Ash Wednesday: On the Road to Jerusalem

“When the days drew near for Him to be taken up, He set His face to go to Jerusalem.”—Luke 9:51

Today is Ash Wednesday, which marks the beginning of Lent, the forty-day period of time before Easter (excluding the six Sundays—which actually brings the total to forty-six days).  Lent is short for Lenten, from the Old English word, lencten, which means "spring" and "lengthen." Because Spring is coming and the days are getting longer, this period of time came to be known as "Lent."

The reason for the forty days finds its root in Scripture: Moses (Exodus 34:28, Deuteronomy 9:11, 18, 25; 10:10) and Elijah (1 Kings 19:8) both fasted forty days, as did our Lord (Matthew 4:1-11; Mark 1:12-13; Luke 4:1-13). It is called “Ash Wednesday” because of the ashes used to place on adherents’ foreheads as a sign of repentance. The ashes come from the burnt palm fronds used in the previous year’s Palm Sunday service.

Lent traditionally begins with an examination into Christ’s time in the desert, when He fasted for forty days, tempted by Satan (Matthew 4:1-11; Mark 1:12-13; Luke 4:1-13) in preparation for the ministry that awaited Him. As Christ prepared Himself, we too, prepare ourselves for the days leading up to holy week through prayer, repentance, almsgiving (giving food and money to those in need), and self-denial (fasting).

Lent was observed early on in church history, much more than Advent. While the birth of Christ is of vital importance for the Christian and essential in formulating our understanding of Christ’s identity and establishing His deity, it is only mentioned in two of the four Gospels (Matthew 1:18-2:23; Luke 1:26-2:40). In contrast, the last week (sometimes called “Passion Week”) of Christ’s life, His crucifixion, and resurrection are mentioned in each Gospel with several chapters devoted to each.

While there is no command for its observance in Scripture, church history shows that Lent was a thoroughly established practice in the early church. The church father Irenaeus of Lyon (c .130-c.200) wrote about its observation, but back then it was a fast for only two or three days, not the forty observed today. Several other church fathers refer to the practice of Lent: Athanasius (297-373 A.D.), Augustine (354-430 A.D.), and Gregory Nazianzen (329-390 A.D.) all write about it. And at the Council of Nicaea (one of the first councils or gatherings of the worldwide church to address various issues/problems faced in the early church), in 325 A.D., participants discussed a forty-day Lenten season of fasting, but it’s unclear if it was meant for baptismal candidates or for the entire church. Throughout the centuries it was commonplace for baptismal candidates to observe Lent in preparation for baptism to take place on Easter. However, it has become common for it to be observed by the church as a whole, and not just for baptismal candidates.

The practice of Lent fell out of favor during the Reformation, largely due to the fact of widespread abuse, misunderstanding in regards to fasting, and legalist requirements surrounding its observation. However, several churches and denominations have continued its observation into the modern era. And while some have grown up in churches where Lent is regularly observed, others have grown up in environments where Lent is completely foreign. Whatever the case may be, it is important to use discretion and discernment in observing Lent. It is not a requirement for us to observe, but it is a means of honing our attention on Christ and what He did in order to provide salvation for us.

As we prepare ourselves for Lent by humbling ourselves through fasting, prayer, and giving to others, we look to Jesus as He prepared Himself for the last leg of His ministry. The Gospel of Luke records that soon after Moses and Elijah appeared to Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration, Jesus sets “His face to go to Jerusalem.” He knew that suffering and death awaited Him and He was bound and determined to reach Jerusalem in order to purchase our redemption. There was nothing that was going to detour or derail His purpose to give His life as a ransom for many. As He set His face to go to Jerusalem, we set our faces to understand in a much deeper way, what He did for us.

Lent is a time of introspection, contemplation, humiliation, and consecration, as we look forward toward Resurrection Sunday—the time of the greatest celebration. We do things differently at Lent than we do at any other time of the year. Lent has become known as the time when individuals “give up” something for Lent. In church history, it has been known for individuals to give up food, sex, or entertainment while devoting themselves to increased times of prayer, Bible reading, and serving others. Believers have been known to give up certain meals, such as lunch, or kinds or types of food—such as meat, butter, eggs, etc. While in the modern era, some have given up certain forms of recreation and entertainment—i.e. television or radio.

We should hear the words of John Piper, when he writes,

“The Bible is very careful to warn us about people who ‘advocate abstaining from foods, which God created to be gratefully shared by those who believe and know the truth’ (1 Timothy 4:1-3). The apostle Paul asks with dismay, ‘Why…do you submit yourself to decrees, such as “Do not handle, do not taste, do not touch”?’ (Colossians 2:20-21). He is jealous for the full enjoyment of Christian liberty. Like a great declaration of freedom over every book on fasting flies the banner, ‘Food will not commend us to God; we are neither the worse if we do not eat, or nor the better if we do eat’ (1 Corinthians 8:8). There once were two men. One said, ‘I fast twice a week’; the other said, ‘God be merciful to me a sinner.’ Only one went down to his house justified (Luke 18:12-14).

The discipline of self-denial is fraught with dangers—perhaps only surpassed by the dangers of indulgence. These also we are warned about: ‘All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything’ (1 Corinthians 6:12). What masters us has become our god; and Paul warns us about those ‘whose god is their appetite’ (Philippians 3:19). Appetite dictates the direction of their lives. The stomach is sovereign. This has a religious expression and an irreligious one. Religiously ‘persons…turn the grace of our God into licentiousness’ (Jude 4) and tout the slogan, ‘Food is for the stomach and the stomach is for food’ (1 Corinthians 6:13). Irreligiously, with no pretext of pardoning grace, persons simply yield to ‘the desires for other things [that] enter in and choke the word’ (Mark 4:19). 

‘Desires for other things’—there’s the enemy. And the only weapon that will triumph is a deep hunger for God. The weakness of our hunger for God is not because he is unsavory, but because we keep ourselves stuffed with ‘other things.’ Perhaps, then, the denial of our stomach’s appetite for food might express, or even increase, our soul’s appetite for God.

What is at stake here is no just the good of our souls, but also the glory of God. God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in him. The fight of faith is a fight to feast on all that God is for us in Christ. What we hunger for most, we worship.” —John Piper, A Hunger for God, p. 9-10.

He goes further,

“Between the dangers of self-denial and self-indulgence there is a path of pleasant pain. It is not the pathological pleasure of a masochist, but the passion of a lover’s quest: ‘I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish in order that I may gain Christ’ (Philippians 3:8).”—John Piper, A Hunger for God, p. 10.

As we enter into this Lenten season, we do so in sober joy. Knowing that Christ gave His life on the cross for us, in order that we might have life in Him. We understand Lent not as a means of achieving godliness or securing points in the sight of God. Rather, it is to help increase our hunger for God, by enabling us to prepare our hearts to understand in a greater way what our sin deserved and how far God was willing to go to secure salvation for us. Amen.