In Ukraine today we see the devil’s work as civilians are crushed and killed, their country and property is stolen and all they hold dear is destroyed. Jesus contrasted evil leadership with his vocation as the Good Shepherd who gives his life for the sheep. He said, “The thief comes only to steal, kill and destroy. I am come that they might have life and have it abundantly.” Thousands are dead; over a million are refugees and huge numbers injured. The damage and misery Putin has caused will affect many lives for years to come. When the devil tempted Jesus at the beginning of his ministry he was seeking to steal what rightfully belonged to Jesus, destroy his life giving ministry and ultimately kill him. The devil tempted and bullied Jesus when he was physically weak and ill because he had been fasting for forty days in harsh conditions in the wilderness. Demonic pressure was continuous throughout that time as Jesus wrestled with his conscience and prayed. Putin picked on Ukraine, a smaller, weaker country adjoined to Russia thinking they would easily be defeated. He is a bully! Bullies choose the easy way by attacking those who are weaker and poorer Jesus had been filled with God’s Spirit and affirmed by his heavenly Father when he was baptized. He was God’s anointed Son with life giving power to fulfil his vocation. He could have chosen the easy way of power, domination, riches and glory. Instead he chose the way of suffering and the cross. Led by the Spirit into the wilderness, he was able to spend time alone with God with no distractions. Jeshimmon, the place of Devastation, where the hills were like dust heaps, the rocks were bare and jagged and the limestone looked blistered and peeling was a terrible place, very hot by day and cold by night. Deprived of carpentry work, and conversation with others, Jesus had nothing to do which might win the respect of others such as healing the sick or caring for his family. Jesus was alone with his heavenly Father. Wrestling with the issues of the day in prayer and trying to find what God would have us do in making life better for others is not easy. Time alone without distractions gives us an opportunity to look beyond false spin and political manoeuvring to what is real. We often expect prayer to make us feel better. Jesus began his fast full of the Holy Spirit. After 40 days he felt famished. He didn’t fast to damage his health. Time with his Heavenly Father thinking and praying about his future was so important he didn’t think about his bodily needs. When we are ill, tired and hungry we are most prone to temptation. That is why Putin constantly bombards the Ukrainians overnight and strategically surrounds cities to cut off supplies of food. Poverty and hunger are reasons many are tempted into modern slavery, become prostitutes, thieves and do all sorts of work in which they are ashamed. Anyone wanting to be successful in this world is encouraged to do what Jesus was tempted to do by Satan, take command and control others, adopt the quick fix that makes the most financial reward and advertise their assets. Jesus was first of all tempted to doubt himself and his calling. The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become a loaf of bread.” If you are in charge prove it. Take control, command! Show us what you can do! Use the resources of the world, the money in your company, the assets in your church and your personal financial assets to gain more power. Win popularity by bribing people. The second part of the temptation was to turn the little limestone rocks into bread for the world and feed his own hunger. There were a lot of hungry people in the world. Providing bread which hadn’t been worked for, to fill bellies with material wealth would increase Jesus’ popularity. Many look for jobs that pay the most and give the most comfortable lifestyle rather than looking for work that serves others. Many attend churches that make them happiest, those that have the best music or social groups, rather than those where they are most needed. There is nothing wrong with good food, comfort and happiness but we have a higher calling, to be changed into the likeness of God, to be people whose concern is to love others as Jesus loves us. In an age when most churches are half empty on Sunday mornings and most supermarkets are full, we are called to bear witness to the words from Deuteronomy Jesus responded to the devil with, “One does not live by bread alone.” We are of more worth than what we buy and own. We need Christ in our lives. Putin has been called a little tsar. He is fighting to own Ukraine and absorb it into Russia. His self esteem is built on his wealth and Empire, rather than the riches Christ gives. His soul; has become shrivelled instead of being expanded through his relationship with his Ukrainian neighbours. Stones, the wilderness and all land belong to God who created it. It is not given to be fought over for selfish gain. Western civilisation has attempted to own and use land for profit resulting in wars, exploitation and climate change, destroying lives and the planet we rely on. The devil showed Jesus the kingdoms of the world and said, “To you I will give their glory and all this authority; for it has been given over to me, and I give it to anyone I please. If you will worship me, it will all be yours.” Those who seek power, control, glory and authority usually gain it. They usually have the drive to use any means, corrupt or otherwise to get where they want to be. Jesus knew that one day he would be King of the Kingdom, but was tempted to take a short cut by compromising with evil. If he compromised he wouldn’t have to suffer the shame and suffering of the cross. He wouldn’t have to submit to his Father and would be able to do what he wanted. His response from Deuteronomy reminds us that we are not called to popularity and glory but to service. “Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.’” This is not our world and our resources. It is God’s world and we are his servants. We cannot fulfil his will unless we worship him and submit to his will. The devil took Jesus to Jerusalem, and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, saying, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here, (advertise your assets) for it is written, ‘He will command his angels concerning you, to protect you,’ and on their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.’” It was a sheer drop of 450 feet from the pinnacle of Solomon’s porch to the Kidron valley below. Jesus was suffering so much that it must have been tempting to take the easy way out, freedom from struggle, mental torture and pain If the angels caught him it would sensationally, prove he was the Son of God. If they didn’t, then he would return to his Father in heaven, struggle over. Taking the easy way rather fighting against evil must be tempting to the Ukrainians. The odds are against them, but they know that if they stop defending their principles, the stealing, killing and destructions will spread to other parts of Europe. They are willing to give their lives so that others will be free. Like Jesus we are called to struggle against evil and serve, to put our relationship with God and his will before our own, to lift him up not ourselves and to recognize that we are his servants called to share in his ministry of bringing life, not death and destruction to the world.
“Behold, you desire truth deep within me and shall make me understand wisdom in the depths of my heart.” (Psalm 51:7) Lent reminds us that being truthful with ourselves, with God and others is not optional. Without being truthful we cannot properly repent. Without repentance we cannot receive God’s forgiveness. Without forgiveness we cannot receive the cleansing, freedom and fullness of life Jesus suffered and died to bring us. Without being truthful we cannot be our true selves. When we pretend, lie and deceive we become untrustworthy and lack authenticity. Those who listen to us do not know what is true or real and do not know how to relate to us. Without being truthful we cannot be like God, for “God is light and in him is no darkness at all.” Jesus described himself as the truth. “The Spirit of Truth leads us into all truth.” Love and truth belong together. When the disciples looked at Jesus they saw that he was full of grace and truth. “Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.” Ash Wednesday invites us, in the name of the Church, to the observance of a holy Lent, by “self-examination and repentance; by prayer, fasting, and self-denial; and by reading and meditating on God’s holy word.” This is not to make us miserable but so that together we may draw closer to Christ our source of joy and love. We also do it so we may become closer to each other. 1 John tells us that, “If we walk in the light as Jesus is in the light we have fellowship one with another and the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all sin.” In our frightening, dangerous times when we find it difficult to discern what is true and false, it is important that repentance begins with us, personally. Isaiah 58 reminds us that drawing near to a righteous God through prayer and fasting is hypocritical if we do it to seek our own pleasure and oppress our workers. God will not listen unless we sincerely seek justice for others. It is only when we feed those who are hungry, house the homeless, clothe the naked and care for the poor that the light within us will be seen and we will be healed. Ultimately we cannot be free unless we seek the freedom of all who are oppressed. We pray in a post communion prayer, “Keep us firm in the hope you have set before us, so we and all your children shall be free, and the whole earth live to praise your name.” The fast God chooses is to “loose the bonds of wickedness undo the thongs of the yoke and let the oppressed go free.” The Christian church has much to repent of. Church of England leaders have been accused of crushing and silencing those who have been abused instead of speaking the truth. As a result we have failed to safeguard the vulnerable and perpetuated their fear and anger. “The time has come for judgment to begin with the household of God.” We have condemned perceived failings of the LBTQI community while hiding the sexual sins of the powerful and they are justifiably angry. The Living in Love and faith Course which CTB45 are putting on at St John’s Longbridge and St Chad’s Rubery during Lent enables us to address our sins and do better by following six pastoral principals, acknowledging out prejudices, speaking into the silence, casting out our fear, admitting our hypocrisy and paying attention to power. We are also judged for hypocritically supporting and having shares in institutions and companies that have supported slavery, oppressed the poor and damaged the earth. We have heard many lies from politicians recently, particularly from President Putin who assured us he wasn’t going to invade Ukraine and Ukrainians had nothing to fear. As bombs drop and the death toll rises, compassionate Russians feel unable to demonstrate and speak truth to power, knowing that if they do so they will be viewed as traitors, arrested and suffer devastating consequences. The Ukrainians clearly didn’t provoke Russia who has maligned them as Nazis and accused them of shelling within Russian borders. Our prime minister offered lethal aid and, support militarily which we couldn’t possibly deliver without the support of others. This was reduces to economic sanctions, some of which had already been in place since 2018. President Putin counteracted this by warning the international community of “consequences greater than any you have faced in history.” Nobody so far has gone to the aid of Ukraine because of the risk of a nuclear war or starting a third world war in Europe. Unless God intervenes and he may well as Ukrainians have gathered in their public squares and knelt to pray, Ukraine will inevitably be defeated. Our Prime Minister Boris Johnson also has a strange relationship with truth. Rory Stewart, who left the Conservative Party in 2019 said he “ has mastered the use of error, omission, exaggeration, diminution, equivocation and flat denial. He has perfected casuistry, circumlocution, false equivalence and false analogy. He is equally adept at the ironic jest, the fib and the grand lie; the weasel word and the half-truth; the hyperbolic lie, the obvious lie, and the bullshit lie - which may inadvertently be true." It was wrong for our Prime Minister to give false promises and hope when we had no intention of putting ourselves at risk. He was right, however in saying Russia must fail. The world has always struggled with the suffering which usually incurs when evil is confronted. During Lent we remember that our freedom from evil was won through the suffering love of Jesus who was nailed to a cross by an evil superpower. How do we confront bullies who like Miss Trunchbull from Matilda terrorise those they see as weaker than themselves with the playground mentality that says, “I’m right and you’re wrong. I’m big and you’re small and there’s nothing you can do about it?” We confront evil by clinging to the truth and speaking truth to power whatever the consequences are. We confess our own sins and those of our church and nation with which we have been complicit and we turn back to God by drawing closer to him. Like the Ukrainians we pray for God’s mercy and intervention knowing that he leads us from captivity to freedom and from death to life.
Jesus had been speaking to a vast crowd all day. He was exhausted. The crowds wanted more, but all Jesus wanted to do was sleep. Jesus was speaking from a boat some way out in the water. Going back to land, would mean he would have to engage with the crowd and press his way through. The crowd would follow wherever he went. Getting away would be difficult. To rest Jesus would have to go to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, Gentile land, where they were strangers; a place of mountains, tombs and pig herders, where Jesus’ disciples would be afraid. We need sleep, fun, food and fellowship, time out from our jobs and opportunities to relax. If we don’t having proper rest and holidays, we become physically and mentally ill. When ill, afraid, exhausted and in pain it is difficult to live faith filled lives and Jesus seems distant. We need to be like Jesus who took time out to rest and pray, and not like the demanding crowd. It was evening. Soon a violent windstorm arose. Fishing boats used by Galilean fishermen had low sides so men could cast and draw in their fishing nets. They would have been easily battered by the wind and 20 ft waves. The boat would soon be swamped. Windstorms are noisy. Waves beating on the side of the boat would cause it to rock dangerously easily throwing the men out or turning it over. We saw and heard the destructive ferocity of Storm Eunice this week, uprooting trees, ripping roofs off buildings and blowing Lorries over. The sea can be a wonderful place to relax but we can never control it. In windy weather it can be brutal, not just to those sailing, but also to the land it batters causing erosion of cliff tops with houses and people being swept away. Fishermen and lifeboat rescuers have dangerous jobs. Many lose their lives as they attempt to bring us fish and rescue those who have been careless. Holiday makers are drowned because they do not understand our tides, or get out of depth. Most of those lost in our seas over the last few years have been refugees who have set out in overloaded, inflatable dinghies. What fear they must suffer! Fear they will never see loved ones again, fear their journey will be wasted, fear they and their families will drown; fear they will have nowhere to go if they reach the shore or are sent back, fear of racism and prejudice. The disciples, including the four who were fishermen were terrified. Jesus, incredibly, remained asleep in the stern of the boat, where possibly, they expected him to be steering. Fear is a powerful emotion. We all experience fear of loss, the unknown, pain, death, hostility; some fear Moslems and refugees. We were afraid of the horrors that might await us if we caught COVID 19 and as Russian troops amass on the Ukrainian border, many fear another World War. Many fear poverty and not being able to pay their bills as inflation rises. Fear can either motivate us to act or paralyze us. Fear of two kinds is present in our text. The disciples suffered sheer terror at being confronted with power far stronger than themselves, indifferent to their lives. Sometimes the sea of life is rough and we are sinking. Each of us could tell a storm story. Some begin with a phone call, a doctor’s visit, or news we did not want to hear. Some start with choices we have made, our mistakes, and sins. Other stories tell of difficult relationships, hopes and plans that fell apart, or the struggle to find our way. Some storms arise out of nowhere and take us by surprise. Other storms build and brew as we watch. Storms happen; storms of loss, sorrow, suffering, and confusion, storms of failure, loneliness, disappointment and regret, storms of depression and uncertainty. Storms bring unwelcome changes. Life becomes overwhelming and out of control. Circumstances seem too much for us to handle. Order gives way to chaos. We are sinking. The water is deep and the new shore a distant horizon. Jesus was unafraid of the chaos raging around him. In the face of certain death, Jesus slept soundly. So the disciples roused Jesus and shouted at him, so their voices were louder than the noise of the wind and the waves. “Master, master, we are perishing!” We often don’t tell Jesus how afraid or angry we are. We should. “Does it matter to you Jesus that I am in pain, frightened and can’t feel your presence when I pray?” Honest, passionate cries of the heart show a longing for God’s presence and for him to act. If God is so great, powerful, and caring why do awful things happen? The ready response is either God has no power, or God doesn’t care. Sometimes our love and care cannot bring the healing our world needs. Rather than assuring his disciples that everything would be alright, Jesus turned toward the wind, waves, darkness and chaos that threatened to engulf them and rebuked the wind. He used the same rebuke when casting out demons because in the minds of ancient Jews the sea was thought to be where demons and other evil forces dwelt. Jesus silenced dark powers, and forces of nature. Holy men drove out demons but only God could silence the wind and sea. A great calm came over the sea. The terror of the storm was driven away. The wonderful order of creation was restored. Jesus turned to his disciples and spoke for the first time since he’d fallen asleep. He asked, “Where is your faith?” The terror of the storm had gone but a different kind of fear had taken its place. Jesus wasn’t the person they thought he was. Their friend and teacher now seemed someone more distant; not like them at all. Awesome fear similar to the fear of the shepherds when they saw the angels led the disciples to ask, ‘Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?” After all they had seen Jesus do they still did not know who he was. When full of fatigue, fearful we are perishing, Jesus asks, “Where is your faith?” If Jesus has power over the wind and waves he has power to bring change in our chaos. Sin, sickness and death will not have the final word. Jesus will. He asks, “Why don’t you trust me in the darkness, when you feel overwhelmed and think you are sinking? Why do you try to rescue yourselves? Don’t you recognise that I the Lord of wind and sky are with you in your boat? Have faith in me.” We can continue to live in the world of fear and chaos, seeing ourselves as alone without the power of God, living in a world controlled by the power of Satan and demonic forces or we can hear the message of King Jesus who offers a new future for our world and lives. When the winds and waves threaten to overwhelm us Jesus speaks to the wind and the waves within. In the midst of the storm Jesus seemed absent, passive, uncaring. How could he sleep? Sleeping Jesus was in the same boat and storm as the disciples. He was surrounded by the same water, blown by the same wind, beaten by the same waves. His response, however, was different. While disciples fretted and worried he slept. The disciples wanted busyness and activity. Jesus slept in peace and stillness. His sleep reveals that the greater storm and threat is not the circumstances in which we find ourselves. The interior storm of fear, vulnerability, and powerlessness blows us off course, beats against our faith, and threatens to drown us. Too often anger, isolation, cynicism, or denial becomes our shelter from the storm. Faith does not eliminate storms in our lives. It changes our focus, enabling us to know Jesus is with us, giving us peace. The power of God is stronger than any wave that beats against us. The love of God is deeper than any water that threatens to drown us.
As our world situation deteriorates who and what do we trust to get us out of the mess we find ourselves in? Where do we go for refreshment? What waters, feeds and sustains us? During the pandemic many of us have been living like the shrubs in desert that Jeremiah describes. We are still alive, but life has become parched and painful. Unable to mix and feel safe we haven’t had the friends and support we would normally have around us or the refreshment we once enjoyed through holidays and trips out. No longer confident in our leaders and hearing lots of differing advice we do not know who to trust. Do we drop all restrictions, lateral flow tests and face masks on the 21st February as the government advocates or do we follow the medical advice and continue as we are? Is the dropping of the restrictions the relief that we are all waiting for? Will it increase our sense of well being or blessedness or our sense of anxiety? As we look at the amount of debt our country is in, inflation and worry about keeping ourselves warm and feeding ourselves many are feeling far from blessed. While many are hungry and mourning their losses, others we hear are living rich, privileged lifestyles. They are the ones laughing and partying now, not those they have tried to do the right thing and keep themselves and others safe. Jeremiah says we are cursed if we trust in mere mortals and make flesh our strength. Globally humans continue to trust in the rich and powerful in the false belief that they can get things done. Surprisingly, Boris is still in position despite his obvious failures to keep his own law. The public like people who believe they know what they are doing; those who trust in their own strength. They appear to be stronger than those who trust in God. They also like those who promote their idea of having as good time, partying, booze, sex sticking two fingers up at the rules, hence the Trump phenomenon in America and the popularity of President Putin in Russia. Our leaders reflect the sins of the nation. We have put them there. Whilst our prime minister has appeared to act like a clown recently, he is an astute politician and will do what brings popularity. He is aware of the need to make us feel better and nothing would do so more quickly than believing that the virus is now under control. Some still trust in science. Our prime minister advocated this until now. He now differs from the views of most scientists. Most doctors do not think lifting all restrictions is right. Science is important. I am grateful for the vaccines that have given us a level of freedom and for all the research that enabled them to be delivered so quickly. Science also has its limitations. Healing is not found for all illnesses and conditions and when one sickness is overcome more mutations take place and others appear. When we place anyone or anything above God we are committing idolatry. The people of Judah were committing idolatry in Jeremiah’s time. They had been worshipping Baals and material wealth. They had rejected Yahweh and their heritage and were soon going to suffer the consequences when they were defeated by Babylonia. Many were killed and their elite and temple riches were taken away into exile. Life was grim for the poor and it was going to get worse. They had a choice to make. They could continue to live in parched places like a shrub in the wilderness or they could be like trees sending out its roots by the stream. Whether they turned back to the Lord or not they were still going to suffer the economic and physical consequences of their nation’s sins. However they could remain in salted, poisoned land with no hope of relief or they could receive nourishment from the Lord. We need to be rooted and grounded in the Lord. Jesus is living water and the bread of life. He waters, feeds and sustains us when our lives are lived prayerfully, worshipping in his presence. In contrast to those who have broken the rules, the church today is often depicted as weak and ineffectual. We are often seen as miserable, boring spoil sports. This is not how the Lord sees us. A tree by water is strong and attractive to others. It does not fear the heat or the cold and it does not cease bearing fruit. The nation needed strong, fruitful leaders from amongst the poor who were left behind. They needed trees, not shrubs. We are blessed when we trust in the Lord even if what is happening around us gets worse. We need to make sure our hearts are right and that we are pure within so that we are ready for what God is going to do in our times through us. After Jesus has spent a night in prayer and chosen his disciples, multitudes came to him for healing and deliverance. Those who were troubles and considered unclean were cured. They knew where to find healing and refreshment in troubled times. They were not however ready to become followers or disciples of Jesus. Jesus looked up at his disciples knowing all they were going to suffer for him, that they would be poor, hungry, and mourn the loss of many things. Worse still they would be persecuted, hated, reviled, excluded and defamed. He reversed all the Jews thought about blessing and happiness by telling his friends that when they suffered these things they were blessed. They were to rejoice and leap for joy for their reward would be great in heaven. Making godly choices is costly but ultimately rewarding. Jesus reassures us there will be a great reversal for those who are rich, full, laughing and partying now. They will hunger and weep. However bad things get, we are nurtured, fed, watered and strengthened by our relationship with the Lord. As we trust in him we will be fruitful and bring healing and hope to those around us.
