Repent and Believe

First Sunday of Lent

Today's Reading: Mark 1:9-15

Grace and peace to you in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

‘Repent and believe! The kingdom of God has come near!’ Repent and believe the good news that God is present - God is with YOU - God has broken into our midst and, in Christ, has been let loose onto the world! Repent and believe!

What does it mean to repent? Traditionally we may hear this word and only think of confession, of admitting our guilt, putting all our sins on the table for the rest of the world to see.. but that is actually not what the root of the word means. To repent is actually a turning from… to turn around; to be transformed; to learn and be a new kind of way. So Jesus is actually saying, ‘The kingdom of God is here, God is among you; let that blow your mind! Believe this good news! Turn away from your current life and take hold of something better than anything you’ve ever experienced before! Transform your point of view, transform your life, by turning your eyes to divine things.’

Jesus is going around announcing a new reality. The kingdom of God has come near. Turn and see! Trust this good news! Or risk missing out on what God is doing right under your nose. Repent and believe are also plural imperatives, making this transformation a group effort, rather than individual choice. We as a people, we collectively make up a culture, decide it’s ethos, morals, and values. Jesus is inviting our interconnected web of lives to turn from our imperfect and corrupt ways of life and live into the divine reality of God’s kingdom come. Repent and believe.

We know this is a lot easier said than done. The dominant culture of Jesus’ time was so stubborn and so insistent of keeping their way of life that they put Jesus to death; publically on a cross, to silence all others who would dare try to trade in the powers of empire for the kingdom of God. The desires of the flesh can be hard to resist. We want to be in control, we want power, the comforts of money, the innumerable distractions that keep us from the void of deep questions like ‘Who am I? What is my purpose? What is this life even about?’ We want to feel good and comfortable; we don’t want to surrender to an invisible Being who asks us to do hard things like love our enemies, turn the other cheek, share, forgive indefinitely, see everyone as an equal whom God has created and saved… That’s hard work! So how was this good news to those who heard Jesus’ announcement and how is it still good news for us today?

In the time of Christ this was good news to those who had long awaited the coming of a Messiah to restore life to those oppressed and diminished by the powers that be. The Israelites (who knew the stories of God we hear in our Old Testament scriptures) knew the life happening all around them in the Roman Empire (and empires before) was not the life God intended for God’s people. We may not necessarily live in an empire today, but it doesn’t take much to see that life today is still not the life God intended for God’s people. This news is just as ‘good’ for us today as it was to the Israelites - to know that the Kingdom of God has come near! To know we are not alone and that which separates us from God has been ripped to shreds!

Mark makes this clear twice throughout his gospel. We heard this morning (verse 10) that as Jesus came up from the waters during his baptism the heavens were torn apart. Again this word we translate “torn apart” is used at the end of Mark in 15:38, when Jesus takes his last breath and the curtain of the temple is torn apart. That which separates us from God has been ripped to shreds, and I don’t mean a simple rip like a piece of paper that can be taped back together again, no this is a complete destruction. There is no going back. The kingdom has come near and God has been let loose among us. Repent - let this good news blow your mind and turn your gaze to a new reality - and believe - trust that what Jesus says is true.

When we hear Jesus’ announcement and we turn and see the new way of life laid out before us, we may rejoice.. we may tremble.. we may feel threatened or afraid.. we may feel this is easy or we may feel like this is impossible. However this news hits your heart, it’s okay. Your emotions are valid and God can handle them. The important part is that you have seen and acknowledged the kingdom come near. And no matter how fearful or inadequate you feel in journeying with Christ, hold onto these words spoken by God, “You are my Beloved. With you I am well pleased.” With these words you can stare into the void and remember who you are, who has claimed you, and who has sent you forth.

When Jesus himself went forth into the wilderness, he did so with these words echoing in his head. He also didn’t go into the wilderness alone, for the Spirit had descended on him like a dove. In a way, I suppose we could even go so far as to say from that moment on Jesus was possessed by the Holy Spirit! In Jesus, the Triune God was let loose on the world and announced this truth everywhere he went, even though it ultimately led to his death. Jesus entered into the wilderness in the hand of the Spirit, the same Spirit that holds us and leads us forth today.

The ‘good news’ may also be scary news.. uncomfortable news.. unsettling news.. but above all it is transforming, mind-altering, life-saving news!! Not just for each of us, but for the whole world. Repent and believe; You are God’s Beloved, with whom God is well pleased. You are God’s Beloved, for whom Christ has come - bringing the kingdom near and reconciling the world to God’self, making way for a world better than anything we could ever possibly imagine.

Amen.