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Purple. Flower. These were Kathryn’s first two words – At least the first two words that Dave and I most remember, Oh, she might have said an animal sound - A bow-wow or a moo-moo - sometime earlier, but it was purple and flower that marked her entry into language and defining the world. So, how did purple and flower – Out of all the other words in the English language – Come to be her first words? Well, I know how it happened with purple. Above Kathryn’s changing table, there was a wall hanging of Noah’s Ark with removable multi-colored animals made out of felt. Every time she was on that table, Dave and I took down one of the animals, And said look at the yellow lion, Or the orange giraffe. We showed her the elephant a lot Which was – yes – purple! I’m not so sure how flower came to be one of Kathryn’s first words, but I do remember where she first said it. We were at my sister-in-law’s house and she was showing us the new flower beds she had planted and watered that were in full bloom. Spotting a type of flora I had never seen before, I asked “What’s this?” Kathryn, who I was holding on my hip at the time, Looked right at me and said, “FLOWER!” I do believe she looked at me with disbelief and maybe even a roll of the eye, But that’s another story for another sermon! In today’s Scripture lesson from Mark’s gospel, We hear two of Jesus’ first words in the Scripture: Repent. Believe. I am sure that Jesus shared other words with his friends and his family, But these words mark Jesus’ entry into public ministry and the way he defined the world – In heaven and on earth. These two words are among the important ones, the ones that the author of Mark’s gospel wants us to remember. I know – And many of you know too – how Jesus learned the word repent. It was from his cousin John the Baptist. Mark’s gospel tell us – in the verses preceding those we hear today – that John went through the countryside preaching a baptism of repentance. And so Jesus follows in the tradition of John and so many other prophets in Jewish history calling for God’s people to turn their lives around, to reorient themselves from the world’s values and ways to God’s values and ways. I’m not sure where Jesus learned the word believe, But I do know when and where he spoke it. It was in Galilee after John’s arrest, after he emerges from the womb of the wilderness. In the wilderness – Where the wild things are – And angels too – Jesus learned to believe that he had been called to speak these particular words for that particular time and for all time: Repent. Believe. The first words of Jesus are a new word to us as we begin our Lenten journey. It is a new word– not because we haven’t heard it before - But because Jesus’ words have the potential to create new life, new hope, new possibilities for us and for the world. For the next forty days – well, actually 36 since Lent actually began on Wednesday – we are invited to follow Jesus’ invitation to repent and believe. What does it mean to repent? It’s a word often found in the Bible – In fact if the children who received their Bibles today read them all the way through, They would discover that the word is used 100 times. In the Old Testament, the Hebrew Bible, And in the New Testament – the gospels, the Acts of the Apostles, even in the book of Revelation. It’s an often used Biblical word, But not a word we use a lot in our church. Part of the reason for that, I think, is because it has a negative connotation and association Sometimes when we think of repentance, we imagine an accusing finger waving in our faces and a stern voice. “Look here, you’ve got a long way to go to become the kind of person that God wants you to be. Your life is a wreck. There’s nothing else that you can do but get down on your knees and beg for forgiveness.” That stark type of repentance might be necessary and might work for some of us at some point in our lives, But I’m not sure that is the type of repentance that Jesus invites us to participate in. Repentance literally means to change direction. Repentance is making a U-turn in our lives as individuals and as a community. If we’re honest – And Jesus calls us to be honest – then we can admit that we travel some highways and walk on some roads going in the wrong direction. There are moments and days we travel on the highway of selfishness and fear and greed and control. We’re often on the road of anger and bitterness and intolerance and impatience. Repentance calls us to circle around and go back the other way, The way of God, The way of sharing and humility, The way of acceptance and patience, The way of justice and peace. Friends, Jesus called people to repentance – I think, because he believed people could change. He believes that you and I can come around, because he knows we have the the power of God, A God who can make all things new, A God with whom all things are possible, A God whose steadfast love and mercy are forever. Turn around, Jesus says, Make a U-turn. Turn around and Believe. And what, then, does it mean to believe? Poet and writer Kathleen Norris offers a definition of “believe” based on the root of the word in Greek. To believe, she says, is “to give one’s heart to.” Believing, especially for a Christian, Is not just thinking about or agreeing with Jesus’ words. It is giving our whole hearts – And our whole lives – to the good news that Jesus preaches. There were other people announcing the good news in Jesus’ day. Remember the Romans were in charge, And Jesus and his people were living under their rule. Roman officials announced the good news when a new prince was born, or a hard fought battle was won, or when an important political leader was coming to a town or a city. And Jesus announced a new and different kind of good news: The kingdom of God is at hand! That proclamation is just as true today as when Jesus first preached it. The good news is that this kingdom invites and includes everyone, and promises that we are never left alone, No matter who we are or where we are in life. Jesus and the kingdom that he brings promises that the blind will be given sight, The lame will walk, The stranger and the outcast will be welcomed, And the captives will be set free. Friends, Can we give our hearts to this good news over the next 40 days? Will we let this kingdom come? Can we believe that Jesus will give us a new vision of who God calls us to be – individually and as community of faith? Can we give our hearts so that Jesus can give us the strength to walk during the season of transition we have entered as a church family? Can we give our hearts so that those we now call strangers will one day become our friends? And in the midst of the economic crisis that swirls around us, will we give our hearts so that Jesus can set us free for abundant living and abundant giving? Repent. Believe. Change direction. Give your heart. Friends, let these words be our companions and our teachers as we come to the table of the Lord this Lenten season. Amen and amen. |