Reasons Why You Shouldn't Observe The Heathen Religious Practices Of Ash Wednesday And Lent

Matthew 23:23-27, “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone. Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess. Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness.”

Because the Old Testament Jewish priests (for religious purposes) used ash in The Temple for worship, and later by Judaism and the Pharisees, it would be both relevant and timely (and in light of the cult of Roman Catholicism) to critically examine these heathen rituals.

Here are reasons why it is wrong to observe Ash Wednesday and Lent:

1. Ash Wednesday (like Infant Baptism) was derived from and copied from pagan Baal Worship.
2. Unlike Communion, it is found nowhere in Scripture nor commanded for the Church.
3. It is the tradition of man versus the teachings of Christ and His Apostles.
4. It disobeys Christ’s command that fasting should be personal and private, not a public show and a parade.
5. The “T” shape of ashes on the forehead is historically not the Cross, “T” as in Tamuz, though most believe it is the Cross.

Hebrews 9:13-14, “For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh: How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?”

Let's examine the preceding Scripture passage:

1. Note that ashes do nothing for the soul, no matter where you put them on the body.
2. In order to produce ashes, you have to burn the red heifer’s body completely until it becomes ashes, after it has been slain in sacrifice. Jesus was the Perfect Sacrifice, the Lamb of God slain for the sins of the whole world (John 1:29; 1st John 2:2). But here’s the problem: Yes, like heifers and lambs, Jesus was slain. But Jesus was never burned to produce ashes and not a single bone in his body was broken. So, it is impossible and farcical (extravagantly humorous) to use literal ashes on your forehead to symbolize Jesus! Yes, ashes symbolize purification, but purification of Christians is only made possible through faith in Christ’s shed Perfect Blood applied to the heavenly Mercy Seat (Hebrews 9:12, 22-24; 12:24).
3. Catholics only fast for 2 of the 40 Days of Lent. Jesus fasted for the entire 40 Days in the Wilderness.
4. Jesus was tempted by Satan during the 40 Days. Where are any of the appearances of Satan to Catholics for the past millennium and a half?
   
5. Ashes are supposedly used for cleansing. But Scripture says in 1st John 1:9, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” So, do ashes have anything to do with confessing our sins? No. And that confession is to God above, not a mortal Catholic priest!
6. “Fat Tuesday” reminds me of the Apostle Paul’s declarations about the Cretans in Titus, who were gluttons. And the Philippians, “whose God is their belly” and “their end is destruction.” So, this prelude alone would disqualify “Ash Wednesday” and “Lent” before the LORD!
7. If Jesus had fasted 40 days before his Crucifixion, there would have been no Last Supper! There is no biblical or historical evidence that Jesus did any of these things 40 Days prior to his Crucifixion.
8. The ashes of a red heifer remained ashes and were never resurrected!
9. Ash Wednesday and Lent are so full of confusion, conflating events and contradictions. And you know who the author of confusion is, Satan (1st Corinthians 14:33).
10. The countdown to Good Friday or Resurrection Day in Lent isn’t 40 sequential days in Lent, but 43-44 days to Good Friday, which ends in 46 days on Saturday, the day before Resurrection Day. And this excludes Sundays and Resurrection Day, without which we would all remain dead in our sinful trespasses! This isn’t just fuzzy math, but numerology on steroids!

Dear reader, Ash Wednesday and Lent are pagan religious practices. I encourage you to avoid these manmade rituals and instead “Search the scriptures” as Jesus commanded in John 5:39. Jeremiah 10:2a, “Thus saith the LORD, Learn not the way of the heathen...”