Sermon for First Sunday in Lent 2017
[Gen. 3:1-13; Hebr. 5:7-10; Mk. 1:2-6]
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
"And so John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins." (Mk. 1:4)
Temptation, seduction, influence, misguidance, allurement, enticement...they're all words that are connected to our narrative of the passage we've read in Genesis this morning.
Perhaps we could add one more word: confrontation.
It's a word that makes many of us nervous, uncomfortable; but the Scriptures do not shy away from confrontation, from this tension.
The story in Genesis 3 is usually titled 'The Fall of Man' because it indicates that moment we're told that the disobedience of Adam and Eve had grave consequences for all of humankind of all generations, even now.
What happened then still reflects on our relationship to God today, on how we perceive ourselves as people, more specifically people of faith.
All of humanity is connected and equal in what theology defines as the Original Sin, that what we all share as human beings.
Genesis 3 confronts us with what it means to be human, it confronts us with the very core of our humanity.
Unfortunately this passage has been misused and abused over centuries of Church history in order to promote and justify a repressive treatment of women and their submission to the headship of men.
This is wrong, as the text clearly states that man, Adam, was standing right next to his wife and as such shared equal blame.
Neither should this reading define our attitude towards human sexuality as it has done for far too long; this isn't a narrative about how humankind procreates and on how the Original Sin is passed on, it's a narrative about what the Original Sin means for all of us.
So what does it actually mean? What is it that defines humanity to its core?
Perhaps we can look at it in this way: in the confrontation with the commandment not to eat from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, Eve is indeed tempted to do so.
The argument of the snake that seemingly clinches the deal so to speak is that she will be like God or gods -as the Hebrew elohim is plural.
In other words, she would become something else than she is, something different, because Adam and Even weren't content, not satisfied with who and what they were, namely just human.
The temptation to abandon who they were meant to be was too great.
Maybe this is how we can then define and explain the Original Sin: we all, from the newborn to the very old, carry with us, inside us, the fact that more often than not people aren't satisfied or happy with their humanity, more often than not they want to be something else, something more, in relation to themselves, to their neighbours, even to God.
That first sin from which flow all other sins is that we don't acknowledge the place we were all given, in that God is God and people are people.
This isn't a hierarchy of submission but one of Fatherly and divine care and involvement.
It doesn't mean that being human is a failure; on the contrary, the Original Sin is to think that being human isn't enough, that it's unworthy.
Being human is a free and wondrous gift from God!
Being human is not a sin!
Thinking that being human is a sin, is a sin!
This is the first and foremost sin, that original lie that puts us on an depressing and dark path, that distorts the intimate and intriguing relationship between the Creator and His creatures.
"And so John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins."
So what are we repenting for? And how?
It hardly seems fair that we in 21st century Liverpool should bear the brunt of what Adam and Eve may or may not have gotten up to in the Garden of Eden; but if we're really honest with ourselves we probably have to admit that we too are often not content with who or even what we are.
If we're truly frank with ourselves, we probably have to admit that yes it's part of us, deep down, sometimes more obvious than at other times, but there nonetheless.
And yes it does seem to be part of being human, it lingers in all human beings.
Lent can be a time to confront ourselves with this inner truth, not in a negative and despairing way, but with a refocus and candour that will built up our faith and courage, that reinvigorates to -as Hebrews 1 states- "run with perseverance the race set before us". (Hebr. 12:1)
Martin Luther in his 95 Theses of 1517, in the first thesis, wrote: 'When our Lord and Master Jesus Christ said, "Repent'' (Mt. 4:17), he willed the entire life of believers to be one of repentance.'
So our entire lives are meant to be an open and honest realisation of our own position, a confrontation that refocuses us.
However, Lent graciously offers us a reminder, that nudge we all need from time to time.
Moreover, our God grants many possibilities to mark this season: receiving communion more often, using a Bible reading plan, saving pennies for the collection box, Confession and Absolution, charity work, a silent retreat, fasting, etc...
God's presence and support reaches us in a variety of ways.
After all, with the baptism of repentance also comes the forgiveness of sins!
And when we do despair or stumble, Christ our great high priest is there for us, for each and every single one of us!
When we're tired and spent, from crying and shouting to God, Christ will cry and shout in our stead; that also is a fact we as people of faith may hold true, that also is a certain promise from our heavenly Father!
And the peace of God which passes all understanding keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.