And so in our reading tonight, Jesus says: Beware of practising your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.

Here, Jesus is addressing the whole group of people, altogether. And what he’s doing here is setting before them the final judgment. In the creed, we say that we believe that Jesus is seated at the right hand of the Father. From thence he will come to judge the living and the dead. Our life and how we have conducted ourselves on this earth will be judged by God, and for everything we have done well, he will reward. For everything that we have done badly, Jesus has died for. And so, what Jesus is telling us is that just because he has died, doesn’t mean it doesn’t matter what we do anymore. If a prisoner has been let out of jail, it matters what he does when gets out, because otherwise he’ll go back in. And so in the same way, when we are set free from sin, from the devil, from punishment, from hell, what are we going do? Are we going to enjoy our freedom and use it for sin, or are we going to fight sin and use our freedom for good?

And so, Jesus puts this question to us: who do we want our lives to be judged by? By people, or by God? How we answer this question will completely change the way we act. God watches everything we do, but people don’t watch everything we do. Even the people with whom we live don’t watch everything we do. And so, Jesus says: if we practice our righteousness only when other people are watching us, then we are basically saying that God doesn’t exist. If God exists and if he judges our works and if he will reward us, then we should live our lives to be pleasing to him, not simply to please people at the expense of our faith and in such a way that we ignore God.

And so, Jesus talks about three things: giving to the poor, prayer, and fasting. By themselves, these things don’t accomplish anything before God. Because there can be bad giving, bad prayer and bad fasting. Jesus wants to show us how not to give, how not to pray, and how not to fast, so that he can show us how to do in a way that is pleasing to God.

The bad way to give, the bad way to pray, the bad way to fast is when we do it to earn our salvation, and to earn favour and grace with God. Jesus has already accomplished this, so if we do these things to earn salvation with God, then we kick Jesus out of the picture. We don’t need him as our Saviour, and we make people our Saviour instead, and we make them our judge.

And so let’s first of all look at:

I.                   Giving to the poor.

Jesus says: When you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward.

Many Christians don’t help the needy at all, or don’t think they need to. Here Jesus tells you that you should, and that it’s a good thing. But in Australia especially, people think that the government should help people in need, and that if they’re poor, it’s their own fault. But your sins are your own fault too. What if God took that attitude with you? Jesus says: You always the poor with you. There is always someone who falls between the cracks. There a lot of people in our community who are in desperate need of help, and I’m not talking about money. Sometimes money doesn’t help people at all—like drunks, or drug addicts. Money can sometimes fuel their addictions.

But here’s something for you to think about. As Christians, we often give the impression to the community that we are poor and we need their money. But we have been given heaven and earth by Jesus himself who is the Lord of heaven and earth, and the resources of the whole world belong to him. He knows how to solve every single problem of every single person in our community. The government doesn’t know these things, but Jesus does. We often write people off and think they’re beyond help—especially drug-addicts or ice-addicts, and people like that. But what if we placed these people into Jesus’ hands, and asked him how we can help them, and what we can do for them? I don’t know the answer, but we have a Saviour who can do everything.

Many people make a big deal out of the all the good things they do for the poor and for the needy. It’s common for people to say what a good person they are, because they fund an orphanage in Asia, or they give to World Vision, or they work at a charity, or whatever. But any pagan unbeliever can do these things. Doing things like this doesn’t make you a good person. A good Saviour makes you a good person. He’s the one who cancels your sins—you can’t do that yourself.

And so, Jesus shows us another way. He says: When you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

Jesus shows us just how easy it is for us to think we’re so good because we do something good. Our hand goes into our pocket to pull out the wallet, and then afterwards we give ourselves a big tick and a pat on the back with the other hand. Don’t even let that other hand even know about it, says Jesus!

Some people think also that what makes a good work good is their good intentions. That’s not true—people do all kinds of stupid things with the best of intentions. The thing that makes a good work good is that it’s done by a person whose sins have been taken away. Then every good thing they do has been scrubbed clean. And Jesus has taken your sins away, because he has died for the sins of the whole world, and that includes you.

Let’s have a look at the next thing, Jesus teaches us about, which is:

II.                 Prayer.

This is a very sensitive issue. People often don’t pray because they think they can do everything by themselves. And people don’t pray because they don’t think they do it right or don’t do it well. However, Jesus tells us we should pray. But first he tells us how not to pray. He says: When you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues at the street corners, that they may seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward.

These people don’t need anything from God—they just need praise and accolades from other people to say, “Isn’t he a holy person?” “Isn’t she a real woman of prayer?” But prayer is asking our heavenly Father and Jesus and the Holy Spirit for help. We need God’s help, and often God puts us in a corner and at a dead-end so that we can see no way out. Then we can go to God and tell him about it, and ask for him to solve the problem. If God wants us to ask for his help, why are we so surprised that we so often feel so helpless?

And so Jesus says: When you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. Don’t make a show and tell about it—let God in on the problem, and he will solve it in his time and in his way.

Also, Jesus tells us something more about prayer. He says: When you pray, do not heap us empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. When Gentiles pray, they have techniques. They think: if I do this, I will get this. If I say this over and over again, I’ll get what I want. They pray because they think they will earn something by it, they think they can twist God’s arm to get what they want, if only they pray long enough, if only they pray enough times, if only they pray hard enough. Jesus says: Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. If God already knows what we need, why should we ask for anything? Because he wants us to pray, and he wants to demonstrate his help to you when you ask him. He wants to show you what you need, so that when you see that you need it and you can’t fix the problem by yourself, you can go to him. And if this is the case, it means that a good prayer is a short prayer. Ecclesiastes says: God is in heaven and you are on earth; therefore let your words be few. And because we are weak, often we need to tell him our short prayers again. But we know that when we leave things in his hands, they are powerful hands and loving hands. Jesus here even teaches us the Lord’s Prayer to give us the words and the model for prayer, and even specific topics for prayer.

Lastly, Jesus teaches us about:

III.              Fasting.

Many Christians today don’t practice fasting, which means going without something, whether it be food or drink or some kind of luxury. Plenty of people can fast, or diet, or practice self-control, but it doesn’t make them Christians. Also, fasting doesn’t make us worthy of God’s grace. Jesus has already paid the price.

And so, Jesus says: When you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward.

But here is a very interesting thing: sometimes there are Christians who think that it is a holy thing to be gloomy. Now, sure: Christianity is a serious thing. The world will end, there will be a judgment, we need to repent, and Peter says on Pentecost for us to save ourselves from this crooked generation. There is a lot to be sad about in this world, there is a lot to cry about and lament. But there is nothing holy about putting on a gloomy face. Sometimes we can think: I must be a real Christian, because I look really serious and gloomy and disapproving, and my brow is really furrowed. Now remember the Pharisee who went into the temple and said: I thank you that I’m not like that tax collector. I fast twice a week.

Now, Jesus says: When you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, that your fasting may not be seen by others but by your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

We can fast and practice self-denial with joy and gladness, because we do not have to worry about if we’ve fasted enough. Because Jesus had paid for our account, and he has died for us, and has risen for us. And so because of this, he has given us the victory in advance, and this brings us great joy. We sometimes may really be sad and need a lot of encouragement in our Christian life. That’s fine. Sadness is a good thing and Jesus cares for us in our sadness, but having joy and happiness and gladness in the Gospel is also a good thing, and Jesus shares in our joy.

So as we begin this Lent, let’s hear the call to repentance, and let the Holy Spirit to examine our hearts and show us where we are amiss. But whatever we do, whether we have the opportunity to give to someone in need, when we pray, or when we fast and practise self-denial, we are not paying for our sins, because they are already paid for. Our fellow humans are not our judge, God is our judge. He has sent his Son as the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. We have no need to fear condemnation for our sins because they have been paid for, and God who sees what you do in secret will reward you. Let’s thank God for this wonderful promise. Amen.

Dear Jesus, thank you for teaching us about our sin and your righteousness. Cover us with your blood, and set us free for a life a good works which a purified and made holy by you. Amen.