Wearing Ashes

Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21

This Gospel text is about true discipleship. Jesus highlights how the appearance of devotion is given by many people of his time. They make a big show of their piety through obvious giving, through the performance of praying in public, and in the wearing of ashes and a sad face as a sign of repentance. But their pretenses are known by God, and disregarded as phony.

Jesus offers substitute actions for public demonstrations of righteousness. Give in secret, so no one knows the gift comes from you. Pray at home, in secret, so only God knows you are praying. Fasting as a form of prayer and discernment is a good thing, and it also should be done with joy and in secret.

Then Jesus follows up this advice with the clincher: whatever you value the most is your treasure, and that’s where your heart is. Your treasure should be your relationship with God and not anything else.

So, what are we to make of the ashes on our foreheads? Are the ashes today – in 21^st American culture – an outward sign intended to display our piety and devotion to God? Do we wear these ashes for show? Or do we use them to draw attention to the sacrifice Jesus made for us? Do we wear them for the rest of the day or wash them off right away?  What do we think when we look in the mirror and see the ashes on our foreheads? What do we see when we see the ashes on the faces of others? 

I’ll tell you what I see. I see people brave enough to wear the mark of faith in a culture that tries hard to deny the importance of faith. I see people faithful enough to attend worship in the middle of the week. I see people who have the opportunity to share their faith with others. I see people wearing the sign of our own sinfulness. I see people who wear the sign of Jesus’ love and forgiveness.

I see a sign that our relationship with Jesus is the most important treasure we can possibly have.

So, as you leave worship, you have some choices. You can stop in the rest room and wash off your ashes, or you can wash them off as soon as you get home. Or, you can leave them on for a while and reflect on the meaning they carry for you, especially as you encounter people who stare at you or smile at you, or as you are startled by your reflection in the mirror.

Whether we wash away the ashes right away or leave them on for a while, the ashes signify our sins and the forgiveness of our sins. They are a sign for all of us that Jesus loves us enough to suffer and die for us, and a sign that death is not the last word for us. I think I’ll leave my ashes on for a while. They are a sign for us that Jesus, crucified and risen, is our greatest treasure. Amen