Ash Wednesday: March 1, 2006

Old Testament Lesson

Amos 5:6-15

At the heart of Lent and of Ash Wednesday is the notion that we are to seek good and not evil, but in reality we seek evil, not good. Today is a day to look within our hearts and find the sin there and come to realize just how much harm that sin does to ourselves and to realize the price that Jesus Christ paid for those sins.

Today in this text we see that sin is more than just just the things we thinking about, it also how we treat those less fortunate than we are. Today in this text, there is no mention of judgment for murder, lying, stealing, or adultery. Now, each of these are sins, and they will bring judgement, unless repented of. Today in this text, the sin is how they treated the poor. As much as we should repent of what we think of as sin, we should also repent of how we treat those less fortunate than ourselves. We are called to love God and our Neighbor. Do we do that? If not, we have much to repent of.

New Testament Lesson

Hebrews 12:1-14

God disciplines His children not just for discipline's sake, but because we are His children, and He expects so much more out of us. We can do so much for God, but quite often we do so little. We expect so much out of our children, and how often have the words "We taught you better than that" come out of our mouths. How much more should God say that. Do we not know better? And do we still sin? Do we still turn from God, even through we know we should not? Do we not choose our way over His? The Word says that He will discipline His children to give them life. Today, will you choose life from God or death from sin? Those are choices that we make today and every day.

Gospel Lesson

Luke 18:9-14

The Prayer of the tax collector should be our prayer today. Lord have mercy on me, a sinner. We should not think that we are more than we are. We are merely sinners, saved by grace. Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner.