Wednesday 5 March 2025

Psalm 51

Background
Today many Christians all over the world are beginning a journey. Today is Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent. They will be remembering Jesus and the events that led up to him being executed. They may go to church today to have their foreheads marked with an ash cross, remembering how Jesus "set his face to go to Jerusalem" (Luke 9:51), a journey he knew would end in his cruel crucifixion.

In today’s reading Jesus was telling his Jewish listeners how they should perform three specific duties of their faith: charity (the giving of alms), prayer, and fasting. His advice was the same for each: don’t be like the hypocrites; be sincere in the practice of your faith.

The word ‘hypocrite’ comes from the Greek word for an ‘actor’ – the man behind the mask. The faces of actors in New Testament times were hidden by a huge mask with a large mouth cut into it through which the actor could speak. The mask could indicate whether the character was a hero or a villain. The acting was restricted to extravagant body movements, such as waving the arms about. The actor’s face, which might have revealed his true feelings (such as nervousness or boredom perhaps), was hidden behind the mask, which showed the character he was acting to the audience.

A hypocrite today is usually someone who publicly denounces a practice of which he himself is privately guilty. The hypocrites Jesus was condemning were the reverse of this. They were flaunting their religious practices for all to see. They announced their almsgiving with trumpet fanfares. They sought the most public places to demonstrate their prayer life. They shunned the actor’s mask so that all could see their miserable, disfigured faces when they were fasting.

Almsgiving, prayer and fasting – these are all good in themselves. But they become diminished when done for the glory of the person doing them. Archbishop Thomas Beckett was troubled by this temptation in TS Eliot’s Murder in the Cathedral saying: "The last temptation is the greatest treason: To do the right deed for the wrong reason."

To Ponder:

• How do you intend to celebrate Lent this year? Why?
• When do you hide behind the mask?

Prayer
Lord, grant us the gift of sincerity with you, with our fellows, and with ourselves. Amen.

Bible notes author: Alan Sharp
Alan is a retired teacher. He lives in St Albans where he is a member of both his local Methodist church and of his parish church. He has been a local preacher and a church organist and choirmaster for over 60 years and writes a monthly article on hymns for The Methodist Recorder.