by Marvin Bublitz

Here we are in another Lenten Season, that time when, in sombre reflection, we consider our need for the Saviour. As the days hasten on from Ash Wednesday to Good Friday, the worship life of the Church is subdued. Lent is a penitential time, and while we do not go around in sackcloth and ashes, our soul takes on a posture of repentance before the bloodstained cross of the Lamb of God. The words sombre, subdued, and reflective describe well the life of the Church and the life of the Christian during Lent.

That raises the question: “Do we really need Lent this year?” I mean, doesn’t sombre and subdued describe life for most in this time of COVID-19? This is especially true as many find themselves in lockdowns and restrictions. How many are separated from loved ones, friends, and coworkers? We are in a forced subduing of our life. So why do we need Lent this year?

Well, for starters, sin is not in lockdown. The old Adam is not in lockdown. Satan is not staying away from us and our family or friends; just the opposite is true. That sin which has corrupted creation seems to have free reign these days, and Satan is using this time of crisis to attack us all the more. Sadly, our old Adam falls right in line with him.

In difficult times like these, tempers are often shorter. We are quicker to look for the worst in others than to put the best construction on everything. We are more apt to confess our neighbour’s faults than our own. And we convince ourselves that all would be right in the world if only everyone would do things the way we do. In doing so, we make ourselves to be the god of our world. Satan continues the temptation he used in the garden.

It is not a matter, then, of asking, “Do we really need Lent this year?” Rather, we confess: “We really do need Lent this year!”

We really need Lent, for we really need to examine ourselves and kneel before Christ as poor miserable sinners. Like St. Paul, we often fail to do the good we know we should. Instead, we do the evil we abhor (Romans 7:19). We look at one another through the eyes of Satan and the old Adam. We attack and beat others down to puff ourselves up. In Lent, we are reminded of our sad state.

In Lent, we are also reminded of our redeemed state. We remember and rejoice that the Father provided the Sacrifice for our sin. We travel the Lenten road to Calvary with the Babe of Bethlehem. He is the Lamb of God Who came to take away the sin of the world—including every last sin of yours and mine. He restores us once again in forgiveness. Now we can look at our brothers and sisters as Christ sees them: blood-bought, forgiven, restored, and saved for eternity.

After we travel the Lenten road, kneeling at the cross with Mary and John, we rise forgiven to a new day. Christ empowers us in His resurrection to come out of the dark, sullen death grip of Lent into glorious Easter light. Many are huddled in fear these days, uncertain of what the next day or week will bring. Many feel totally helpless. Some, despair. But there is an Easter after Lent. Lent paves the way for Easter in our hearts and lives. So, yes, we really do need Lent this year. We need a Saviour. And the Father has provided His Christ, His Lamb, His Sacrifice for our salvation.

Rev. Marvin Bublitz is Lutheran Church–Canada (LCC)'s East Regional Pastor.