Sunday, February 18, 2024

Lent 1

Genesis 9:8-17; Psalm 25:1-9; 1 Peter 3:18-22; Mark 1:9-15

The Rev. Clint Brown

I can’t remember exactly where or when I first heard this story, but once upon a time, it could be set anywhere, there was a man who cultivated the skill of reproducing very exactly the sounds of various animals. People would come from miles around to hear him and his artistic aping, and, in this way, he came to make a living. One day, a wise teacher passed by with a group of his disciples. The sage looked on appreciatively, if not bemusedly, as the man imitated his way through the animal kingdom, proceeding in turn to grunt like a pig, whiny like a horse, and cock-a-doodle-doo like a rooster, and it struck the sage that he could use this as a lesson to teach his disciples. The following day he put up his own stand and advertised that he would put on a wonder not to be missed for a single showing only, and, as a bonus, not charge any fee at all. When the time came, a prodigious crowd gathered to see just what kind of spectacle the old man would present, but they were disheartened and not a little confused when, instead of some great novelty, the sage brought out, in turn, a pig, a horse, and a rooster. With great gusto, he squeezed each animal until it had made its characteristic sound, then he bowed, deeply and expectantly, waiting for a thunderous ovation. But though the animals’ noises were undeniably accurate on account of being made by living, breathing specimens, the people were not impressed and there was no applause. In fact, they were angry and accused the old man of trickery and drove him for all his troubles from the town with his disciples with a warning not to come back with his silly ideas again. Turning to his disciples, the teacher made his point: “You see,” he said, “the people are so enamored of appearances that they care not for what is real.” It is a good lesson for us today.

I do not need to tell you that there are many counterfeits competing for our attention and our loyalty in the world today. Modernity presents us with any number of glittering distractions and easy answers to difficult questions that would lure aware from the narrow way. This is, as they say, the age of conspicuous consumption. But Lent is a time to see through them all. Lent is a time for recognizing our real hungers. That what we most need, after all, is God. And in terms of what really matters, it's hard to argue for anything more important than our faith and its nurture. Saint Augustine of Hippo said it well in beginning his famous Confessions: "Thou madest us for Thyself, and our heart is restless, until it repose in Thee" (The Confessions of Saint Augustine, I.I). God is a deep, deep mystery – I, for one, find God the most interesting thing there is – and the neat twist is that in pursuing God we are discovering ourselves. God has told us who we are. We belong to God. God pursues us and won't leave us alone. Jesus Christ who is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Follow him. Love him. Worship him. He has the greater claim on your life than any other thing.