Good evening, my friends and pilgrims. I believe all Christians are pilgrims. Especially those who come to Ash Wednesday Service are serious pilgrims. I welcome all of you in the name of Jesus Christ. I am happy you are here tonight. I thank God for each of you, my pilgrim friends.
I think the focal point of a committal service is when the pastor says…, “Earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust. From dust and ashes you came and to dust and ashes you shall return.” The Bible tells us in Genesis that God formed us out of the dust of the earth and breathed life into what he had formed. Did you know that the Hebrew word for human-being, “adam,” is based on the Hebrew word for red clay, “adama”? In Genesis chapter 2, God made us with red clay. Some people think this image of God forming the first adam out of clay – adama – to be mainly poetic. But science has demonstrated how accurate it actually is. You all know that the human body is mostly water. Remove the water and we are just a pile of chemicals. This pile of chemicals, because of its iron content would probably be red just like the iron rich clay in our yards. Chemically we are not that much different from the clay beneath our feet.
But there is more to this dust and ashes stuff than just our chemical composition. The fact that God breathed into us the breath of life has a spiritual significance. It reminds us that we are dependent upon God. Without God’s breath or spirit (by the way, they are both the same word in Hebrew – Ruach) we are nothing. Without Ruach, we are nothing but the dust in the wind.
The problem is we forget this fact: that we are merely ashes and dust; that we are kin to the dust. We imagine ourselves to be more than we are. We deny our dependence upon God. We delude ourselves into thinking we are masters of our own destiny. That is why we need to repent of our pride. That is why the prophet Joel calls us to repentance. And that is what Ash Wednesday is all about. Remembering what we really are.
And what are we? We are dust and ashes made alive only by God’s Spirit. We are arrogant and sinful little creatures who fail to give God due credit. We are disobedient children in need of our creator’s help. As the prophet Joel warns us, God wants us to rend our hearts and not our clothes. Our repentance is not for outward show. It should be an inward turning from evil.
In Mathew, Jesus warns his disciples not to make a show of their piety. When you fast don’t make it known to everyone or their fleeting admiration will be all you get out of it. Don’t blow a trumpet to call attention to your charity. Hide it instead so that God alone sees it. The benefit you get from it is the satisfaction of doing God’s will. But I believe that’s not the only benefit, the real benefit is (that) that way you can live the Kingdom Life here on earth.
In a moment I will ask you to come forward to have ashes placed on your forehead. Don’t let these ashes be just an outward symbol with no inner significance. Rend your heart and take to heart the significance of our need for God. Later this evening someone might sees the ashes on your forehead and ask you about it. Tell them that you are just lifeless dust in need of the breath of God, the spirit of God. But, don’t stop there. It is true that you are dust, but tell them also that you are living the Kingdom Life in Jesus Christ our Lord.
As I wrote in the newsletter article, I invite all of you to join me, going deeper in terms of our personal faith journey with prayers and fasting during this Lenten season. My pilgrim friends, if there was ever a time to pray – this is the time!
I am calling our church to prayer – intentional prayer and fasting – using the Wesleyan model found in the General Rules of John Wesley. The General Rules state that we should: Do No Harm; Do Good; Obey the Ordinances of God: regularly attend church, receive Communion, pray with our families and alone, read the Bible, search and study the scriptures (alone and with others) to seek guidance and direction, fast and abstain. I am urging you to use these faith practices regularly over the 40 day period of prayer and fasting!
Of course, I also challenge us to pray for healing, reconciliation and peace that our denomination, our community and our world need. To meet the challenges of this time we must be spiritually well-nourished. That’s first. And then, our faith journey should not stop there; we must go deeper first, and then, we must go wider. Our personal faith must be shared. I know, in America, someone’s religious life is regarded as a private affair. But, I want to challenge all of us tonight to get out of our comfort zone. For Lent 2019, my pilgrim friends, be public in your piety – not for recognition, but simply to declare your faith and let the world know whose side you are on. If you go deeper first with your spiritual practices and go wider by sharing your faith, the scripture lessons promise that God will bless not only you but all of us in our faith community and beyond. So, let’s go, pilgrims! May God bless your Lenten pilgrimage! Amen!
