Let your light shine

9th February 2020 at Great Brickhill

Reading—Isaiah 58

58 “Shout it aloud, do not hold back.
    Raise your voice like a trumpet.
Declare to my people their rebellion
    and to the descendants of Jacob their sins.
² For day after day they seek me out;
    they seem eager to know my ways,
as if they were a nation that does what is right
    and has not forsaken the commands of its God.
They ask me for just decisions
    and seem eager for God to come near them.
³ ‘Why have we fasted,’ they say,
    ‘and you have not seen it?
Why have we humbled ourselves,
    and you have not noticed?’

“Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please
    and exploit all your workers.
⁴ Your fasting ends in quarrelling and strife, and in striking each other with wicked fists.
You cannot fast as you do today
    and expect your voice to be heard on high.
⁵ Is this the kind of fast I have chosen,
    only a day for people to humble themselves?
Is it only for bowing one’s head like a reed
    and for lying in sackcloth and ashes?
Is that what you call a fast,
    a day acceptable to the Lord?

⁶ “Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:
to loose the chains of injustice
    and untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressed free
    and break every yoke?
⁷ Is it not to share your food with the hungry
    and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—
when you see the naked, to clothe them,
    and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?
⁸ Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear;
then your righteousness^[a] will go before you, and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard.
⁹ Then you will call, and the Lord will answer; you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.

Reading—1 Corinthians 2

2 And so it was with me, brothers and sisters. When I came to you, I did not come with eloquence or human wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God.^{[a] 2} For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. ³ I came to you in weakness with great fear and trembling. ⁴ My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, ⁵ so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom, but on God’s power.

⁶ We do, however, speak a message of wisdom among the mature, but not the wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing. ⁷ No, we declare God’s wisdom, a mystery that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began. ⁸ None of the rulers of this age understood it, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. ⁹ However, as it is written:

“What no eye has seen,
    what no ear has heard,
and what no human mind has conceived”—the things God has prepared for those who love him—

¹⁰ these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit.

The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. ¹¹ For who knows a person’s thoughts except their own spirit within them? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. ¹² What we have received is not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand what God has freely given us. ¹³ This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual realities with Spirit-taught words.

Gospel Matthew 5

Salt and Light

¹³ “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.

¹⁴ “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. ¹⁵ Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. ¹⁶ In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.

The Fulfilment of the Law

¹⁷ “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfil them. ¹⁸ For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. ¹⁹ Therefore anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands and teaches others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. ²⁰ For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.

Sermon

A few years ago, Vicky gave me a book for Christmas. In reality, our presents are something we would both enjoy: after almost 48 years of marriage, we have run short of gift ideas. But this book was special: Vicky had painstakingly stuck a gold star against all the places we had visited, and identified other places on our bucket list.

My own ideas of travel destinations does not necessarily agree with the author of this book—but that’s perhaps not surprising. I tend to lose interest quite quickly when vising the Grand Canyon but am fascinated by Japan, and can spend hours discussing the merits of coloured stones displayed under water, or debating the wonders of the top ten gardens.

After the terrible sight of the receding ice cap and glaciers of Greenland, I am not sure I can justify any more trips but at least we have a book of gold stars to remember our past trips, and our new lifestyle in Wendover is compact.

Short haul, Eurostar, and small ship cruises are a more politically correct alternative. Recently we discovered an upside down lighthouse in Northern Ireland. And on two trips to Germany by boat I found a shop in Regensburg where they only stocked herbs, spices, pepper, salt and many other condiments in amazing profusion. One grinder dispensed pink sea salt and peppercorns in one handy action.

I was reminded of both these finds when I looked in my lectionary to check this week’s gospel reading.

The lighthouse on Rathlin Island could not be constructed on the cliff top. It was too high, and the light would shine uselessly over the top of many ships. So they built the light half way down the cliff and the accommodation and facilities higher up. However bright, the light was of no value unless it can be seen clearly, assist navigation and warn sailors.

In Schuhbecks Gewürze you could sample all the salts and peppers—selecting just the right colour and taste. Some salts I found are very salty indeed—others are milder. Now on our dining room table we can season food with salt and pepper in one go.

It doesn’t take a genius to see what I am getting at, and how these two seemingly random experiences illustrate today’s gospel reading.

¹³ “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? Says Jesus. No doubt there were different strengths of salt from the Dead Sea at the time—and of course salt was used as a currency—that’s where the word salary comes from.

If for some reason salt gets damp, it rapidly becomes useless, only fit to be tossed underfoot or on our frozen roads and pavements. You cannot make it salty again, once it has lost its flavour.

A slightly more meaningful illustration is the common allegory of the light throughout Scripture. ¹⁴ “You are the light of the world… says Jesus. You can’t hide a village if it is built on a hilltop. Also you don’t conceal a light under a basket. Instead, the lamp is placed high up on a stand where it gives the most effective illumination.

As Christians, we are meant to be obvious—not hidden or weak, but giving light to everyone in the house.

“Look to”—says the bellringer. “Treble’s going! She’s gone”—and the bells ring out loudly—heard throughout the village. This is how we are meant to be. The bells announce the worship of God—who cares if they are sometimes out of time.

The light. The flavour. The call to worship. Which leads me on to my favourite invitation to the Offertory which those who come to BCP will hear regularly. I bet you didn’t know this comes after the mini parable of the Light under the Bushel—where Jesus says:

¹⁶ In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.

So let us ensure we maintain the flavour of the good news and not water it down, or become lukewarm. And shine as a light to the world—so that they may see our good deeds and glorify our Father, who is in heaven.

Amen

Death through Adam–Life in Christ

Reading—Genesis 2:15-17,3:1-7

⁵ The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. ¹⁶ And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; ¹⁷ but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.”

3 Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?”

² The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, ³ but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’”

⁴ “You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. ⁵ “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

⁶ When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. ⁷ Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.

Reading—Romans 5

Death Through Adam, Life Through Christ

¹² Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned—

¹³ To be sure, sin was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not charged against anyone’s account where there is no law. ¹⁴ Nevertheless, death reigned from the time of Adam to the time of Moses, even over those who did not sin by breaking a command, as did Adam, who is a pattern of the one to come.

¹⁵ But the gift is not like the trespass. For if the many died by the trespass of the one man, how much more did God’s grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many! ¹⁶ Nor can the gift of God be compared with the result of one man’s sin: The judgment followed one sin and brought condemnation, but the gift followed many trespasses and brought justification. ¹⁷ For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God’s abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ!

¹⁸ Consequently, just as one trespass resulted in condemnation for all people, so also one righteous act resulted in justification and life for all people. ¹⁹ For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.

Gospel Matthew 4

Praise to you, O Christ, King of eternal glory. The Lord is a great God, O that today you would listen to his voice. Harden not your hearts.

Jesus Is Tested in the Wilderness

4 Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted^[a] by the devil. ² After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. ³ The tempter came to him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.”

⁴ Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’^[b]”

⁵ Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. ⁶ “If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down. For it is written:

“‘He will command his angels concerning you,
    and they will lift you up in their hands,
    so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’^[c]”

⁷ Jesus answered him, “It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’^[d]”

⁸ Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendour. ⁹ “All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.”

¹⁰ Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’^[e]”

¹¹ Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him.

Sermon

Our new house was built in 2006— younger than Tattlers but less frequented by trades people. It is one of 6 houses surrounding a courtyard. The courtyard is planted with shrubs, trees and lawns.

Last year two arguments surfaced, very politely, to disturb its tranquillity. The first concerned a Japanese Acer which stands proud in the centre of a large lawn. One of the male residents wanted it cut down, as it seemed to be dropping leaves in the autumn and looked slightly poorly. This proposal was unanimously rejected without much further consideration.

The second argument concerned the lawn. It was infected by chafer bugs. The resident rooks could hear the little blighters below the surface, and dug them up with their huge beaks, leaving a wreckage that resembled the battle of the Somme. The only sure-fire cure was offered by a lawn treatment company, but this was quickly rejected as it contained nicotinoids which were banned by the EU. So we ended up digging up the whole lawn and returfing it. The jury is out on whether or not the bugs are still down below and whether the stronger grass roots with deter the rooks.

Just after the lawn was re-laid, we received instructions on how to look after it. We organised a rota to water it every day, barring rain. We bought a new hose that extended like a serpent. And we had to avoid walking on the new turfs for at least 6 weeks.

One or two people were keen to walk over the lawn in order to remove dead leaves and plant some bulbs under the tree. It won’t be harmed, they insisted. They were just saying that to cover themselves. We resisted temptation, and even the serpent could not prevail against the prophets of hope, like myself.

The Genesis story is, of course, an attempt to explain why things are the way they are. Putting together these readings from the lectionary for the start of Lent adds a more modern perspective. The passage from Romans describes how Sin entered creation through the actions of human beings. This led to death through Adam, but to life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

To try and understand what the writer of the letter to the Romans is saying, you need to penetrate the dense and complex text, but the main thrust is clear:

¹⁵ ….the gift is not like the trespass. For if the many died by the trespass of the one man, how much more did God’s grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many!

As we have discovered with increasing horror as time goes on, Sin is toxic in the world. As the citation to VE75 starts:

When VE Day dawns on 8th May 2020 it will be 75 years since the guns fell silent at the end of the war in Europe. Years of carnage and destruction had come to an end and millions of people took to the streets and pubs to celebrate peace, mourn their loved – ones and to hope for the future….

Wherever it is found and however it impacts, Sin cannot be taken for granted. In recent years, we have experienced many examples of institutional as well as random acts of Sin.

The salvation offered by Romans could not be taken for granted after the incarnation that first Christmas. In today’s gospel reading, Jesus’s freedom from any sin was still tested in the Wilderness. The temptations by Satan are clearly appropriate to what Jesus must have been feeling at the start of his ministry, but when the devil left him, he was not gone for good and re-emerged prior to the crucifixion and in the garden of Gethsemane.

Individually these temptations invite Jesus to turn aside from faith and trust in the Father.

1. In the first, the devil invites Jesus to prove his sonship through a display of power; that is, by establishing his validity through his own abilities.

2. In the second, the temptation is to test God's fidelity.

3. In the third, Jesus is promised all the power and glory the earth can offer if he will give his allegiance and devotion to the Tempter.

In each case, Jesus rejects the temptation and fixes his identity, future, and his time here on earth on God's trustworthiness and grace.

The temptation of Christ harks back to the wanderings of the Israelites in the wilderness. One lasts 40 days and the other 40 years. Both concern what it is to be human. Both are temptations to mistrust God and put our faith, not in him, but in our own worth and abilities. But so often we come up against the awareness that we are insufficient and not complete in ourselves. Our experience of temptation does not end after a certain period of time. Our own temptation lasts a lifetime. May the Lord God give you strength to withstand and hold out for as long as we endure. Amen