Sin is a loaded word. For those outside the faith, it’s a funny and dated religious term. For Christians, we repeat it so often that it loses its bite. Scripture reveals that sin is worse than we know. Jesus is so serious about it that he says, “If your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out.” What is it about sin that’s so fatal it would require Jesus to go to the cross?
This Lent we do a soul examination, studying all the ways God describes the complex of sin. Lawlessness, adultery, rebellion . . . The cancerous nature of sin means that we need to go deeper than surface confession. The problem is worse than we know, which makes our Savior greater than we can imagine.
Invocation
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, who delivers us from all evil.
Invitation Prayer
Lord, you experienced evil by your death on the cross. Death is the great foe we all face. Yet you overcame the power of death by your resurrection. So fill us with this power that even now our lives may be filled with genuine hope. Hold us now and until our life’s end. We cling to you, our crucified and risen Savior, Jesus. Amen.
Meditation:
Belief
by Megan Roegner
Sometimes all I really believe
is believing, or rather hoping,
that wanting to believe is enough.
Think about the word too much
and the meaning slips away.
Believe,
be live,
be changing,
be fluid,
a river coursing urgently downstream
not knowing it was created to yield, once
again, to the unremembered ocean.
Belief,
be leaf,
be green,
be growing,
a fragile shoot recklessly unfurling,
still a stranger to the sun and spring rain.
I struggle sometimes to believe.
But I always desire you,
a boundless presence encompassing
my ignorance and
yes
even my doubt.
Sending
Almighty God, cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit, that we may perfectly love you and worthily magnify your holy name, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.