Sunday Sermon 21st Feb 2021
Mark 1: 9-15 The late British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher was once asked by a journalist what she believed to be the basis of the Christian faith. Her reply was just one word “choice”. For her, faith was all about making a choice. The choice to believe and follow or to reject it all as fairy stories and just rely on ourselves to handle whatever life brings? I didn’t often agree with Mrs. Thatcher, but in this instance I believe that she was right. Lent gives us the opportunity to make a choice about our faith and about Jesus. In fact, I would say that Lent is one of the seasons of the church which demands we think about our faith. No matter which year it is in the church cycle of readings, there are some constants. One is the story of Jesus being tempted in the wilderness following his baptism where he is affirmed by God. As Jesus was in the wilderness for 40 days to prepare himself for his ministry, the 40 days of Lent is a time of preparation for us as we lead up to the momento