A Daily Lent

Luke 6:36 – 38 "Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. "Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you." Those who glibly call Jesus a “good teacher” are extremely naïve or terribly misinformed. Those who put forth Jesus’ teachings as a way to get ahead in the world haven’t listened deeply to his teachings. Try taking these words into your workplace, school, politics, or neighborhood group. You won’t get you very far in our culture’s framework. Mercy, non-judgment, forgiveness, generosity, and a refusal to condemn are not recipes for success, corporately or personally. None will help you meet your “life-goals.” But Jesus has no interest in helping you or me succeed by the world’s standards. He is ...

Luke 9:28 – 36 About eight days after Jesus said this, he took Peter, John and James with him and went up onto a mountain to pray. As he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became as bright as a flash of lightning. Two men, Moses and Elijah, appeared in glorious splendor, talking with Jesus. They spoke about his departure, which he was about to bring to fulfillment at Jerusalem. Peter and his companions were very sleepy, but when they became fully awake, they saw his glory and the two men standing with him. As the men were leaving Jesus, Peter said to him, "Master, it is good for us to be here. Let us put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah." (He did not know what he was saying.) While he was speaking, a cloud appeared and covered them, and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. A voice came from the cloud, saying, "This is my Son, whom I have chosen; listen to him." When the voice had spoken,...

Matthew 5:43 – 48 "You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” Jesus holds the tension between neighbor and enemy, evil and good, righteous and unrighteous, “your own people” and “pagans.” Most of us see those poles as options, making a choice from each pair. In some religious systems, even God is seen as making a choice, favoring the neighbor, the good, and the righteous. But it was not so for Jesus. He didn’t arbitrarily divide the world between the h...

Matthew 5:20 – 26 “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. "You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'You shall not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.' But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to a brother or sister, 'Raca,' is answerable to the Sanhedrin. And anyone who says, 'You fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell. "Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to that person; then come and offer your gift. "Settle matters quickly with your adversary who is taking you to court. Do it while you are still together on the way, or your...

Matthew 7:7 – 12 “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; those who seek find; and to those who knock, the door will be opened. “Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.” Jesus is not prescribing a formula for success in prayer – as if there were such a thing! He is describing the tensions that are held in prayer. He invites us to hold the tensions between asking and receiving, seeking and finding, knocking and entering. Each pole has its place in our prayer, in our relating to God. You might say that there is a time to ask of God, as well as a time ...

Luke 11:29 – 32 As the crowds increased, Jesus said, "This is a wicked generation. It asks for a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah. For as Jonah was a sign to the Ninevites, so also will the Son of Man be to this generation. The Queen of the South will rise at the judgment with the people of this generation and condemn them, for she came from the ends of the earth to listen to Solomon's wisdom; and now one greater than Solomon is here. The people of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and now one greater than Jonah is here." It would be easy to get lost in the details of the passage, but don’t drown in analysis. Jesus uses two figures – Jonah/Nineveh and Queen of the South/Solomon – that likely would have resonated with his original hearers to make a point about the willingness – or lack thereof – to adjust one’s life. We may not get the images, but Jonah with the p...

Matthew 6:7 – 15 And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. "This, then, is how you should pray: " 'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.' For if you forgive others when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins. How have we gotten prayer so turned sideways? Depending on the translation you read, Jesus says not to babble, use vain repetitions, or empty phrases when you pray. Simply put, the pictu...

Matthew 16:13 –19 When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, "Who do people say the Son of Man is?" They replied, "Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets." "But what about you?" he asked. "Who do you say I am?" Simon Peter answered, "You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God." Jesus replied, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven. And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of death will not overcome it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven." When Jesus asks Peter, “Who do you say I am?” he has no interest in asking for Peter’s opinion. Peter’s opinion is no ...

Luke 4:1 – 13 Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, left the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing during those days, and at the end of them he was hungry. The devil said to him, "If you are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread." Jesus answered, "It is written: 'People do not live on bread alone.'" The devil led him up to a high place and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. And he said to him, "I will give you all their authority and splendor; it has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to. If you worship me, it will all be yours." Jesus answered, "It is written: 'Worship the Lord your God and serve him only.'" The devil led him to Jerusalem and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. "If you are the Son of God," he said, "throw yourself down from here. For it ...

Luke 5:27 – 32 After this, Jesus went out and saw a tax collector by the name of Levi sitting at his tax booth. "Follow me," Jesus said to him, and Levi got up, left everything and followed him. Then Levi held a great banquet for Jesus at his house, and a large crowd of tax collectors and others were eating with them. But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law who belonged to their sect complained to his disciples, "Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?" Jesus answered them, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance." Jesus is invitational. He doesn’t traffic in coercion. He doesn’t force followers. Rather, he extends invitations. He invites persons to follow him, to take on his way of seeing the world and his way of living in the world. He invites persons to full personhood, becoming completely the person God created them to be even as ...

Matthew 9:14 – 15 Then John's disciples came and asked him, "How is it that we and the Pharisees fast often, but your disciples do not fast?" Jesus answered, "How can the guests of the bridegroom mourn while he is with them? The time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; then they will fast.” Don’t get lost in over-analysis of the passage. For a moment, simply hear Jesus say, “There is a time to fast and a time not to fast.” Let me explain to you why I think these words are important. Spiritual practices help us sustain a spiritual life. We do not come into a deep and life-giving connection to God by accident, as if we were some pinball that bounced randomly from place to place and then finally happened to hit the right bell. We must set our intention on God. Spiritual practices often are part of that intentional life. Fasting is a cornerstone spiritual practice. It involves saying “no” to something that is a normal part of life in order to...

Luke 9:22 – 25 And he said, "The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life." Then he said to them all: "Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it. What good is it for you to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit your very self?” There are plenty of people for whom “discipline” and “denial” are dirty words. The words reinforce stereotypes held by many non-Christians about what it means to follow Jesus. And many Christians feel intimidated because the words suggest difficulty and that which is unattainable. Yet Jesus says that those who follow and learn from him (disciples) must “deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow.” To be sure, words like “acquisi...

Matthew 6:1 – 6 "Be careful not to do your 'acts of righteousness' in front of others, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. "So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. "And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you." Jesus reco...

For centuries Christians have observed the days before Holy Week, Good Friday, and Easter as a season of prayer and penitence. Called Lent, the days call to mind the sojourn of Jesus in the wilderness for 40 days, fasting and facing temptation in preparation for his public ministry. Lent offers persons an opportunity to join Jesus on this symbolic journey to the cross and resurrection. Lent traditionally begins on Ash Wednesday (Feb. 17 this year) and takes us to Palm Sunday. Palm Sunday begins the week-long period leading through Good Friday and Easter, what Christians call Holy Week. The season of Lent is typically characterized by spiritual disciplines of penitence and preparation. Prayer, fasting, and almsgiving (Matt. 6:1 – 18) are the usual practices emphasized by the Church during Lent. The practice of “giving up something for Lent” is a small piece of a larger movement of spiritual practice to which we are invited as Good Friday and Easter approach. As a resource for Lent, I...