An Easily Defeated Purpose
Are you a sinner? And, if you are, have you committed one of the “Seven Deadly Sins? The “Seven Deadly Sins”… also known as the “Seven Cardinal Sins” or “Seven Capital Vices”… were used by the early Christians to educate and instruct new believers on the subject of the tendency of all human beings to sin. The Roman Catholic Church, the only church that existed for many centuries of Christianity, divided sin into two principal categories: “venial” or relatively minor sins and “capital” or mortal sins. Those individuals who committed capital sins were believed to be under threat of eternal damnation unless… or until… they were absolved through the sacrament of confession or were otherwise forgiven through perfect contrition on the part of the penitent. The Seven Deadly Sins listed by the Roman Catholic church are lust… gluttony… greed… sloth… wrath… envy… and pride. During the forty days and forty nights of Lent, we will examine each of the Seven Deadly Sins and the way in which these various sins appear in our lives today. The bad news is that if one sin doesn’t get you, another one will. The good news, of course, is that Jesus bore all of these sins on the cross for our sake. As we move through these forty days to our remembrance of his crucifixion and death, it is good for us to remember what all of us have done that confirms again the necessity of his great sacrifice.
Of the “Seven Deadly Sins,” the sin of pride is considered to be the original sin and the most serious of the seven deadly sins. It is believed to be the source of all the other sins. At one time or another, we have all heard the phrase, “Pride goeth before a fall” which is taken from the book of Proverbs. When we say that phrase, we are usually talking, of course, about someone else’s pride… which we can easily see… and not our own. And the pride that we see in others is usually blatant. It is easy to see pride when someone says: “My house is bigger than your house” or “My car is faster than your car.” It is a little more subtle when it appears as “I was able to find that dress… that make-up… that gadget… that appliance… that tool… that toy… some rare commodity… and bought it for my nephew… niece… mother… and so on.” That sentence, after all, indicates superior detective work and the personal ability to acquire it and to deliver it to the correct party, which means that the person who is speaking is more important… or superior to… all others who are listening.
Pride manifests itself in other ways as well. To say “I got my doctorate in 1996” might be a mere statement of fact, but it can also be a subtle way of saying either that I am more important than someone else because I have a doctorate… or I am better than someone else because I got mine before they got theirs. “We built our house… our swimming pool… in that neighborhood twenty years ago” can also be a simple statement of fact… or it can be a point of pride if building a house is considered more challenging than simply buying one… or if swimming pools are seen as a luxury commodity that others do not have… or the house that is built is located in a neighborhood that is perceived more desirable than other neighborhoods in the community.
Pride is a subtle thing that can creep into all of our conversations, for the little game of “One-upmanship” seems to be ingrained within us. Whatever we are… whatever we do… whatever we see… whatever we feel… it should be more… or better… or in some way superior to what someone else is… or does… or sees… or feels. After all, pride is “all about me.” Interestingly enough, it can also work in reverse. “I was so sick that I could not even move my little finger without throwing up” is an example of pride in being an extreme negative that no one else could achieve… my illness was worse than anyone else’s. Again, it is all about me.
And so the sin of pride can sneak into even our preparation for Lent… and the piety that we choose to practice during these forty days. Of course, it is always easier to recognize it in others than to recognize in ourselves. I am sure that the Pharisee who went to the temple to pray was not aware that his prayer was filled with statements of pride: “God, I thank you that I am not like other people: thieves… rogues… adulterers… or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week. I give a tenth of all my income.” Yes, we all know what “holier-than-thou” looks like… and sounds like… in someone else… but it is just harder to identify when it is our own.
You and I are in church tonight, marking the beginning of Lent. You and I must certainly be better… more holy… more righteous than all those others who are sitting in front of their television sets… in the comfort of their own living rooms… munching away on chips and dip… or pies and cakes… watching TV. Tonight, as a sign of our penitence, we will receive ashes imposed on our foreheads in the sign of the cross. How many of us, I wonder, will wear those ashes into a public place so that we can subtly let others see that we were penitent… and that we did the “right thing” on this day?
But there is a pride that is even more subtle than that. It is the pride that I call the pride of martyrdom. The pride of martyrdom shows up when we are trying to demonstrate to others that we are giving up more than they are giving up… that we have sacrificed more than they have sacrificed… that we are more humble and self-giving than they are. This can be seen in parents who have given up things so that their children can have opportunities or privileges that they never had… and who remind their children and others of this fact. It is the daughter that drives her parents to their doctors’ appointments… and subtly mentions that when she wants something in return. It is the worker who gives up vacation time to provide a service for someone… and jokingly reminds them of it periodically throughout the year. It can even be the young person who gives up their seat for an elderly person… if that gesture is made so that others might see it… or hear about it… and honor the one who did it.
This is the sin of pride that our text is talking about today. The person Jesus is speaking about is doing all the right things. They are fasting… praying… and giving alms to the poor. The subtle difference is that instead of doing it to honor God, they are doing it so that their friends and family will see that they are righteous. I cannot begin to mention the names of all those who have provided a gift or a service for the church… all of which help our church to survive and for our ministries to flourish. I might never know who some of these individuals are… for the paper towels and napkins magically appear… the dishwasher is emptied… the Sunday School lessons are taught… the children are fed… the closets are cleaned and organized… and the food pantry overflows with food. If I do know, it is usually because I have heard second-hand that someone is tired of doing it... or frustrated by the lack of recognition for their contribution. For whom was that act of service performed? For whom was that gift given? If the act was performed for God… or if the gift was given to God… then, as our scripture says, “your Father who sees in secret will reward you.” If, however, it was performed so that others would see it… and provide some recognition for it, then the sin of pride is at work.
How easy it is for us to defeat the purpose of what we do! All it takes is a touch of self-congratulation… a dash of self-justification… and a smidgen of judgment of those around us… for us to go from a piety… and acts of kindness… that please God… to those that are condemned by God. True piety, you see, only has an audience of one: God.
Rev. Jon Walton of First Presbyterian Church in New York City who was the preacher for the Mid-Winter Lectures at Austin Seminary this year said that performing acts of piety during Lent is like being a member of God’s Secret Service team. As with all Secret Service agents, if your cover is blown, you can no longer do your job effectively… for your effectiveness depends upon your anonymity. Did you know that anonymity is one of the factors that stops some people from signing up to be Secret Service agents? There are people who cannot stop themselves from talking about the good they have done. And yet, if potential terrorists knew who the Secret Service agents were, how easy it would be for them to create havoc in our land! Their effectiveness depends upon their anonymity. How would you like to be a member of God’s Secret Service team? You would have remain anonymous… in your acts of piety… in your generosity… in your acts of kindness. Could you do it? Can you do it for forty days and forty nights? And here’s the kicker: If you manage to do it for forty days and forty nights, can you avoid taking pride in that accomplishment? Can you avoid sitting in judgment of those who are not able to do it? Could any of us? How easily we can defeat the purpose of what we do!
Let us embark on this journey through Lent together and share our struggles as we try to be… more and more… the people of God in this place. Let us encourage each other in that effort. Amen.
Matthew 6:1-6, 16-20