Ash Wednesday 2025

Today is Ash Wednesday… The Beginning of Lent.  Lent is a time historically that the church has used to prepare for Easter. 

Here in our area, people tend to use it as an excuse to go crazy on Mardi Gras Day, or Fat Tuesday. But that’s only what we have done to Ash Wednesday here in our area.

It’s really a rich time where we can prepare our hearts and minds for Easter.

Ash Wednesday begins Lent

Does anyone know how Lent got Started?  It’s not in the Bible. 

In 230 AD, a group of Christians started Fasting for 40 hours leading up to Easter … to prepare their hearts for Easter.  Soon it really caught on and was expanded to 7 days of fasting and prayer… They called it Holy Week.  By 325 AD, the Council of Nicea made it 40 days representing Jesus’ 40 days of testing in the Wilderness. 

40 Days begins on Ash Wednesday plus Thursday, Friday, Saturday (4 days) + 6 weeks of 6 days before Easter Sunday.  Sundays celebrated the resurrection of Jesus and were not counted as part of Lent. 

Nowhere in the bible does it say to celebrate Ash Wednesday or Lent or Christmas or Easter as Holy Days … Nor does the Bible say anything about driving cars… 

Lent is a Time to Consider our relationship with Jesus.

To Stop and consider our relationship withJesus can only draw us closer to the Heart of God.  It can only enrich and inspire us to live for the Lord.  Jesus bought us back from SIN and Death when He died on the cross for our sins.

Psa 51 is a great Psalm to set us up for Lent.

The opening of Psalm 51 reads

Psalm 51:title   For the choir director: A psalm of David, regarding the time Nathan the prophet came to him after David had committed adultery with BathSheba.

It calls David out.  When the prophet Nathan had come to David, he had committed adultery with Bathsheba.  Here is it being published for everyone who ever reads a bible to see.  Ouch.  Every day in the Temple when this Psalm was read, people heard about David’s sin.  Where is the Grace?

David’s sin is recorded in 2 Samuel 11 if you want to read it.  Then it’s mentioned here. 

›   Tell the story of David’s sin… Nathan’s confrontation… David’s repentance…

The Bible refers to David as a man after God’s heart, but we know David did not just commit some sins. 

David Committed Big Sins

He committed BIG Ones.  Adultery & Murder… For a while David thought he had gotten away with it.  He had planned his sin, acted on it and seemed to be comfortable where he was.

It would not surprise me if he were not going to church with his new wife on his arm, smiling and shaking hands.  It had been a little while and no one has said a thing. 

I know what you are thinking right now.  “Thank you God that I am not like David.  I have never planned and executed a sin.  I have always admitted when I sin and made everything right.”  Not.

We live in a culture, even in church, that will let our sin slide

We live in a culture, even in church, that will let our sin slide.  Everyone says we have to be good… We need to Repent… God’s Grace is Sufficient… but no one challenges us to dig deeper… no one confronts us or even mentions that they notice any sin in our lives.  That would be Judging or meddling.  We worry that they might say something about me so we just keep quite. 

Psalm 51 contains a public exposure of a great man’s sins and then a documentation of his feelings and prayer about the situation. 

Psalm 51 NLT

For the choir director: A psalm of David, regarding the time Nathan the prophet came to him after David had committed adultery with Bathsheba. 1 Have mercy on me, O God, because of your unfailing love. Because of your great compassion, blot out the stain of my sins. 2 Wash me clean from my guilt. Purify me from my sin. 3 For I recognize my rebellion; it haunts me day and night. 4 Against you, and you alone, have I sinned; I have done what is evil in your sight. You will be proved right in what you say, and your judgment against me is just. 5 For I was born a sinner— yes, from the moment my mother conceived me. 6 But you desire honesty from the womb, teaching me wisdom even there. 7 Purify me from my sins, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. 8 Oh, give me back my joy again; you have broken me— now let me rejoice. 9 Don’t keep looking at my sins. Remove the stain of my guilt. 10 Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a loyal spirit within me. 11 Do not banish me from your presence, and don’t take your Holy Spirit from me. 12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and make me willing to obey you. 13 Then I will teach your ways to rebels, and they will return to you. 14 Forgive me for shedding blood, O God who saves; then I will joyfully sing of your forgiveness. 15 Unseal my lips, O Lord, that my mouth may praise you. 16 You do not desire a sacrifice, or I would offer one. You do not want a burnt offering. 17 The sacrifice you desire is a broken spirit. You will not reject a broken and repentant heart, O God. 18 Look with favor on Zion and help her; rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. 19 Then you will be pleased with sacrifices offered in the right spirit— with burnt offerings and whole burnt offerings. Then bulls will again be sacrificed on your altar.

David poured out his heart to God in this prayer

David poured out his heart to God in this prayer.  He knows he is caught in his sins and that he is guilty.  Not by Nathan at that moment, but the moment when he allowed his human desires to take hold of him and plan his sins.  In this prayer, he admits that his sins were always there and that he cannot fix them or even hide them. 

Psalm 51:2–5 NLT

2 Wash me clean from my guilt. Purify me from my sin. 3 For I recognize my rebellion; it haunts me day and night. 4 Against you, and you alone, have I sinned; I have done what is evil in your sight. You will be proved right in what you say, and your judgment against me is just. 5 For I was born a sinner— yes, from the moment my mother conceived me.

It took an external source to move him to admit this and to repent… someone who made him know that just because no one had said anything about it  - - - that is was not OK. 

David Repented and his prayer is a plea to God saying that he wants to be made right with God.  He knows the only way that can happen is for God to wipe the slate clean. 

Psalm 51:7 NLT

7 Purify me from my sins, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.

Psalm 51:9 NLT

9 Don’t keep looking at my sins. Remove the stain of my guilt.

Lent is …

Lent is 40 Days for Self-Reflection to allow the Holy Spirit to convince us we are more Like David than we want to Admit.

Tonight, we begin a process where we take 40 days for self-reflection… of allowing the Holy Spirit to convict us that we are more like David that we would like to admit. 

Psalm 139:23–24 NLT

23 Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. 24 Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life.

This kind of prayer takes courage. It’s not easy to ask God to reveal what’s hidden deep in our hearts, but it’s essential if we want to grow closer to Him.

This is a journey that begins tonight goes into Good Friday but ends with the Light of the Resurrection of Jesus on Easter Sunday Morning. 

It’s a time when we reflect on how we really act… on the little sins that we have made no big deal about in our lives. 

Self Reflection can include journaling, meditating on scripture, solitude … The goal is not just to think about our lives, but to align our hearts with God’s purposes for our lives. Lent is an invitation to move beyond surface-level faith and into the depths of God’s transformative presence.

Our Sin Weighs Us Down

Around Niagara Falls, birds will fly up to the water to get a drink.  In the winter, they go in for a sip and a little ice builds up on their wings from the mist.  People have watched as sometimes when the birds go in for a drink, they drop in for a dip after their sip.  They disappear into the water because the ice became too heavy on their wings.

Just like the ice weighs the birds down so they can’t fly, our sin weighs us down and will build up until leads to our destruction and death.  Lent is a time to do something about it… it’s a time to focus on the little sins and allow God to cleans us.

Lent is a time confess our Sins and Allow God to cleanse us.

Lent is not a time to wallow in depression and our failures.  It’s a time to free our soul from the burdens we too often carry.  By admitting that we are sinners and that we want to change, we become free.

Who do you think wrote the intro to Psalm 51? 

Psalm 51:title NLT   For the choir director: A psalm of David, regarding the time Nathan the prophet came to him after David had committed adultery with BathSheba.

Good chance it was David.  It’s a public confession that was a reminder of what he had done and a reminder not to do it again. 

Psalm 51:3–5 NLT

3 For I recognize my rebellion; it haunts me day and night. 4 Against you, and you alone, have I sinned; I have done what is evil in your sight. You will be proved right in what you say, and your judgment against me is just. 5 For I was born a sinner— yes, from the moment my mother conceived me.

Lent is a time to turn back to God - Repentance.

Repent means to change direction. It’s not just feeling sorry that you did something wrong, it’s changing your behavior by turning your heart back to the Lord asking Him to redirect your lives.

Joel 2:13 NLT

13 Don’t tear your clothing in your grief, but tear your hearts instead.” Return to the Lord your God, for he is merciful and compassionate, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. He is eager to relent and not punish.

IOW, God is not interested in our outward displays of sorrow. He is looking for true transformation in our hearts.

Tonight, I don’t want you to declare your deepest darkest secrets to anyone except the Lord.  Let’s pray like King David did in

Psalm 51:10–11 NLT

10 Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a loyal spirit within me. 11 Do not banish me from your presence, and don’t take your Holy Spirit from me.

Prayer Time

›   Start like David and worship the Lord

›   Then Confess Sin - Ask Him to Purify of Sin -

›   Ask Him to Create in Us a Clean Heart to renew our Spirits and Fill Us with the HS

›   Read together -

Psalm 51:12–15 NLT

12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and make me willing to obey you. 13 Then I will teach your ways to rebels, and they will return to you. 14 Forgive me for shedding blood, O God who saves; then I will joyfully sing of your forgiveness. 15 Unseal my lips, O Lord, that my mouth may praise you.

Now, here are some ways you can live out the heart of Lent as we prepare ourselves to celebrate Easter, the central event in all of Human history.

Ways to practice Lent

1. Practice true repentance.

Take time each day to confess your sins honestly before God. Ask him to reveal areas of your life that need to change and take steps toward transformation. You might consider fasting from an activity that distracts you from the Lord.

2. Create space for Reflection.

Set aside some intentional moments to be with God… maybe a little more time that normal. Read scripture every day and keep a journal of what the Lord is saying to you. Ask Him to search your heart and to guide you.

3. Embrace forgiveness.

Just as we seek forgiveness from the Lord, we are called to offer it to others. If there is someone you need to forgive, ask god for the strength to to release your resentment towards them so you can walk in grace. If you need forgiveness, surrender your guilt and allow His love to restore you.

4. Prepare for Easter with Expectation.

Lent is not about self denial. It’s about preparing for the celebration of Jesus’s victory on the cross. Let’s approach Easter with anticipation of resurrection hope. Lt all o fthis draw you closer to the Lord… the risen Savior.

Close in prayer.