Lent Through the Eyes of Adventism
The season of Lent offers the follower of Christ a reminder of her sinfulness and the call to repentance that attends the call to faith in Jesus Christ. Historically, Advent Christians have shirked recognition of this holy season, most probably because it is without record in Scripture and because it seems to smack of Roman Catholic sensibilities regarding works of penance. This latter observation is a worthy concern, but the season has long enjoyed recognition in the Protestant traditions, and can be preemptively addressed by stating clearly that personal repentance does not result in salvation. A repentant heart is the gift given to the one who has been joined to Christ – all credit being attributed to the Founder and Perfecter of our faith. Repentance is simply symptomatic of the saving work of Christ in a person’s life.
While the season of Lent is without biblical mention, repentance with fasting certainly figures prominently among God’s people. Such practice notably appears on the Day of Atonement, in which the people are instructed in the following manner:
"This is to be a permanent statute for you: In the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month you are to practice self-denial and do no work, both the native and the alien who resides among you.” [Lev 16:29 CSB]
If such practice underscoring the weight of sin was valuable for the ancient Israelites on the Day of Atonement, it seems warranted that the Atoning Sacrifice to end all sacrifices should command an entire season of self-denial, confession, and repentance from sin. Such activity in the present no more atones in and of itself than such activity did in the past for the ancient Israelites. Expressing contrition simply communicates our recognition of the gravity of our sin and the reality that we have grieved our Creator. In this season, we grieve with Him.
Without belaboring the basics, I thought it would be interesting to consider what special contribution Adventism can make to the season of Lent. At first glance, the two might appear to be strange bedfellows. While Lent looks to our past and present condition, Adventism by its very nature looks forward to the future. For the benefit of the uninformed, the essential message of Adventism is that the Christian’s hope should be fixed upon the day of Christ’s return, that day in which the reign of Christ will be fully revealed along with new heavens and a new earth. It is the message that God promises to set everything aright in the end, bringing all of Creation to the glorious end instituted by her Creator. It is the promise of a coming age far removed from our present condition, but which carries with it the assurance that we who have been joined to Jesus Christ shall live again to see all things made new.
The value this conviction brings to the season of Lent is that the hope of resurrection is necessarily preceded by the need for death. In his letters to the Romans and the Corinthians, Paul writes accordingly:
Therefore we were buried with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too may walk in newness of life. [Romans 6:4 CSB]
You fool! What you sow does not come to life unless it dies[...]What I am saying, brothers and sisters, is this: Flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor can corruption inherit incorruption.
[1 Corinthians 15:36, 50 CSB]
Our present condition cannot be carried into the age to come – it must be put to death in Christ if we will be raised with him. And we know that it is only Christ in whom we can effectively die, as not all of us will personally experience natural death before Christ returns [1 Cor. 15:51]. This reality reminds us just how intolerable our present condition remains as we await the resurrection transformation only Christ can deliver. This we await with eager anticipation. Readying ourselves for that day should be marked by us pressing into the mortification of our sinful nature, an effort and victory only assured by our union with Christ. The Apostle Peter remind us,
Therefore, since Christ suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same understanding -- because the one who suffers in the flesh is finished with sin -- in order to live the remaining time in the flesh no longer for human desires, but for God's will. [1 Peter 4:1-2 CSB]
The season of Lent offers us a timely reminder of Christ’s suffering in obedience to God’s will. He put sinfulness to death in himself and has invited us to join him in his grave. His promise to raise us from the dead reminds us that a death must first occur if we are to live in the new age to come. Admittedly, we await Christ’s return for our passage from death unto life to be consummately revealed. Even so, we can today bear witness to the reality that we are dead to sin and have been given newness of life. Looking at Lent through the eyes of Adventism reminds us that this is no mere seasonal custom – it is an opportunity to signal the age to come.