Sermon Lent Second Sunday
March 1, 2026
Saints by Calling
Today
is the second Sunday of Lent which is a Christian observance whose origins can
be traced back to the Council of Nicaea in 325 AD. It was that same council
that formulated what is known as the Nicene Creed – a response to the Arian
heresy, claiming Jesus was a created being and not God in the form of a man.
And, as an aside, Jehovah’s Witnesses are the theological descendants of the
Arian heresy. Mormons and Judaism also deny the full deity of Jesus, who is
coeternal, coequal, and coexistent with the Father and the Holy Spirit.
As
I said last week, Lent is a season within the Church liturgical calendar intended
to bring Christians into a deeper relationship with Christ. I’ll speak to that
point again in a few moments, but first I want to address a misconception that
Lent is simply a time to ‘fast,’ a time to give up something enjoyable during
the 40 days of Lent.
A
simplistic example is how some give up chocolate or ice cream during Lent. But
‘fasting’ something just for the sake of a religious performance was never the
intent of the men who first initiated the celebration of Lent back in that 4th
century.
In
fact, fasting from something enjoyable simply for the sake of doing something
‘religious’ misses the entire purpose of the season. Anyone can give up something
enjoyable to demonstrate how religious they are – and yet, in their heart,
displease God.
The
idea of performing some external action without an accompanying internal change
of heart is – well, ‘nothing new.’ Solomon said it well: “That which has
been is that which will be, and that which has been done is that which will be
done. So, there is nothing new under the sun. 10 Is
there anything of which one might say, “See this, it is new”? Already it has
existed for ages which were before us.” (Ecclesiastes 1:8-10.
The
prophet Amos lived several centuries before Jesus was born. Listen to God’s
rebuke of Israel through that prophet: “I hate, I reject your
festivals, nor do I delight in your solemn assemblies. “Even though
you offer up to Me burnt offerings and your grain offerings, I will not
accept them; And I will not even look at the peace
offerings of your fatlings. “Take away from Me the noise of your songs; I will
not even listen to the sound of your harps. “But let justice roll down
like waters and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream. Amos
5:21-24
Isaiah,
a contemporary of Amos said similarly: “Is it a fast like this which I
choose, a day for a man to humble himself? Is it for bowing one’s head
like a reed and for spreading out sackcloth and ashes as a bed? Will you
call this a fast, even an acceptable day to the Lord? “Is
this not the fast which I choose, to loosen the bonds of wickedness, to
undo the bands of the yoke, and to let the oppressed go free
and break every yoke? “Is it not to divide
your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into the house;
When you see the naked, to cover him?” Isaiah 58:5-7.
So,
what good is fasting from chocolate if we continue to lie and cheat and
gossip? What good is giving up ice cream
or television if we are unwilling to forgive those who have offended us? Lent
is not about simply the fasting of pleasures. If our heart remains unchanged,
the fasts are worthless.
For
those who celebrate the season, the observance of Lent ought to be about where
our heart is. As must ALSO be true of every other day around the
calendar, the forty days of Lent are about whose we are, and to whom
we belong.
And
such questions provide a good segue into our examination of our text for today.
Listen to the beginning of St Paul’s letter to the Christians at Rome. “Paul,
a bond-servant of Christ Jesus, called as an apostle, set
apart for the gospel of God . . . among whom you also are the called
of Jesus Christ; to all who are beloved of God in Rome,
called saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the
Lord Jesus Christ.” Romans 1:1,6-7
Above
all things, Paul considered himself a ‘bondservant’ of Christ Jesus. But let’s
pause a moment and examine the Greek word Paul used here, doulos, and is
translated in some bibles as ‘bondservant.” But in the ancient Greek and Roman
world, doulos was a person owned by a master. A slave. One who
had absolutely no legal autonomy, who was kept in lifelong service to his or
her master.
The
apostle Paul deliberately applied the word to himself to amplify the point of
Christ’s sovereignty, rule, and ownership over his life. He was willingly a
‘slave’ of Jesus Christ, owned by Christ and kept in lifelong service to his
Master.
However, because modern English speakers often
associate “slave” with race-based bondage and brutality, some Bibles soften the
word by translating doulos as ‘servant.’ But, as theologian Douglas Moo correctly
acknowledges, translating the Greek word as servant instead of slave simply “diminishes
the radical claim of belonging to Christ.” (ChatGPT)
So,
let’s go back to the text: “Paul, a bond-servant [slave] of Christ Jesus,
called as an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God . . .
As
many of you know, the word ‘apostle’ is a person ‘sent’ by someone as a
messenger. In the New Testament the word is properly associated with the twelve
apostles of Christ. But the word also has a broader sense in the Scriptures as
one who is ‘sent’ to others with the message of the gospel. For example,
Barnabas and James, the brother of the Lord, are both called apostles (see Acts
14:14, 1 Corinthians 15:7, and Galatians 1:19).
The
point? Do you know that you are sent by Christ with His message? We know
this to be true simply from the Lord’s commandment to us in that last chapter
of Matthew’s gospel: “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations,
baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy
Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I
am with you always, even to the end of the age.” (Matthew
28:19-20)
That
commandment is not only to the paid clergy. That commandment is to you.
And to me. And to every other man or women who calls Jesus their Master and
Lord. And this season of Lent is a perfect time to take that Biblical view into
account. God has sent us into our world here at Ashwood Meadows with a message
of hope and promise – and yes, of warning to repent and believe the gospel.
But
– and this is important – there can be no ‘being sent’ for effective ministry
without our first being a slave of Jesus Christ. There can be no ‘being sent’
for effective ministry without our willful and purposeful subordinating
ourselves as a slave to the full and final authority of Jesus Christ in
lifelong service.
That
means, no bus driver can be sent by God into fruitful work among his coworkers apart
from first being Christ’s slave. No CEO can be sent by God into fruitful work
among his subordinates apart from first being Christ’s slave. No doctor can be
fruitful for Jesus Christ apart from first being His slave. No lab technician,
no hotel employee, no businessman or woman can be fruitful for Jesus Christ
apart from first being His slave.
I’ll
bring that point closer to home, no one can be fruitful for Jesus Christ as an
aunt or uncle or grandparent apart from first being a slave of Jesus Christ. And
now, let me drive the point even closer: no retiree can be fruitful for
Jesus Christ apart from first being His slave.
The
season of Lent, like every other season of the year, ought to be spent in some personal
introspection, taking time to reflect on the integrity of our walk with
Christ, including our willingness to not only hear His voice when we sin, but
to also immediately repent and turn from that sin.
And
Lent ought also to be a time of extrospection – taking time to turn our
attention outward to the needs of others. As Paul wrote to the Christians at
Philippi: “Do not merely look out for your own personal interests,
but also for the interests of others.” Philippians 2:4
There
are perhaps dozens of ways the Christian can demonstrate kindness toward others
– both here at Ashwood and those outside this facility. Listen to Paul’s words
to the Christians at Rome: For through the grace given to me I say to
everyone among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to
think; but to think so as to have sound judgment . . . [and] Since we have
gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, each of us is
to exercise them accordingly: if prophecy, according to the proportion
of his faith; if service, in his serving; or he who teaches, in
his teaching; or he who exhorts, in his exhortation; he who gives,
with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows
mercy, with cheerfulness . . . devoted to prayer, contributing
to the needs of the saints, practicing hospitality.” (See Romans 12)
Some
of you attended the service a few weeks ago when I included in your handout
some ministries you might consider for financial support – whether with a lot
of money or a little. I have other copies if you would like one.
And
now, let’s turn our attention to the remainder of today’s text in verses six
and seven: “Paul, a bond-servant of Christ
Jesus, called as an apostle, set apart for the gospel
of God . . . among whom you also are the called of Jesus Christ; to all
who are beloved of God in Rome, called saints: Grace to you and
peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.” Romans 1:1,6-7
We’ve
already examined verse six, concluding that every Christian is called by Christ
to bring His message of salvation, righteousness, and judgment to others. But
now I focus our attention on verse seven – a key text in our understanding of
how God looks at each of His adopted children, born into His family through our
faith in Christ. Paul writes in verse seven: “To all who are beloved of
God in Rome, called saints.
The
Greek word hagios means “A most holy thing; Sacred.” It’s
the same word used of the Holy Spirit (e.g. Matthew 1:20); It’s used of Jesus
(Acts 4:27); and it’s used of the Scriptures (Romans 1:2).
I
want us to get that idea in our hearts. The Holy Spirit, through the writers of
the New Testament, calls every true Christian ‘holy.’ ‘Sacred.’
In
his commentary on the book of Romans, James Montgomery Boice, writes, “A saint
is not a person who has achieved a certain level of holiness. A saint is
one whom God has set apart for himself. It is what God has done, not
what we have done, that makes us saints.”
Other
commentators stress the point that ‘sainthood’ is state of being before
it is our behavior. Our godly transformation flows from what we already ARE
because of what God has done for us in Christ.
The
church at Rome was comprised of sinners, just like the church at Ashwood
Meadows. But – and this is a CRITICAL ‘But’ – many of you know the research
that tells us of the well-established psychological principle which suggests
that we often become – at least in part – what others think of us.
In
his book, Human Nature and the Social Order, sociologist Charles
Horton Cooley postulated that people develop their self-concept based
on their perception of how others view them. In other words, Cooley believed that
we form our self-image according to how we think others think of us.
Now
let’s make some personal application of Cooley’s point:
God
thinks of you as a SAINT. That’s what He calls you because that is not only
what He THINKS of you, but also it is what you ARE. You are a saint,
washed and purified from sin through your faith in the cleansing power of the
Blood of Jesus.
Does
that mean we no longer sin? Of course not. Our sin nature remains in us,
but it no longer reigns over us. Knowing God’s assessment of us ought to
change our self-concept. Knowing God’s assessment of us as saints ought to work
its work in us to say no to sin.
Listen
to what Paul wrote to the Corinthians – a church plagued by a wide array of
damnable sins: “Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters,
nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the
covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the
kingdom of God. Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you
were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord
Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.” 1 Corinthians 6:9b-11
Our
godly transformation, slow as it may be for most of us, our godly
transformation will inevitably conform us into the image of Christ,
because the Father says it will. Listen again to Paul:
“For
those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to
become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be
the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom
He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He
also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified. (Romans 8:29-30)
Notice
the verb tenses. Predestined. Called. Justified. Glorified. All past tense. In
other words, in God’s eternal view, it’s a fait accompli. It’s already accomplished.
In
one of my recent messages, I reminded us that saints are just the sinners who
fall down – and get up.
So?
Look at yourself in the mirror later today and remember how often you’ve fallen
in your life – AND how often you’ve gotten up. That’s why you’re here today,
and each Sunday, isn’t it? You got up.
Some
of you have faced terrible disappointments and unmet expectations in life. Some
of you struggle with chronic pain that often takes over your thoughts. Others grapple
with loss, loneliness and fractured families. On and on, the trials go.
But
you’re here, in this sanctuary, still seeking Him. Still serving Him. Still
following Him.
The
Season of Lent reminds us of the path to Good Friday and Resurrection Sunday is
pitted with the same setbacks and thorns, and blood, sweat, and tears that
every saint of God has experienced to one degree or another in their journey
toward that Celestial City.
I
prepared this message hoping to stimulate our hearts to steadily continue to mature
into the saint God not only calls us, but also knows us to be. I hope that each
of us are encouraged to work day by day in His Vineyard – not only here at
Ashwood Meadows, but wherever He will yet lead us. And I hope that the words of
our mouths and the meditations of our hearts will always be acceptable and
pleasing to Him to loves us. May God make is so.
Amen
