Sermon for Children and Adults on Ash Wednesday

Ash Wednesday Matins
Jonah 3.1-10
February 6, 2008

Today is Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent. Lent is the time of the year when we remember Jesus' sufferings for us, and we focus again on the importance of being repentant, that is, of being sorry for our sins and asking God to forgive us and help us be better.

The day is called Ash Wednesday for a reason; putting ashes on our heads is an old custom. What's it mean?

Ashes are what's left over after something has been burned, destroyed. It reminds us that our own bodies will one day return to the earth, the same earth out of which God made the first man, Adam. Ashes remind us that we sinners must die. As God said to Adam, "Dust you are, and to dust you shall return." At a funeral, the pastor says when the body is put into the ground, "Ashes to ashes and dust to dust."

But the ashes aren't just smudged on our foreheads in any old way. They go in the shape of the cross. So even the ashes remind us that the God-Man who died on the cross, Jesus, conquered death, and will raise up our bodies from the grave.

All this was part of the message Jonah was sent to preach to a very bad city called Ninevah. You might know that before Jonah gets to Ninevah, he had quite an adventure.

You see, God had commanded Jonah to go to Ninevah and call them to repent--confess their sins and ask God for forgiveness, changing their sinful way of living. Now Ninevah was a horrible city, filled with drunkenness, gambling, prostitution, and false worship. No Christian would want to go to a place like that.

Jonah's not so excited either. What's going to happen if he goes and tells them to repent? The people probably won't like it too much. It would be like going to a football game and cheering for the visiting team instead of the hometown favorites. Only a lot worse. If Jonah goes to Ninevah and tells them, "You aren't following God's Word, and He is going to punish you," the people might just laugh at him, spit on him - or even kill him!

So Jonah says, "No thanks! I'm not going there. I think I'll take a cruise instead." So he hops on a ship sailing in the other direction. He thinks God won't find him. Hah! You cannot hide from God. God causes a mighty wind to blow, and when the ship is about to sink, Jonah realizes that this whole thing is God's judgment on him. He tells the sailors, "Throw me overboard!"

They do, but then a giant sea creature swallows Jonah, but instead of chewing Jonah up, swallows him whole. Jonah lives in the belly of that giant sea creature for three days, and then, the creature vomits him out onto the land.

"Now, Jonah," says the Lord, "shall we try this again?" So Jonah goes to Ninevah and amazingly, the people listen! And that's where the Bible reading that we heard today picks up. The people repent, and even the king sits in ashes to show how sorry he is for his sins. And then the best part: God forgives them.

You see, that's what God does. He loves. He forgives.

This whole story--which is a true story--is telling us what's going to happen at the end of Lent. Just as Jonah was in the belly of the fish for three days, so Jesus will be in the belly of the earth (that is, in the tomb) for three days. And because Jesus rose again just like Jonah was spit up onto dry ground, we too can be repentant, be baptized, and have our sins forgiven. And what happens then? Even though we die and turn to dust and ashes, we won't stay that way forever. God will raise the faithful up on the last day, and we will live forever in His kingdom.

That's why we celebrate Lent - to help us prepare for the true Easter to come - the day when Jesus will return and raise us up from the grave.

So today you're going to go around and see people with ashen crosses on their foreheads. You might be tempted to think it's a game. Or worry about how you look. Or worry about it itching, or getting something dirty. This is no game. Remember, O man, remember, boy, remember, girl, that you are dust, and to dust you shall return. Look at the ashes all day today, and remember that you are going to die. But look at the ashes in the shape of a cross, and rejoice and be glad that Jesus died for you, and just as He is risen from the dead, so will you too. Rejoice and be glad, even this Ash Wednesday! +INJ+