Today is Ash Wednesday, which is the beginning of the season of Lent. The word lent comes from a word that means “to stretch, lengthen.” As a liturgical season, it is intended to remind us of the extravagant heart of God for us and our call to live our lives every day stretching to be extravagantly wholehearted for Him. When people think of lent, they usually think of it as a season of repentance which prepares us for the Cross/Easter event. As New Testament believers with the Cross/Easter reality having already occurred 2000 years ago, it would actually be more accurate to say that the Cross and Easter prepare us for Lent and this season of repentance.
Mark 1:14 – 15 tells us that Jesus went forth preaching the gospel (good news) of God, saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel (good news.) In light of the finished work of Christ at the Cross, we are people of good news. In the resurrection of Jesus, the kingdom was no longer at hand but was inaugurated here on earth. The reign of Christ began, and we are people of the realm and reign of Jesus. We are Easter people who live every day celebrating the absolute total triumph of Jesus in His death/resurrection. I believe that the proper way of celebrating lent is repenting of the things we don’t believe about the reign of Christ in our lives. We come into this season of repentance in light of the victory of the Cross and the reign of our risen Lord. Therefore we should extravagantly during the season investigate how good the good news really is and repent of anything that our minds entertain that aren’t in agreement with the victory of Jesus.
Have a great lent, repenting of every bit of bad news you still believe in light of the reign of Christ.