T
he month of February each year brings with it the beginning of a new Christian calendar that starts with lent. Yearly lent commences on Ash Wednesday and ends on Easter. Lent is a 40 day period of Christian reflection on the life, passion, death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. Lent appears the most important period in the year in accordance with Christian tradition. It is a time of self examination. The holy season begins with self denial, penitent and end up in the jubilation of Eastertide. As we observe this season, we renew our baptismal vows to renounce Satan and pledge ourselves anew to the Lordship of Jesus Christ in faith and Love.
The Church commences this season of lent with the genesis description of the human condition. It subscribes wholly to the frailty of man’s nature and its sinfulness. We affirm that God is our Creator and we are His creature. We believe God created mankind in His image and likeness. At creation, we were whole and perfect; however we allow ourselves to be deceived by Satan, our adversary to believe we could be equal to God. That led man into disobedience and sin. The consequence was spiritual death, lost of God’s favor and friendship. This situation sadly created a gap between man and God, His creator; but God still loves man and hates sin. Man became fearful and attempted to hide from God’s presence. Man was in dare need of a Savior who by the dignity of his person, could fix the damage caused by sin and reconcile mankind to our offended, yet ever loving Creator and Father; a savior who could bring us back into the continuous presence of God, give us assurance of sin’s forgiveness and hope of eternity.
On Ash Wednesday, the ashes derived from the palms of last year’s Palm Sunday are sanctified and the Priest [Pastor] places it with a sign of the cross on the foreheads of each worshippers. It reminds us who we are –“dust and unto dust shall all return”; also recall the victory of Christ, our savior and the infinite beneficence of God. This reminds us that every man stands on a level ground at the cross of Christ. Apostle Paul reiterated this experience in his letter to the Romans, ‘all have sinned and come short of the glory of God’. The good news however is that, ‘while we were yet sinners God sent His Son, Jesus Christ to die for us’[Romans3:23;5:8]. By applying the ashes with a sign of the cross on our foreheads, the Church calls worshippers to repentance – accept our sordid state as sinners and turn to the Lord Jesus Christ as God’s answer [savior] to our sorry plight. We are to plead for God’s mercies and accept His atonement for our sins.
According to the Church belief, lent helps to heighten our consciousness of sinfulness; deepens our awareness of the profound need to reach out to our creator, through His only begotten Son Jesus Christ-the Lamb of God, who by His death and resurrection paid the price of man’s sin and restore mankind to the righteousness of God. It was this unconditional love of God that caused the Father to send His son to redeem man [John3:16; Romans 5:12, 17-18]. As the season of lent reminds us of the fall of man, it also reassures us of the grace of God in Jesus Christ. By His death and resurrection, Jesus conquered Satan, sin, death and promise his followers union with Himself and Father. He swept aside all the negatives of life by manifesting to us the extravagance of the infinite love of God. God is Love and shares His nature with man; man without love knows nothing of God [1 John4:8].
Lent is the time of self examination. Just as it is necessary at least once a year to have a thorough physical check up, where a medical practitioner examines one from head to toe, to determine the person’s state of health, so is it with Lent. During lent we attend a Spiritual clinic for the Holy Spirit of God to thoroughly examine us, weigh us and determine our state of Spiritual fitness. He prescribes appropriate treatment and remedies such as cleansing, sanctification and renewal etc to rectify inadequacies. The Holy Spirit measures our obedience to our baptismal vows, faith and discipleship. The more we submit ourselves to God, the weights and obstacles that block the free flow of God’s grace and his anointing are cleansed out, and they become open and receptive.
This kind of timely reality check is necessary because it reveals where we are in our faith journey, expose all the hidden guts that hinder Spiritual growth and wellness. It gives opportunity to reappraise ourselves before our Creator who sees our inner minds and knows our desires and motives. It helps us to weigh and judge ourselves. It challenges us to repent of our sins, accept forgiveness and restoration in Christ Jesus. In this process we receive Christ anew and reaffirm our faith in Him. It opens door for the Holy Spirit to move in, fill our hearts and grant us boldness in our discipleship.
Lent is a time of self denial – God’s purposeful fast. It calls for outward denial of pleasures [foods, drinks, leisure’s etc], so as to allow the Spirit manifest by quickening the soul. There’s a difference between Christian fasting and “going hungry” and starvation. Fasting is a deliberate abstinence from food or certain physical intake or denial of bodily pleasures for the sake of prayers and seeking Spiritual accomplishment. It’s a spiritual exercise aimed at giving God good pleasure and seeking his favor; sometimes it involves wrestling with God. Some folks deny themselves eating chocolates, cookies, playing gamble, smoking, drinking alcohol or having sex. These could be steps towards right directions; perhaps they should consider repentance than avoidance. It could even amount to giving God that which cost us nothing [2 Sam 24:24].
Rev. Finis J. Dake writing on ‘God’s plan for man’ said, ‘Fasting is a biblical doctrine. It has done wonders when used in combination with prayers and faith. To fast means to abstain from food, which was the cause of the fall of man? It’s humbling the soul before God [Ps35:13]; chastening of the soul [Ps.69:10]; crucifying appetites and denying them so as to give entire time to prayers [2Sam.12:10-13; Matt.4:1-11]. It manifest obedience and give the digestive system a rest [Matt6:16-18; 9:15; Lk5:33]; it also demonstrates man’s ability to control appetites. Fasting aids in resisting temptation, crucifies unbelief, develop faith and gives power over Satan’. The disciples asked Jesus why they could not heal the lunatic boy. Jesus replied, ‘because of your unbelief and this kind does not go out except by fasting and prayers’ [Matt.17:14-21].
The world system teaches that human beings cannot win a fight with food. But Jesus said man shall not live by food alone, but by every word of God. God has given us the Spirit of self control and ability to subdue the flesh. All believers are encouraged to conduct timely reality check, to fast as long and often as his/her needs demand and the body can carry. But be careful and watchful as you fast. The enemy knows what you will profit by fasting and shall do everything to distract you. It’s a battle and the mind is the field. Do not be surprise if your friend offers a free lunch or invites you to drinking party or even send you boxes of chocolates or cookies and so on, during your fast. Be determined and steadfast in your desperation to reach out to the throne of grace or wrestle to victory. We should praise and pray with fasting ceaselessly, especially when in Spiritual conflict, when in need and troubled, and under judgment and persecution. Now more than any other time in history must we fast and pray. It’s our weapon for breakthrough.
Reach: Evangelist Ogbonnaya, Godswill at: weefreeministries@yahoo.com OR P.O.Box 720035, Houston, Texas, 77272