[Jesus said to the disciples:] 1 “Beware of practicing your piety before others in order to be seen by them; for then you have no reward from your Father in heaven. 2 “So whenever you give alms, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be praised by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. 3 But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 so that your alms may be done in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
5 “And whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, so that they may be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. 6 But whenever you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
16 “And whenever you fast, do not look dismal, like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces so as to show others that they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. 17 But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, 18 so that your fasting may be seen not by others but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you. 19 “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal; 20 but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
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May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable to You, O Lord, my rock and my Redeemer.
Grace, mercy, and peace are yours from God the Father and our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.
This evening marks the beginning of Lent and once again we encounter Jesus, preaching his Sermon on the Mount to his disciples and the crowd who followed him up the hillside. And over three full chapters in Matthew’s gospel he has taught much concerning God’s blessings, the true interpretation of the Torah, and how God’s people are called to live in community with one another.
And this evening we listen as he speaks quite clearly on the ways in which pious followers of God ought to practice their devotion. He lists three important obligations that the Hebrew people are expected to perform as expressions of their piety; or more accurately, their righteousness before God. And it is during Lent that these acts of righteousness, that have been adopted by Christians take center stage in our practice. And Jesus lists some rather strict admonitions against performing these actions with the goal of pursuing public recognition for them.
We are instructed to give alms, pray, and fast; all these, but in secret, so as not to be seen by others, in the hope of gaining public recognition of our piety. But, hold on a minute, Jesus told us earlier in the Sermon on the Mount to “let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works”. The difference is that this verse ends with “and glorify your Father in heaven”. The righteous acts that we perform are either to be done in secret, with no expectation of gaining our own reward, or, if done in public, for the glorification of God. That said, it remains that these three actions are intended to be continually practiced by all who follow Christ; but they are most appropriate during Lent, this period of reflection, discipline, self-denial, and repentance. And, we are tasked with doing this while giving glory to God and avoiding any sense of self-righteousness.
In Lent we are called to re-examine our relationship with God and to rededicate ourselves to the faith practices which serve to bring us closer to a right relationship with the Father. Let’s take a look at the three objectives Jesus sets before us. Alms-giving; now there’s a word we don’t use too often, at least outside of church. Today, we would call this “practicing charity”. And there is often discussion, within church circles and in the wider society of what is considered “enough”, what is “too little”, and what is “too much”. Well, that is the question, isn’t it? The simplest way to calculate this is to determine if we have enough or too much; we then find ways to share what we have with those who have too little. And this concept goes beyond finances, we accomplish what God desires from us whenever we share what we have with those in need. Anything we can do to ease the suffering of our neighbors is pleasing to God and gives God glory; whether we “shine our light” or give in secret.
Martin Luther admonishes us to “pray without ceasing”, so we would be hard-pressed to increase our rate of prayer during lent, if we’re praying constantly. But let’s be honest, none of us is able to spend our entire day in prayer. But the intention is to resolve to spend more time speaking with God that we currently do. Again, this is especially true in Lent when we are called to self-examination and repentance. Jesus’ command, “do not be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners”; well, this is aimed at those who wish to be admired for their great piety. There is nothing wrong with prayer in a house of worship, we do a good deal of it here every Sunday. Again, it’s not the action but the anticipation of attention and reward that Jesus finds so distasteful. Lent offers us the opportunity to examine our personal prayer life; what does that look like for each of us? How often do we engage in personal conversation with God during our day?
A devout Christian friend has adopted the practice of our Muslim brothers and sisters; he sets his smartphone to remind him that it’s time to pray and he does this five times each day. It isn’t complicated and if he is in a place where this might be distracting, he simply takes a moment to silently thank God for his blessings. Thus, he “prays without ceasing” and he isn’t seen to be practicing his piety like the hypocrites Jesus castigates for their public displays of self-righteousness. If you don’t currently set a minute or two aside each day to reach out to God in prayer, I invite you to try it. You will be surprised to find that brother Martin was absolutely on target; God desires to hear from God’s children.
What about fasting? This practice is a requirement in some faith traditions, and is recommended in others. Roman Catholics, Jews, Hindus, Muslims, Mormons, and many Protestant denominations engage in some sort of fasting as a way for their adherents to focus on their relationship with deity. Perhaps we ought to consider a wider view of fasting, of what we choose to “give up” during Lent. We ourselves, as well as those around us would benefit greatly if we were to refrain from certain behaviors, or mindsets. The denial of anything that prevents us from developing, maintaining, or expanding our relationship with God is a worthwhile endeavor. During Lent we should strive to “give up” our fear, our anxiety, our short temper, consuming ambition, negative thoughts; anything that turns us away from God.
All these practices will serve to bring us into, and help us to maintain an appropriate way of thinking and behaving during this time of Lenten introspection. Alms, prayer, and fasting; whether in service to others, connection with God, or abstinence from harmful thoughts and actions, our Lenten journey leads ultimately to a deeper understanding of who, and whose we are. We have been blessed by God to live abundant lives in this, the worldly kingdom. And in preparation for the heavenly one to come, we remind ourselves that we are here but a short time, and our lives in the heavenly realm are eternal. For we are but dust, and to dust we shall return. But our souls will rejoice in God’s kingdom, and the charity we have shown to others, the righteous relationship we have sought with God, and the healing of our hearts and minds will be our heavenly reward.
God is Good, all the time. All the time, God is Good. Amen.