Benjamin Franklin once said, “Nothing is certain but death and taxes.” I don’t know about taxes, but death IS a certainty. The reality of mortality is how Lent begins. At the imposition of ashes, we are told “Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.” This recalls the story of Genesis; after the sin of Adam and Eve, God said, “By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread until you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; you are dust, and to dust you shall return” (Genesis 3:19).
Facing our mortality is an opportunity to consider how we live. People on their deathbeds often consider how they might have lived differently, and there is no time like the present to make changes. On Ash Wednesday we confess our unfaithfulness, self-indulgence, anger, intemperance, and negligence. There is something renewing about making confession, admitting our sin.
But the day is not merely about confessing our sins, it is also about the goodness of mercy of God. The classic story of repentance in the Old Testament is the story of Ninevah’s response to Jonah’s preaching (Jonah 3-4). Jonah proclaims God judgment on Ninevah, and they repent! The king sits in ashes and declares a fast, saying, “Who knows? God may relent and change his mind; he may turn from his fierce anger, so that we do not perish” (Jonah 3.9). As the king hoped, God changes his mind and does not bring calamity on the city.
Jonah, however, is disappointed. He wanted judgment on Ninevah. It reminds me of our current political climate of “trolling” other people – we do not really want dialogue; we want to score points. Jonah prays (or pouts?), saying ““O Lord! Is not this what I said while I was still in my own country? That is why I fled to Tarshish at the beginning, for I knew that you are a gracious and merciful God, slow to anger, abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from punishment” (Jonah 4:2).
Jonah encapsulates the message of this day. We are dust, mortal, and we need repentance. But we also have a gracious, merciful, loving God who will raise us from the ashes. Repent and believe the good news!
Grace and Peace,
Jerry+
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