Preaching and Teaching from St. John Ev. Lutheran Church (Sherman Center), Random Lake, Wisconsin

"Remember that you are dust. And remember whose dust you are." Ash Wednesday 2026

·11 min·1 clip

Jesus warns against fasting like hypocrites who disfigure their faces for show.

This episode is a sermon for Ash Wednesday from St. John Ev. Lutheran Church in Random Lake, Wisconsin. The speaker presents a theological reflection on the meaning of the Lenten season. The message centers on the imposition of ashes and the biblical call to repentance. The sermon directly quotes Jesus's teaching from Matthew about not fasting like hypocrites with sad faces. It references the prophecy of Joel, who called people to return to God with all their heart, with fasting and weeping. The speaker emphasizes that God, through Joel, demanded a torn heart rather than torn garments. Ash Wednesday is described as a confrontation with human identity and divine nature. The ashes are defined not as decoration or sentiment but as the church's blunt confession of truth. The key phrase imposed with ashes, "Remember you are dust, and to dust you shall return," is highlighted as words originally spoken to Adam. These same words of mortality are stated as being spoken to Jesus as well. The sermon identifies death not as a natural cycle but as the wages of sin. A striking claim is that humans are defined not as basically good but fundamentally as "dust" under judgment. The speaker argues that death is a sentence from a holy God against human rebellion, rejecting the idea it is neutral. The prophecy of Joel is said to strip away every excuse and all shallow religious performance. The core purpose of Ash Wednesday is framed as a return to God, not an external show. While acknowledging some pageantry exists, the sermon explicitly rejects pious theatrics and temporary spiritual enthusiasm. God is portrayed as unimpressed by outward signs like torn clothes or public displays of sorrow. The tone is solemn, instructional, and declarative, drawn directly from biblical texts. The style is a traditional, expository sermon meant for a congregational setting. Listeners seeking a traditional Lutheran perspective on Lent's beginning and a forceful call to introspection would appreciate this episode. Those unfamiliar with or disinterested in Christian liturgical practices might find it less engaging.

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