Ash Wednesday is the beginning of the season of Lent.  Garrison Keillor once commented that for Lutherans it’s always Lent.  But if we were to turn things around–look at it from the other end–we would be Living Lent as the People of the Resurrection.  The question then would become “what is the point of Lent?”  David in Psalm 51 expressed it beautifully–“restore unto me the joy of thy salvation.”

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A theologian, Bruce Birch, suggested a number of years ago that the Bible speaks of two kinds of prophets. There are “inside prophets,” like Nathan, a member of King David’s court, and there are “outside prophets,” like Elijah, the nemesis of Ahab and Jezebel. Each has advantages and disadvantages. The inside prophet has access and can speak directly to the political leadership, but runs the danger of being co-opted. The outside prophet has no problem pointing out the failings of king or queen, but has little influence over decisions and the course of events.

It is thought that the psalm that we read a few moments ago was a psalm of David penned not long after he had been confronted by the prophet Nathan. David had committed a grievous sin. He had committed adultery. He compounded that sin by having Bathsheba’s husband thrust into the most intense part of the battle with the assurance that he would lose his life. Then he gathered up the widow as his own.

Nathan said to David, “Let me tell you a little story.” There was a man who had a single lamb, one that was more of a pet than livestock. There was a rich man who lived next door. The rich man had some guests that he wanted to entertain, so rather than turn to his own livestock, he took his neighbor’s lamb, slaughtered it, had it prepared and fed it to his guests.’ David immediately reacted in anger at the injustice and was ready to hold the rich man accountable for his misdeed, until Nathan held up his hand. “You are the man.” None of us likes to be confronted with his or her own failings, but David recognized the truth. He poured out his feelings in his poetry.

Doesn’t it seem that Lent has come a little early this year? The Christmas decorations are hardly down and put away in garage or closet. One apartment across from where I’m staying still has Christmas lights lining the window. It seems that we have hardly arrived in Bethlehem and already we are embarking on a Lenten journey.

Lent is a penitential season and many practices have grown up around it. Mardi Gras, or Fat Tuesday, marks the end of celebrations. Shrove Tuesday came into being as people sought to use up all of fatty foods in the house before the beginning of Lent. Many congregations hold a pancake dinner as a reminder to use up the eggs and milk before the fasts of Lent. The name Shrove Tuesday comes from the practice of being shriven, that is forgiven, before Ash Wednesday. Giving up candy or sweets is a reminder both of the fasts and the suffering and death of the Lord. Any or all of these can be meaningful practices for an individual, but do they really touch the heart of the season of Lent?

If we are to look at Lent as the theme of our services suggests, if we are look at Lent from the other end—as people of the Resurrection, then, as the psalm suggests, the goal of Lent is to “restore unto me the joy of thy salvation.” Garrison Keillor suggested that for Lutherans it’s always Lent. His picture is of dour Lutherans concentrating on the Law, concerned with always doing it right. If there isn’t a rule to cover it, then we must need an additional rule. It’s not surprising that we feel that way. Rules are comfortable things. At least you know where you stand and what’s expected. God’s gift of Jesus was a new thing—so new that Mary and Joseph didn’t know quite what to do. So they did what was expected. They did the old things. On the eighth day they brought Jesus to be circumcised. At the end of 40 days Mary came to be purified. They gave the designated offering of two doves. There were two older people in the Temple who understood the newness of what God had given. They ignored all of the ritual and concentrated on the child. Simeon said, “Lord, now let your servant depart in peace for my eyes have seen the glory of your salvation which you have prepared in the presence of all people. Anna praised God and spoke about the child to all who were looking for the redemption of Jerusalem.

Yes, the practices of Lent are meaningful. This is a time to ponder, to reflect, on our own sinfulness. It is a time to strip off the outer shell that we present to other people and to see ourselves as we appear in the eyes of God. The rules, the Law of God, are necessary. It helps us to see the many ways in which we have failed.

“Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love. Blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. Against you, only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight.” Yes, David understood the depth of his failure. He certainly pondered, reflected over, what he had done. He had sinned against the woman, Bathsheba. He had certainly sinned against the woman’s husband Uriah. He had failed himself and forsaken his own integrity. But even more than all of this he had failed God.

Yes, God certainly holds us accountable for our actions, but confession isn’t enough. Confession doesn’t resolve the problem. Our reflection on our own sinfulness, our recognition that we have failed others, ourselves, and our God, our sincere desire to change only takes us so far. As important as this season is, we don’t want to become mired in Lent. If we are to understand Lent as people of the Resurrection, then we must look at it from the other end. As David says in the psalm, the point of Lent is that God would restore to us the joy of salvation.

That is the purpose of Lent, that we would recognize who we are, what we have done, and for what we are responsible. We have to be able to define and understand the problem, our problem. We, hopefully, are not guilty of David’s sins, but we certainly have a whole catalogue of our own. Confession is good and necessary, but then we have to look to the new thing—the new element—that God has introduced. God has sent His Son into our world. God has forgiven us. God has restored us. In our baptism we have been marked with the sign of a cross, the Lord’s cross. He has assumed responsibility for our sins. He has suffered and died on our behalf. He has freed us, made us a people of the resurrection and restored to us the joy of salvation.

No, Garrison Keillor, even in the midst of Lent, we are still a people of the resurrection who can acknowledge the joy of salvation which our Lord has restored.