Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21; 2 Peter 1:2-11; Joel 2:12-19
In the Name of the Father and of the
+ Son and of the Holy Spirit.
Ash Wednesday
marks the beginning of Lent, a forty-day period of preparation for The Feast of
the Lord’s Resurrection, Easter Sunday. The forty days of Lent are patterned
after Jesus’ forty days of fasting in the wilderness, resisting the temptations
of the devil by His trust and reliance upon the Word of God. Thus, you already
begin to see what your preparation is to be like. For, you also must learn to
trust and to rely upon the Word of God and not your self or your own works.
Indeed, your Lord’s Word to you this day is “Beware,” “Beware of practicing
your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them.”
But, what
does Jesus mean? Truly, we often hear of our being made righteous by
God’s decree on account of the innocent shed blood of Jesus, but what does
Jesus mean by “practicing your righteousness?” Well, just as no one will call
you a runner if you do not run, and no one will call you a singer if you do not
sing, so you are not righteous if you do not practice righteousness. That is to
say, if you do not bear the fruit of righteousness in your life, words, and
deeds, then you are not righteous. That is what St. James means when he says
that “faith without works is dead.” And, that’s what Jesus means when He says, “Every
tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.” And
then, Jesus goes on to exhort you to three very specific ways in which you
practice your righteousness: Fasting, prayer, and almsgiving. These have come
down to us as the traditional Three Pillars of Lent.
Now, typically,
Protestants, and even some Lutherans, have been quick to call the observance of
the Three Pillars man made Roman Catholic tradition. While it is true that the
Roman Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church are the largest Christian
fellowships that still encourage and practice the Three Pillars, it is simply
false to conclude that the Three Pillars are merely the doctrines and
traditions of men. They are not, but they are Biblical, even taught by our Lord
Jesus Himself, which you heard for yourself in today’s Gospel. Additionally,
Jesus doesn’t make these disciplines optional. He doesn’t say, “If you
give to the needy,” but He says “When you give to the needy,” “When
you pray,” and “When you fast.” However, while they are not optional,
Jesus also teaches that they do not constitute righteousness, but rather, they
are the practice of righteousness. Thus, you do not give alms, pray, and fast
in order to earn or merit righteousness – for, you could never give, pray, or
fast enough to make even a small movement towards righteousness – but you give
alms, pray, and fast because you are declared righteous by God in the innocent
shed blood of Jesus Christ.
That is why
Jesus warns you to “Beware,” “Beware of practicing your righteousness before
other people in order to be seen by them.” But, note, the warning is not to
beware practicing your righteousness, but the warning is in regard to the
reason you are practicing your righteousness. If you are practicing your
righteousness in order to be seen by other people so that they will think you
righteous, then, Jesus says, you already have your reward; you have the
admiration and praise of men. In that case, even though your righteousness
comes from God alone through Jesus Christ, you give men the impression that righteousness
comes from yourself, or from other men.
And, so, you
can easily see why giving alms, praying, and fasting have become traditional
Lenten disciplines, for, they are selfless acts, that is to say, they are not
turned inward upon oneself, but they are turned outward towards both God and
neighbor. Moreover, these disciplines place you in a receptive mode, in a mode in
which you are receptive to what God freely provides and gives to you. These
works of yours are not your righteousness, for, that comes from the LORD alone,
but they are the fruit of your God-given righteousness and, thus, the practice
of your God-given righteousness.
The Lenten
disciplines serve to reorient you to the two tables of the Law and the Great
Commandment: “Love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, soul, and mind; and
love your neighbor as yourself.” For, you cannot obey the second table, about loving
your neighbor, until you obey the first table about loving God. Consequently,
if you obey the first table, then, consequently, obedience to the second will
follow naturally as fruit. You will, without even having to work at it, be laying
up treasure for yourself in heaven. And, where your treasure is, there your
heart will also be.
God knows
that you have strayed. I have strayed too. But, do not despair. Rather, take
heart and return to the LORD. For, your LORD still says to you, “Return to me
with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning; and rend
your hearts and nor your garments.” “Return to the LORD your God, for He is
gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love; and He
relents over disaster.” Truly, this is what Lent is all about – repentance.
Repentance means, “to turn back,” and repentance, turning back to the LORD, is
what it means to prepare for Easter. Lent is an opportunity to reorient
yourself in relation to your God. It’s a First Commandment opportunity to
return to having no other gods before Him, not even yourself, and to fearing,
loving, and trusting in Him above all things.
For, the LORD
remains jealous for you. He will not share you with another god, not that there
is another. Therefore, “He is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and
abounding in steadfast love.” In fact, what He desires for you is “that you may
become partakers of His divine nature.” Thus, because you could not become what
He is, divine God, He became what you are, a human being, in the incarnation of
His Son Jesus Christ – God became man, that man might become God. And, the
Lenten disciplines of almsgiving, prayer, and fasting, along with other forms
of selflessness and self-sacrifice – faith, virtue, knowledge, self-control,
steadfastness, godliness, brotherly affection, and love – “keep you from being
ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.” But, you
must practice these disciplines, and do so with this promise, “if you practice
these qualities you will never fall. For in this way there will be richly
provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior
Jesus Christ.”
Yes, practice
righteousness, but always recognize and remember that righteousness comes from
outside of you, the free gift of God in and through Jesus Christ. So whatever
you give away, whatever you pray, and whatever you abstain from, do these
things, not because you believe that they please the LORD or merit His favor,
but do them because of the righteousness you have received as a free and
perfect gift in Jesus Christ. Sacrifice yourself now because of the sacrifice
God has made for you in His Son Jesus, who gave up all things rightfully His
out of love for His Father and for you, believing, knowing, and trusting that
the LORD who made all things and who gave us life is able and willing to give
you all things.
And, so, when
you give, pray, and fast, you lose nothing at all, but you gain more of what
your LORD graciously desires to pour into you. But, He will pour into you and
fill you to overflowing so that you will have much to share. Thus Jesus teaches
“when,” not “if.” “Give, and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed
down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For with the
measure you use it will be measured back to you.” This is true all the year
round. But, during Lent, it will be a blessing to you to be intentional about
believing and trusting in the LORD and His Word. He desires to bless you. May
you receive His blessing and be a rich blessing to others to the glory of His
Name.
In the + Name of Jesus. Amen.
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