Lent 3 - Shaped by the character of God
During Lent we are invited to consider how we are shaped by the character of God. This week the first reading is from Exodus 20 – the 10 words or commandments. We too easily read these as legalistic or moralistic. Howard Wallace says they “were given so that people may live fully together and before God. They were not given so that people may be worthy to come into God’s presence. On the contrary … they are given after God liberated his people from Egypt and led them in the wilderness. Law or torah in the Old Testament, is always a way to live in the presence of the gracious God who first comes to us in our despair and need. They are also a reminder that living in the presence of this God brings responsibility toward God and toward all God’s creation.”[1] These commandments invite us to see afresh a gracious God who offers us grace and comes to us first. As beloved children how are we marked by that graciousness and generosity?
John’s telling of the story of the cleansing of the temple (John 2: 13-20) is very differently from the other three gospels. It comes at the beginning of the Jesus ministry, rather than the end. It sets the tone for what happens next rather than being the reason for Jesus’ arrest and execution. Some commentators suggest that it is difficult to be absolutely clear about what Jesus objection is, but it seems he is appalled that the Temple, which was to be the ultimate representation of God’s presence among the people of God and God’s reign of generosity, justice and peace now has come to represent a system that abused power; exploited the poor, especially Galilean poor; and colluded with Rome. Others say that John is less concerned about the corruption in the temple and more about saying that the glory/presence of God is no longer to be expected in the temple, but in the person of Jesus – the Word made flesh. In Jesus we meet the God who gave Torah afresh. Paul reminds us to let go of our assumptions and baggage when we come to Jesus, and to allow Jesus to shape us instead.
Over the last weeks I have suggested that Lent
is a time for us to join Jesus in the wilderness reflecting on who we are in
God. Does meeting God in the beloved Son help us see ourselves as beloved
children of God? Or is that too much? What inhibits us building our identity on
the love and mercy of God? How might we live in ways that joins God’s ongoing
work creating a world where all can flourish and thrive? How does our Anglican Liturgy help us know and live as beloved children?
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