Often, people today feel as if they are invincible. Ashes serve as a solemn reminder that the price of sin is death. God said to Adam, “You are dust and to dust you shall return” (Genesis 3:19). The receiving of ashes on Ash Wednesday also remind people of their mortality, which is the direct result of God’s condemnation of our sin. The ashes serve as a tangible and visible sign of our failure to love God as much as He loves us. The ashes demonstrate our pleading that the Lord would purify us. The ashes remind the wearer of their need to repent and confess in order to be turned back to God. The ashes demonstrate that without God, all people are spiritually dead. They are admitting that they have sinned not only against their neighbors, but against God Himself. When one willingly goes up to a pastor and receives ashes on his/her forehead, they are admitting that they are sinners in desperate need of salvation. This tradition was carried on by the early church and remains an important tradition today. Since ancient times, God’s people have used ashes as a sign of humble repentance (e.g. Third, the ashes remind people that they have been redeemed. Second, the ashes remind people of their mortality. First, the ashes remind people of their sinfulness. There are three reasons why Lutherans go to church to receive ashes on Ash Wednesday. Are they showing off? Are they trying to stand out? Is it some weird secret church ritual? What does it mean? Should I get them too? Many non-Lutherans wonder why their Lutheran friends or family members wear ashes on their forehead at the beginning of Lent.
As we are reminded of our mortality, we also pray that all who look upon Jesus Christ will be saved. But we wanted to share it with you again, especially because we are coming into Lent 2022 with the news of war and death in Ukraine, leaving the entire world on edge and uncertain of what will happen next. This was first published on February 23, 2019.
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