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Job 42:1-6
1Then Job answered the Lord: 2“I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted. 3‘Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge?’ Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, which I did not know. 4‘Hear, and I will speak; I will question you, and you declare to me.’ 5I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you; 6therefore I despise myself, and repent in dust and ashes.”
From ancient times, a story was told about Job. Righteous man. Seemed to be without blemish. But then, as the story is told, he becomes the center of a divine test. Calamity came upon Job and his family. Friends made speeches full of their theological ponderings and biases. Job made his share of speeches. And God made speeches as well. An ancient morality play played out in words and characters – groping toward an understanding of the Almighty God. That story was lifted up from the ancient oral traditions, passed into writings, and, deemed to be sacred text, passed on throughout the generations. A few of those words read this evening. The final words, really.
After all the theological discourse, a final thought – some final words from Job: 5 “I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you; 6therefore I despise myself, and repent in dust and ashes.”
It was in the seeing of the Lord that Job finally understood how small and unworthy he was. He could never be righteous enough to be on a par with God. The recognized comparison collapsed him into the pit. The pit of despair. The pit of dust and ashes. The pit of repentance.
The demons of despair have a way of occasionally visiting us. I take my turn. Phony, phony, phony. Nothing but a phony. Not good enough. Sinful. Lousy. Dumb.
But then, the good comes. The good is finally knowing that it is not about us – not about me – it is all about God. And God is good. God is merciful. God is compassionate. God is gracious. God forgives.
It is God’s universe. It is God’s world. It is God’s Church. It is the mercy and the grace of God which allows us to keep going.
As we enter into the season of Lent, we begin with ashes. We know we do not deserve God’s grace. But the ashes are not about unworthiness. They are about hope. They are about God’s forgiveness.
Jesus said: “Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.” The ashes we will be wearing upon our foreheads this evening will not be a mark of sinfulness and failures – they will be the mark of the joy of forgiveness.
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