Today's lectionary readings:

Psalm 25

Daniel 9: 1 - 14

1 John 1:3-10

Because Lent is a season of penitence, and because we are right at the start of it, perhaps it is no surprise that the identification and confession of sin and guilt are strong themes in these readings.  Yet, it is too easy to read them seeing a kind of angry God wielding a big stick to punish those others whom we perceive as sinful... whoever 'they' might be.  It is too easy to fall into the trap popular among some Christians that says 'we won't be judged' because we have been 'saved'. Hmm. Not sure either of those is a valid reading of scripture in general and these passages in particular.

If you attend worship in a Church of England parish that uses Common Worship, it is more than likely that the lovely words from 1 John 1 will form part of the liturgy:

This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light and in him there is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with him while we are walking in darkness, we lie and do not do what is true; but if we walk in the light as he himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he who is faithful and just will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. (1 John 1:3 - 10 NRSV)

Granted, the first and last sentences are stripped off in the Anglican liturgy, but the near poetry of the central section, prayerfully intoned by a priest to her/his people makes confession a less scary thing, God a more approachable God.

I had to re-read the Daniel a couple of time to find that this same gracious, forgiving God is referred to, amidst the far more scary allusion to calamity as the consequence of sinfulness.  By contrast, the Psalm is quite bold and confident in its approach to God, and whilst it includes an element of confession, suggests a comfortable relationship with God.

One big challenge we face as Christians is, I think, how to find the middle ground that trusts in God's mercy and forgiveness without drifting into a lazy 'anything goes' mentality.  How do we avoid judgementalism at one extreme, as if somehow your sins are worse than my sins, and complicity at the other, as if there is no such thing as sin?  Some stuff around at the moment is giving me much pause for thought here, as I hear ugly language of 'depravity' and 'abomination' banded about lightly... How do I hear what lies behind the language in a way that is neither judgemental or complicit?  How do I find the Christlike response?

Me, a sinner?

Not me, Lord:

I know the law and obey it to the letter

(except the bits about clothes of mixed fibres, and prawn sandwiches, and tearing down mildewed houses...)

Not me, Lord:

I read my Bible every day and pray

(except when I am too tired or too busy or get a better offer or fall asleep)

Not me, Lord:

I do not steal or lie or kill or covet

(except time, except to protect myself, except with my words, except my neighbour's latest must-haves)

Not me, Lord:

I give to charity and to church, with Gift-Aid, 10% and more

(except the week the bills come in or I spot a bargain in the sales or fancy a little treat)

Not me, Lord:

I do not judge or criticise or condemn

(except them - the people who don't think like I do)

Me:

A Sinner

Lord:

Have mercy

Lord have mercy on me, a sinner

Amen.

If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he who is faithful and just will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.