Mark 1:12-15 (NRSVCE) The Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. And he was in the wilderness forty days, tempted by Satan; and he was with the wild beasts; and the angels ministered to him. Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent, and believe in the gospel.” Today’s Gospel reading is interesting for two major reasons. Firstly, there is the curiousness of the selection of the verses themselves. Why do we have seemingly unrelated stories next to each other, and why use them both for the daily reading? What do John’s arrest, Jesus’s preaching of the Kingdom, and Jesus’s temptation in the desert have to do with each other? Surely it would make more sense to only select one of those for a daily reading, so we can focus our attention on, say, the temptation.
To understand this, let’s look at the second interesting thing about this reading. Jesus was tempted by Satan in the desert. But who brought him to the desert in the first place? “The Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness.” Recall that this “immediately” is right after the baptism of Jesus. We have just heard the voice of the Father booming from the heavens, “Thou art my beloved Son; with thee I am well pleased.” (Mk. 1:11) Mark doesn’t give us much backstory for Jesus. He chooses to instead jump right into his public ministry. But even without that backstory, we as the readers assume that this baptism event marks the beginning of something important. The Father has announced the Son, and the Spirit has descended on him! But then the Son is driven into the wilderness to be tested. Why? Think of some of the other moments of testing in Scripture for a moment. Abraham was chosen by God, having been promised to be the father of many nations. But before this promise is fulfilled, Abraham is tested when God asks him to sacrifice Isaac. (Genesis 22:1-19) Paul, having studied for years under Gamaliel the Elder (Acts 22:3), is thrust into the wilds of Arabia for three years before he joined the apostles and began his ministry (Galations 1:17-24). God gives purpose to all His chosen people, but before that purpose can be fulfilled, their faith is tested and they undergo a period of purification. For Abraham, that meant proving that he loved God above all else, trusting in Him unconditionally. For Paul, that meant leaving behind the wisdom of men so that he could be filled with the divine wisdom. For Jesus, that meant being tempted by Satan himself. Think back to the Garden in the opening pages of Genesis. Adam was also tempted by Satan, but he was not able to resist. He was given a purpose by God, he underwent a trial, and he failed. Jesus is the New Adam, who when he faces that same test is able to overcome it. Mark includes this story immediately before the public ministry of Jesus begins precisely to make the point that where others have failed, Jesus succeeds. He is making the point that Jesus is indeed the “beloved Son”, and this gives credence to Jesus’s proclamation that “the Kingdom of God is at hand.” We have all been given a purpose by God. To preach the good news, to proclaim that Jesus is Lord, and to live the Gospel every day. We all face trials and tribulations in our lives. Lent is a special time when we as the Church welcome those trials, for we know that with the help of Christ we will overcome. Luke 5:27-32 (NRSVCE) After this he went out and saw a tax collector named Levi, sitting at the tax booth; and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he got up, left everything, and followed him. Then Levi gave a great banquet for him in his house; and there was a large crowd of tax collectors and others sitting at the table with them. The Pharisees and their scribes were complaining to his disciples, saying, “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?” Jesus answered, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick; I have come to call not the righteous but sinners to repentance.” Levi was a tax collector. In the eyes of the Pharisees, he was the lowest of the low, a stooge of the Roman invaders who does their bidding in oppressing the Jewish people. Even worse, he is a Jew himself. So not only is he an oppressor, he is a traitor. He is the last person you would want to associate with. This is why the Pharisees are so disturbed in seeing Jesus with him. What kind of Jew could Jesus be, when he spends his time with the likes of Levi? And yet, Jesus does not hesitate. “Follow me,” he says.
If you’ve been following my blog, you may remember last year when I spoke about Christ’s call of “Follow me”, which he makes of each of us. This call to Levi is a prime example of how Christ’s hand reaching out is not some empty gesture, or even one simply of friendship or kindness. In responding to Christ’s call, in becoming His disciple, there is a transformation which takes place. We are no longer the people we were before, but we become new people in Christ. Think about a few examples we get from Scripture:
If you haven’t seen it yet, Bishop Robert Barron is also doing daily reflections on the Gospel readings for Lent. He mentions how the word behind “got up” in Luke 5:28 is actually the same root as the word used to describe the resurrection of Jesus (anastas / anastasis). This is not merely descriptive of what Levi did in this moment. It is indicative of the transformation which has just taken place. Christ’s love has effected a kind of resurrection for Levi, a rebirth to a new kind of life—a life as a Child of God. The Pharisees don’t understand this, and so they get angry. But Jesus says that this is precisely why He has come: to heal the sick, and to call sinners to repentance. He has come to give us new life. Isaiah 58:1-9a (NRSVCE)
“Why do we fast, but you do not see? Why humble ourselves, but you do not notice?” These are questions we often make of God. We feel as if we are sacrificing so much, and yet seem to get no response from Him. Even if we approach fasting in earnest, it can often feel like we are doing it for nothing. Why don’t I hear from God, when I desire him so much? “Yet day after day they seek me . . . they delight to draw near to God.” The answer given is quite simple: we often don’t understand what the purpose of fasting is. We sacrifice, but are we sacrificing for the right things, or are we merely sacrificing for our own ends? “Look, you serve your own interests on your fast day”. I will use myself as an example here. I am giving up video games for Lent. But am I really doing that for God? Does that accomplish what God desires from us in a fast? No. It serves my own ends. I have a lot of work to get done, and video games were distracting me. There is no sense in which fasting from video games can help to accomplish any of the things laid out in this passage. It won’t help me feed the hungry, house the homeless, clothe the naked, or “loose the bonds of injustice”. It’s self-serving. So should I really be surprised that when I cry out to God for help He does not answer? Now, I want to be a bit more careful here. If you’ve been reading these reflections, you know I talked about how important it is to try make room in our lives for Christ. “Make way for the King.” And giving up something like video games can certainly accomplish that, if approached in the right way and not simply for self-serving ends. But it’s not about cutting things out of your life. It’s about doing the work of the Kingdom. It’s about living the Gospel. Jesus spent his time with sinners. He healed the sick. He fed the hungry. Is it any wonder that he should ask the same of us? It’s precisely through living the Gospel in our fasts that we please God. “Then your light shall break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up quickly.” God is pleased not because we humble ourselves in penance. He is pleased when we allow Him to transform us, through fasting and penance, into one who builds His Kingdom. So this Lent, don’t focus on how you are going to manage not having chocolate for forty days. Focus on the reason for your fast. Focus on Christ. Allow Him to transform you into a Child of God. “Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer; you shall cry for help, and he will say,
Here I am.” Luke 9:22-25 (NRSVCE) “The Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.” Then he said to them all, “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will save it. What does it profit them if they gain the whole world, but lose or forfeit themselves? Yesterday, I spoke about the importance of the practice of sacrificing something from our lives for Lent. Whether it be candy, television, social media, or even something as simple as taking the stairs instead of the elevator, this practice of giving things up can reap incredible spiritual benefits if approached in the right way.
Today, in Jesus’s own words, we hear why. We are to take up our crosses daily, “for those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will save it.” Daily. This same passage appears in Mark and Matthew (Matt. 16:24, Mk. 8:34), but Luke is the only one who says “daily”. We are called at all times to sacrifice for the sake of the Kingdom, for the sake of God. Anyone can sacrifice for a day, or a week, or even for the 40 days of Lent. But Jesus doesn’t say to sacrifice some of the time, or even most of the time. He says to do it daily. We all have our own crosses to bear, and in this penitential season we add a little bit more to that weight, all for the sake of God and for our eternal souls. “What does it profit them if they gain the whole world, but lose or forfeit themselves?” Really think about this. We are blessed enough to live in a time of abundance. I can have any television show, movie, book, or music I want at the push of a button. I don’t even have to leave the house to get any kind of food I want, because Uber Eats will bring it right to my door. And anything else I could possibly desire is in my hands within two days through Amazon Prime. It is so easy in this day and age to focus on “gaining the world”, on building our collection of stuff, on indulging in things which we can’t possibly need. It’s not bad to indulge, don’t get me wrong. You don’t need to start boycotting Netflix or anything. But where in all of this do we leave room for Christ? Do we pencil him in between Game of Thrones reruns? Maybe right after I beat this level in Mario? Oh, but I’m a little hungry, so Christ will have to wait until after I’ve had a few Cheetos. No, you turn off Mario, your put down the Cheetos, and you instead spend some time in prayer. That’s the point of our Lenten practice. Take something in your life which is occupying your mind or time and remove it from the equation. Make some room in your life for Christ. And don’t let that stop once Lent is over. Keep doing it! Take up your cross daily! Jesus said “those who lose their life for my sake will save it.” That doesn’t mean you have to be a martyr. Sacrifice in your own way, and by doing so fill those gaps with Christ! That’s what Lent is all about! Joel 2:12-18 (NRSVCE)
Today’s reading is a fitting way to begin the Lenten season. “return to the LORD, your God”, “Spare, O LORD, your people”, and “Then the LORD . . . took pity on his people.” God calls us to Himself, at all times but most especially in this Lenten season He calls us to return to Him from whom we receive everything. We are sinners! We have fallen away from God, from what He calls us to be. We ought to be crying out in anguish “Spare, O LORD, your people”, but instead we are too focused on ourselves. We fill our time with television, with Facebook, with video games, even with writing blog posts, and leave no time in our lives for God. God ought to be first among our priorities, everything we do ought to have God in mind. We are made in the imago dei, the Image of God, and it is to that standard which we are called. Others ought to look on us and see God in us! But instead, they see us and ask “Where is their God?”
Lent is a penitential season. It is a time for the whole Church to stop and realize that we have all failed to cling to God. “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). It is a time for us to return to God—through prayer and fasting—to deepen our relationship with Him. In that deepening of our faith, we more fully realize who and what we are. We are sinners, yes, but we are also children of God. As children, we ought to cling to our Father. For our Father knows us better than we know ourselves, and it is only through Him and through our relationship with Him that we can ever learn, not only how to do what we ought to do—this isn’t simply a question of morality or duty—but our very identity. Who we are is children of God, and that is unlike anything else in our lives. Without Him, we would not exist. There would be no “me” without “Him”, no “you” without “Him”. On Him we wholly depend for our very existence, so it truly seems strange that we need to keep reminding ourselves to return to Him. Our sin quite literally pulls us away from the very source of our being, and too often we revel in it. “Where is their God?” others say. This is why we need Lent. This is why we need penance. In our sin, we stray from our Father, and in so doing we become less and less of what it even means for us to be at all. So, pray. Fast. Repent. Give praises to our God! So that He can look upon us as He did in the beginning and say “it is good.” And so that when others see us, there is no question about where our God is. We are made in the Image of God, and our God dwells within us. |
ArchivesCategories
All
|