The Ash Wednesday Banner

Growing up, I always found it odd that we worshiped on with an “ashless” Ash Wednesday. The practice at Epiphany for the past few years has been to place a small cross of ashes upon a sackcloth banner during the Ash Wednesday service. That banner stands at the front of the church throughout the Lenten season with crosses made by little children, teenagers, adults and senior citizens. The hundred plus crosses are a weekly reminder of our contrition (sorrow over sins), our humility and our repentance.

The Holy Gospel for Ash Wednesday is Jesus’ parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector. Pointing to the offense of others, the Pharisee dares to stand before the throne of the almighty God and justify his presence in God’s kingdom. Such self-exalting champions of “righteousness” will be humbled. But those who humble themselves before the Lord’s throne of grace will be justified and declared truly righteous before him.

Luke 18:9-14 To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everybody else, Jesus told this parable: 10 "Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself: 'God, I thank you that I am not like other men-- robbers, evildoers, adulterers-- or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.' 13 "But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, 'God, have mercy on me, a sinner.' 14 "I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."

The Pharisee excludes himself from God’s gift of righteousness, while the penitent tax collector embraces it. Beware of your own complacency of measuring your goodness against others. Measure yourself only against God’s standards – then fall down on your knees and repent.

Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought. Rather thank God that He thinks of you more highly than He ought. God is ready to justify the worst of sinners by the best of His generous grace in Christ Jesus. Pray today and everyday: “God be merciful to me, a sinner. Amen.”

A little Luther on repentance from his Smalcald Articles Article III on Repentance.

This, then, is what it means to begin true repentance; and here man must hear such a sentence as this: You are all of no account, whether you be manifest sinners or saints [in your own opinion]; you all must become different and do otherwise than you now are and are doing [no matter what sort of people you are], whether you are as great, wise, powerful, and holy as you may. Here no one is [righteous, holy], godly, etc.

But to this office the New Testament immediately adds the consolatory promise of grace through the Gospel, which must be believed, as Christ declares, Mark 1,15: Repent and believe the Gospel, i.e., become different and do otherwise, and believe My promise. And John, preceding Him, is called a preacher of repentance, however, for the remission of sins, i.e., John was to accuse all, and convict them of being sinners, that they might know what they were before God, and might acknowledge that they were lost men, and might thus be prepared for the Lord, to receive grace, and to expect and accept from Him the remission of sins. Thus also Christ Himself says, Luke 24, 47: Repentance and remission of sins must be preached in My name among all nations.