A Lent of “Thou Shalls”

Each month, we send out a note from Erik reflecting on life in the church, current happenings, and more. 

Dear City Church,

Next Wednesday is Ash Wednesday, the day of the liturgical calendar that marks the beginning of Lent, the 40-day season leading up to Easter. Depending on whether you grew up in the church, and depending on what church tradition you were a part of, you may or may not have heard of Lent. Observing Lent is not a biblical requirement, although many Christians throughout history have found it a helpful time for focused spiritual reflection and practice.

It’s common in the days leading up to Ash Wednesday to hear people ask, “What are you giving up for Lent?” It’s long been a season for fasting—whether from food, alcohol, technology, etc. Through my many years as a professional Christian, I’ve learned to answer cheekily by saying, “Sin.” You have to admit that giving up sin is more hardcore than pledging to stop eating sweets. It’s an answer that really establishes your spiritual bona fides.

The Lenten discipline of giving something up aligns well with the Bible’s overall path of spiritual formation. The work of progressive sanctification in our lives involves both a putting to death of sin and a subsequent coming alive in holiness. The New Testament describes this as “putting off sin and putting on righteousness.” It’s a thoroughly Christian dynamic and one that deserves our specific attention during Lent. It’s why, during Lent, it is helpful to think not only of deprivation (what you are giving up) but also of addition (what you are adding).

At City Church this Lent, we do not have a special sermon series. Instead, we will continue to consider the Ten Commandments. As a summary of God’s law—how we are to love God and love others—the Ten Commandments fit neatly with Lenten practice. If Lent is a season when Christians are thinking about how to give up sin more and more and put on righteousness more and more, the Ten Commandments can help. As we’ve been saying throughout this sermon series, the negatively phrased “Thou shall nots” of the Ten Commandments also imply a set of positive “Thou shalls.” As the Westminster Larger Catechism puts it, they show us both what is forbidden and what is required. 

The Ten Commandments can be split into two parts, which are sometimes called the first and second tables of the law. The first four commandments are about loving God; the last six commandments are about loving others. It works out nicely that the six weeks of Lent line up perfectly with our reflection on the last six commandments—the commandments that focus on our horizontal relationships with others. That alignment is a providential opportunity for us to apply these commandments in our daily lives practically. 

Here’s how I’m going to approach Lent this year, and I invite you to join me. Informed by the sermon from the preceding Sunday, each week of Lent I will focus on one commandment, seeking to give up what is forbidden and seeking put on what is required, by identifying one practical thing I can do. Here’s the summary: 

Lent Week 1 (2/22) - Honor your father and mother
Lent Week 2 (3/1) - Thou shall not murder
Lent Week 3 (3/8) - Thou shall not commit adultery 
Lent Week 4 (3/15) -  Thou shall not steal
Lent Week 5 (3/22) - Thou shall not bear false witness
Lent Week 6 (3/29) - Thou shall not covet

Anytime we talk about Lenten disciplines or habits of sanctification more broadly, some people can get uncomfortable, feeling like it is sliding into legalism or works-righteousness. Let me remind you that whenever we approach Lent or the Ten Commandments, it’s important to remember that our strength doesn’t come from ourselves. It doesn't come from the Law. Our strength comes from Christ. 

But the risen and ascended Christ has given us His Spirit to lead us into all truth and righteousness. As I said a few weeks ago at the start of this sermon series, the Ten Commandments begin with the grace of God’s rescue: “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery” (Exodus 20:1). Similarly, in the new covenant, the imperatives of God always begin with the indicative of his accomplished mercy. We love because he first loved us. 

This Lent, let us together live out our love for one another through our practical application of the Ten Commandments (or at least the final six!). By so doing, we might just find ourselves giving up sin and living how life works best.

Stay Well & Do Good,

Erik