Sin, serpents, and Satan, it must be lent. It took Leonardo da Vinci almost 3 decades to complete The Last Supper. Toward the end of his work on the masterpiece -- he noticed a man on the streets of Rome -- a perfect model for the last figure -- Judas Ischariot. The man had what da Vinci considered an expression of cold, hardened, malice -- with a hint of evil in his eyes. The man agreed to model and when he arrived at da Vinci's studio, he looked around with sadness. He said, "25 years ago I was here and modeled for this same painting. That's me -- right there -- Jesus." We humans are complex.

Who are we? Why do we exist? Why are we the way we are? What is the nature of evil? How can we resist it? On this first Sunday of Lent, appropriately enough, our scripture readings take us back to the very basics. They address some these basic questions. Philosophers, scientists, artists, poets, and religions have groped for answers to those questions from as far back as we know. These are the universal questions -- questions that unite all humans in a common quest and separate humans from other species in the capacity for that quest.

"Who or what are we?" we wonder. The fields of natural science can only go so far -- to describe how we're composed. The fields of social science can only go so far -- to describe how we've behaved under various circumstances over time. But in response to the matter of who we are, of where we come from and where we're going, all that can be deduced from nature, as Tolstoy observed, is that, "In the infinity of space and the infinity of time infinitely small particles mutate with infinite complexity." Humans are the apex of those mutations as far as we know -- the most mutated creatures on earth. That can be down right disheartening to the members of a species that seems driven to explain its own reason for being in the universe. All that the sciences can tell us is that we are self-conscious organic matter, which reacts to its environment in order to survive and to preserve its genetic code. And in the awareness of that condition, we tend to become neurotic. Why not! Under the circumstances we'd be crazy not to be. It's hardly a romantic or glamorous tale. Is that all we are, though?

Today's story from the Book of Genesis tells a different tale. It describes our condition as caught between the ridiculous and the sublime -- between dust or the primal elements and visions of Eden and God. It tells us that we are creatures -- created by a higher power -- namely God. It tells us that we are matter -- made from basic or primal elements. It tells us that we are, indeed, organic -- that we have life, and that the life within us is somehow different from other forms. It says that the Creator actually breathed life into us and made us living souls -- not just body, but body, mind and spirit -- together. It tells us that God made us different -- "in God's own image" -- for a different purpose -- to till and keep or nurture and preserve the rest of the environment in which our Creator has placed us. It tells us that, in the process, God treated us as creatures with whom our Creator could communicate and to whom God could relate -- to serve our Creator's purposes, which explains our search for God and our sense of incompleteness apart from God. This tale offers an explanation about who and what and why we are -- where we come from and what our purpose is.

This morning's tale goes further -- to address why we are as we are, why we experience ourselves as we do, evil too, and how it originated. It explains that we were not trapped in ambivalence about our selves from the beginning. Shame, guilt, self-doubt -- neurosis were -- not original to the human condition, it says. They were by-products of something else. The tale describes that God and the rest of creation doesn't exist for us, but rather, on the contrary, that we were created for them. It tells us that something turned things upside down. A serpent entered Eden. Now, some have interpreted that serpent, in the tale, as a projection, and others as a personification of evil. If this serpent is a projection, it represents the symbolic externalization of internal evil impulses -- the stirrings within human nature to seek its own will rather than God's -- to seek its own gratification rather than the wellbeing of the Creation. If this serpent is a personification, it represents the symbolic materialization of an external force of evil -- outside human nature. Perhaps it represents both. In a sense it doesn't matter. The affect is the same either way -- evil emerges in the human experience and the serpent symbolizes it. As a serpent moves slowly only to strike suddenly -- so the draw to evil is gradual and subtle, but strikes suddenly. As a serpent is fascinating, but can poison and even kill -- the temptation to evil is fascinating – alluring -- but it poisons or even kills those, who grasp for it. You don’t have to take the Bible literally to take it seriously as God’s Word.

The interaction between the serpent and the human, in this tale, reveals some of the dynamics involved in the human tendency toward evil -- why we do what we do when evil consequences result. The first dynamic is misdirected attention. Somehow, the serpent in the tale gets the human's attention and engages its thoughts toward self. The second is distortion -- by asking, almost innocently, "Did God say, 'You shall not eat from any tree in the garden?'" The serpent distorts God's guidelines for living. The third dynamic is contradiction -- "You will not die." It implies that God doesn't know best. The fourth is insinuation -- "God knows that you will become like God." It is an appeal to pride with more than a hint of doubt -- that God has ulterior motives -- to keep the creature from becoming like the Creator. The fifth is sensual -- the fruit seemed good to eat and looked appealing. The sixth is self-interest -- it was desirable to make one wise. And the seventh is the act, itself. The consequences were negative self-consciousness -- shame -- and a change in the nature of the intended relationship between the creature and the Creator, which affected everything else. How could da Vinci's model for Christ, later, be a perfect model for Judas? Why are we as we are? Why do we do what we do? Why do we experience good and evil in the course of life? This tale explains that humanity has used our unique capacities -- including pursuit of pride and self-interest -- to promote itself as well as the Creator's intentions and the wellbeing of other creatures. Ironically, seeking to be greater than our Creator, humans have become less than we were intended to be.

Conscious of our capacity for good, we seem mystified when children kill their classmates or their own parents. We weren’t created for this, but evil exists and we sometimes we choose it. We seem mystified when strangers from other lands highjack commercial airplanes to destroy skyscrapers -- killing thousands of people they never knew. We weren’t created for this, but evil exists and sometimes we choose it. We seem mystified to learn that our own bombs have killed innocent civilians. We weren’t created for this, but evil exists and sometimes we choose it. We seem mystified when corporate executives lie and steal -- defrauding their own employees and stockholders. We weren’t created for this, but evil exists and sometimes we choose it. Does that sound very negative? It must be lent.

In his Confessions, St. Augustine reflected upon his childhood and how on one occasion he stole some pears from a neighbor's orchard. He explained that he knew the pears belonged to another. He knew the man needed them for his livelihood. He knew that it was wrong to steal. He wasn't hungry. He didn't like the taste of pears. He didn't find pears appealing to the eye. He didn't need them for any reason. Once he took them he threw them to some pigs and he didn't even care for pigs. "What I did need," he said, "was to steal those pears." Augustine concluded that, far from being perfectly balanced between doing good or evil and free to choose between the two, we’re all unable consistently to choose not to sin and are prone to evil even more than good. Does that sound disparaging and discouraging? It must be lent. But the tale isn't finished yet.

The story from Matthew's Gospel for today tells another tale. Jesus was in the wilderness -- in a place devoid of the usual temptations. Even so, there was temptation. In this tale -- not a serpent -- but the devil entered His experience. The setting and the antagonist appeared different, but the issues were similar. There was no fruit to catch his eye, but there was hunger, and those stones looked a lot like bread -- "If you are the Son of God, you could turn these stones into bread." You could eat it, and more, you could feed the world. Then everyone would be fed and would follow you to God. Why not -- it seems good for everyone. But then Jesus remembered something -- a verse (Deuteronomy 8:3). "Man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God." Not food, all right then, what about dazzling the eyes? "If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from the highest edifice in Jerusalem. God will protect you, then you'll know and everyone will see it and be amazed. Then they'll follow you to God. Why not -- it'll be spectacular and good for everyone in the end." But then Jesus remembered something -- a verse (Deuteronomy 6:16). "Do not test the Lord your God." Not a spectacle, all right then, what about greatness? You can rule all the kingdoms of the earth -- have all that power and all that glory -- if only you shift your focus from God. Think of all the good you could do -- the justice and the righteousness you could mandate. You can change history. All you'll have to do is turn from God. Why not -- God will understand. Ends justify means and making the world a better place to live is as good an end as there is. But then Jesus remembered something -- a verse (Deuteronomy 6:13). "Worship the Lord your God and serve only Him."

You see Jesus came to break the power of evil. In the service of Holy Baptism, the Book of Common Prayer tells us to renounce evil -- whether the spiritual forces of wickedness that rebel against God, the evil powers of this world that corrupt and destroy the creatures of God, or all the sinful desires that draw us from the love of God. How? There are 4 ways -- all taken from our Gospel reading.
1^st, remember God and who we really are -- made by God to serve His purposes. Refocus on God and depend upon Him.
2^nd, follow God's guidelines for living. Every set of directions warns that misuse causes harm.
3^rd, Use the authority we've been given. Renounce evil with Christ's authority.
4^th, Bring Him into the equation and take action on His behalf.
This season of Lent is a time to reclaim what God wants of us -- to overcome evil in ourselves and in the world. Let’s not fear evil or let it have its way. Rather, let us stand against it in the strength of Christ and take authority over it in His name. We can't do it alone. We're not meant to. We're not on our own. God is with us and we have each other.