Are You Ready?

“Are you ready?”

That’s a question you probably here quite a bit. Your parents are asking if you’re ready to leave for school. Your lab partner needs to know if you’re ready to start your science experiment. The teacher wants to know if you’re ready to take your test. A cross country coach or teammate wants to know if you’re ready to start your warmup jog. We spend so much of our lives getting ready.

Sometimes the answer is, “No.” You hit snooze on your phone and overslept. You can’t even begin to understand what your science teacher told you to do as he rattled off the instructions. You totally forgot there was a test today. You’re still sore from yesterday’s five miles, and, quite frankly, you’d rather be at home in front of the TV. No, you’re not ready at all.

The season of Lent has always been one of my favorite times of the year. The midweek church services were a sign that something big was coming. Even before you completely understood what Holy Week was all about, you probably could tell that it was very important. “For us the Lenten season is a time to meditate deeply on the meaning of Christ’s suffering and death for our salvation as well as a time in which to concentrate on the continuing importance of amending our sinful lives.” (From Christian Worship: Manual)

During Lent, we get extra chances to consider who we really are. We can think honestly about the depth of our sinfulness before God. It’s eye-opening when we ignore what the rest of the world says and listen to God’s truth. We are not perfect. Everyone is not okay. We are broken. We need help.

“Are you ready?” Suddenly the question takes on new meaning. Are you ready to acknowledge what God calls sin, especially when the rest of your classmates could care less about what God says? Your boyfriend or girlfriend asks you if you’re ready to take your physical relationship to the next level. Well…are you ready to answer that question? Are you ready to tell others what God has done or said, even if that makes you a target? Are you ready to forgive your parents, your siblings, your friends, and in your enemies in the way you have been forgiven? Or do you, like the rest of us, kind of enjoy the feelings of spite and anger that sometimes begin to burn within our hearts?

Lent helps to remove any false ideas about our own goodness, but that’s only the beginning. As we read through the Passion History, we are stunned all over again at the great lengths God went to save us from our sin. We stand with Jesus in Gethsemane, and our hearts sink as Judas moves in for a backstabbing kiss. We watch with horror as the soldiers gleefully strike Jesus again and again. They laugh; we do not. The light of the candles in the high priest’s courtroom give us just enough light to see someone else’s spit rolling down Jesus’ face. We have front row seats in Pilate’s courtyard, before Herod, and at the foot of the cross. We stand close enough to hear the miraculous words that fall from Jesus’ dying lips. We cherish them.

All of this suffering had a purpose. “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” With those beautiful and crystal clear words the Apostle Paul reveals that Jesus came to die for the sins for the entire world. He came to be our perfect and innocent substitute. He came that we might be forgiven. The Holy Spirit worked through the Word and sacraments to create faith in our hearts, faith in Jesus’ sacrifice. We stand holy in God’s sight, washed clean by Jesus’ blood. We are forgiven for our failure to speak up, for our weakness in moments of temptation, for giving in to peer pressure. Jesus took it all to the cross. The empty tomb on Easter Sunday provides one more piece of shocking news: Jesus rose and so will we.

Walking with Jesus to his cross is really the only way to learn how to carry our own. The strength to live as God’s holy people comes only from the Holy Spirit through the means of grace. The courage to defend God’s truth comes from God Himself through the Word. These are just some of the many wonderful things we get to see and hear during the season of Lent. On Easter morning we’ll gather in our churches across the Michigan District to shout our praise for the risen Lord. He is risen! He is victorious! He is our brother! So, are you ready?