Is Lent Becoming More Popular Among Evangelicals?

For the first 23 years of his life, Pastor Douglas Ponder had never heard of the word “Lent” because he was raised in a Southern Baptist household. Now, over a decade later, the 38-year-old pastor can’t get enough of the Lenten season.

Lent is an annual season of fasting that begins on Ash Wednesday and ends the day before Easter Sunday. This is a period of 40 days plus Sundays, as Sunday is a day of rest and is not considered part of the observance.

Although more commonly practiced among Catholic and mainline Protestant denominations, some Evangelical and non denominational Christians are observing the traditional liturgical season of Lent.

For Ponder, who founded and serves as teaching pastor for the Acts 29-affiliated Remnant Church of Richmond, Virginia, Lent became part of the fabric of his faith shortly after he entered seminary school in 2012.

“I discovered Lent in seminary school as I studied a lot of older church authors, church historians, and discovered that there were lots of practices that were common at different points in Church history that weren't part of my upbringing. And so Lent was among those,” Ponder said in an interview with The Christian Post.

“As I began to read and study more widely, I thought, ‘Hey, the Bible has a lot to say about fasting. And it would be great to take a season to fast more and focus on the work of Jesus leading up to Easter and identifying with Him through that.'"

Ponder said some of the ways he practices Lent is by setting aside time during the 40 days for daily meditation, Scripture reading, and focusing his mind on what Jesus has done through prayer.

The pastor said for the duration of the days of Lent he also selects something that has become a major part of his daily routine to cut out of his life, such as sugar or television.

For Ponder, over the past few years, the season of Lent, he said, has really changed his whole perspective on Christianity and it helped him to get in a more fixed spiritual rhythm of giving and loving and to remember more closely the sacrificial grace that comes from Jesus Christ.

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When he does more faith-based things and denies himself something during the season each year, Ponder said it helps him to remember those who go without unwillingly, while remembering that no need is greater than the human need for Jesus Christ.

While many Christians are accustomed to hearing about Lent as a holiday practiced mostly by Catholic, Lutheran, Methodist and Episcopalian churches, within the past few years, Ponder said, trends have changed to show that more Protestant, Evangelical and nondenominational churches have started to adopt the Lenten practice in their houses of worship.

With a church that averages 750 people a service, Ponder said that about 20% of his nondenominational church celebrates Lent. Even though Ponder celebrates Lent every year, he said, he tells his church that it’s a personal and private decision for each Christian on whether or not they choose to celebrate the season.

For the members of his church that choose not to celebrate Lent, Ponder said, he encourages them to incorporate regular spiritual rhythms in their lives where they are doing things that Jesus encourages His followers to do.

“Our church doesn't celebrate Lent officially. But I counsel the members of my church, to see the freedom that they have in Christ to do it or not. If they want to observe Lent, I encourage them to use it as an opportunity to do the kinds of things that God says are good all the time; such as: reading from God's Word, spending time in prayer and cutting out things from their life that has taken up too much of their time and attention,” Ponder said.

As more counter-traditional denominations begin to adopt Lenten practices, Ponder said this can potentially be a beneficial thing. However, he added, more churches celebrating Lent simply because it’s “trendy and popular” could be problematic.

“I think that the trend is mainly becoming popular in nondenominational churches that do not have a deep history; or deep connection with the Christian Church's history. These types of churches sometimes feel rootless and they go in search of ancient practices, to feel more connected with their faith,” Ponder explained.

Ponder also noted that the Bible is full of warnings against people approaching their faith in a way that is all about chasing after a religious practice or concept or idea, even if it is a longtime practiced custom.

“I've seen a trend among people who just sort of mindlessly began doing Lent simply because it's popular. They don't ask questions like: ‘Where did this practice or idea come from? Has it always been practiced? If it was rejected, why was it rejected? Were those good reasons? Are they bad reasons? Do I have good reasons for doing it? Bad reasons for doing it? Is this something I have to do? Is this something I'm free to do,'” Ponder said.

“Adopting Lent mindlessly is not always a bad thing, but it certainly can be because then these churches begin to do and practice things not because they understand what they are, but because of the feelings that it brings,” Ponder added.

Lent has the potential to bring someone much closer to Jesus if practiced unto the Lord, according to Ponder.

“It really all depends on how you approach Lent. In other words, it really boils down to what you think it's doing, and not doing. If somebody was not in the habit of reading God's Word, praying regularly, focusing on the Gospel and thinking more consciously about their life. Can Lent help them do that? Absolutely. That's a beautiful thing. And if that's what it does for people, I praise God for it,” he said.

Ponder said, however, that Christians who are just beginning to practice Lent need to be mindful about their motives in doing so, telling CP that while "Lent can be beneficial," it can still "have an opposite effect."

"Remember that in the Bible, there are two ways to miss Jesus. There's sin on one side, but there's also self-righteousness on the other side,” Ponder explained.

“Self-righteousness is that path that people walk where they think that they're becoming closer to God because of what they do. They think that if they do good things, then God thinks better of them because they avoided bad things and as a result; they think they're becoming a good person."

Christians should be careful not to become like the Pharisees of the Bible, Ponder said, who he said can be viewed as enemies of Christ in the Gospel. Ponder said he takes a neutral stance on the growing trends as long as churches that do start to practice Lent and those who don’t practice Lent are all doing so unto the Lord.

“There's a kind of irony here that we have to be careful of. There are some people who practice Lent, and in the process of doing it, they become more self-righteous than they were to start with. And that actually pushes them further away from Jesus,” Ponder continued.

“Because instead of coming to a place where they are more thankful for Christ's work on their behalf, their eyes are not focused on Jesus, but they're focused on themselves and all that they've done; thinking that what they've done has brought them closer to the Lord,” he said, adding that the Lord does not get the glory in these cases.

While Ponder has noticed an overall increase in Protestant, Evangelical and nondenominationalchurches adopting Lenten practices in their houses of worship, another long timepastor Linda Bulloss of New York, who has observed trends in churches over the past two decades, said she has not seen this trend occurring all too often.

As the assistant pastor of Little Neck’s Edge City Church, Bulloss, who is affiliated with the Evangelical Free Church of America denomination, told CP that she has noticed that although some Protestant, Evangelical and nondenominational churches are switching over and adopting Lenten practices, she said she believes the majority of the churches within those denominations are remaining closed off to the idea of celebrating Lent.

“I think by and large, Lent is still ignored and still looked at as a religious activity that has no value. But, I think in churches that are rediscovering old, true traditions, the older Church fathers and the traditions; in some of those churches, they're revisiting these things as a spiritual discipline. And spiritual disciplines yield good fruit,” said the 74-year-old pastor, who has been practicing Lent since she became a Christian in 1975.

Pastor Linda Bulloss of Little Neck, New York's Edge City Church Pastor Linda Bulloss of Edge City Church in Little Neck, New York | Pastor Linda Bulloss Bulloss predicts that some churches are remaining closed off to celebrating Lent because their leaders could be worried that Lent won’t be taken seriously because their congregants will think the idea of giving up something small for something bigger has little meaning. Other churches, she said, might have a fear of becoming too sacramental or ritualistic and a fear of appearing too much like the denominations that typically celebrate lent traditionally.

“Although there is no specific biblical call to honoring that 40 days between the resurrection and Ash Wednesday, I think it evolved over time as people felt like there was a need inside of their souls to do something; a commitment to rise to a different level of commitment, by doing a time of fasting and prayer and attention to the Lord because of all that He's done for us,” Bulloss said.

“Because to put our attention on His sacrifice, death and resurrection during this time is a small price to pay for what He's done for us; even though it's not spelled out, particularly in the Scriptures,” she added.

Bulloss said that the way in which a church presents Lent to its congregants is very important because if it’s presented in the wrong way, the congregants will not benefit from the season.

“If it's presented in a trivial sort of way, like you give up the thing that maybe you don't even like anyway, then it doesn't really have much importance. But if one introduces it as a way of looking toward something or looking more fully at something, and other things falling away, I think it could have great benefits,” Bulloss said.

“I think it can change our souls. It can change our perspective. And anything that we do to just say no to our own pride and selfishness, and look to the Savior allows for the Lord to make us more Christ-like,” she added.

For others who have practiced Lent alongside a denomination that has been known to traditionally practice the season, the idea of other more counter-traditional Christian denominations adopting the season as a new practice is not necessarily bad news.

Paul Jarzembowski, the associate director of the laity of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, said that he loves when there’s an opportunity to learn from other denominations and he is glad that other Christians aside from Catholics are adopting Lenten practices.

Paul Jarzembowski, the associate director of the laity of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops Paul Jarzembowski, the associate director of the laity of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops | Courtesy Paul Jarzembowski “I know in our Catholic tradition we've learned from Evangelical mainline Protestant communities and we’ve kind of incorporated and learned from the wisdom there. And so Lent is part of the tradition that Catholics have held onto for many years. And so, I hope that whoever celebrates it and experiences it, even if it’s not part of their normal tradition, I hope it’s a gift and that it is a grace for them,” Jarzembowski told CP.

“It has been a special part of our Catholic tradition, so if it can benefit others what a wonderful thing. It speaks to the ecumenical desire. It makes me think about the Garden of Gethsemane when Jesus said: ‘Lord I pray that they may be one as you and I, Father, are one,’" he added.

In a way, as many different Christian denominations commemorate the experience of Lent together across religious traditions, Jarzembowski said, that shows the unity that Jesus prayed in the New Testament.

“That must make the Lord smile, to know that at this time there is a oneness, there is a unity that is being brought — maybe not complete unity — but it’s a beautiful thing,” Jarzembowski said.

“It speaks to our common faith in Jesus Christ and that gives me great joy to know that I share that with others."

For the churches that believe that Lent is unbiblical and therefore do not follow the season, Jarzembowski said, they could potentially find within the Bible why Lent could be viewed as a precedent.

“We can all keep learning from each other. … The exact word 'Lent' is not in the Bible. So there's accuracy in that. And it’s not specifically mandated that we celebrate Lent. But it is an opportunity for us to draw inward,” he said.

The 40 days of Lent, Jarzembowski said, could potentially be viewed as a mirroring of a few different aspects of Scripture, noting that it "is reminiscent of Jesus’ 40 days in the desert."

"Not a Lent, but it is a time where Jesus took time away to spend time in prayer and fasting. We know that Moses spent 40 days on the mountain on Mount Sinai to receive the 10 commandments. Again, not exactly Lent, but again, it was a dedicated time where, he too, could be focused and in intense prayer and fasting,” Jarzembowski said.

“And so, we too, at this time, follow in the footsteps of Moses and Jesus who took those 40 days. So in some respects, there is a biblical precedent to Lent."

“Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.” [Philippians 4:8]

I guarantee you all: Each of you is doing something that was not done in the First Century Church, yet is treated as de rigueur in your denomination or congregation. The vaunted, formalized, obligatory altar call by many an “Evangelical” church - see my above criticism of the abuse of this sacred term - is one such tradition.

If one makes it an article of faith, a legalistic requirement, then one has gone too far.

But choosing to do it, choosing to encourage it, choosing, on a congregational level, to formally promote it, is not wrong - if one makes it clear that it is voluntary. If it has some inherent value (see above), then it may be worthwhile.

I began fasting when young, not because anyone told me to do so, but because Jesus Christ, our Exemplar, did so - and noate that he said “When (not If) you fast...”

I once met with our senior pastor as a young man, and simply asked him to preach a sermon (just one!) on fasting from a Biblical perspective. He flatly refused, saying that would promote “works righteousness”.

He was wrong - and I never suggested he demand it of anyone. My rebuttal was simple:

Do our pastors preach on Tithing (Giving)? Emphatically yes! Do our pastors preach on Praying? Emphatically yes!

Those are the other two Christian disciplines from that very same passage and context: The Sermon on the Mount [Matthew 6].

My pastor’s refusal was actually a form of legalism; my request was not. (Americans are lazy and fat, and do not want to exercise discipline.)

As both a biologist and a theologian, I am well aware of the valid benefits, physically and spiritually, that can come from fasting. But I have known few Christians who are willing to attempt it even briefly.

I have read many books on the subject, and almost all of them are not written by Christians - because few Christians want to follow Christ’s example in this area.

Nota bene: There may be some benefit to fasting for a day, but to really begin to experience tangible benefits from fasting, it generally is necessary to set aside three days minimum, and to ease into and out of the fast (ramp up and ramp down on eating: be gentle).

That has nothing to do with legalism; it has to do with the body and mind changing their mode of operation and experience. That takes about three days for most people.

After the third day, superficial hunger, which is a habit, tends to diminish; clarity of mind and spirit tends to grow. Physically, autolysis (self digestion: of the detritus in the body) does not begin until the third day. Real starvation, for someone who has been normally nourished, does not begin until the third of fourth week.

Peter gave an altar call in Acts 2. Paul told believers not to neglect their church meetings. Believers can meet any day or time of the week as they feel led. All very biblically sound.

I would disagree with these characterizations. What happened in Acts 2 was not an altar call as we would think of it today.

The ones that were there were "devout" men:

Act 2:5 And there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under heaven.

They were there to observe one of the Lord's Holy Days, Pentecost:

Act 2:1 When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.

They were not neophytes when it came to the God of Israel. They were well versed in scripture. They knew and believed in a coming messiah. What they didn't believe was that Jesus was that messiah. This was the point of Peter's sermon...to let them know that Jesus was the messiah and that he was expecting them to enter into a personal covenant with God and to enter into that covenant by repenting (changing their lives and thoughts totally), be baptized and receive the holy spirit. They knew 90% of what it takes to be a Christian because they had the scriptures that revealed Christ.

Modern altar calls seem to be mostly a spur of the moment, emotional thing that is often aimed at those who know absolutely nothing about scripture or the commitment they are making. "Giving your heart to Jesus" is okay to say when it's understood in the larger context of the new covenant. But someone getting baptized without understanding that is simply someone getting wet...imho.

As far as meeting any time of the day or week it's true....believers can. However there are absolutely days that the Lord commands his followers to assemble on.

Lev 23:1 And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, Lev 23:2 "Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: 'The feasts of the LORD, which you shall proclaim to be holy convocations, these are My feasts.

The "Lord" (the messiah, Christ) says that he has feast days. And on those feast days he expects the children of Israel (which included modern day Christians) to assemble and worship on.

I understand that many have been TAUGHT that Christian don't have to do this. But that is almost entirely the result of an anti-Jewish hatred in the Roman empire that arose beginning in the first century due to a series of revolts against Rome by Judea. It was decided by the Roman church that Christians should not keep the same days as Jews. This is all historical fact and can be found by looking at the canons of various early church canons. The hatred of Jews is obvious...but because a bunch of Jew hating men said we shouldn't observe the Lord's Holy Days is no reason to disobey God himself.

If you’re under the Law you keep those. But you’re not under the New Covenant. If you’re under the New Covenant then 2 Col 2:16-17 applies.

It's a verifiable, historical fact that the abandonment of biblical holy days was a process that didn't really culminate for over 400 years or so after the death of Christ.

What you are doing is looking at the bible through the lens of the believe that there was biblical justification for this. There is not.

Let's look at the entire context of the verses you selected as evidence that Christian do not have to honor the Lord Jesus by observing His holy days:

Col 2:16 So let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths,
Col 2:17 which are a shadow of things to come, but the substance is of Christ.

Now you've been taught that this means that Paul was teaching Christians that they no longer needed to observe the holy days that God listed in the bible...the only holy scriptures that Paul and these other Christians had. The only holy days that their culture and society had been observing for centuries if not millennia. This is your understanding of this scripture. But you have been deceived.

When we look at the book of Colossians clearly Paul was dealing with a controversy about HOW Christians were observing the holy days of God. Not whether they should be. First of all look at his audience. He was addressing former pagans who had converted to Christianity. In other words, they were pagans who were not observing what Paul and other Christians observed. In this case the biblical holy days and the sabbaths.

Yet they still had friends and relatives who were pagan and belonged to pagan religious cults. And you can bet they were getting a lot of grief and crap over this new "restrictive" religion they now belonged to. And so Paul is encouraging them.

What kind of grief were they getting? Well whatever it was it had to do with things that were definitely NOT in the bible. For example:

Col 2:8 Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ.

So these Colossae Christian were being taught or told things that concerned "philosophy", "deceit", traditions of men" and "basic principles of the world". None of these apply to ANYTHING in the holy scriptures of God. There were other elements as well:

Col 2:18 Let no one cheat you of your reward, taking delight in false humility and worship of angels, intruding into those things which he has not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind,

They were being taught to worship angels and system that ended up exhibiting false humility. Again NOTHING the bible teaches.

One more example:

Col 2:20 Therefore, if you died with Christ from the basic principles of the world, why, as though living in the world, do you subject yourselves to regulations—
Col 2:21 "Do not touch, do not taste, do not handle,"
Col 2:22 which all concern things which perish with the using—according to the commandments and doctrines of men?

The holy days, the food laws and the sabbath were definitely NOT commandments OR doctrines of men. They ARE of God.

Most translations are done by men who believe as you do. And so they cheat on their translations or make it vague. For example in verse 17:

Col 2:17 which are a shadow of things to come, but the substance is of Christ.

This is the New King James. The word translated "substance" is the greek word "soma" and it means "body". The word "is" is NOT in the greek. So in English it is literally means "the body of Christ." Or "the body of the anointed".

So a proper translation of these verses (which is all one sentence) would be rendered like this:

Therefore don't let anyone judge you in what you eat or drink or your taking part in the holy days, the new moons and the sabbath...after all they are shadows of what is coming....except the body of Christ.

In other words their friends and family are giving them grief about keeping these weird food laws and weird holydays. Paul tells them that ONLY the body of Christ (the church!) can judge them in such matters. The holy days and dietary laws, Paul says, ARE (not WERE) shadows of things to come. In other words there is a greater heavenly reality or a future reality that is casting a shadow which ARE the holy days and dietary laws.

I know this is long. And I know your mind is going to reject it because tradition, society, culture and a false Christianity as taught you different. But it is truth.

8However at that time, when you did not know God, you were slaves to those which by nature are no gods. 9But now that you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God, how is it that you turn back again to the weak and worthless elemental things, to which you desire to be enslaved all over again? 10You observe days and months and seasons and years. 11I fear for you, that perhaps I have labored over you in vain. Galatians 4:8-11 NASB

I'm sorry, but you have been deceived about this as well. In Galatians the situation is much as same. "Days and months and seasons and years" are NOT God's holy days. There is a specific word, heorte, always used to refer to God's holy days. By the same token Sabbaton is usually used to refer to the sabbaths of Jesus our Lord. These words are NOT used here.

Verse 8 gives more context:

Gal 4:8 But then, indeed, when you did not know God, you served those which by nature are not gods.

The people he is referring to were again pagans at one time and now were Christians. Formerly, they did not serve God.

Also Paul did NOT think that God's law was a "weak and beggarly element". After all he said this:

Romans 7:12 Therefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy and just and good.

Paul knew that God's laws had purpose and meaning. The weak and beggarly elements were the pagan practices they wanted to return to.

In this congregation there was also the problem of Jewish Christians (those that came from the Jewish faith) insisting that pagan Christians had to be circumcised and keep other elements of the Jewish religion and rites of the old covenant. Paul went through great lengths in the book of Hebrews to explain that the new covenant meant that the Levitical priesthood and the practices of priesthood were replaced by Christ. Paul was also dealing with extrabiblical idea inserted into the Jewish religion that were influencing congregants as well.

Yet what has happened now is the former feast days and such have been replaced by other by various denominations.

They never were. Again, there is clear and unmistakeble traidtional church history that shows when and why these why the Lord Jesus Christ's holy days were replaced. It had everything to do with Rome's hatred Jews and early Christians not wanting to be seen as "Jews". They took the cowardly way out and abandoned God's days.

You noted you keep these Festivals.
On the Day of Atonement do you offer a sacrifice?
When you celebrate the Passover do you prepare the same meal prescribed by the Law and do you sacrifice an animal and sprinkle the blood on your door posts?

Why do you think the festivals are part of the old covenant? Let's get that out the way and then I'll explain how the holy days apply under the new covenant.

Why do you think the festivals are part of the old covenant? Let's get that out the way and then I'll explain how the holy days apply under the new covenant. No...I don't play that game. I asked you if you kept these specific events. If you do you have to keep these in accordance with the Law.

Of course I keep them in accordance with the law. These days are the Lord Jesus Christ's days:

Lev 23:2 "Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: 'The feasts of the LORD, which you shall proclaim to be holy convocations, these are My feasts.

So yes, the Lord, Jesus Christ, tells his followers to observe his days. That's a "law" certainly. But that's NOT the law that Paul is talking about.

But because you've been taught error by a traditional church for so long you believe (apparently) that anything the Lord said BEFORE the book of Matthew is a "law" that is done away with. We can see the fruit of this heretical teaching in the modern church today...all kinds of perversions being done in the name of Christ.

Christ's holy days PREDATE any covenants and they exist throughout the covenants.

Look at this for example:

Gen 1:14 Then God said, "Let there be lights in the firmament of the heavens to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs and seasons, and for days and years;

Assuming that you've ever been taught this you've thought that "seasons" means summer, fall winter and spring. But this is a gross and purposeful mistranslation of what the Hebrew word really means. It really means "appointed times" and this is ALWAYS used to refer to God's holy days. In other words, part of the reason for the creation of planets and stars was to make sure people could observe HIS holy days. The Good News Bible gets it right:

(GNB) Then God commanded, "Let lights appear in the sky to separate day from night and to show the time when days, years, and religious festivals begin;

The creation of the weekly sabbath is even clearer:

Gen 2:1 Thus the heavens and the earth, and all the host of them, were finished.
Gen 2:2 And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done.
Gen 2:3 Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made.

So God built into the structure of our reality AND in our holy scriptures a confirmation that HIS holy days and sabbaths are supposed to be honored.

You've been deceived into disobeying God and instead are observing (likely) days that God never made, sanctioned or approved of...and in fact condemns in the strongest terms.

As far as HOW the holy days are observed that varies depending on the administration and the covenant. For example the spreading of blood on the lintel at Passover was never repeated in scripture although various accounts of the Passover are seen in scripture.

Jesus Christ himself told his followers how to observe the Passover under the new covenant. He created a special cereemony for Passover on the dawning of Abib 14, when he at e the Passover with his disciples. They first had a meal...but AFTER the meal he instituted the new covenant Passover ceremony which includes eating bread, wine and footwashing. These were specific actions that he told his disciples to do on Passover.

Other holy days (and by the way all of God's holy days are either directly mentioned in scripture or directly alluded to) are observed with the principles that early Christian like Paul set forth.

For example concerning the days of unleavened bread Paul wrote this:

1Co 5:7 Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us.
1Co 5:8 Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. >

Again what your church has taught you is deception. Paul SPECIFICALLY tells his mostly gentile Christian congregation to KEEP the feast...and that IS the greek word for one of God's feasts...heorte. He is specifically telling them they need to observe God's feast days! But he teaches them that there's a real spiritual application there as well.

As far as sacrifices ALL animal and grain sacrifices were part of the old covenant and for sure were obviated by Christ under the new covenant. This is explained VERY clearly in Hebrews chapter 8 and especially Hebrews 9. But here's the thing: In Hebrews it's VERY specific about what is different between the old covenant and the new covenant....and any change or alteration of the Sabbath or God's holy days is EVER mentioned.

You've been taught error in a world that is gripped in the hand of Satan. He has fooled many into NOT observing the holy days of Jesus Christ and instead worshipping on days created by men that have roots in ancient peoples and societies that worshipped demons and not God.

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