Look at Me!

 

[Jesus said] “And when you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, that your fasting may not be seen by others but by your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.” (Matthew 6:16-18 ESV).

 

There may be no other bird that “struts its beauty” more than a peacock. When I was growing up there was a “retreat” nearby that had dozens of peacocks on their property. I was not a stranger to seeing them as they wandered freely across the landscape. I’ve been told they are amazing foragers. Allowed to roam, they will eat an enormous amount of ticks, termites, spiders, locusts, and other insect pests. They also eat snakes and mice, or at least discourage them from hanging around. I also know from experience they can be very messy and loud in their cries for attention from the females of their species. If you see them with tails fanned, strutting along, it is as if they are saying, “Look at me! I’m special!”

 

In our reading today, Jesus has something to say about that kind of attitude in our lives. He is critical of people who try to get attention for the good things they do (cf. Matthew 6:1). And this time it’s about people who practice fasting to be noticed. The discipline of fasting, like prayer, is meant to draw us nearer to God. When we abstain from food or drink, we engage in what Scot McKnight calls “body talk,” an embodied form of prayer.

 

Thus, we can see why Jesus would be so critical of people who misuse fasting, or any spiritual discipline, by trying to get attention for it. The disciplines are meant to make us “pure in heart” before God. But showing off in front of others only shows how impure a person’s heart really is. And even if some people are fooled by a showoff, God is not fooled. If we are more interested in the attention of others than in our relationship with God, then our attention-seeking is an idol and makes a mockery of God.

 

Our spiritual practices are meant for God, for our relationship with him alone. So, we should be careful in talking about them with other people or posting about them on social media. While there may be a genuine need to process or share experiences with others, we must guard our hearts against the temptation to turn others’ attention into an idol.