ASH WEDNESDAY - MARCH 8, 2000

St. Mark's Evangelical Lutheran Church - Watertown, WI

A TIME FOR REPENTANCE Psalm 38:1-8, 21-22

David Letterman, a late night TV talk show host, just had quadruple heart by-pass. After the operation he is reported to have said that he was going to marry the woman that he has lived with and he was going to change his lifestyle. He suddenly realized that there were other things that were more important in life, things such as relationships with people, commitment and faithfulness.

We live in such a fast paced world that many of us rarely, if ever, take time to pause, to reflect, to consider our lives, what we have done, what we are doing, where we're going. We are too busy running here, running there. We have little if any time to ponder and to plan. We are so busy reacting and trying to satisfy the demands of those for whom we work and satisfying our own desires and wants that we often don't consider the rightness or wrongness of what we are doing. Many of us have fallen into the thinking, "the end justifies the means" and "if it feels good, do it."

As a result of this fast pace, self-indulgent and feel good thinking, sin, its severity and its terrible consequences has lost its impact on the people of our society. And sad to say, it is losing its seriousness in our own lives. We fail to see how terrible sin is. We begin to use God's forgiveness and love as an excuse to sin and live any way we want and to justify our sinful actions. "It's not that bad. God understands. And after all God forgives." Yet we will confess in the words of the Athanasian Creed today, "Those who have done good will enter eternal life, but those who have done evil will go into eternal fire. This is the true Christian faith." (Athanasian Creed) Living in open rebellion to God and his ways eventually leads to eternal punishment in hell. This is what the Bible clearly teaches. As the Apostle writes, "Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters, nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God." (1 Corinthians 6:9-10)

It is vitally important that we pause in our busy lives and reflect. The Lenten season gives us an opportune time to do just that. During the next six weeks we will have time to reflect on the seriousness of sin, our sinful condition and our sinful thoughts, actions and words. The most important relationship any of us will ever have in this life is our relationship with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He is to be number one in our lives. He needs to be our best and closest friend. He offers us his almighty strength and help as we walk the road of this life with all its bumps and potholes, its detours and wrong ways.

As we begin our 2000 Lenten journey which will focus on certain places in Jesus' Passion, we begin this evening focusing our hearts and minds on this truth - THIS IS A TIME FOR REPENTANCE. As we consider a portion of Psalm 38 written by King David we are reminded of I) The Horrors Of Sin. But lest we despair in hopelessness and shame David points us to II) The Power of God's Promises.

THE HORRORS OF SIN

Psalm 38 is one of the seven penitential psalms. This psalm is written by King David as he reflects on his life and the consequences of the sins that he has committed. In fact, this psalm may have been penned by David near the end of his life. David recounts for us the horrors of sin and what it does to a person and how it attacks a person physically and spiritually.

David is old and facing death. His health has deteriorated. Listen to what he says, "Because of your wrath there is no health in my body; my bones have no soundness because of my sin. My wounds fester and are loathsome because of my sinful folly (Actually what David says is that his wounds stink and are continually draining and running with puss.) My back is filled with searing pain; there is no health in my body." (38 vv. 3,5,7) David is personally experiencing the consequences of sin. As God told Adam and Eve, "for dust you are and to dust you will return." (Genesis 3:19b) Why do you think David Letterman suddenly started to look at his life? He was confronted with his own mortality. He was brought to realize that he is going to die. The Bible tells us, "The wages of sin is death." (Romans 6:23a)

When you have death knocking at your door, suddenly sin is real. You understand that I am experiencing this because I am sinful and unclean. If I were not a sinful human being, I would be incapable of dying. When we are young, sickness and death seems so far away. But we are daily reminded that death does not select only the old and feeble. Last week's unexpected death of a four month old child reminds us that we never know the day nor the hour when we will be called from this world.

The horrors of sin also attack us spiritually. Remember King David had not lived such a sterling and upright life. He had committed adultery with Bathsheba. I am sure that David was not thinking that this was such a great sin when he slept with Bathsheba, Uriah the Hittite's wife. He was not considering what terrible consequences he would later suffer in his life for what he had done. David was caught up in the here and now and satisfying his lusts and desires at that moment. Then in his attempt to cover up that sin David saw to the murder of Bathsheba's husband. God finally confronted David with his sin and brought him to admit and confess what he had done. The prophet Nathan assured David that he would not be condemned eternally, but there would be consequences that David would suffer all of his life for what he had done. Now near David's death he again is reminded of all the turmoil and trouble his family had gone through because of his rebellion and open disobedience to the will of God. While David's life was coming to an end, one of his sons, Adonijah, attempted to make himself king in the place of Solomon whom God had chosen to be David's successor. David had to deal with this and make it clear to all that Solomon would be king upon his death. This event may have also triggered in David's mind all the other heartaches and sorrows that he experienced with his family. He may have recalled how his son, Amnon, had raped his half sister, Tamar. This was followed by Tamar's brother, Absalom, murdering his half-brother Amnon for raping his sister. He may have also been reminded of how his son Absalom had driven David out of Jerusalem and attempted to set himself up as king in David's place. Later Absalom was killed by David's general Joab as Absalom hung by his hair in an oak tree where he had been caught. All these tragic events were the consequences that David experienced because of his sins. Just as Nathan had told him, "Now, therefore the sword will never depart from your house, because you despised me and took the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your own. Out of your own household I am going to bring calamity upon you." (2 Samuel 12:10-11)

As David lies on his sick bed in agony and pain, he also is experiencing the spiritual agony and pain that his sins have brought upon his life. Listen to what he says, "'O Lord, do not rebuke me in your anger or discipline me in your wrath. For your arrows have pierced me, and your hand has come down upon me. My guilt has overwhelmed me like a burden too heavy to bear. I am feeble and utterly crushed; I groan in anguish of heart." (Psalm 38:1,2,4,8) Sin and its guilt has a way of overwhelming us and making us depressed, physically and spiritually ill.

What can we do to make it better? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. Oh we try. But we cannot appease the anger of our holy and righteous God. There is nothing we can do to cover up and undo our rebellion and disobedience. David knew this. So David turns to the only one who can help him in this time of great distress and turmoil, the Lord his Savior God.

THE POWER OF GOD'S PROMISES

David turns to the promises of his Savior God. Listen to his cry, "O Lord, do not forsake me; be not far from me, O my God. Come quickly to help me, O Lord, my Savior." (Psalm 38:21-22) David knows that he cannot face these trials and problems alone. He needs God's presence and strength. He seeks God's help. And God helps him. For remember the powerful promise that God made to David and to us, "Never will I leave you, never will I forsake you." (Hebrews 13:5b) Moses also tells us, "Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you." (Deuteronomy 31:6) David also wrote, "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me." (Psalm 23:4) David prayed that God would be with him. He asked this believing the promises that God had made to him to be with him and to help and strengthen him.

David appeals not only to God's promise of presence but also to his promise of deliverance. He shouts out, "Come quickly to help me, O Lord, my Savior." (v. 22) David knew that God would save him. God would rescue him from the eternal punishment that David justly deserved for his sins. For God had promised David a descendant who would be an everlasting king and who would destroy the power of Satan and sin. We know that David's descendant has come and he has delivered us. That descendant is Jesus Christ. He has delivered us from the eternal punishment that our rebellion and disobedience deserves. Jesus did that by battling the devil's temptations and winning that war for us. He did that by facing death and enduring the eternal punishment of our sins and that cross on Good Friday. He triumphed over our last enemy death, when he came out of that grave on Easter morning, body and soul alive and whole. He has won for every one of us the verdict, "Not guilty. Fully and freely forgiven of all of your sins."

Sin is horrible. It destroys our lives. It separates us from our God. It upsets our relationships with each other. We daily reap the consequences of our sinfulness and our sins. But thank God that he forgives us. May God's love and forgiveness lead us to regularly and frequently reflect on our lives and give us the strength to live lives that reflect what God has made of us, his holy and precious people who desire to live lives that bring glory and honor to him.

Amen.