Ash Wednesday 2026

The Abingdon Worship Annual 2022 March 2, 2022 Ash Wednesday

Today marks the beginning of our Lenten journey. As we walk with Jesus toward Jerusalem, we are invited by the prophet Joel to gather as God’s people. We are invited by the psalmist to renew our hearts and to confess our wrongdoings before God. All this is done with the assurance that God’s grace fills our lives, and with the promise that God’s steadfast love never fails us. As Matthew proclaims, when we give our hearts to God, we discover the joy of knowing God, the joy of finding our treasure.

The Abingdon Worship Annual 2022 March 2, 2022 Ash Wednesday

Call to Worship (

The Abingdon Worship Annual 2022 March 2, 2022 Ash Wednesday

Opening Prayer (

HYMN “Were You There?” p. 288.

The Abingdon Worship Annual 2022 March 2, 2022 Ash Wednesday

Prayer of Confession (

The Abingdon Worship Annual 2022 March 2, 2022 Ash Wednesday

Words of Assurance (

Scripture Matthew 6:1–6 ““Beware of practicing your righteousness before men to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven. “So when you give to the poor, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be honored by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. “But when you give to the poor, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving will be in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you. “When you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners so that they may be seen by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. “But you, when you pray, go into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.”

Sermon

The Secret Rewards of Hidden Piety

Every passage of Scripture carries one central idea, a truth that pulls all the details together into a compelling whole. In Matthew 6:1-6, that idea is straightforward and searching:Trust God and Obey, not the applause of the crowd. Jesus speaks these words in the heart of the Sermon on the Mount, where He strips away religious pretense and lays bare the motives of the human heart. It's a message as timely today as it was on the dusty hillsides of Galilee—especially on this Ash Wednesday, when we gather with ashes on our foreheads, a public sign of our mortality and need for repentance.

Picture a man who pulls up to the traffic light in his shiny car, window down, tossing a dollar to the homeless person on the corner. Horns honk in approval from behind, and he drives off feeling like a hero. Or think of the social media post: a photo of a fasted meal—or the lack of one—with a caption about spiritual sacrifice, racking up likes and shares. We live in an age of performative goodness, where virtue is broadcast for validation. But Jesus looks straight through the spotlight and into the soul. "Beware," He says in verse 1, "of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven."

On Ash Wednesday, those smudges of ash mark us publicly—"from dust you are and to dust you shall return"—calling us to reflection and renewal as Lent begins. Yet Jesus doesn't dismiss public acts of faith; He reorients them. He turns our gaze from the mirror of human opinion to the quiet chamber of the heart, where giving alms, praying, and fasting find their true value. Here, in verses 2 through 6, He paints a vivid contrast: the hypocrite who sounds a trumpet for attention versus the disciple who slips away to the secret place, door closed, before an unseen Father who sees in secret and rewards openly. This is no call to hide our faith but to purify it, rooting our disciplines in love for God rather than love of approval. As we enter this sacred season, let's listen closely to what Jesus has to say about a piety that endures.

MAIN POINT 1: The Hypocrites' Public Display

To grasp Jesus' warning, we must first see the context: He is addressing the religious hypocrites of His day, whose outward show masked an empty heart. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus contrasts true disciples with these performers who turn piety into theater.

A. The setting of the Sermon (Matt. 5-7): Jesus teaches on a hillside to crowds hungry for authentic faith, not the polished rituals of the Pharisees who loved the front-row seats in synagogues and street corners.

B. The cultural spotlight on "righteousness": In first-century Judaism, acts like almsgiving, prayer, and fasting were public virtues—think of the trumpet blasts announcing donations at the temple treasury, drawing cheers like a quarterback's touchdown pass.

C. The heart issue exposed: "Hypocrites" (verse 2,5) means actors playing a role; their reward was fleeting applause from men, leaving heaven's storehouse empty. This sets the stage for Jesus' call to a hidden life with God.

MAIN POINT 2: Trust God with your Secret Practices of True Piety

With that background, Jesus unveils the central teaching: genuine righteousness—giving, praying, fasting—must be hidden from human eyes to gain the Father's full reward. Verses 2-6 outline three practices, each with a pattern: do it secretly, and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

A. Giving to the needy (vv. 2-4): Don't sound a trumpet like hypocrites; slip your hand quietly into your pocket, as a father tucks a note into his child's lunchbox unseen, and God notices every quiet gift.

B. Praying to the Father (vv. 5-6): Shun synagogue show-offs standing to parade words; enter your room, shut the door—like a weary traveler pulling shades for private conversation with a trusted friend—and pour out your heart alone.

C. Fasting before God (vv. 16-18): Skip the dismal faces of actors; anoint your head, wash your face, appearing normal, as a gardener tends soil out of sight, trusting the unseen growth the Lord will bring.

MAIN POINT 3: The Ash Wednesday Call to Hidden Repentance

This teaching demands a response today, especially as ashes mark our brows—a visible sign pointing to invisible surrender. On this day of somber reflection, let us trade performance for privacy, choosing God's secret reward over the world's fleeting praise.

A. Examine your motives: Before your next act of service, ask, "Is this for Instagram or the invisible Father?" Like a diarist who burns pages after confiding secrets, let God alone read your soul.

B. Cultivate secret disciplines: Set aside a locked-door time daily—no apps, no audience—just you and God, as a lighthouse keeper tends the flame through storms, unseen by passing ships.

C. Trust and Obey : In a culture craving viral virtue, rest in His promise; the ashes fade, but hidden piety builds eternal treasure, drawing us deeper into Christ's transforming grace.

So here is the challenge of our Lord on this Ash Wednesday: Let the ashes on your forehead point inward, to a piety known only to your Father in heaven. When you give, slip the gift into a hand that never tweets about it. When you pray, shut the door on the world and pour out your heart alone. When you fast, let no one see the hunger but the One who fills it eternally.

This is no mere advice—it's the path to reward that outshines any earthly praise. Today, commit to one secret act of righteousness this week. Seek not the crowd's fleeting applause, but your Father's lasting smile. True righteousness thrives in the hidden place, where God Himself says, "Well done." Amen.

Abingdon worship2015 Proclamation and response

Invitation to the Imposition of Ashes

As you are ready, come forward to receive a blessing of ashes. May these ashes be a symbol of our willingness to put to death all the things that are killing us.

Words of Blessing (As People Receive Their Ashes) From the ashes, receive anew God’s Easter promise of mercy and love.

HYMN “Trust and Obey” p. 467

The Abingdon Worship Annual 2022 March 2, 2022 Ash Wednesday

Benediction (