A Reformed identity for observing Lent and Easter!

“Remembrance” is key to Biblical worship. To remember what Jesus did for our salvation is therefore the benchmark of a Biblical celebration of the Lenten Season, Holy Week and Easter.

Remembering is rooted in Old Testament worship.

Devotional life in the Old Testament was based on “remembering” the great deeds of salvation and liberation by the God of Israel. Each one of the feasts prescribed in the Law, remembered, celebrated and taught what God did in the history of his people, creating and strengthening the belief that he will continue to keep his grace covenant and be their God and the God of their children while encouraging them to, as the people of God, seek obedience to the Lord.

It was at such a feast of remembrance, the Passover, that Jesus instituted his Supper. It seems to me that in the mind of Jesus faith would still be sown and grown through “remembering” as part of the New Covenant. The Kingdom of God  is coming and Christ’s church is established when we remember what Jesus has done to set us free and make us his own. 

Jesus gave us the key to Christian worship when he said:  Do this in remembrance of me!

Remembering is rooted in the Lord’s Supper.

The Lord’s Supper is irreplaceable and unique. But it does refer us to the principle that remembering God’s gospel events has great value.  Christian worship and fellowship is defined by doing it in remembrance of Jesus, our Lord to the glory of God, our Father.

Systematically proclaiming the Scriptures during days and seasons of remembrance and faithfully preaching what the Bible tells us about the suffering, death and resurrection of Jesus can never be wrong. It is a disciplined and structured way of teaching and preaching the full council of God, a task our Reformed fathers showed us to do.

The Days of Remembrance that we observe are rooted in Church History.

All the commemorative days on the Christian calendar go back a long way before the Reformation.  We should be open to learn about the original intentions and meanings of these days and why and how they came into the life of the church. With the Word of God as our foundation and our Confessions of Faith as guidelines, it becomes easy to discern what would be God honouring and build up the people of God.

“Remembrance”, the key to understanding worship, should also be the key to unlocking a reformed, protestant identity when celebrating these commemorative days and seasons.

Ash Wednesday.

In the Western Christian Calendar, Ash Wednesday is the first day of Lent for the last 1 300 years.  It occurs forty days before Easter, not counting Sundays, which as the first day of the week, always remains a day of the celebration of the risen Lord

Ash Wednesday sets the tone for the season of Lent and because any form of spiritual discipline, prayer and fasting during this season will result in a closer walk with the Lord, Ash Wednesday is both useful to help us to observe the Lenten season with humble and contrite hearts. 

Historic Background of the Lenten and Resurrection Seasons.

Resurrection Sunday (more often called Easter Sunday) is the oldest commemorative day in Christianity. It was observed since the first century as a result of the influence of the Jewish Passover. It is the result of the first Christians, from the very beginning of the church, celebrating the resurrection every week on the Lord’s Day,   by celebrating the Lord’s Supper in remembrance of him.

During the second century it became customary to baptise all converts on Resurrection Sunday. They had to be prepared for the public confession of their faith and for their challenging walk with the Lord during those ages of persecution and martyrdom.  These preparations lasted 40 days – not counting Sundays. It relates to the fact that Jesus was prepared for 40 days in the desert before his ministry started.

The church fathers in the second century required these forty days of preparation for baptism. Apart from teaching the gospel truth, discipline, fasting and prayer played an important role during this time.  Those who taught the candidates for baptism shared in observing a time of strict spiritual discipline. After some time, other Church members felt the need to “do the course again”, although they would not be baptised on Resurrection Sunday. This season very early on became the Lenten Season of the Church, meant as a preparation for a joyful celebration of Resurrection Sunday.

It is easy to see how the other gospel events such as the suffering and death of Jesus, the Palm Sunday history, Ascension and Pentecost followed and claimed their place in the Christian calendar.

The Resurrection of Jesus is the culmination, the peak,  of the Christian Calendar.

The shortest version of the gospel truth is to say that Jesus has risen – that he has risen indeed.  Our Reformed / Presbyterian tradition emphasises that all worship, including the Lord’s Supper, is fellowship with the living Christ through the work of the Holy Spirit.  Is it not Jesus who through the signs and seals of bread and wine ensures us of our salvation and inclusion into the covenant of grace?  Is it not our living Lord who nourishes and feeds through his body and blood?

Should Christians observe Lent and Easter?

It is an edifying tradition if we do not fall short of continuously worshipping, praising and having fellowship with our risen Lord.

It is a good tradition if we can steer clear of legalistic prescriptions and inflexible observances of culturally based customs, particularly those that encourage ritualistic worship with ideas strange to the simple gospel of salvation.

It is a good practice if we rely on the Word to reveal the gospel truth, if we preach Christ, the crucified, risen Saviour and if we are careful to require nothing more from worshippers than to rely on and celebrate God’s sovereign grace, when we observe these age old commemorative days and seasons.

It is good ministry if it grows the faith of the believers and brings all who participate to a place where they through faith celebrate the wonders of salvation given to us in and through Jesus Christ.

Rooted in Christian history much older than the reformation, observing these holy days and seasons is edifying once we ascertained that the way in which we celebrate these days and seasons are inspired by the Gospel, guided by the Word, directed by our Confessions and Creeds and is celebrated to the glory of God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

How do I participate?

Various church services on Sundays and days of commemoration reflect on the gospel events during both the Lenten and Easter seasons.  Preaching, hymns and prayers during these seasons find their inspiration in the suffering and death, resurrection, ascension, exaltation and return of Jesus.

We participate by ensuring that we celebrate and remember when the church of the Lord meets for public worship during these various days and seasons of remembrance.

We also participate when our private devotions / quiet times during these seasons, reflect on what these gospel events teach us and what message the Lord personally has for us.

We may want to participate by, like millions of Christians in the world do, decide to “give up something for Lent”.

The original thinking behind this custom was the deepening of our faith and spiritual discipline through fasting and prayer. “Giving up something” is a way to encourage spiritual growth and not an end in itself.  The basis of observing Lent in this manner was and should always be that it adds to growing our faith and our relationship with God and with our fellow believers.   The idea is that we grow spiritually through these Lenten disciplines.

And discipline is the key word - the Greek word Paul uses for "Godliness" implies discipline, moderation, frugality, charity, meditation, prayer, and study.  Godliness is a lifestyle that draws us closer to God and to seek to live holy lives because we are grateful for the grace and mercy of God.

The idea of adding to our devotions on the one side and “giving up something” on the other is to bring us to a closer walk with God.

Lenten additions include, amongst others,

-  coming closer to God through times of focussed prayer, reflection and worship;

-  growing through the creation of good habits and breaking bad ones;

- touching others through charity and kindness.

The challenge is this:  "What, if anything, are you going to consciously do to ensure a closer walk with the Lord as you prepare to remember Christ’s resurrection during Easier?

What do protestant Christians emphasise during the Lenten season?

There are two important aspects:

* Penitence: We realise our own brokenness and our need for Christ.  God’s commandments become our teacher that drives us to Christ for forgiveness with a thirst for sanctification.

* Preparation: We strive to open our hearts wider for remembering Christ’s suffering and death and the celebration of his resurrection on Easter Sunday.

During Lent people add to, or subtract, from their daily routines in order to draw closer to God.

Prayer, Bible study and contemplating the gospel are key to observing Lent.   Reducing TV time, getting up earlier to do more to deepen our quiet times and following Bible study guides are practical things that add to a fruitful Lenten season.  Coming to Church and sharing with the faithful in our community will teach us to be disciplined in worship.

Fasting or giving up something during Lent is helpful if it lends a hand to become more disciplined disciples of Jesus Christ.

Seeking justice in the world by giving donations to the less privileged, volunteering time for charity and promoting causes for justice while reaching out to those who do not know the Lord Jesus as Saviour and God as their Father.

Keeping Perspective...  There must be no legalism about any of this. We are not trying to impress God. We're trying to prepare our hearts.  Observing Lent in the ways discussed here is no obligation!

It is not a Biblical requirement!

It is a good custom that helped many Christians over many centuries to, in fellowship with their fellow Christians, seek a closer walk with the Lord that lasts during all seasons!

Lent is an opportunity rather than a burden and we pray that yours will be meaningful! 

We received the innocence of Jesus!!

We received the innocence of Jesus. This is about “imputed righteousness”

Generally “to impute” means to legally attach to a person liability for the acts of someone else, because of a particular relationship, such as mother to child, guardian to ward, employer to employee, or business between associates.

Imputed righteousness is a concept in Christian teaching which proposes that the "righteousness of Christ is imputed to believers” — that is, we are treated as if we are not guilty on the basis of our relationship with God, as our Father in Jesus Christ.

It is on the basis of this "heavenly" righteousness freely given to us that God adopts sinners to become his children and find them “not guilty” in spite of their sin and disobedient lives.

2 Corinthians 5: 21 is about imputed righteousness.  It says “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”

The Bible teaches that we are found not guilty by God on the grounds of the righteousness of Christ imputed or transferred to us, because we have a faith relationship with God in Jesus Christ.  Christ's righteousness – his perfect life and obedience to death - was transferred to us. It is as if I have been perfectly obedient and if I am as righteous as Christ himself – without sin, or shame. 

Notice what God has done: He has satisfied both his justice and his mercy. Sin is punished in Christ and grace is shown to the sinner. 

During the Lenten Season that begins next Wednesday, we will see Christ punished for our sins.   And we will see ourselves clothed with Christ's perfect obedience.

Jesus, the Bread who came from heaven, saves from the thirst that kills the soul!

John 7: 27 – 39 - On the last and greatest day of the festival, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice,   “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink.  Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.”    By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive.

The feast of Shavuot, or feast of Weeks, did not only remember God’s care while the Israelites were wandering through the desert for 40 years - the manna, the waters from the rock, the fiery pillar by night – but also gave thanks for God’s blessings during the harvest at the end of summer, and prayed for those important winter rains during the months that follow.

At the feast, in the words quoted in the text above, Jesus declared that he is the answer to their prayer for water and that he answers their prayers for water.  He ultimately would give his followers the Holy Spirit, the source of life, of divine energy and strength -  living waters!

He, the Bread who came from heaven, he alone can quench our thirst!  Jesus makes us vessels of the rivers of his living waters to save his Church, to save us all from the thirst that kills the soul!

Liturgical Prayers for Public Worship - The Lord exalted!

Call to worship:

Ps 92: 1 – 8   It is good to praise the Lord and make music to your name, O Most High,  proclaiming your love in the morning and your faithfulness at night.  For you make me glad by your deeds,  Lord; I sing for joy at what your hands have done.  How great are your works, Lord, how profound your thoughts!

You, Lord, are forever exalted.

Father, Son and Holy Spirit:  bring glory to your Name through our worship today! Amen.

Prayer of praise.  Gracious and merciful God -   your only begotten Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, came to us in your Name to comfort and help us, to redeem and save us and to reveal your glory to us.  Jesus have freed us from the slavery of sin, redeemed us through his death and delivered us when he rose to be exalted at the right hand of God. You have sent upon us your Holy Spirit and now we may come before our God and our Deliverer us a people of Your own possession.

To you, glorious Father, with your Son and your Holy Spirit, be honour and praise forever and ever.

Prayer for the forgiveness of sins:

Father, give us repentant hearts and sincere sorrow because we disappointed you!

(a few moments of silence)

Holy God, forgive us the wrongs we have done as we also forgive those who have wronged us.

Keep us from temptation, and save us from evil.

Almighty Lord, you are merciful and your love endures forever. As far as the east is from the west, so far do you remove our sins from us.   (Ps.103:8,12)

In the Name of our Lord Jesus, crucified for us, help us to love, as you loved,

help us to live as you lived and to be victorious through your resurrection power.

Amen.

Before Reading and Preaching.

Father, you alone are our God and you only have the words that give eternal life: quench our thirst and guide us to have fellowship with our Lord and Saviour and through your Spirit become friends with each other!

Only when your Holy Spirit plant the seed of life in our hearts can we celebrate both your gospel and your law. 

When we hear the Good News today and when you show us the way of righteousness, imprint your life giving Word upon our hearts that we may learn to be your people. Amen.

Prayers of intercession:

Almighty God, your Son Jesus Christ has promised that you will hear us when we ask in faith:

in your mercy and love, receive the prayers we offer.

God of everlasting love, who provides all things, we pray for all people:  make your way known to them, make known your saving power among all nations. Glorify your Son amongst all peoples as Lord and Saviour and draw to you those who are lost, those who serve idols and those who are dying without the Bread of Life

Our God who is love, we commend to your fatherly care and mercy all who are afflicted or distressed in body, mind or circumstances [especially...... ]

help them according to their needs,

give them patience in their sufferings,

and deliver and heal them, o Lord, deliver them from their suffering,

for the sake of Jesus Christ our Saviour.

Most holy and most righteous Lord, defeat criminality, corruption, violence and those who cause it and are guilty of it. May wickedness come to a fall.  Redeem and deliver those who repent and seek your gracious forgiveness and bring to justice all who with hardened, unrepentant hearts embrace darkness and evil.

We pray for the nations of the world, especially those facing oppression, violence, famine, pandemics or any other disaster.

Father God, we pray for our country that there may be peace and justice and a better life for all in our land.   Guide and protect our nation that everything we do may be for the best of the beloved country and her people and to the honour of your Name.

O Lord of hosts, strengthen your people for their witness and for your work in the world.

Fill your ministers with your Spirit that they may faithfully preach the gospel and administer your holy sacraments.

Unite in the truth all who confess your Name, that we may live together in love and proclaim your glory in all the world, serving you with diligence, reverence and love.

Lord Jesus, who for our sake truly became a man even though you are the majestic, eternal Son of God:

grant your children the kindness to reach out to and share with the poor and the destitute.  Protect all who are vulnerable and grant them hope and peacefulness!

Almighty Creator, we pray for good weather, and for an abundance of the fruits of the earth. 

Enable those who are engaged in industry and commerce, the media and education, sport and the arts, to fulfil their responsibilities with integrity and an attitude of service, enabling all people and creating unity and opportunity for all who live here.

Ever living and always merciful Lord, bring glory to your Name and listen to our prayers, bless your Church and keep your children in your love,

through Jesus Christ our Lord!

Amen.

Prayers at the offering:

Heavenly Father,

we know that you love a cheerful giver. We do not give to you and your work reluctantly, or under compulsion, but because of love for you and your people.

Help us to not focus so much on the treasures that moth and rust destroy, but to put first the treasures we have in heaven that never will be stolen from us.

Bless now, Lord, these gifts given for your work and bless those who gave cheerfully and with love.

Through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Amen.

Called to reach out to the lost.

Often religious church-going people see it as their duty to separate them from sinners, unbelievers and all who do not share their spiritual view of life. Unfortunately it is often more about upholding man-made laws and traditions, than an attitude of making sure that they do not offend God or break his commandments.  Such an attitude is more about defending our life-style than defending the honour of God!

In Mark 2:13 -17 we find that the teachers of the law had a big problem with Jesus calling sinners to follow him and that he had fellowship with them. It becomes clear when you read about the calling of Levi as a disciple of Jesus (he was also known as Matthew). He was a tax collector. Jesus called him and had a meal at his home.

Jesus chose Levi.  Tax-collectors were some of the most hated men in all Israel. They were men who had a license to steal from their own people, because they could keep any tax money that was raised over the amount the (oppressive) Roman government required. So, they generally became rich men at the expense of the masses whom they, within the bounds of the law, robbed as a result of their greed.

Such a man was Levi, or Matthew.

He also was a man who was hurting inside, who knew loneliness and who needed Jesus. And Jesus called him to follow him. He chose him to be his disciple. “What a scandal!”

Jesus went further. He went home with Levi to a supper where many of Levi’s corrupt, sell-out friends came too, and ate with them as well.

This caused a stir among the Scribes and Pharisees. They questioned the disciples of Jesus about this improper conduct.

This was not something a religious Jew should have done. The Pharisees believed a good Jew, and especially a teacher, should stay away from such company. He should not associate with them in any way, and never be a friend of fraudulent abusers of the poor – or any other sinners for that matter.

But Jesus saves.  Not those who believe they are soul-healthy, but everyone who calls on his name because they know they are soul-sick, lost and separated from God! 

Are we willing to call the “tax collectors” to become followers of Jesus – even if it requires a radical change in attitude on our part?

Jesus met the real human need of Levi the only way it could be met. Jesus was the physician of sinners and they needed him because they were soul-sick. They knew it, and he knew it, and that is why he was there with them.

To the self-righteous Pharisees who thought they needed no physician, he did not go. They did not consider themselves sick. And someone believing he/she is healthy will never call a doctor. It is only as you acknowledge your sin-sick soul that the Healer of Souls, the Great Physician, will be called to help you.

Yes, we live different lives than the sin-sick world. Not to separate us from the world, but to be able to offer an alternative – to follow Jesus – to all affected by this very world. 

We are in the world, although not from the world.  Lifesavers cannot be prohibited from saving someone, because it would cause them to break a tradition or any man-made taboo.  Christians cannot refuse to do whatever is needed to save the lost, because it asks of them to think out of the box, be compassionate towards those who offend the church - and speak the language of those seeking salvation.  

Jesus loved those of low position, even outcasts. Whom did Jesus spend time with while on this earth? Yes, he did eat fancy dinners at the homes of the influential religious establishment, the powerful. But he also associated with tax collectors and sinners. He wasn't ashamed to be seen talking with a Samaritan woman. He allowed a prostitute to anoint his feet with perfume and to dry them with her hair. He honoured these people with his presence and company and saving grace.

If you evolved from being a believer in Jesus to becoming a follower of Jesus, are you willing to invite all with repentant hearts to walk with the Lord alongside you?

Humility is the key to being a Christian helper to others.

No person can truly be a Christian helper to others or to the work of the Church, until we come to a place where we humble ourselves before those whom we ought to help. We can only be of help when we put the interests of fellow Christians first, before our own.

Then the magnificent paradox of Christianity becomes evident to us, namely that: When we die to self, we live; when we give up our life, we find it; when we abandon our pursuit of sinful pleasure, we become fulfilled.

With this attitude humility results in a journey of wonderful blessings – for those in need and for us who are called to help them.

To be humble is a gift from God. Humility is the attitude with which men, women and children turn to God in faith, for salvation. In this way only Christ will increase in our lives, and we will decrease!  And when Jesus Christ increases he works through us and his glory becomes known through his graceful work in and through our lives.

Paul says: (Philippians 2: 9 - 11) Therefore also God highly exalted him (Jesus) and bestowed on him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow... and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Those who choose not to humbly submit to God must know that while God still for a short time allows us to rebel against him, soon he will subject all people to his authority, when Jesus comes again. We can submit to the Lord now, or be judged by the Lord later. Either way, we will bow the knee before him who is above all and over all.

We are saved by grace through faith when we surrender to God and submit to the authority of his Word, and to Christ as his means of salvation.

Once we have truly surrendered to God, we will be prepared to give up our lives for Christ’s work and receive fulfilment in God’s will. Once we surrender, humility, preparedness and faithfulness will be the natural outcomes of the work of the Holy Spirit within us.  And our work for our Lord will be blessed.

It will be the fruit of our walk with Christ.

God's food makes us strong enough to do his work!

Just as the Samaritan woman at the well did not know that God had provided a better type of "water" to comfort her weary heart and heal her tragic life (John 4:13-15), the disciples of Jesus also did not know that God had provided a better type of "food" to strengthen them in the Lord’s work.

John 4: 31 – 32. His disciples urged him, “Rabbi, eat something.” But Jesus said to them, “I have food to eat that you know nothing about.”

The disciples were puzzled that Jesus was not ready to eat the fine food they bought in the Samaritan town, because they did not know that Jesus already enjoyed more satisfying and nourishing food from the city of God!

Unless we enjoy the nourishment that the Lord gives, we remain hungry, unfulfilled and weak.  We may, in spite of the finest food and comforts we enjoy, still feel that our lives are meaningless and without joy. In spite of a balanced diet we may feel weak and tired.

Our Lord teaches us that God has provided other types of “food” for us, saying:  ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’, quoting Deut. 8:3. in Matthew 4:4.

God provides many wonderful foods to enjoy and strengthen our physical bodies. 

He also provides his Father’s “food” to equip and strengthen us for our calling in his work for his Kingdom!

John 4: 34. “My food,” Jesus said, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work.”

Jesus provides a life where the life changing living waters that he gives, defines us.

The transforming power of the love of Jesus Christ gives me a new identity

We all know the story of the Samaritan woman at the well and how Jesus changed her life and how she became the Lord’s disciple who turned her hometown into Jesus-followers.  We read this story in John 4.

In John 3 Jesus encountered a male Jewish religious leader, Nicodemus, who struggled to comprehend who Jesus was and what he taught.

But in John 4 the narrator contrasted the important and respected Nicodemus with his complete opposite, the unloved woman at the well, and because she is at the other end of the prestige continuum, she recognized not only who Jesus is but also that he offered her dignity.  

Jesus invited her not to be defined by her circumstances and offered her an identity that lifted her above the extreme tragedies of her life. And she accepted, playing a unique role in Jesus' ministry as she was the first character in John's gospel to seek out others to tell them about Jesus.

When tragedy strikes, or when we find that we are different from others in whatever way, or that things happened to us that influenced our self image and our emotional security, we may know that the transforming power of the love of Jesus Christ has the capacity to give us a new identity and a new sense of self worth!

Jesus promised her a new existence that rose above the judgmentalism of others and the chauvinism and pride of others.  The love of Jesus for us help us to rise above what others think of us, what tradition, culture and social opinions make us out to be  - and turn us into joyful and powerful witnesses of Jesus Christ!

Jesus promised her a life where going to the well to collect water for someone else’s household does not define her anymore –

where chauvinism and racism and culture and xenophobia did not define her anymore,

but he gave her a life where the life changing living waters that Jesus gives, defined her.

Thank you Jesus for the transforming power of your love and for giving us the capacity to live a new identity as your followers