CMLC 2026-02-18 Sermon (Ash Wednesday)

Presence Lord today is a day where we step back

from our everyday life The normal things that

grab our attention that steal our focus The things

that we focus so much on that truly don't matter

in the grand scheme of things The Lord God as

we do so let us remember that it is not in a

way that will ever be justifying to you The Lord

God as we do so that would be to cling to you

because you first clung to us We thank you for

your cross and we thank you for your grace, the

only source of life and hope for any of us in

Jesus Christ. Amen. Howdy. Do you remember that

children's song? I may never march in the infantry,

ride in the cavalry, shoot the artillery. I may

never fly or the enemy, but I'm in the Lord's

army. Yes, sir. I knew at least one or two of

you would know the yes, sir. You know, we sing

it as children. It felt simple and heroic. You

know, we imagined ourselves as part of something

strong and brave. fighting evil for Jesus and

marching forward in victory. But even then, if

you stop to think about it, the question started

to appear. What does it actually mean to be in

the Lord's army? How do you march for Jesus?

What does it mean to fight for Him? Because when

we look at the life of Jesus Himself, we never

see Him riding into battle. We never see Him

commanding troops. We never see Him defeating

enemies with force. If anything, it's a complete

opposite. So what is it that we're supposed to

realize when we consider the army of the Lord?

But then we hear the trumpet in Joel, a loud

alarm sounding from Zion, darkness covering the

mountains, an army advancing, powerful, unstoppable,

terrifying, fire before them, wilderness behind

them. The earth quakes the Sun and the moon grow

dark the day of the Lord has come and At first

we might still imagine ourselves inside that

army on God's side marching forward with him

But the deeper question arises still Who is this

army coming for and? The answer is unsettling

Because the next words are not a call to battle

They are a call to repentance. Yet even now declares

the Lord, return to me with all your heart. And

suddenly, the picture changes. We are not the

soldiers bringing judgment. We are the sinners

who must return. The trumpet is not calling us

to fight others. It is calling us to face ourselves.

And that is where the repentance begins. But

repentance is often misunderstood. We think repentance

is a way to fix things, a way to prove that we

are serious, a way to make ourselves worthy of

God again. If we feel sorry enough, if we pray

hard enough, if we fast sincerely enough, maybe

then God will accept us. But Jesus shows us something

very different. He warns about giving, praying,

and fasting in order to be seen. Because even

repentance can become a performance. Even sorrow

can become a way of drawing attention to ourselves.

There is no pretending about the anger, the temper,

the struggles that we each have. There is no

acting like we are holier because of what we

have sacrificed. There is no demonstration that

we're good enough after enough contrition of

heart. And then right in the middle of those

teachings, Jesus gives the Lord's prayer. Wondered

what was between verses 6 and 16. It's not a

ladder to climb up to God though, but the words

of children speaking, to their father your kingdom

come give us this day our daily bread forgive

us our trespasses lead us not into temptation

every line is about relationship not achievement

dependence not worthiness mercy received not

righteousness earned which means repentance does

not make us worthy Dependence, not worthiness,

because repentance does not make us worthy. It

does not undo our sin. It does not repair our

standing before God. So, what's the point? Why

repent at all? Because repentance brings us home.

Repentance gathers us before the only place where

compassion and grace are certain, the only place

where forgiveness is real, the only place where

life is given instead of taken, because to repent

is not to prove ourselves, it is to come back

to the Father. And that is the safest place in

the universe to be. Because the truth is, if

any of us were trying to qualify for the Lord's

army, We would be disqualified before we ever

stepped onto the field, our feet turning inward,

our strength failing, our eyes crossed. As we

realize our anger rises, our hearts wander, our

mind no longer focuses on the things of God.

How often do we ignore God's commands? We judge

others, even our prayers and our fasting? The

very things that are meant to turn us toward

God, they so easily become ways of turning attention

back to ourselves. Nothing we build in this world

can save us. No strength we display, no goodness

that we perform, no devotion that we advertise.

All of it fades. And if the Lord's army comes

in judgment, we know exactly where we would stand.

Not among the victors, but among those who deserve

the wrath. But this is where the gospel speaks.

Because the God whose judgment we deserve is

the very God who calls us to return. The one

whose army we could never survive is the one

who has compassion on his people. He forgives.

He restores. He calls sinners His children. And

more than that, He even uses weak and stumbling

people like us in His Kingdom. Not because we're

strong, and not because we've earned it, not

because repentance made us worthy, but because

He is gracious. Because His mercy is greater

than our sin. Because His compassion is stronger

than His judgment. Because His Son has taken

our place and given us His life. So repentance,

it's simply telling the truth. Telling the truth

about our sin. Telling the truth about our weakness.

Telling the truth that our only hope is the mercy

of God. And when everything else falls away,

One thing remains. The Father who receives sinners,

the Son who forgives them, the Spirit of grace

that holds them forever. One God. So yes, we

are with the Lord, but not as heroes, not as

conquerors, not as an army. We are in His kingdom

as the forgiven, as the rescued. as the children

brought home. So the safest place we will ever

stand, it's not with the weapons ready on the

battlefield, but in repentance before a gracious

Father. Because there, and only there, is mercy

strong enough to save us, and that grace is enough.

Thanks be to God.