Lenten Series: Open Door Policies

Our services will focus on these themes during these weeks:

Ash Wednesday- Lowering Our Defenses

Ash Wednesday marks the begging of Lent, reminding us of our mortality and calling us to repent. The ancient practice of imposing ashes on the foreheads of the faithful is what gives Ash Wednesday its name. The church father Tertullian (c. A.D. 160-215) writes of the practice as a public expression of repentance and of our human frailty that stands in need of Christ. Ashes can remind us forcefully of our need for redeeming grace as they recall words from the rite of Christian burial—“earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust…”—words that will someday be spoken over us all.

First Sunday in Lent- One Stands; Everyone Else Sits

Second Sunday in Lent- No Detours Allowed

Third Sunday in Lent- Always Present, Always Patient

Fourth Sunday in Lent- Grace Instead of Condemnation

Fifth Sunday in Lent- Hiding Treasure in the Trash

We have come to the final stretch of Lent, known as “Holy Week.” Think about what that title is implying. We normally talk about a “holiday” (short for “holy day”), where one day is set aside for some special observance or celebration. But for centuries, believers have set aside this entire week for special observance. Clearly, what is discussed during Holy Week is important. Indeed, what we see happen this holy week is the foundation of our eternity. In Holy Week, we see the impossible. The Son of God dies. The Lord of life enters the last place he belonged—the grave. But what we will see this week is that, when Jesus entered the tomb, he did not go alone. He buried all our baggage with him: sin, guilt, shame, condemnation, fear. Jesus will walk out of the tomb. But thanks to him, those things will all stay dead and buried.

Passion Sunday- Surrender Buries Seizure

As we begin Holy Week, we see Jesus bury humanity’s endless attempts at seizing power. In our world, power dynamics are almost always in play. Those who don’t have power want it, often more than anything else. Those who have power are willing to do anything to keep it. In contrast, Jesus—who possesses all power as the Son of God— willingly surrendered his power and placed himself in the hands of his enemies. Why? What he wanted more than anything else was not power, but you. So, Jesus begins this Holy Week riding into Jerusalem on a donkey colt, knowing full well that he was riding to the cross. He would surrender himself to the punishment that our sins deserved, so that through Spirit-wrought faith we might seize the glory and heaven that only he deserves.

Holy Thursday- A New Covenant Buries an Old Contract

On Thursday of Holy Week, Jesus began to execute the terms of the New Covenant. This New Covenant replaced an old one and was fundamentally different from in it every way. The old offers rewards in return for work; the new makes unconditional and lasting promises. The old will always leave us starving in our relationship with God; the new satisfies the deepest hunger of our soul. This is precisely why Jesus connected this new covenant with a special meal. To some, the Lord’s Supper looks like a poor snack—a bite of bread and sip of wine. But the followers of Christ understand that this holy food provides all the blessings of the new covenant.

We will close the service with the Stripping of the Altar. As Jesus life is stripped away, we strip away all the paraments and items from the altar to prepare it and ourselves for Good Friday

Good Friday- A One-Time Substitute Buries All-Time Guilt

On Good Friday we remember the crucifixion and death of our Lord both with sorrow and solemn joy. Though the events of this day fill us with horror, the implications of those events give us every reason for praise. Jesus’ death had this breathtaking significance. Once and for all, it paid for the guilt of all of us and for all of time. Standing in our place, our substitute was forsaken by his Father on the cross so that we could be reconciled to God and have an eternal home in heaven. We look at Jesus on the cross, and there is sorrow. He is there because of us. He is there because he loves us that much, so much he gave us his last breath. Jesus took all our guilt into the tomb with him. It will stay there. He will not. That is why we can call this Friday good.

Our Good Friday service is a Tenebrae service (service of darkness). As we read the final words Jesus spoke on the cross, the church slowly gets darker signaling the darkness that came during Jesus’ time on the cross. At the end of the service we hear the strepitus a loud sound that indicates the shutting of Jesus and foreshadows the rending of his tomb on Easter.