stephen R Harrison

Lent is a 40-day (47 if you count the Sundays, including Easter) religious observance that begins on Ash Wednesday and ends on the Saturday before Easter Sunday. It is a season used to prepare our hearts, deepen worship, create reflection, encourage submission, promote self-denial, induce self-examination, invite repentance, and produce remembrance of Jesus’ 40 days in the wilderness, his sacrifice for our sins on the cross, and his glorious resurrection from the grave. Lent means “spring season” and helps believers experience the journey of death to new life in Christ. During Lent, Christians typically practice fasting, prayer, generosity, Scripture reading, and daily devotionals. Fasting is traditionally from food and can include more modern means of self-denial, like abstaining from TV and social media. 

As many Christians observe this season of Lent, we must remember this: Only Jesus can forgive us for our sins. 1 John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful to forgive us from our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” It is only the blood of Jesus that forgives us from sin (1 John 1:7). While giving up certain things (fasting) can help deepen our devotion and dependence upon the Lord, grow in discipline, and remind us of His sacrifice for us, they can never atone for our sins. I cannot do enough good things to equal out or make up for the sinful man I am or the sins I have committed. We are not saved by works, but by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8-9). Thank God He is patient with us and wants us to repent (2 Peter 3:9). Ephesians 1:7 says, “In Him, we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace.” Jesus paid our sin debt through his work of grace on the cross. 

I don’t believe it’s sinful if you don’t observe the liturgical season of Lent, but it is helpful. It’s good to have seasons of more profound prayer, sacrifice, and devotion to grow in the Lord. I usually begin the New Year with a time of prayer and fasting (21 days) and do that again in the fall (usually 7 days). I also use the time leading up to Easter (Lent – 40+ days) and Christmas (Advent – 25 days) to pray, reflect on Jesus’ birth, death, and resurrection, fast, and grow deeper in my devotion to Him. In those times, I’ll give up watching TV, social media, food, sleep, etc. to spend more time in the Word and prayer. While these times can help me grow in Christ, they can never forgive my sin. They do not allow me to earn right standing with God or His favor and love. They should be more than mere mechanical religious activities. They should not be times of boasting about what I’m fasting from to draw attention to myself. We should do everything to draw attention to Jesus! We are not trying to make up for our sins with good things. They aren’t about feeling better about sins we’ve committed. We don’t use it to combat guilt and condemnation of sin. There is no condemnation in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1-2). We must remember to walk in forgiveness, grace, and love, not the devil’s accusations.

Jesus exclusively forgives sins through his death on the cross and resurrection from the dead. No human can absolve me from sins, and I can’t do anything to forgive myself. While Lent can be a helpful season of fasting, we should not fast from sinful things as we should repent from sin. That means we turn away from sin permanently, ask the Lord to forgive our sins, and turn to Him. I’ll never forget a lady telling me she was fasting from a critical spirit. I said, “You’re right. You shouldn’t do that, but you don’t fast from it. You repent. You should stop it altogether.” One guy told me he was fasting from lust. Again, repent! An adage I’ve found helpful when dealing with sin is “Admit it, quit it, and forget it”. Ask Jesus to make you holy as He is holy. Fasting can help us quit particular sins, but we shouldn’t return to those sins after the fast! Don’t pick sinful things back up after a season! Don’t give up things to try and pay for your sins (penance, indulgences). That’s unbiblical. Ask the Lord to deepen your intimacy and dependence upon Him. You and I cannot forgive our sins, but we can ask the sinless Jesus who became sin for us on the cross to forgive, change, challenge, and grow us.

Starting tomorrow, would you join me for the next 47 days as we prepare our hearts, engage the Word, allow the Spirit to minister, experience Jesus, and look towards Resurrection Sunday?