ashes to ashes a sign of our sinfulness God s amazing grace Sermon

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1 THE PROMISE OF ASHES Ash Wednesday (Year C) February, 016 Lessons Joel :1-, -17 or Isaiah 58:1- Psalm 51:1-17 (1) nd Corinthians 5:0b 6: St. Matthew 6:1-6, 16-1 Pastor David J. Risendal facebook Dave Risendal Twitter: drisendal Saint Peter Lutheran Church 9300 East Belleview Avenue Greenwood Village, CO / facebook.com/stplc Prayer of the Day Almighty and ever-living God, you hate nothing you have made, and you forgive the sins of all who are penitent. Create in us new and honest hearts, so that, truly repenting of our sins, we may receive from you, the God of all mercy, full pardon and forgiveness through your Son, Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. ashes to ashes a sign of our sinfulness God s amazing grace 1 Grace to you and peace, from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. Welcome to Saint Peter. Welcome to Ash Wednesday. Welcome to Lent. Sermon What we are about to do this evening makes absolutely no sense at least to many of our friends and neighbors. We live in a time when many who share this continent with us are convinced that anything is possible. In fact, yesterday a good number of us participated in, or watched from a distance, the celebration of human potential. Those of us who were mobbing the streets of Denver or (like me) glued to our television sets were cheering on the efforts of our Denver Broncos, 1 Romans 1:7, 1 st Corinthians 1:3, nd Corinthians 1:, Galatians 1:3, Ephesians 1:, Philippians 1:, Colossians 1:, 1 st Thessalonians 1:1, nd Thessalonians 1:, Philemon 3; New Revised Standard Version Bible ( 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America).

2 Ash Wednesday Year C (February, 016) whose accomplishments these past two years are nothing less than spectacular. Twentyfour months ago they showed up in New Jersey with the league s most potent offense, and arguably one of the best quarterbacks ever to play the game, and they were demolished by the Seattle Seahawks. But they went back to the drawing board, made some dramatic changes in the way they structured their team, worked harder than probably any of us even realize, for two long years, and ended up triumphant this past Sunday. The looks on the faces of those who gathered downtown yesterday said it all. Complete awe. And now here we are, just a day later, gathered in this place to mark ourselves with a cross of ashes. It is an admission of our human frailty. It is an acknowledgement that we are entirely incapable of living up to God s standards for us. It is a gesture of humility. From human potential to humility is a long way to travel in twenty-four hours, but it is a journey that has much to do with the core of our faith. And lest anyone think I am reflecting unfairly on Denver football fans, this is true for much of our lives. We live in a culture that celebrates achievement. Financial successes, political victories, stars of the entertainment world, literary achievements these are the brass rings that many of us reach for, and we have created an environment that both makes it possible, and encourages us to throw our hats in the ring. You see, that s why what we are about to do this evening makes absolutely no sense to many of our friends and neighbors. Ashes. Frailty. Brokenness. Humility. These are not the hallmarks of twenty-first century American culture. Yet they are a vital aspect of our faithfulness. We are a confessional people a people who live with no illusions about who we are. Some criticize Christians for being hypocrites. They have heard us say, I can get away with anything I want to do because God will eventually forgive me. or, We re better than you are because we have Jesus. There can be a hubris about our proclamation that ultimately turns more people away from Christ than draws them towards. Tonight is an opportunity for us to proclaim, in worship, that neither of these statements are consistent with the faith we share. Our faith is not what lets us get away with murder. Our faith is not what makes us better than someone else. Our faith is what gives us the courage and honesty and tenacity to admit that, ultimately, we can t do it. Ultimately, we can t be faithful enough. Ultimately, we can t stay far enough away from sin to be considered worthy of God s love. We might be a Super Bowl Champion, but not great at loving and honoring our family members. We might be good at loving and honoring our family members, but not great at serving the needs of people who surround us. We might be good at serving others, but not great at sharing our faith with those who don t know God. We might be good at sharing our faith, but not great at allowing God to be the first priority in our lives. To say that we are human is to confess that we are imperfect. Some might think of this as bad news. In fact, there are many professing Christians who would have nothing to do with a worship service that begins with confession, much less a service of evening worship during which we mark ourselves with this sign of death. But that is not true for us, because these ashes are not just a sign of death. They are also a sign of our God s ability to bring new life out of death. Just a moment ago you and I recited the words of the 51 st Psalm. It is the traditional Psalm for Ash Wednesday we feature it every year on this day. Some people believe it was written by King David himself, not long after Nathan accused him of adultery and

3 Ash Wednesday Year C (February, 016) 3 murder. David had committed grave sin, and he came to understand how his actions were an offense to God. He knew what it meant to have a troubled spirit. He knew what it meant to have a troubled and broken heart. But for David, this was only the beginning. He heard the truth Nathan spoke. He owned up to the sin he committed; a sin that had severe consequences. (And he suffered those consequence!) But he also received from God a clean heart. He received from God a renewed and right spirit. Not by virtue of his own strength and perseverance. But by virtue of God s grace and mercy. Can you imagine these words as words spoken by King David himself? Create in me a clean heart, O God, and put a new and right spirit within me. Do not cast me away from your presence, and do not take your holy spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and sustain in me a willing spirit. 3 I was in a small group about a week ago, and we were meditating on this 51 st Psalm. During this exercise, the phrase that kept jumping out at me was the th verse: Restore to me the joy of your salvation, or as we read it in this evening s liturgy: Give me the joy of your saving help again. David had lost sight of the joy of being in the presence of God. He fell victim to his own lusts and desires. When Nathan called out David, what had gone missing was joy: the joy of God s saving help. This is the great promise of these ashes. As we acknowledge our imperfection; as we confess our faults; as we stand before God in humility, it opens up the possibly that we too might experience the joy of God s saving help again. This is what the ashes signify. This is the purpose of Lent. This is the journey we are invited to walk together during the coming forty days. So welcome to Saint Peter. Welcome to Ash Wednesday. Welcome to Lent. Amen. David J. Risendal, Pastor Gospel Lesson; English Text 4 [Jesus said,] 6.1 Beware of practicing your piety before others in order to be seen by them; for then you have no reward from your Father in heaven. So whenever you give alms, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be praised by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. 3 But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 so that your alms may be done in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you. 5 And whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, so that they may be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their 3 4 nd Samuel :1-15 Psalm 51:-, New Revised Standard Version Bible, op. cit. A list of Bible lessons for the coming weeks is available at

4 Ash Wednesday Year C (February, 016) 4 reward. 6 But whenever you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you. 16 And whenever you fast, do not look dismal, like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces so as to show others that they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. 17 But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, 18 so that your fasting may be seen not by others but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you. 19 Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal; 0 but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal. 1 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. 5 Gospel Lesson; Greek Text: 6.1 Προσέχετε [δε ] τη ν δικαιοσύνην ὑµω ν µη ποιει ν ἔµπροσθεν τω ν ἀνθρώπων προ ς το θεαθη ναι αὐτοι ς εἰ δε µή γε, µισθο ν οὐκ ἔχετε παρα τῳ πατρι ὑµω ν τῳ ἐν τοι ς οὐρανοι ς. Ό ταν οὐ ν ποιῃ ς ἐλεηµοσύνην, µη σαλπίσῃς ἔµπροσθεν σου, ὥσπερ οἱ ὑποκριται ποιου σιν ἐν ται ς συναγωγαι ς και ἐν ται ς ῥύµαις, ὅπως δοξασθω σιν ὑπο τω ν ἀνθρώπων ἀµη ν λέγω ὑµι ν, ἀπέχουσιν το ν µισθο ν αὐτω ν. 3 σου δε ποιου ντος ἐλεηµοσύνην µη γνώτω ἡ ἀριστερά σου τί ποιει ἡ δεξιά σου, 4 ὅπως ἠ σου ἡ ἐλεηµοσύνη ἐν τῳ κρυπτῳ και ὁ πατήρ σου ὁ βλέπων ἐν τῳ κρυπτῳ ἀποδώσει σοι. 5 Και ὅταν προσεύχησθε, οὐκ ἔσεσθε ὡς οἱ ὑποκριταί, ὅτι φιλου σιν ἐν ται ς συναγωγαι ς και ἐν ται ς γωνίαις τω ν πλατειω ν ἑστω τες προσεύχεσθαι, ὅπως φανω σιν τοι ς ἀνθρώποις ἀµη ν λέγω ὑµι ν, ἀπέχουσιν το ν µισθο ν αὐτω ν. 6 συ δε ὅταν προσεύχῃ, εἴσελθε εἰς το ταµει ον σου και κλείσας τη ν θύραν σου πρόσευξαι τῳ πατρί σου τῳ ἐν τῳ κρυπτῳ και ὁ πατήρ σου ὁ βλέπων ἐν τῳ κρυπτῳ ἀποδώσει σοι. 16 Ό ταν δε νηστεύητε, µη γίνεσθε ὡς οἱ ὑποκριται σκυθρωποί, ἀφανίζουσιν γα ρ τα πρόσωπα αὐτω ν ὅπως φανω σιν τοι ς ἀνθρώποις νηστεύοντες ἀµη ν λέγω ὑµι ν, ἀπέχουσιν το ν µισθο ν αὐτω ν. 17 συ δε νηστεύων ἄλειψαι σου τη ν κεφαλη ν και το πρόσωπον σου νίψαι, 18 ὅπως µη φανῃ ς τοι ς ἀνθρώποις νηστεύων ἀλλα τῳ πατρί σου τῳ ἐν τῳ κρυφαίῳ και ὁ πατήρ σου ὁ βλέπων ἐν τῳ κρυφαίῳ ἀποδώσει σοι. 19 Μη θησαυρίζετε ὑµι ν θησαυρου ς ἐπι τη ς γη ς, ὅπου ση ς και βρω σις ἀφανίζει και ὅπου κλέπται διορύσσουσιν και κλέπτουσιν 0 θησαυρίζετε δε ὑµι ν θησαυρου ς ἐν οὐρανῳ, ὅπου οὔτε ση ς οὔτε βρω σις ἀφανίζει και ὅπου κλέπται οὐ διορύσσουσιν οὐδε κλέπτουσιν 1 ὅπου γάρ ἐστιν ὁ θησαυρός σου, ἐκει ἔσται και ἡ καρδία σου. 6 First Lesson; English Text: :1 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, it is near a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and thick darkness! Like blackness spread upon the mountains a great and powerful army comes; their like has never been from of old, nor will be again after them in ages to come. Yet even now, says the Lord, return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning; 13 rend your hearts and not your clothing. Return to the Lord, your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love, and relents from punishing. 14 Who knows whether he will not turn and relent, and leave a blessing behind him, a grain offering and a drink offering for the Lord, your God? 5 6 St. Matthew 6:1-6, 16-1, New Revised Standard Version Bible, op. cit. St. Matthew 6:1-6, 16-1, The Greek New Testament, Aland, Kurt, Black, Matthew, Martini, Carlo M., Metzger, Bruce M., and Wikgren, Allen, ( 1983, Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft Stuttgart).

5 Ash Wednesday Year C (February, 016) 5 15 Blow the trumpet in Zion; sanctify a fast; call a solemn assembly; 16 gather the people. Sanctify the congregation; assemble the aged; gather the children, even infants at the breast. Let the bridegroom leave his room, and the bride her canopy. 17 Between the vestibule and the altar let the priests, the ministers of the Lord, weep. Let them say, Spare your people, O Lord, and do not make your heritage a mockery, a byword among the nations. Why should it be said among the peoples, Where is their God? 7 Alternate First Lesson; English Text: 58.1 Shout out, do not hold back! Lift up your voice like a trumpet! Announce to my people their rebellion, to the house of Jacob their sins. Yet day after day they seek me and delight to know my ways, as if they were a nation that practiced righteousness and did not forsake the ordinance of their God; they ask of me righteous judgments, they delight to draw near to God. 3 Why do we fast, but you do not see? Why humble ourselves, but you do not notice? Look, you serve your own interest on your fast day, and oppress all your workers. 4 Look, you fast only to quarrel and to fight and to strike with a wicked fist. Such fasting as you do today will not make your voice heard on high. 5 Is such the fast that I choose, a day to humble oneself? Is it to bow down the head like a bulrush, and to lie in sackcloth and ashes? Will you call this a fast, a day acceptable to the Lord? 6 Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of injustice, to undo the thongs of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? 7 Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover them, and not to hide yourself from your own kin? 8 Then your light shall break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up quickly; your vindicator shall go before you, the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard. 9 Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer; you shall cry for help, and he will say, Here I am. 7 Joel :1-, -17, New Revised Standard Version Bible, op. cit.

6 Ash Wednesday Year C (February, 016) 6 If you remove the yoke from among you, the pointing of the finger, the speaking of evil, if you offer your food to the hungry and satisfy the needs of the afflicted, then your light shall rise in the darkness and your gloom be like the noonday. The Lord will guide you continually, and satisfy your needs in parched places, and make your bones strong; and you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring of water, whose waters never fail. Your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt; you shall raise up the foundations of many generations; you shall be called the repairer of the breach, the restorer of streets to live in. 8 Psalm: 1 Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. 3 For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. 4 Against you, you alone, have I sinned, and done what is evil in your sight, so that you are justified in your sentence and blameless when you pass judgment. 5 Indeed, I was born guilty, a sinner when my mother conceived me. 6 You desire truth in the inward being; therefore teach me wisdom in my secret heart. 7 Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. 8 Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones that you have crushed rejoice. 9 Hide your face from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities. Create in me a clean heart, O God, and put a new and right spirit within me. Do not cast me away from your presence, and do not take your holy spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and sustain in me a willing spirit. 13 Then I will teach transgressors your ways, and sinners will return to you. 8 Isaiah 58:1-, New Revised Standard Version Bible, op. cit.

7 Ash Wednesday Year C (February, 016) 7 14 Deliver me from bloodshed, O God, O God of my salvation, and my tongue will sing aloud of your deliverance. 15 O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will declare your praise. 16 For you have no delight in sacrifice; if I were to give a burnt offering, you would not be pleased. 17 The sacrifice acceptable to God is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise. 9 Second Lesson; English Text: 5.0b We entreat you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. 1 For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. 6.1 As we work together with him, we urge you also not to accept the grace of God in vain. For he says, At an acceptable time I have listened to you, and on a day of salvation I have helped you. See, now is the acceptable time; see, now is the day of salvation! 3 We are putting no obstacle in anyone s way, so that no fault may be found with our ministry, 4 but as servants of God we have commended ourselves in every way: through great endurance, in afflictions, hardships, calamities, 5 beatings, imprisonments, riots, labors, sleepless nights, hunger; 6 by purity, knowledge, patience, kindness, holiness of spirit, genuine love, 7 truthful speech, and the power of God; with the weapons of righteousness for the right hand and for the left; 8 in honor and dishonor, in ill repute and good repute. We are treated as impostors, and yet are true; 9 as unknown, and yet are well known; as dying, and see we are alive; as punished, and yet not killed; as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing everything. Second Lesson; Greek Text: 5:0b δεόµεθα ὑπὲρ Χριστοῦ, καταλλάγητε τῷ θεῷ. 1 τὸν µὴ γνόντα ἁµαρτίαν ὑπὲρ ἡµῶν ἁµαρτίαν ἐποίησεν, ἵνα ἡµεῖς γενώµεθα δικαιοσύνη θεοῦ ἐν αὐτῷ. 6.1 Συνεργοῦντες δὲ καὶ παρακαλοῦµεν µὴ εἰς κενὸν τὴν χάριν τοῦ θεοῦ δέξασθαι ὑµᾶς λέγει γάρ καιρῷ δεκτῷ ἐπήκουσα σου καὶ ἐν ἡµέρᾳ σωτηρίας ἐβοήθησα σοι. ἰδοὺ νῦν καιρὸς εὐπρόσδεκτος, ἰδοὺ νῦν ἡµέρα σωτηρίας. 3 Μηδεµίαν ἐν µηδενὶ διδόντες προσκοπήν, ἵνα µὴ µωµηθῇ ἡ διακονία, 4 ἀλλ ἐν παντὶ συνίσταντες ἑαυτοὺς ὡς θεοῦ διάκονοι, ἐν ὑποµονῇ πολλῇ, ἐν θλίψεσιν, ἐν ἀνάγκαις, ἐν στενοχωρίαις, 5 ἐν πληγαῖς, ἐν φυλακαῖς, ἐν ἀκαταστασίαις, ἐν κόποις, ἐν ἀγρυπνίαις, ἐν νηστείαις, 6 ἐν ἁγνότητι, ἐν γνώσει, ἐν µακροθυµίᾳ, ἐν χρηστότητι, ἐν πνεύµατι ἁγίῳ, ἐν ἀγάπῃ ἀνυποκρίτῳ, 7 ἐν λόγῳ ἀληθείας, ἐν δυνάµει θεοῦ διὰ τῶν ὅπλων τῆς δικαιοσύνης τῶν δεξιῶν καὶ ἀριστερῶν, 8 διὰ δόξης καὶ ἀτιµίας, διὰ δυσφηµίας καὶ εὐφηµίας ὡς πλάνοι καὶ ἀληθεῖς, 9 ὡς ἀγνοούµενοι καὶ ἐπιγινωσκόµενοι, ὡς ἀποθνῄσκοντες καὶ ἰδοὺ ζῶµεν, ὡς παιδευόµενοι καὶ µὴ θανατούµενοι, ὡς λυπούµενοι ἀεὶ δὲ χαίροντες, ὡς πτωχοὶ πολλοὺς δὲ πλουτίζοντες, ὡς µηδὲν ἔχοντες καὶ πάντα κατέχοντες. 9 Psalm 51:1-17, New Revised Standard Version Bible, op. cit. nd Corinthians 5:0b 6:, New Revised Standard Version Bible, op. cit. nd Corinthians 5:0b 6:, The Greek New Testament, op. cit.