Exegesis Ash Wednesday - Year B RCL Readings: Joel 2:1-2, 12-17 Ps 51:1-17 2 Corinthians 5:20b-6:10 Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21 Themes Judgment. Joel warns of the coming Day of the Lord, and to get ready. The Psalmist feels rightly judged by God for his sins. Jesus judges the empty practices of those who give, pray, and fast just for show rather than to truly enrich and nurture their relationship with God. Paul addresses those who were sitting in judgment on him and his co-workers. He also warns them not to accept the grace of God in vain or to wait too late to be reconciled to God. Repentance. This is very much a theme running throughout the readings. Joel calls upon the nation to true repentance, a rending of the heart, in order to avert God's judgment. The Psalm cries out in almost every line his sorrow for his sins and seeking of God's forgiveness. Certainly for Paul repentance is one of the ways we accept God's reconciling work in Christ. Spiritual Disciplines. Fasting, almsgiving, prayer are spiritual exercises dealt with in the Joel reading and by Jesus. This is a good opportunity to revisit and explain these, as well as others, encouraging persons to use them during the time of Lent. Joel 2:1-2, 12-17 Joel is one of the "minor prophets," "minor" not because he is less important but because of the length of the writing (only 3 chapters as compared to the many chapters in the "major prophets" - Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel). Joel, like so many of the minor prophets, gets little attention in the lectionary. But he gets his due each Ash Wednesday as this is the OT reading we almost always use. (Note how important a role it plays in NT writers like for Paul in Romans 10:13 and for Peter in Acts 2 on the Day of Pentecost). We know almost nothing about Joel. His name was very common and it means ("the Lord is God"). He's the son of Penthuel (1:1), whoever that was. Where did he live? Probably Jerusalem in Judah. When did he live? Well, he does not mention at all any historical events that we can date with certainty. Since he does not mention the Assyrians or Babylonians (at least clearly), many scholars see his ministry during the Persian period of Jewish history (539-331 B.C.). But some would date his work to the time of the Assyrians or the Babylonians, even as early as the 9th century B.C. The vivid images (vss 3ff) surely bring to mind the kind of scenes when the city would have been under attack by any of these ancient enemies. In many ways this short book is a like a sermon. He draws upon the writings of the prophets before him to deliver a message after the coming of a locust plague (see Joel 1:2-2:27). He sees this as a sign of the coming judgment of God - "the Day of the Lord," and calls his people to true repentance in preparation for it. His call to weeping, mourning, fasting - preparing - is one that suits it well for Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent when we are also called to such self-examination, fasting, repentance - preparation for walking with Jesus to Jerusalem, to the cross, and to the tomb on Easter morning. It seems to me that the underlying message in Joel is that God cares about how we live, that actions have consequences, that how we live and what we do matters, that judgment does come. But his message is really an optimistic one - that we can change, repent, "rend our hearts" so that judgment is averted. I just talked with a friend who came back from his regular physical. He was a bit shaken. His doctor told him that if he did not begin to watch his diet and get more exercise, he was setting himself up for some real problems. He wanted to know if I would walk with him some each week to help him get in better shape (something I really need too). Actions or in-actions do have consequences, you see, in our daily lives. We do not have to keep going on the path we are traveling. We can change directions. Dead ends, judgment can be avoided. But we can wait too long. That's part of the message I hear from Joel and we see it in the epistle reading - now is the time to change, to do something. Not tomorrow or next week. There is an urgency here. Judgment day can come any moment. A friend of mine had been at odds with his father for a long time. He shared with me how he wanted to go to his father, to try to make things right again. He waited too long. His father died. We can wait too long sometimes. We are not promised tomorrow, James tells us. Life is fragile and all too short (an important Ash Wednesday message). And it seems to me that there is a call throughout these readings to make use of the time we have to make sure our relationship with God is what it should be and also our relationships with others. For one day the trumpet will blow, the alarm clock will go off, the opportunities will have knocked and left. I can't help but think of the saying in the psalms, "Teach us, Lord, to number our days, that we might gain a heart of wisdom." Vss 1-2. Perhaps you have all seen war movies in which a siren was blasting because enemies airplanes were on a bombing run. That's one modern image that comes to mind here. Judgment, destruction is coming. Turn on the siren! Blow the trumpet (for a trumpet blast from the city wall or in its streets, like a ringing bell for some cities still, was a sign of alarm, that trouble was on the way). Note the connection here to the New Testament teaching of the last trumpet sounding, announcing to all that Christ is coming (see 1 Thessalonians 4:16). I also think of the smoke alarm going off in the night. That every happen in your house? When it goes off, you had better get up and find out what's happening. Joel is telling the people that a fiery judgment is coming. The smoke's already filling the air. Though he seems to be drawing on the image of a storm coming, it also brings to mind what you see if you have ever been around a great fire. He also perhaps has in mind the sky being so filled with locusts that the sun is blotted out. That was just a sign of another coming darkness, a day of gloom and doom when the Day of the Lord dawned. I also thought, when reading vs 2 concerning darkness, of the day Christ died. It grew dark, and some witnesses mention an earthquake that shook the land, opening graves, the veil in the temple being torn, etc. These were signs of death, of darkness, but also of Easter, of light and life. Vss 12-17. The siren is blasting. The smoke alarm is sounding. It's not too late. But time is running. The fire can be avoided (just as fire workers can do some pretty awesome things to extinguish or divert fires if they get there in time). Time to get up and take action! Let that trumpet blast be a call to action. Let it be a shophar (sacred horn made from a bull or ram), a holy trumpet calling all to repentance, to fasting, to true sorrow for their sins. He is calling for a fast of lamentation, something that had been a part of their lives before, especially during times of great trouble and upheaval. There is still time. I just got an email from a friend in Northern Ireland. He is calling upon his friends there and all over the world to a period of fasting in hopes of having some impact on the peace movement that is floundering there. I will join him. Lent is a time for us to observe a fast of lamentation as well. It is a time to be serious about our sins, to truly repent of them, to prepare ourselves to experience anew, if not for the first time, the true meaning of Good Friday and Easter. But empty rituals will not divert this judgment. Just a trickle of water will not extinguish this fire. What's called for is not the traditional rending or tearing of clothes as a sign of great anguish, sorrow, and repentance. What's needed is far greater and deeper than that - a rending of the heart, a change of heart. It calls to mind the psalm 51 verse that what God wants is "a broken and contrite heart" (51:17). This is a sincere and real sorrow for ones sins, and a turning away from them, a determination to go in another direction, to live a life of greater commitment and faithfulness to God. Joel is saying that the only way to avoid the coming judgment is true repentance, really meaning it. The heart in Hebrew thinking was not the seat of emotions that we tend to see it as today. It was for them what the brain is to us. It was the place of will, thought, intellect. The people are called upon to give a sincere act of will in turning anew to the Lord. This was pretty much the message from at least the time of Moses (see Deut 6:6) and right up through the other prophets (Jer 4:4; Ezek 18:31). If they would but turn back in love to God, Joel assures them that God would be there ready and willing to take them back. For God is "merciful," a tender image like the care a parent gives a hurt child. God's "slow to anger," and thank God for that! Above all God has "steadfast love," love that lasts on and on and on, that will not let us go. Lent is also a time for us to use our wills, to take specific steps to turn our lives back toward God. Thus it has been traditional to take up some spiritual discipline like Bible reading, fasting, prayer, almsgiving, etc., during Lent. Though these may seem simple acts, they can help move us back to God, help us grow in love for God. Sometimes an act of will has to take place before the feeling, the experience can happen. What we do is not as important as that we do something, make some new commitment to our own walk with God. Lent is a good time for just that. Ps 51:1-17 This is a most appropriate response to the reading above. It sets an example of the kind of "heart rending" Joel calls for. The church has long counted Ps 51 among the seven penitential psalms - with the other six being 6, 32, 38, 102, 130, 143. Perhaps it is the best known one. Background. We are told as a superscription to this psalm that it was written by King David after his affair with Bathsheba and how Nathan had confronted him concerning his sins. That may well be the case for this is the kind of heartfelt expression of remorse that David is recorded to have made on that occasion. Recall that he had not only had committed adultery, he also was a murderer. Such sin surely must have been "ever before" him. Vss 1-6. Though this psalm is very much about sin, it is even more so about the character of God - especially the grace and steadfast love of God, which is how it begins. The imagine of a person throwing himself on the mercy of the court/judge comes to mind here, with the key difference being that this Judge can and does give mercy when the condemned one is truly repentant. He knows he is as guilty as sin. He doesn't have a defense and doesn't make one. God's condemnation of him is absolutely correct (vs 4). He doesn't try to find a legal loophole or try to defer responsibility. He accepts the judgment, and throws himself on the mercy of the Judge. An interesting image used here for sin is that of becoming soiled. His sins had made him dirty, or at least feel filthy. Isaiah describes sin as being dressed in filthy rags. Like Lady MacBeth, his hands were soiled with blood and could not be washed clean. Only God's grace and mercy could cleanse him. For us, baptism is a kind of cleansing. It is that divine washing of our souls and all we are in the waters of God's grace and mercy. It is the casting aside of all our old dirty clothes, immersing in God's grace, and then having a whole new set of clothes to wear. Lent is a time to remember our baptism and to continue to allow the grace of God to wash over us, cleansing our hearts anew. That begins where the Psalmist begins - on our knees, confessing our sins, laying bare our need for cleansing, and trusting God's mercy and grace to cleanse us. Though we may not be guilty of murder, our hands are far from being unstained. This is what the times of confession in each service seek to remind us. None does that more for me than this one: Merciful God, We confess that we have not loved you with our whole heart. We have failed to be an obedient church. We have not done your will, We have broken your law, We have rebelled against your love, We have not loved our neighbors, And we have not heard the cry of the needy. Forgive us, we pray. Free us for joyful obedience, Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. But God does not leave us there. After confession comes words of assurance and pardon: All pray in silence. Leader to people: L: Hear the good news: L: Christ died for us while we were yet sinners; L: That proves God's love toward us. L: In the name of Jesus Christ, you are forgiven! People to leader: ALL: In the name of Jesus Christ, you are forgiven! Leader and people: ALL: Glory to God. Amen. No matter who we are, we all get soiled and have to take a bath. That is a key theme in these verses - the pervasiveness of sin (see vss 3-6). The Psalmist felt like he was a sinner from even before he was born. In other words, sin is not something anyone can escape. Though we are each responsible for our behavior, it is also true that we are born into a sinful world. I believe it was Reinhold Niebuhr who understood original sin in this way - as not something we are born as but born into - a sinful society that taints us all so that we become part of it and perpetuate it. The NT says it this way, "For we all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God" (Paul writing to the Romans). 1 John says that we call God a liar if we deny we are sinners. I like what Karl Barth, I believe, said about sin, "Of all the doctrines of the Christian faith, sin is the easiest to prove." Why? Because there's so much evidence for it! True repentance begins by saying with the Psalmist, "For I know my transgressions..." I know I am a sinner and in need of God's mercy and forgiveness. That recognition and acceptance is the first giant step toward cleansing and healing. All this raises the interesting topic of "whatever became of sin?" A book by that title was written by Karl Menninger some years ago. The premise of his book, as I recall, was that sin had become old fashion, obsolete, having been replaced by excuses about how one was reared and other ways to evade personal responsibility. His premise was that sin was still alive and well among us, that reclaiming it was the path to wholeness. An interesting perspective for someone in the behaviorial sciences. Vss 7-12. The Psalmist again turns to the washing image. He is apparently referring to a ritual that involved the sprinkling of water from a hyssop plant for perhaps cleaning from sin (see Exodus 12:22 and Leviticus 14:51). But he is not talking about a literal ceremony but in a figurative sense - that is - as he had been through such cleaning rituals in the past, now he seeks God to do that spiritually to his heart. He is expressing just the kind of remorse and repentance Joel called for in saying, "Do not rend your garments but your hearts." What was being desired was not some outward washing with water but a cleansing of the soul by the mercy of God. He was asking for a whole new heart (vs 10), one completely devoted to God. What's interesting is that he asks God to "create" this. The word for "create" is only used of God in the OT. It's what we read in the first very verses of the God when God begins to "create" all creation. Its meaning is that only God can do this, that is, a new heart is only possible by the work and grace of God. He is seeking to be restored to a right relation with God, a theme we see in the epistle lesson today concerning being reconciled to God. Only God can do this. Vss 13-17. Now the thoughts of the Psalmist turns to others. He offers his life, his words to be used by God to bring this kind of healing and forgiveness to others. I think the story of Chuck Colson throws light on this. He was put into prison for his role in the Watergate affair during the presidency of Richard Nixon. Through that experience, Colson became a Christian and has since started a meaningful prison ministry. Out of the depths of his own brokenness and sin, but in the joy of the salvation he had found, he turned his attention toward others who were there around him, in his same condition. My best friend in college was able to minister to drug addicts and alcoholics so effectively because he knew what that was like. He had been there too. His own life served as a witness and source of hope for healing and restoration for them. Part of what this all means is that David knew he did not just need a new heart, that is, something inside and invisible to take place. That needed to also take form and expression outwardly in his life, his actions, his treatment of and concern for others. He sees at last what God really wants - people with contrite hearts - not oppressed, crushed people who hate themselves - but persons with humility, who wish to give their whole lives to God and God's service. 2 Corinthians 5:20b-6:10 There are a number of connections between this text and the others above, as I have pointed out. First, note the call to be reconciled with God in vs 20. In the verses before this Paul has talked about how in Christ the old has passed away, that we have become new creations. In Christ God was bringing reconciliation, right relations back between God and humanity, and between human beings as well. This call is echoed in Joel's calling upon his people to turn back to God before it's too late. Second, note the urgency here, like in Joel. Time is of the essence. Now is the acceptable time. Today is the day of salvation. It must not be put off (that is, repentance and accepting God's reconciling work). Third, we have a role to play in all of this. Like Joel who warns and pleads with his people, like the David who confesses his sins and then offers his life to teach other sinners, like Paul here who earlier refers to himself and all of us as ambassadors for Christ, servants in this ministry of reconciliation - we have a role to play in God's saving work.. Our role is to first let that redeeming, reconciling work begin in us and then through us to others. Much of this letter, as does the remaining portion of this passage (vss 3-10) share how Paul had devoted his whole life to this very thing, even though there were some there in Corinth who were attacking him, questioning his methods and his message. When I read all the things that Paul and his co-workers had to endure to be God's ambassadors of reconciliation, I am ashamed of myself for the complaining I do about the little things that seek to hurt and hinder me. The heart of this passage is to be reconciled with God. It's not God who needs to be reconciled but us. We are the prodigal child who left home. But God calls to us, invites us to come back home. We are Gomer, we are the ones who have been unfaithful, but God's love still reaches out to us. What is required is a coming to our senses, like the prodigal; a recognition of our sins, like Ps 51; a rending of the heart, like in Joel in order for us to see and truly accept God's acceptance and love. The tragedy is that we might continue wandering far from home, never listening or believing that God truly loves us and would welcome us back. God brought about this reconciliation through Christ. Vs 2 is especially interesting: "For our sake God made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God." Luther calls this the "happy exchange." Christ took our sins as if filthy rags upon himself, giving us in its place his perfect robe of righteousness or obedience to God. So when God looks at us, God does not see our sin but the righteousness of Christ. (The story of the scapegoat in Leviticus 16 comes to mind here). Behind all of this looms the cross when Jesus bears the sins of the world, receives the separation that sin brings from God - "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" Such is the love of God in Christ that he would take our place, bear the consequences for our sin, in order to reconcile us to God. Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21 There were certain religious practices very important for Jews to observe - almsgiving, prayer, and fasting. This chapter of Matthew deals with them, especially the right and wrong way to do them. In essence Jesus says that such things should be done in private, in secret if they are to have the full spiritual benefit, not done in such way as to place one self in the spotlight so others can see how holy and religious you are. Vss 2-4 On Almsgiving. Judaism put great importance on this. The Book of Tobit even says this, "It is better to give alms than to treasure up gold. For almsgiving delivers from death, and it will purge away every sin" (12:8b-9a). Indeed, they used the same word - "tzedakah" - for both "almsgiving" and "righteousness." Jesus criticizes those who make a great show out of their giving alms, who make sure the press knows, is there to cover it. It's like they have trumpet players who blast away to let everyone know they are there and about to give to the needy. They have their reward, Jesus says, whatever admiration such public display brings them. They miss, however, the greater and more permanent spiritual blessing God gives from giving alms without show and fanfare. God sees this if no one else does and that's all that matters. I remember well a time in my life when it was really tough. We were going through hard times. Money was tight. We were struggling. I did not tell anyone this. One Sunday, after the worship service, we went out into the parking lot and got into the car. There, on the front seat, was a white envelop. Inside it was a substantial amount of money. There was no letter. No one claimed responsibility. To this day I do not know who gave that. I think this kind of giving is what Jesus is encouraging here. There are definite and long lasting blessings that come from such giving - the greatest of which is knowing that you did something that really helped someone, even if they do not know you did it or you do not even know who they are. I first really discovered this blessing when I, too, had the opportunity later to do something like this for someone else. It's a wondrous feeling. Vss 5-6 On Prayer. Much the same point is made here. Many Jews participated prayers throughout the day. Prayer times especially were at 9, 12, and 3. One was supposed to stop whatever you were doing or wherever you were at these times, face the Temple and pray (which is still a practice of Moslems today). Apparently Jesus is talking about some people who make sure they are at prominent places when these times come so that they can be seen and heard by as many people as possible. It would be hard to miss them in the market place with their hands held high and their voices loud. They were talking more to the crowd than to God. Any admiration or praise they might get from that is all the reward they will get from such prayer. Jesus counsels the very opposite of this. When you pray, go into the closet, that is, some place all alone where no one will see you, no one will hear you but God. Such prayer brings the reward of bring brought into God's presence, for such prayer is addressed to God. The image here is like that of two friends alone just talking and listening, enjoying one another's company. Prayer is that is just mere ritual and formality or done for show is empty and meaningless. Prayer that comes from the heart in private is prayer with power and meaning. Leslie Weatherhead tells about visiting an elderly man. As he entered the man's room he noticed an empty chair beside the bed. He said to the man, "I see that I am not your first visitors today." The old man looked puzzled for a moment until he realized what his minister was saying. "Pastor, I will tell you about that chair. Many years ago I found it quite impossible to pray, so one day I shared this problem with my pastor. He told me not to worry about kneeling or about placing myself in some pious position. Instead, he said, 'Just sit down, put a chair opposite you, and imagine Jesus sitting in it, then talk with him as you would a friend.' "And I've been doing that ever since. A short time later the man died and his daughter called the minister. "I was just away for a short time and when I came back, he was dead. Except now his hand was on the empty chair at the side of the bed. Isn't that strange?" Vss 16-18 On Fasting. There was only one day in which persons were required to fast - the Day of Atonement. But there were others times as well when it was encouraged - with mourning, times of distress or national crisis, preparation for some new vision or theophany, etc. Nothing wrong with fasting. Jesus is not condemning it or saying it's unimportant. He is saying that if we fast, we should do it correctly. Just like praying and almsgiving, do it in secret so that only you and God know about it. Don't neglect your appearance or go into the streets with obvious signs that you are fasting (like covering your head with ashes so that they make you look frail and weak, you holy saint, you). Here's an interesting point. Because of these words of Jesus, some churches observe Ash Wednesday and place ashes on the forehead, but on leaving the service wipe them off. The point being that the true ashes are applied to the heart, not outwardly, and certainly not for show. The important thing is doing these things for the right motive, really meaning them, wanting them to be used a means to bring one closer to God. Vss 19-21 On Treasure. The normal tendency for us human beings is to collect things, to store up material things. Isn't this what we hear constantly on TV - how we need this or that in order to have the good life? Jesus is saying here that material things do not last. They are fleeting. They are subject to all kinds of things that will quickly take them away, showing their impermanence. Counted among wealth in those days was a persons clothes. But moths so easily make them worthless. Coins rusted and wore out. Thieves could easily break in and steal possessions. Do not put your life's effort into saving up treasures on earth, Jesus is saying, for they do not last. Instead, build up treasures in heaven, concentrate on that which does last and can never be taken away. Presumable part of what Jesus means here is the kind of things he has been talking about - almsgiving, fasting, praying - those things that bring one closer to God and to others. Another way to say this is to make God and God's kingdom your highest priority. Devote all your life, your time, your wealth to this end. Such a life builds up a spiritual savings and interest that can never be lost or taken away. Jesus says that "where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." What we value most, shows what's most important to us, where our heart really is. A little test to see where our heart is would be to look at our latest bank statement and see where we have spent our money. How does that show our priorities? I had a friend in college who was planning to go to medical school. He wanted to be a medical missionary. I remember eating lunch with him one day and how he shared the pressure he was already feeling to enter a more lucrative private practice. He told me, "I am really struggling here with treasures on earth or heaven." He went on eventually to Africa with the Peace Corps as a doctor. Jesus is not condemning material things. He is just saying that if we look to them for happiness, peace, security, we will never find these things. They cannot truly make us rich. Only in loving God with all our being and our neighbor as ourselves will we find a treasure of peace and meaning that time, death, and nothing else can take away. Copyright (r) 2006 Homilies by Email