Pastor's Blog: "A Time for Spiritual Renewal"
| | Dr. Wayne Splawn
I did not grow up in a church that observed the Christian calendar. We certainly had a calendar that listed the upcoming events in our local church’s life, but we did not follow the Christian calendar that many believers around the world have embraced for many centuries. As a young boy, I had never heard of seasons such as Advent or Lent or special days like Ash Wednesday. It wasn’t until I moved to Birmingham to attend Beeson Divinity School that I learned more about the ways in which Christians of different traditions observe these special seasons to focus on important aspects of the work of redemption God has accomplished through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Over the last fifteen years, I have had a complicated relationship with various aspects of the Christian calendar. At times, I have found these special seasons to be very life-giving and helpful as I have sought to grow in my relationship with Jesus Christ. But there have also been times when I have struggled with Advent and Lent due to my misunderstanding regarding the intent of these special seasons. I am prone to legalism in my relationship with God, and when my attempts to celebrate these seasons did not match the fervor of other Christians I knew, I often felt guilty for my lack of zeal. This is especially the case for the season of Lent. I have broken more Lenten fasts than I care to admit. Consequently, rather than being a source of spiritual growth, Lent has often been a powerful reminder that I simply don’t have what it takes to be as disciplined as others.
As I started thinking more about the upcoming season of Lent, I reached out to two friends to get their perspectives on this important season in the Christian calendar. The first person I spoke with is our own Dr. Kely Hatley. Dr. Hatley has given much thought to the importance of the Christian calendar over the years. When I asked him about his perspective on the season of Lent, he told me that he views Lent as a time for spiritual renewal. You may remember a time when Baptists used to have annual revivals. During these revivals, people were challenged to place their faith in Jesus for the first time or to make a renewed commitment to follow Jesus more faithfully. I well remember such revivals from my youth. However, we no longer have annual revivals, so Lent provides us an opportunity to consider our mortality and the ways in which God is calling us to pursue greater levels of faithfulness in our pursuit of living as disciples of Jesus Christ. As we reflect on the cost Jesus paid on the cross, we are reminded that our call to be disciples of Jesus requires us to count the cost as well.
I also reached out to one of my former seminary professors. When I asked him his thoughts on Lent, he explained that he views Lent in much the same manner as he does the Sabbath. That is, God intended the Sabbath to be a blessing to his people rather than a legal requirement they must observe to earn his favor. Throughout the gospel accounts, we see the scribes and Pharisees stripping the Sabbath of God’s intended blessing by making it a legal requirement people had to observe. Lent can be like the Sabbath: we can turn it into a legalistic observance that leads to defeat, or we can see it as a blessing God can use to help us become more faithful followers of Jesus.
The season of Lent begins this coming Wednesday, March 2 and we will have an Ash Wednesday Service in our Sanctuary at 6 p.m. I hope you will join us for this service as we contemplate the depth of our sin, along with the divine mercy God has shown us in Jesus Christ. During the forty days of Lent, I pray that God would remind us of the price Jesus paid for our sins on the cross, renew us through the power of the Holy Spirit, and make us more faithful disciples of Jesus. We will not earn anything from God during this season, but I hope we will gain a greater appreciation of the value of all God has already given us through Jesus Christ.