|
Ash
Wednesday signifies the beginning of Lent. Lent is the
forty day period, not counting Sundays, leading to
Easter. Lent is the time when we redouble our effort to
grow in our faith. Ultimately our goal is to be more
like Jesus. In all of our encounters with other people
we need to reflect on what Jesus would do in that
situation and then act accordingly.
The prophet
Joel commands our attention, “Blow the trumpet in Zion;
sound the alarm on my holy mountain! Let all the
inhabitants of the land tremble, for the day of the Lord
is coming.” Clearly there was a sense of urgency in his
words. With such an announcement I can imagine people
scrambling, running wanting to make sure they are ready
for that great day. In ancient times when danger
presented itself people would gather inside the
fortified city for protection. There the people would
be safe. When the alarm sounded the people had better
respond or they would find themselves in potential
danger.
A century
ago when the church bell tolled in small towns and
villages the people gathered. In that simpler time,
without instant communication, the church bell would
call people to worship. In rural areas, when the
circuit rider pastor arrived on horseback, the church
bell would ring announcing the start of worship. Today
some churches continue the practice of ringing their
bell prior to the start of worship. And sadly some
neighbors object to the intrusion to their quiet Sunday
mornings.
What would
it take to get everyone’s attention, to call people
together for an important announcement? We could send
out email to everyone on our address book, we could text
all of our friends, we could phone our family and
friends and ask them to do the same, we could hand out
flyers in our neighborhoods. We could ask the local
radio and television stations to make a public service
announcement. We might ask the fire department to
patrol the streets using their loud speaker telling
people of the news. It would take an all out effort,
utilizing as many people and means as possible to get
the word out.
In Joel’s
mind it was clearly a matter of life and death. The
alarm that Joel sounded summoned the people together but
was also a call to action. A half hearted effort would
not do, drastic changes were desired from all the
people. We have lost that sense of urgency today,
especially when it comes to matters of faith and the
work of the church. Too often we put off what we should
be doing making all sorts of excuses. Lent is the time
when we examine our lives and make the necessary
adjustments to be more like Jesus. The biblical word is
repent.
To repent
means to completely change, to turn our lives away from
selfish desires and return to God. Instead of going in
the direction you have been headed to stop, make a
complete about face, and go in the opposite direction
that is what it means to repent. What we thought was
important is no longer once we have changed our hearts
and focus on Jesus. Lent is about reordering our
priorities.
This is the
point where many of us get stuck. When we view
ourselves as faithful followers we fail to recognize the
sin in our own lives, but have no difficulty identifying
sin in others. They are the ones who need to change, we
say, not us! The call comes to all of us, at the start
of Lent, to admit the sin in our own lives. When we
repent and seek forgiveness we are forgiven. We come
wanting to draw nearer to our Lord and Savior Jesus
Christ.
The prophet
Joel, speaking the word of God, invites everyone to,
“return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with
weeping, and with mourning.” Return with all your
heart, giving the Lord your best effort not only during
the forty days of Lent but always, from this moment
forward.
During Lent
we are encouraged to practice the Lenten disciplines, of
prayer and fasting. We purposely set aside time, and
make additional time to pray and read our Bibles. As we
mature in our faith we no longer pray giving God our
shopping list of things that we desire but rather seek
to know God better, to follow God’s will. We pray by
listening for God’s Word for us as individuals, as a
community of faith, and as a nation.
Another
Lenten discipline is to fast, go without food for a
period of time, a day or part of the day. The purpose
is not to drop a few pounds but rather to use that time
to grow closer to the Lord. Some will give the cost of
a meal to a worthy charity. Jesus warns us that when we
fast not to make a show out of it like the hypocrites
who wanted everyone to know they were fasting. When we
fast others need not be aware of it.
“Return to
the Lord” the prophet challenges us portraying God as
“gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in
steadfast love.” God is always ready to welcome people
back into the fold. Our God is a loving God, who deals
with us lovingly, mercifully and graciously. Our God
never stops loving us. The truth is that sometimes God
loves us in spite of ourselves.
A pastor
announced that the church would hold a special worship
service for the homeless in the area. Some people lived
in shelters while others remained on the street. The
pastor was surprised when people from the church began
voicing their opposition. Some people did not understand
why they would want to conduct a worship service for
homeless people. Others complained about not wanting
such people in their sanctuary, while others had a hard
time justifying the additional cost of heating the
church an extra night.
On
and on it went until finally the pastor said that the
church was holding a worship service for the homeless so
that people would not go to hell. The pastor’s words
shocked the people. You do not hear much about hell in
the Methodist church these days. Someone asked, “You
mean to tell me that we are having a special service so
those people will not go to hell?” “Oh no,” the pastor
replied, “We are having the service so we will not go to
hell.” That ended the debate. Those words served to
remind the people as the prophet Joel had centuries
before to return the Lord, “for the day of the Lord is
coming, it is near.”
Our lesson
ends with Joel once again sounding the alarm, “Blow the
trumpet in Zion” this time to worship. It is the
religious leaders, the priest who are called upon to
intercede on behalf of all the people, “Spare your
people, O Lord.” With all the people having turned from
their sins, the community will see the difference and
will easily be able to answer the question, “where is
God?” They will know, it will be evident that God is
with all the people.
May what we
do be just as evident to our friends, neighbors and
coworkers. May others see the Christ in us as we go
about our daily activities. Tonight we begin our Lenten
journey knowing that it will end with a cross. The
cross reveals God’s great love for all people. The
cross is transformed from a symbol of death to a means
of grace and new life for all people!
Amen.
|
