Today in the Spirit: Lent 2C
As we move into the heart of Lent, the overall theme of the readings and Collects is repentance from sin and surrender to God. The Gospel readings feature a variety of teachings of Jesus, mostly coming in response to argumentation from the disciples, the crowds and the religious leaders as he moves his ministry closer to Jerusalem.
The appointed Gospel reading for Lent 2C is Luke 13:(22-30)31-35. Here our Lord is found moving “through towns and villages” in Judea. In response to someone in the crowd who asks him if only a few will be saved, Jesus makes the well-known response, “Strive to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able” (24). And to “some Pharisees” who seek to intimidate Jesus with threats of violence from Herod, Jesus speaks into the teeth of their opposition, “‘Go and tell that fox, ‘Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I finish my course…, for it cannot be that a prophet should perish away from Jerusalem.’” (33). The mention of Jerusalem sends Jesus into a lament over the city where he knows he is soon to die: “‘O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it!’” (34).
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The assigned OT passage from Genesis 15:1-8 will present to us in our worship the answer to the puzzle raised in the Gospel reading–what is the “narrow door?” It is the small door of faith in Jesus Christ, which is the only thing ever credited to us as righteousness. The perseverance of Abram in this passage to carry on with the vision God gives him also foreshadows Christ’s own to go to Jerusalem and “finish my course” (Lk. 13:33).
Saying or singing the appointed Psalm 27, especially the latter verses, will afford us the opportunity in our worship to imagine ourselves, perhaps in the company of Jesus and Abram, declaring our dependence on God in every way: In the face of adversaries, to trust him for active help: “You have been my helper; leave me not, neither forsake me, O God of my salvation.” And, when patience is required, to stay the course and wait on the Lord: “O wait for the Lord; be strong, and he shall comfort your heart. O put your trust in the LORD” (12,17, BCP, New Coverdale).
Our NT passage this week from Philippians 3:17-4:1 fits right in with the theme of standing firm in the will of God. Recalling for them both his present imprisonment in Rome and his persecution in Philippi in the past (Acts 16), Paul counsels the church to follow his example and that of others who model perseverance in following the ways of Jesus Christ: “Brothers, join in imitating me, and keep your eyes on those who walk according to the example you have in us” (3:17). And to keep their eyes on the ultimate prizes of faith in Christ, “citizenship in heaven” (3:20), and a “glorious body” (3:21) like Jesus’ own.
The assigned Collect for Lent 2 is a petition to God, in view of our helplessness against evil in the world, that he himself “will keep us both outwardly in our bodies and inwardly in our souls.” Note the corporate nature of prayer for the preservation of the whole company, not just the individual. Many of our Collects in the BCP maintain this vision of a community of the saved.
The Collect
Almighty God, you know that we have no power in ourselves to help ourselves: Keep us both outwardly in our bodies and inwardly in our souls, that we may be defended from all adversities that may happen to the body, and from all evil thoughts that may assault and hurt the soul; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
And He Believed the LORD (Genesis 15:1-18)
1 After these things the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision: “Fear not, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great.” 2 But Abram said, “O Lord God, what will you give me, for I continue childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” 3 And Abram said, “Behold, you have given me no offspring, and a member of my household will be my heir.” 4 And behold, the word of the Lord came to him: “This man shall not be your heir; your very own son shall be your heir.” 5 And he brought him outside and said, “Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” 6 And he believed the Lord, and he counted it to him as righteousness.
Genesis 15:1-6
In earlier passages in Genesis where God delivers a promise to Abram (later Abraham), the patriarch’s response is one of action: he departed Haran for Canaan (12:4), and he circumcised the males in his household (17:23). In this reading, there is no directive given by the Godhead and no action taken by the man. The only response is that well-known phrase given by the narrator: “And he believed the Lord, and he counted it to him as righteousness” (6). Abram “believed” (from the Heb. word meaning “trust,” or “have confidence in,” or, “consent to God’s plan”). And to this silent, internal response of Abram, the approval of God is made plain to the narrator (though we are left with the mystery as to how this fact can be known).
How shall we respond to the will of God when no action is required? Sometimes the hardest thing to do is maintain the course, especially when it seems implausible to do so. See how Paul in Romans, in a key passage to establish justification by faith, commenting on these verses from Genesis, lauds Abraham for doing nothing: “If you’re a hard worker and do a good job, you deserve your pay; we don’t call your wages a gift. But if you see that the job is too big for you, that it’s something only God can do, and you trust him to do it—you could never do it for yourself no matter how hard and long you worked—well, that trusting-him-to-do-it is what gets you set right with God, by God. Sheer gift.” (4:4-5, The Message).
Today, Holy Spirit, I ask for the strength to “believe” like Abram when there is nothing more to be done other than that.
Seek My Face (Psalm 27 or 27:9-17)
4 One thing have I desired of the Lord; one thing I seek: *
Psalm 27:4-17, New Coverdale Psalter (BCP 2019)
that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life,
5 To behold the fair beauty of the Lord, *
and to seek him in his temple.
6 For in the time of trouble he shall hide me in his tabernacle; *
indeed, in the secret place of his dwelling he shall hide me, and set me
high upon a rock of stone.
7 And now he shall lift up my head *
above my enemies round about me.
8 Therefore I will offer in his dwelling an oblation with great gladness; *
I will sing and speak praises unto the Lord
9 Hearken to my voice, O Lord, when I cry unto you; *
have mercy upon me and hear me.
10 You speak to my heart and say, “Seek my face.” *
Your face, O Lord, will I seek.
11 O hide not your face from me, *
nor cast your servant away in displeasure.
12 You have been my helper; *
leave me not, neither forsake me, O God of my salvation.
13 When my father and my mother forsake me, *
the Lord takes me in.
14 Teach me your way, O Lord, *
and lead me in the right way, because of my enemies.
15 Deliver me not over to the will of my adversaries, *
for there are false witnesses who have risen up against me,
and those who speak wrong.
16 I would utterly have fainted, *
had I not believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord
in the land of the living.
17 O wait for the Lord; be strong, and he shall comfort your heart. *
O put your trust in the Lord.
Most commentators would agree that the main division in this psalm is between vv. 1-8 (declaration of confidence in the LORD’s salvation) and vv. 9-17 (prayer for salvation). I find a sharp contrast in tone and, if you will, volume between these parts. In one, there is boisterous spiritual swagger (not bad, just loud): “Though a host were encamped against me, yet my heart would not be afraid (3). In the other, there is more contemplative seeking the LORD and waiting for his reply: “O wait for the LORD, be strong, and he shall comfort your heart” (17). In between, and this is significant, is the psalmist’s contemplation of the “temple” (4-6). It is as if in his imagination the singer has entered that sanctuary–and what did he find? The voice of YHWH speaking to his heart and saying, “‘Seek my face;’” and in response, suddenly, the voice of the psalmist in that quieter tone, “Your face, O LORD, will I seek” (10).
It is in the the less boisterous section of the psalm that the Church would focus our attention in Lent. This season is a time for checking our confidence in the Lord, much of which has been positively reinforced through Christmas and Epiphany, at the door of the “temple,” and to enter the sanctuary ready to pray and to listen. Will you hear the voice of God speaking to you, “Yes, my son–yes, my daughter–stop now and ‘seek my face.’ Come to me, feel my beating heart of love for you. I know your faith. I believe you when you say, ‘my heart would not be afraid (3).’ But, now, you need to be near me, to abide in me, to ‘wait’ for me.”
Today, in the Spirit, who is in me always leading me to the heart of Jesus, this Lent I ask for the humility of the psalmist who, even with his secure faith, will quietly seek the voice of God in his temple
Keep Your Eyes on Those Who Walk (Philippians 3:17-4:1)
3:17 Brothers, join in imitating me, and keep your eyes on those who walk according to the example you have in us. 18 For many, of whom I have often told you and now tell you even with tears, walk as enemies of the cross of Christ. 19 Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things. 20 But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21 who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself. 4:1 Therefore, my brothers, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm thus in the Lord, my beloved.
Philippians 3:17-4:1
Or, “and watch carefully those who are living this way, just as you have us as an example” (3:17, NET). The Greek original of the verb “keep your eyes on” or “watch carefully) is skopeo, from which we get the English verb “scope out.” The noun form of the same Greek root (skopos) means a “goal” or a “target.” Paul is careful to commend to the Philippian Christians not only obedience to his teaching but imitating those mature Christians living in their midst. This practice of “imitating” those who are models of right Christian living Paul views as essential to “stand firm” (4:1) in the Lord until the end.
Beloved, it is by the arrangement of God that in every congregation there is a supply of mature Christians–sometimes many, sometimes few–whose examples we can follow. Per the apostle’s injunction in this passage, we are to make it a spiritual discipline, every bit as we do our prayers, Bible reading, tithing (all of which we do on our own), to scope out those who are mature in the Lord among us and imitate their example. It is unlikely one person will be a complete model: one will be a model of perseverance through trial, another of prayer, another of compassion.
Today, in the Spirit, I see the various people in my congregation you have given me as models of Christian living. Lord, help me to keep my eyes on them as a matter of spiritual discipline so that I may, in turn, become a model for others.
Jerusalem (Luke 13:[22-30]31-35)
31 At that very hour some Pharisees came and said to him, “Get away from here, for Herod wants to kill you.” 32 And he said to them, “Go and tell that fox, ‘Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I finish my course. 33 Nevertheless, I must go on my way today and tomorrow and the day following, for it cannot be that a prophet should perish away from Jerusalem.’ 34 O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! 35 Behold, your house is forsaken. And I tell you, you will not see me until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!’”
Luke 13:31-35
See how the mention of “Jerusalem” (33) in our Lord’s sharp response to the Pharisees and Herod so quickly turns in his voice to a lament for the city, “Jerusalem, Jerusalem” (34). Jesus has mixed feelings about the place. On one hand, he knows that, like so many prophets before him, there he must suffer and die, and there complete the mission of redemption his Father has sent him to undertake. On the other, he loves the great city of his beloved people, the place he (God) himself has established as the meeting place for worship, the connection point between the yearning of people for heaven and the glory of the One God revealed on earth. Jerusalem is for Jesus a place of death and life.
Is this not true for all Christians in the place we call “home” in the world? Especially if we have become settled in a place, that place and its people become both the object of our outpouring of love and the stage on which God has assigned that we should “die” in hard service. The real tragedy on that stage is that most of the people who we encounter do not want to hear about God–so that we cry out ourselves, “and you were not willing!’ (34). I love the city of New Haven, Connecticut, where I have now lived most of my life. Each and every day I can feel much like our Lord felt about Jerusalem, one minute so grateful to be in my “home” and the next pulling my hair out and pleading with God to deliver me, please.
Mixed feelings at “home” in the world–those Jesus has for Jerusalem, those I have for New Haven, and those you have where you live–are the norm for anyone whose real home is not this world at all. Today, Holy Spirit, grant me the wisdom and patience to live my life productively now, until one day, soon in the future, I will arrive at the place where mixed feelings have vanished once and for all.
Today in the Spirit
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