Lent 3: Psalm 95: Justified

 This is the Third Sunday of Lent. That means that Lent is almost half over. If you took on a special Lent discipline, this is a good time to evaluate how it’s going. Sometimes we think we can earn God’s approval and love by our actions. Especially in Lent we give up, or take on, a special discipline to repent and be better. The lessons today are about being justified, through God’s action and not our own.

What exactly does it mean to be ‘justified’? The theological definition is to be “made righteous in the sight of God.” We can also say something is justified if it is done for a good reason, or is reasonable or logical. In writing and printing we also make margins justified when they are aligned. Perhaps to be justified with God, then, is to be aligned with God. As the Epistle (Romans 5:1-11) says, God proves his love for us in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us….we have been justified by his blood…while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, much more surely, having been reconciled, will we be saved by his life. We are justified with God by Jesus on the Cross—a gift of grace that invites all the world into union and unity with God.

Today’s Psalm is 95 which starts out joyfully praising God. At verse 8, the Psalmist warns us to harden not your hearts (don’t be stubborn) your forebears did in the wilderness, at Meribah, and on that day at Massah. This incident is recounted in the Sunday Old Testament reading from Exodus 17:1-7 when the Israelites during the Exodus complain to Moses about not having water. So, Moses called the place Massah and Meribah, because the Israelites quarreled and tested the Lord, saying, “Is the Lord among us or not?” When we test God, harden our hearts, or are stubborn (Easy To Read Version) we are not justified or in line with God’s way. When we are aligned with God, we can see God at work.

The Gospel today is a reminder that Jesus reached across cultural and religious lines to break down barriers. We hear the story of the Samaritan Woman, or Photini as the Eastern Orthodox name her. Photini was an outsider in her community, having had five husbands and currently living without marriage to a man. As a Samaritan, she was someone no Jew would speak to. Yet Jesus breaks down the centuries high wall of distrust and hatred to share with her the truth of his Messiahship. She became justified simply by being herself. She shares her hope in the coming of Messiah. The Epistle says, hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us. Photini finds this to be so true that she runs to tell her neighbors come and see a man who told me everything I have ever done! He cannot be the Messiah, can he?

Are you feeling aligned with God this Lent? Are your Lenten disciplines helping you feel justified and reconciled? 

Lent is a time of turning from things that separate us from God’s love so that we are justified. Then we can come and worship him with songs of thanks. Let us sing happy songs of praise to him.

This image is of a split rock in Saudia Arabia that some have claimed is the actual rock at Meribah that Moses split to produce the water during the Exodus. While it probably isn’t, it is an impressive place that might make us ponder what rocks God is splitting in our lives this Lent so that living water can flow in our lives. 

Is there something hard in your life that keeps you from full justification with God?

Psalm 95 1 Come, let us sing to the Lord; * let us shout for joy to the Rock of our salvation. 2 Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving * and raise a loud shout to him with psalms. 3 For the Lord is a great God, * and a great King above all gods. 4 In his hand are the caverns of the earth, * and the heights of the hills are his also. 5 The sea is his, for he made it, * and his hands have molded the dry land. 6 Come, let us bow down, and bend the knee, * and kneel before the Lord our Maker. 7 For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture and the sheep of his hand. * Oh, that today you would hearken to his voice! 8 Harden not your hearts, as your forebears did in the wilderness, * at Meribah, and on that day at Massah, when they tempted me. 9 They put me to the test, * though they had seen my works. 10 Forty years long I detested that generation and said, * “This people are wayward in their hearts; they do not know my ways.” 11 So I swore in my wrath, * “They shall not enter into my rest.” (Book of Common Prayer)

Come, let us sing praise to the Lord! Let us shout praises to the Rock who saves us. 2 Come and worship him with songs of thanks. Let us sing happy songs of praise to him. 3 For the Lord is a great God, the great King ruling over all the other “gods.” 4 The deepest caves and the highest mountains belong to him. 5 The ocean is his—he created it. He made the dry land with his own hands. 6 Come, let us bow down and worship him! Let us kneel before the Lord who made us. 7 He is our God, and we are the people he cares for, his sheep that walk by his side. Listen to his voice today: 8 “Don’t be stubborn, as you were at Meribah, as you were at Massah in the desert. 9 Your ancestors doubted and tested me, even after they saw what I could do! 10 I was angry with them for 40 years. I said, ‘They are not faithful to me. They refuse to do what I say.’ 11 So in my anger I made this vow: ‘They will never enter my land of rest.’” (Easy to Read Version)

 

Temptations

"Temptation" Some synonyms are lure, enticement, attraction, invitation, pull, inducement, appeal, excitement, desire. Temptations are things that draw us away from God. They can be big things, but more often they are the little distractions that coax us away from time with God.

The prayer says “lead us not into temptation”. The modern translation says ‘Save us from the time of trial (or testing)’. Does God lead us into temptation or test us to see if we ‘pass’? Or is it our own decisions that let us slip into some habits that seem innocent and maybe more exciting than the relationship with God that is being focused on in the Lord’s Prayer? Temptations might be things that look good and important. Not too long ago on the internet a saying circulated “More than needing schedule and productivity, this week will need a Savior and prayer. God’s not asking you to produce, he’s asking you to pray. God’s not asking you to climb ladders, He’s asking you to kneel and let go.” (Ann Voskamp)

Sometimes we forget that God is in charge of everything we have, like our daily bread and the sunrise and even the trials and yes the temptations. So we can turn them back over to God. We can, as the little saying goes, “kneel and let go.”

Part 1

Make a Prayer rock. This is simply a rock wrapped in cloth to remind you of what to do with your temptations. There’s a little poem that goes along with it that you can tie onto the rock, if you want.

I’m your little prayer rock and this is what I’ll do.
Just put me on your pillow till the day is through.
Then turn back the covers and climb into your bed
And WHACK … your little prayer rock will hit you on your head.
Then you will remember as the day is through
To kneel and say your prayers as you wanted to,
Then when you are finished just dump me on the floor,
I’ll stay there through the night-time to give you help once more.
When you get up the next morning CLUNK…I stub your toe
So you will remember your prayers before you go.
Put me back upon your pillow when your bed is made,
And your clever little prayer rock will continue in your aid.
Because your heavenly Father cares and loves you so,
He wants you to remember to talk to him… you know.

Part 2    Help us not forget our Source

In the Aramaic translation, we pray “help us not forget our Source”. When we give in to temptations, we do tend to forget Who the Source of all things is. When we let go of the temptations that lead us away from that Source, we are return to unity and union.

One way to keep connected to the Source of all life is to start a Thanksgiving diary. Just like the name implies, this discipline involves writing down at least one thing we are thankful for each day. Remembering our blessings helps us move past temptations and turn to God. Ann Voskamp, in her blog AHolyExperience.com offers monthly suggestions for finding 3 things each day to be thankful for. She calls it the “Joy Dare” and you can download it.

Next week we consider the protection God offers when we turn to Him rather than depending on ourselves.