Ash Wednesday

One Sunday morning, a long time ago, I sat quietly on the wooden pew, wedged between my dad and my stepmother, staring down at my little legs dangling several inches above the floor. My dad had just retrieved me from Sunday School, where the teacher had asked our class whether we knew what the word "reverent" meant. When we responded by shaking our heads "no," she informed us that "reverent" means "quiet" and "respectful" in God's house. Then she asked the class another question: "Can you think of an example of someone who is 'reverent?"' After a brief, but tense silence, one of the boys pointed at me. The teacher nodded in agreement, saying, "Yes, Michelle is reverent...." I was SO embarrassed. I was also irritated because those kids and that teacher didn't really know me. I remember thinking, "How can they say that? I'm not 'reverent!' I'm just quiet and shy!... They don't really me know me because I'm not here very often! I only come to the Mormon church once in a while when I'm visiting my dad..."

These thoughts were still going through my head when we sat down for worship. It was the first Sunday of the month, which, I had learned, was "fast and testimony Sunday." That meant that all the adult members of the congregation hadn't had any breakfast because they were fasting. It also meant that anyone who wanted to offer their faith testimony would be handed a microphone and given the chance to speak. One by one, people got up to give their testimony. As time went on, it seemed their voices grew louder and more passionate. Near the end, several people in a row stood up and declared their church - that is, the Mormon church - to be "the one true church," and I remember at least one person having the audacity to say, "Everyone else is going to the hot place...." When I heard that, my little body stiffened because I knew deep down that what they were saying wasn't true.... And even though I didn't open my mouth, I vividly remember screaming silently deep within myself, "No! I don't believe that!... I know too many good people who love God, but aren't Mormon, and I don't believe in a God who would be cruel like that!. "

That early memory sprang to mind as I was preparing this sermon. At first, I wasn't entirely sure why, but after sitting with it a while, I realized three things: 1. I realized that this is my earliest memory of church people misrepresenting the all-inclusive grace of God revealed through Jesus Christ by declaring it to be exclusive; 2. I realized that this kind of self-aggrandizing hypocrisy at best leaves a lasting impression; at worst, it inflicts lifelong trauma on far too many of our most vulnerable neighbors - including our children, our youth, our neighbors who are undocumented, those who are of a different race or nationality, those who practice other religions, and our LGBTQ+ siblings; and 3. I realized that as horrifying as my childhood experience was back in the day, it pales in comparison with the hypocritical misrepresentation of Jesus and the weaponization of Christianity that we're seeing among religious and political leaders today.... Friends, when I hear some of our leaders speak the name of Jesus or invoke God's holy name in support of policies that sanction cruelty and violence and inflict heavy burdens on the poor, I find myself raging against their hypocrisy, "What have you done with my Jesus?!.  I don't recognize

this Jesus you invoke! Who IS this Jesus who only loves SOME people, but not others?! That's NOT

the Jesus! know!. Your 'my-way-or-the-highway Jesus' who excludes and oppresses and harms

is NOT the Jesus we meet in the gospels. The Jesus we meet in the gospels welcomes the stranger, feeds the hungry, heals the sick, visits the prisoners, and comforts those who mourn. This Jesus you're following is NOT the Son of God who takes on flesh and comes among us to reveal God's. deep, abiding love for the whole world. This Jesus to whom you're praying is NOT the Jesus who comes to us over and over again, extending God's ongoing, gracious invitation for all to come home and receive the gift of abundant life that comes only in an abiding relationship with God - that is, only when you and I surrender our hearts to the One who is the Source and End of all that is, seen and unseen....

Because context matters when interpreting Scripture, I want to remind us that today's reading from Matthew chapter 6 is part of the Sermon on the Mount, which represents Jesus's core teaching on discipleship. Notice that Jesus minces no words in letting his disciples know how he feels about hypocrites who engage in faith practices for their own self-aggrandizement or for other self-centered purposes, such as enriching themselves at the expense of others. Here, as elsewhere in the gospels, Jesus makes it abundantly clear that his disciples are to live differently: According to Jesus, you and I and all who follow in his Way are to engage the ancient faith practices of fasting, prayer, and almsgiving as a way of being reconciled to God. When we seek God in a spirit of genuine faith and humility, the Holy Spirit will open our hearts to receive the true treasure of God's Kingdom, which stands in stark contrast to the fool's-gold-kingdoms of this world. God's Kingdom is a kingdom of grace and mercy where the banquet table is set, and there's a place for everyone who accepts God's always timely and ever timeless invitation:

Return to me with all your heart,

with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning; rend your hearts and not your clothing.

Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and merciful,

slow to anger, abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from punishment.¹

Those of you who've been attending Ash Wednesday services for many years are probably aware that the Scripture readings for this day are always the same. And yet the beauty of Scripture is that there's always something new to learn: By the power of the Holy Spirit at work in and through and among the assembled people of God, Scripture becomes a living Word that speaks to us in our time and place.... And so, today I want to share two biblical insights came home to me in a fresh way during my sermon preparation this time around. These two insights are treasures that can help us hold onto hope and persevere in following the authentic Way of Jesus, even while powerful political and religious leaders loudly proclaim their false gospel of self-aggrandizement and greed by using their bully pulpits, flaunting their dishonest Mammon, and wielding their murderous weapons. 

So, the first insight I want to share with you is this: Our Scripture stories were written by and for people who lived under oppressive regimes and endured great hardship, and so, they have much to say to us in our situation today. The Bible bears witness to the invincible power of God's never-ending, steadfast love. No matter how bad things get, we know God is with us. We know God hears our cries and sees our sufferings, and we know that the hardship and hardheartedness we're currently experiencing won't last forever. Therefore, even as we walk through the darkest valley, we can live courageously, standing up and speaking out for those vulnerable ones Jesus calls "the least of these who are my siblings. "To say it another way, you and I can live here and now in light of the hope that is ours through knowing we belong to God. Forever! No one and nothing can ever separate us from the love of God revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.

The second insight that was new to me in studying these texts this time around came from Luther Seminary's preaching podcast for Ash Wednesday. Professor Cody Sanders - who, by the way, happens to be a Baptist pastor! -- pointed out that whereas many people tend to interpret Jesus's teachings about fasting, prayer, and almsgiving as being directed at individuals, he's actually talking to a big group of disciples. Remember: Jesus's teaching is part of the Sermon on the Mount, and Matthew has already told us in chapter 5 that "great crowds" from many Jewish and Gentile cities went up the mountain to listen to Jesus! So, here Jesus is teaching his audience how they are to live in community together, if they truly want to be his disciples  Clearly, the

first priority is to be in right relationship with the One True God. Now, I've already said that the faith practices of fasting, prayer, and almsgiving can- help with this, but as Cody Sanders correctly points out, the people of God also need community.... In challenging times- like right now! -- we need community more than ever. BUT it's not easy because in times like these, it's often hard to know whom we can trust.... [Amen?!. ]

And yet...just within the past couple of weeks, I've had several conversations with folks from the wider community who've lifted up the importance of community. One person said to me, "After attending your RIC worship, I'm realizing how important it is to be intentional about creating space for joy in community." And our guest speaker in last Sunday's adult forum, Keenan Moore, also emphasized how important it is to be creating community in this time  Looking at

our Scripture reading from the book of Joel, we see that even way back in the day - some 2500 years ago - God spoke through the prophets, calling God's people to come together for worship and mutual support because God knew they needed community in order to be sustained. You see, like you and I and people all over the world today, the people to whom God spoke through the prophet Joel were living under an oppressive regime, dealing with economic hardship, and staring into the abyss of an impending ecological disaster - in their case, the disaster was embodied by a dark cloud of locusts that would devastate their food supply for many years to come.

My friends, in these days when things often seem hard and sad and stressful and infuriating, I urge you to take heart because our God is here with us and for us. Indeed, our God has given us some incredible gifts to sustain us: the gift of our faith practices -fasting, prayer, and almsgiving; the gift of community to encourage and hold each other accountable; the gift of Scripture, which speaks to us in every time and place; and the gift of God's own Son, Jesus, who, by the power of the Holy Spirit, comes to us over and over again, inviting us to come home to God and receive our heart's true treasure, God has given us these incredible gifts, so that no matter what happens, you and I can live in the light of Jesus, which will never be overcome by the darkness.... Thanks be to God for the gift of abundant life and for the love that never ends! Amen.

1 Joel 2:12-13.