Lent: A Call to Renewal

The season of Lent is often associated with the somber disciplines of fasting and abstinence. However, Lent is less about what we give up and more about what we receive: a renewed heart, a transformed mind, and an eternal perspective.

Scripture presents Lent not as a period of mere ritual, but as a spiritual “spring cleaning” where the debris of the world is cleared away to make room for the glory of God.

Internal Cleansing (Psalm 51 & Ezekiel 36:24-36)

True renewal begins with a realization of our need for cleansing. In Psalm 51, David’s cry, “Create in me a clean heart, O God,” reveals that we cannot fix ourselves. The sin might be of our own marring, but the heart must be of God’s making. Lent is a time to stop trying to patch our old nature and instead ask for a new creation.

This internal work is confirmed in Ezekiel 36, where God promises to sprinkle clean water upon His people and replace their “stony hearts” with “hearts of flesh.” This is a work of sovereign grace. The “stony heart” is cold, hard, and insensible; the “heart of flesh” is tender and responsive to God’s touch. Lent calls us to submit to this spiritual surgery.

Secret Devotion (Matthew 6:5-18)

As we seek a new heart, we must guard against the temptation of performative piety. In Matthew 6, Jesus instructs His followers to pray, fast, and give in secret.

What is done for the notice of men, God will not take notice of. The goal of Lenten discipline is not to be “seen by men” as holy, but to be “seen by the Father” as sincere. Whether it is the “closet prayer” or the “un-anointed face” during a fast, the focus must remain on the vertical relationship with God. Lent is a call to return to the secret place where real transformation happens.

Living Sacrifice (Romans 11:33–12:2)

The theological depth of this renewal is captured in Paul’s letter to the Romans. After marveling at the “depth of the riches and wisdom of God” (Romans 11:33), Paul provides the practical response: present your bodies as a “living sacrifice.”

Renewing the mind is the only way to avoid being conformed to this world. Conformity is a passive molding by the pressures of society. Transformation (metamorphosis) is an active change from the inside out.

During Lent, we are challenged to examine where the world has pressed us into its mold and to seek that “renewing of the mind” that allows us to discern the perfect will of God.

Treasure in Earthen Vessels (2 Corinthians 4:7-18)

Finally, Lent reminds us of our mortality - “dust you are, and to dust you shall return.” In 2 Corinthians 4, Paul speaks of the Gospel as treasure in earthen vessels.

God puts His greatest riches in fragile jars of clay so that the excellency of the power may be of God and not of us. We may feel “troubled on every side” or “perplexed” during our Lenten journey, but these afflictions are “light and momentary” compared to the “eternal weight of glory” they are preparing for us.

Lent invites us to shift our gaze from the things seen (which are temporal) to the things unseen (which are eternal).

Beyond the Forty Days

“Repentance is a work of every day,” but Lent provides a concentrated season to focus on the “newness of life.” It is a call to move past the superficial and into the supernatural.

As we walk through these forty days, let us not be content with a mere change of diet or a temporary pause in our habits. Let us seek a thorough renewal of the heart, one that recognizes its frailty as an earthen vessel but rejoices in the divine treasure it carries.