What and Why of Lent

Manuscript Template

Title:  What and Why of Lent

Elevator Summary:  

Focus Statement:  

Lent is a 40 day period of preparation before Easter consisting of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, modeled after Jesus 40 days in the desert where He was tempted by the devil.

Lent is preparation for whatever God is inviting us into next.

Function Statement:  

Lent is about reorienting what we value away from our desires and toward God by removing anything that gets in the way of our relationship with God.

Tweetable Phrase:  

What is God inviting you to do this Lenten season?

Scripture:  Matthew 4:1-11

Main Text:  Matthew 4:1-11

Supporting Text:  

Redemptive Closure (point to Jesus):  

Benediction:  

WELCOME

Good morning!!! My name is Ryan Hanson and I have the honor of serving here at The Light KC as the lead pastor. I’m so glad you’re here with us.

‌Welcome to those joining us online. We hope your doing well and hope to see you in person in the coming weeks.

And a special welcome to those joining us for the first time. We’re so glad you chose to be here.

ME/INTRO - Tension

Last Wednesday was “Ash Wednesday” which marks the start of a season within the church called Lent.

As we start, I want to ask you a question; “What do you think about when you hear the word Lent?”

I know for myself, historically I think of Lent as a time of entering into the suffering of Jesus by giving something up in an effort to prepare my head and heart for the Good News of Easter.

To be honest, most years that the churches I have attended that practiced Lent it was mainly focused on giving something up, and not terribly focused on preparing myself for anything. It was a battle of will, who could survive the entire 40 days.

One year I gave up a 4-6 can a day habit of Mt Dew cold turkey. I’m not sure how prepared I was for Easter, but I join in Jesus’ suffering with a 6 week headache from the caffeine withdrawal

One year I gave up eating out because I was concerned that I was gaining weight, which I’ll admit wasn’t the most spiritual reason for giving something up. All I learned was that most of my socializing with friends was at restaurants so that was a very lonely 6 weeks. I could / should have used to focus on my relationship with God, but if I’m honest I think I just spent a lot of time eating in front of the TV.

One year I gave up TV completely. I told myself that I’d read the Bible and other books that I had purchased but neglected to read with the extra time Whereas my reading did increase, I think the increase in the sleep I got was the real story as I typically watched TV at night and struggle to read when I’m tired.

One year I gave up unhealthy eating. Andrea and I did the Daniel Fast where we ate very little to no carbs. I learned what quinoa was, and at it with nearly every meal. I have to admit, I felt marginally better, but ended up losing no weight (which wasn’t really the point, but I definitely wished would happen as a secondary benefit).

One year the church I was at encouraged us to add something instead of take something away, so I committed to reading the paper Bible every day. That went fine, but since I was already listening to the Bible in the car while I was driving, the delta in my relationship with God was marginal.

What do you think?

Is this what Lent is supposed to be about?

All Catholic churches practice Lent, but not all Protestant churches.

Is Lent something we even need to think about?

WE - Tension

So I ask you, what is your experience with Lent?

How do you define the season of Lent?

Do you typically give something up?

Do you do anything to prepare your head and heart for Easter?

If so, what do you do?

These are a few of the questions that we’re going to try to answer today as we start our new series titled “Living an Invitational Life” where we’re going to explore what God is inviting us into throughout the 6 weeks of Lent.

Today, specifically, we’re going to lay the foundation by:

Defining what Lent is

Talking about, how the church has historically practiced Lent

Seeking to discern what God is calling us as a church to do over this Lenten season

As as we begin, please turn with me to Matthew 4:1-11

We’ll have the scripture on the screen, but if you have a Bible with you, or Bible app on your phone, I’d encourage you to turn to the passage and follow along. There is nothing that replaces having God’s word in your hand.

AND...if you don’t have a Bible, we have Bibles under the seats. If you don’t have a bible and would like one, please come see me after the service and I’ll get you one you can keep.

Lets dive in.

GOD - Text

What is Lent?

Historically lent started as a 3-day period where a person would fast from food to prepare themselves for baptism as baptisms in the early Catholic church occured on Easter.

Later as there were less and less adults getting baptized (because Catholics baptise babies on the 8th day), the 3-day period of fasting prior to Easter was repurposed as an act of public penance for those who committed a serious sin and was excluded from communion to prepare themselves for Easter mass.

It wasn’t until the First Council of Nicaea in 323 CE that Lent took the form that we know it today. During that council Lent was defined as a 40 day time of devotional preparation for Easter based on Jesus time of preparation in the desert in Matthew 4:1-11.

If we were to define the season of Lent in today’s terms it would be:

Lent is a 40 day period of preparation meant to deepen our relationship with God before Easter.

How has Lent historically been practiced?

So how has Lent historically been practiced?

Please join me as we read Matthew 4:1-11 which is the basis for the current practices of Lent.

Matthew 4:1–11 NIV

1 Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. 3 The tempter came to him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.” 4 Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” 5 Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. 6 “If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down. For it is written: “ ‘He will command his angels concerning you, and they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’” 7 Jesus answered him, “It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’” 8 Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. 9 “All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.” 10 Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’” 11 Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him.

Prayer

The first thing we’re called to do during Lent to prepare our heads and hearts for the Good news of Ester is to PRAY.

In Matthew 4:6 we see the devil take Jesus to the highest point of the temple and ask Him to prove that He is the Son of God by jumping off.

The idea from Psalm 91:11-12 is that the Angels will save Jesus:

Psalm 91:11–12 NIV

11 For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; 12 they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.

The devil is testing Jesus’ PRIDE. He’s trying to get Jesus to take advantage of His divinity; essentially to rely on Himself and His power to get out of the current situation.

Prayer is the opposite of pride.

Prayer admits that we need help, that we can’t succeed on our own, and seeks God’s intervention.

To pray, we need to prepare.

But if we are to enter into the practice of prayer this Lenten season, we need to remove external (and internal) distractions.

How many people struggle to pray?

We talked about HOW to pray at length last week, but I know when I actually sit down to pray seemingly every small thing that could interrupt me waits until I pray and then every possible distraction occurs all at once.

Noises I’ve never heard start occuring and I can’t help but get distracted trying to figure out what they are.

Things I need to add to my To-Do list come flooding into my mind and the worry sets in that if I don’t write them down now I’ll forget and necessary things won’t get done.

Or my phone starts going crazy with notifications, all begging to be checked and addressed.

Yet...if we are going to have a conversation with our God, we need to prepare

Turn off the radio in the car

Turn off notifications on your phone

Go to a place you know will be quiet

Maybe leave the house, go for a walk in the woods

Find a place you know will be silent and pray, working through all the ways that pride has crept into your life and seeking guidance from God for the next steps He wants you to take.

During Lent, we’re called to enter into the practice of PRAYER to humble ourselves and remind ourselves that we need God’s help in all areas, especially in the areas where we feel we have everything under control (i.e. the areas we are PRIDEFUL in).

SO...what is one thing God is calling you to pray for this lent?

Fasting

The second thing we’re called to do during Lent to prepare our heads and hearts for the Good news of Ester is to FAST.

In Matthew 4:3, after Jesus has been fasting for 40 days, the devil temps Jesus to turn rocks into bread and end His hunger.

Now keep in mind, Jesus has been fasting for 40 days.

Has anyone fasted for 40 days here [hands up]. I haven’t. I’ve gone close to a week once, but never 40 days.

I can’t even imagine how hungry Jesus would have been at this point.

Fasting at it’s core, is learning to tell yourself “no”.

We live in a culture of instant gratification.

I have a question about literally anything, so I look up the answer within seconds on my phone.

I am hungry, so I eat a snack from the kitchen, go get fast food, or warm up leftovers in the microwave because cooking something takes too long

I want to buy something that I don’t have the money for, so I put it on a credit card, setup a payment plan through the store, or go to the bank and get a loan.

I think we can agree, we are trained not to wait for anything.

Yet...we need to learn that there is more to life that satisfying every single desire that we have.

Jesus responds to the devil’s temptation by quoting Deuteronomy 8:3, where Moses speaks to Israel about their time in the desert. It says...

Deuteronomy 8:3 NIV

3 He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your ancestors had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.

Fasting is a practice that not only teaches us to say “no” to our desires, but reorients what we value, away from those desires and toward God.

Fasting is also larger than food.

During Lent, we’re called to FAST from anything that gets in the way of your relationship with God to remind ourselves that God is all we need.

SO...What is God calling you to fast from this lent?

Almsgiving

The final thing we’re called to do during Lent to prepare our heads and hearts for the Good news of Ester is to give Alms.

In Matthew 4:9 we see the devil show Jesus all the kingdoms of the world and promise to GIVE them to Him if He worships the devil.

The point to note is that the devil tempts Jesus with a GIFT.

Jesus quickly responds by quoting Deuteronomy 6:13

Deuteronomy 6:13 NIV

13 Fear the Lord your God, serve him only and take your oaths in his name.

But...we live in a world obsessed with getting.

We need the newest and best phones

We need the biggest TVs

We need the nicest cars

We need to eat at the best restaurants

AND...we love when people give these things to us.

WE LOVE GIFTS.

The point of almsgiving, is to take the focus off of GETTING and use this time to focus on GIVING.

The distinction between ALMSGIVING and any other GIVING and that ALMSGIVING is specifically giving someone something they need.

Giving food to the hungry

Giving a drink to the thirsty

Giving clothes to those without

Almsgiving is a choice to SACRIFICE something personally to bring about JUSTICE within the community.

It can be more than just monetary giving.

When was the last time you gave your time to someone who is ignored / marginalized by society.

When was the last time you spent time at a senior center, listening to the stories of a person who nobody visits anymore?

When was the last time you offered to take a homeless person to lunch and listened to the stories they have to tell, treating them as the child of God that they are?

The question you may be asking is, how much should I give?

The New Testament calls us to give SACRIFICIALLY, or more simply put, “Give until you notice”

Hebrews 13:16 NIV

16 And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.

The idea being that as we give, we align our heart with the heart of God.

God gave everything for us. He gave His son to save us from our sins.

And God invites us to give to those in need.

Luke 18:29–30 NIV

29 “Truly I tell you,” Jesus said to them, “no one who has left home or wife or brothers or sisters or parents or children for the sake of the kingdom of God 30 will fail to receive many times as much in this age, and in the age to come eternal life.”

During Lent, we’re called to give to those in need to align our hearts with God’s heart and bring justice to broken world.

SO...whose need is God calling you to fill this lent?

YOU - Takeaway

So what currently gets in the way of your relationship with God?

How can you remove the distractions of your life to deepen your PRAYER life?

What could you give up (FAST FROM) to reorient yourself away from your desires and toward God’s will?

What could you GIVE (time, money) that meets the practical needs of someone else and helps you align your heart with God’s?

I know for me, as I prayed through this Lenten season, the one thing that kept coming to mind was the way I fill the time between planned activities.

I am pretty good about being present when I have something planned, or when one of my kids wants to do something.

I always put my phone down when someone asks me to do something, but if I have nothing planned I tend to fill the unscheduled time with the death scroll of FaceBook. I never find anything good, sometimes I find things that are amusing, but I have developed the habit of literally KILLING time.

I looked it up on my phone and I spend on average 38 minutes per day on Facebook.

I’m committing (and maybe some of you already saw my FaceBook post Wednesday) to stay off social media for Lent.

I am going to fight the urge to mindlessly kill time and instead focus on using that time to deepen my relationship with God.

I’m going to teach myself to say “no” to the phone and learn to be able to sit in silence, opening myself to pray, listen, and just experience God.

I’m going to redeem that 38 minutes and use it to spend on people that I may not have reached out to otherwise.

What is the Holy Spirit prompting you to do this Lenten season?

How is God calling you to PRAY, FAST, and GIVE to deepen your relationship with Him?

WE / JESUS - Redemptive Close - Call to Action

How can we prepare ourselves during this Lenten season?

So, historically people have Prayed, Fasted, and Given during Lent to personally prepare themselves for the Easter season.

But...how can we, collectively, as a church prepare ourselves for Easter during the next 40 days?

Jesus spend 40 days in the desert preparing Himself for His mission on earth.

Jesus came to restore the relationship between humanity and God that was broken during the fall in Genesis 3

John 14:6 NIV

6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

Luke 19:10 NIV

10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”

Mark 10:45 NIV

45 For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Jesus came to provide a way for us to have a abundant life here on earth and eternal life with God after we die.

Jesus came to seek the lost, and serve the hurting of this world.

Jesus came to INVITE us into the Kingdom life now

to align our hearts with God’s heart

to align our desires with God’s will

and to align our actions to God’s priorities.

John 20:21 NIV

21 Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.”

Mark 16:15 NIV

15 He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.

Matthew 28:19 NIV

19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

Ephesians 5:2 NIV

2 and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

So over this Lenten season we’re going to dive into how we can live the Kingdom life that Jesus calls us to live.

We’re going to work through how we can live an INVITATIONAL LIFE that follows Jesus lead, preaching the gospel, making disciples, and walking in love.

Over this Lenten season, we’re going to learn from the concepts in this book “The Invitational Life” by Steve Carter.

[The Invitational Life book picture]

We’re going to discuss how we can:

HOW: We LIVE the life Jesus calls us to live

WHERE: We SHOW UP where people need a relationship with Jesus the most

WHO: We are called to RELATE to

WHAT: RISKS are we called to take for the lost of this world

I believe that Easter is greatest invitation we will ever receive. Easter is an invitation to have a relationship with the God that created and loves us.

No matter where you are at in your faith journey, my prayer is that over the next 6 weeks, God not only invites you into taking a step personally to deepen your relationship with Him, but opens the doors for all of us to join Jesus in His mission to invite others to start their journey of faith.

I can’t wait to see what invitations God has for us over this Lenten season.

PRAYER 

Will you join me in prayer...

SONG 

*** Have Cross on stage with basket and pieces of paper ***

If you feel like God is calling you to give something up this lent that is getting in the way of your relationship with God, I invite you to come down, write it down, and leave it at the cross. No need to write your name on it, unless you’d like me to pray for you by name. I’ll be praying over all these throughout lent.

As we enter into our final song, I want to open the steps up front as an altar to anyone who needs God this week. The steps are open for you to pray to the God who is with you, who loves you, you wants to give you His peace.

‌

You may feel a hand on your shoulder as I or one of the elders join you in prayer.

BENEDICTION 

Romans 12:2 NIV

2 Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

This week...

Let’s whole heartedly enter into this Lenten season. Let’s PRAY, FAST, and GIVE

to align our hearts with God’s heart

to align our desires with God’s will

and to align our actions to God’s priorities.

Let’s listen for the INVITATIONS from the Holy Spirits to LIVE, SHOW UP, RELATE, and RISK for those who don’t yet have a relationship with Jesus.

Quick reminder...

As we prepare for our Potluck / Packing Party March 30, feel free to bring donated items at any time. You don’t have to wait until the party to bring them in. It may help us balance the welcome baskets as we’ll get a preview of what we have and what we need prior to the event.

If you’re new, please stop by our info desk, or see me. We’d love to say “hi” and get you know you a bit better.

I hope you have a great week.

Go in peace.

You are dismissed.

DISCIPLESHIP QUESTIONS (download into APP)