The season of Lent can be an important and meaningful time of contemplation and gratitude. This lesson discusses Ash Wednesday and how we remember that our sins have been forgiven. Use dirty things to emphasize how God cleans us on the inside. Lent is not just about acting sad or giving things up, but recalling what Jesus does for us and passing His love onto others. You can download this Sunday School lesson in other Bible translations from the Sunday School Store. Don’t miss the Youth Ministry Lesson on Isiaha 58 for even more ideas.
The blood of Jesus covers all of our sins and cleanses us from the filth of sin. God desires our hearts and wants us to love His children. Fasting is fine, but it’s more important to love and serve the Lord and others. He has already forgiven us and promised eternal life. During Lent, we consider our sins, but more importantly remember how God loves and forgives us.
You’re Dirty! Sunday School Lesson: Ash Wednesday and the Beginning of Lent
Passage: Isaiah 58:1-12
Target Audience: Kindergarten-6th grade
Materials Needed: Musical instruments; trophy/achievement certificate; construction paper; decorative supplies; glue; markers or crayons; tape; scissors; paper plates; cotton or cotton balls; band-aids; string; Bibles.
Lesson Opening: This passage contains some harsh-sounding word from Isaiah, but it reminds us of our sin and overall the hope of redemption. Start with an activity that uses these themes and gets kids thinking:
- Get dirty! Allow kids to do something they naturally enjoy by playing in something dirty, like a sandbox, clay, or pile of mud. Talk about how things make us dirty and we have to wash with soap to be clean. How does God’s love make us clean on the inside?
- Dust to dust: discuss ashes and how they used to be used as a sign of repentance. Look at some, if available. You might also consider looking at chalk dust or pastel crayons as a “smudgy” “dusty” item.
- Dusting relay: arrange students into two teams and line them up. Have one student from each line race down and sprinkle dust on a shelf or other item. The next student will go clean it up with a rag or duster. Students will continue, taking turns, until all have gone.
- Service brainstorm: have students come up with ways to serve others and give to others. To make this a competitive game, write down ideas that students say and see which team comes up with more.
- Lenten preview: it’s not just the stuff in your pocket! Discuss Lent with students, if observed by your church family, and why we honor it in the time before Easter.
Explain to students what Ash Wednesday is and how we recall our sins and “dirtiness.” There are several Bible passages that are used during Lent, and one in particular will be explored in this lesson.
Bible Lesson:
This passage does not lend itself to role playing or interactive elements as much, but is easy to read aloud and discuss, looking at the prophet and how his words remind us of our sins and mistakes. Take turns reading with students, or read aloud and explain for younger ones.
“Cry aloud; do not hold back;
lift up your voice like a trumpet;
declare to my people their transgression,
to the house of Jacob their sins.
2 Yet they seek me daily
and delight to know my ways,
as if they were a nation that did righteousness
and did not forsake the judgment of their God;
they ask of me righteous judgments;
they delight to draw near to God. -Isaiah 58:1-2
Explain that God is speaking, through the prophet Isaiah, to His people Israel. They were honoring God with their mouths but not their hearts. On the surface they acted like they wanted to seek and know God, but something was missing. God was about to expose the hypocrisy that was really going on.
Ask: Have you ever known someone who said one thing, but didn’t really act it out?
3 ‘Why have we fasted, and you see it not?
Why have we humbled ourselves, and you take no knowledge of it?’
Behold, in the day of your fast you seek your own pleasure,
and oppress all your workers.
4 Behold, you fast only to quarrel and to fight
and to hit with a wicked fist.
Fasting like yours this day
will not make your voice to be heard on high.
5 Is such the fast that I choose,
a day for a person to humble himself?
Is it to bow down his head like a reed,
and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him?
Will you call this a fast,
and a day acceptable to the Lord? -Isaiah 58:3-5
The truth was that the people of Israel were not sincere in their fasting. They had ulterior motives. Explain to students that sometimes people will fast, or go without food or something they enjoy, in order to remember their sins or to think about how they can serve God. It’s a practice that has been observed since Bible times. During Lent, a season in the church year, people will sometimes fast by giving up certain things. There’s nothing necessarily wrong with fasting, but in this case, the people were doing it to try to win God’s favor somehow. They had the wrong idea at the core. It might be like if you fasted during Lent, but only to lose weight rather than sincerely thinking about God. These people pretended to be humble, but were still fighting and hurting others.
Ask: Have you ever given up something for a period of time? Is there anything helpful about it?
6 “Is not this the fast that I choose:
to loose the bonds of wickedness,
to undo the straps of the yoke,
to let the oppressed go free,
and to break every yoke?
7 Is it not to share your bread with the hungry
and bring the homeless poor into your house;
when you see the naked, to cover him,
and not to hide yourself from your own flesh? -Isaiah 58:6-7
God explains the kind of “fast” He truly wants. Instead of giving something up or fighting or acting humble, He’d rather people share what they have and help those in need. He wants us to have truly repentant hearts and hearts of service, to give to others.
Ask: Do you have opportunities to help other people in your life today? What about as a church?
8 Then shall your light break forth like the dawn,
and your healing shall spring up speedily;
your righteousness shall go before you;
the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard.
9 Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer;
you shall cry, and he will say, ‘Here I am.’
If you take away the yoke from your midst,
the pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness,
10 if you pour yourself out for the hungry
and satisfy the desire of the afflicted,
then shall your light rise in the darkness
and your gloom be as the noonday. -Isaiah 58:8-10
God promises to be near to us. We don’t somehow command Him with our actions, but He knows when our motives are true. God wanted the people to stop fighting and help one another. If they earnestly and sincerely demonstrated love and not just fasting for the sake of looking good, He would bless them with wonderful things.
Ask: What blessings does God give us every day?
11 And the Lord will guide you continually
and satisfy your desire in scorched places
and make your bones strong;
and you shall be like a watered garden,
like a spring of water,
whose waters do not fail.
12 And your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt;
you shall raise up the foundations of many generations;
you shall be called the repairer of the breach,
the restorer of streets to dwell in.
-Isaiah 58:11-12
God wants to give us good things. He is with us and loves us. No matter what we do, He will provide for us. But He also wants to see us acting out truth in what we say. If we fast or try to honor Him, we should do it for the right reasons.
Whether or not you or people around you honor Lent, it’s good to consider ways in which we mess up, and to appreciate how God helps us. We make mistakes and can be sinful, unclean, and “dirty.” But God makes us new. Lent is a time to reflect on that, but can also be a great time of giving. Instead of fasting, maybe this is a good opportunity to help others, or to add something like extra prayer or Bible study. We don’t do these things to win favors with God, but to draw nearer to Him and show love to His people.
Ask: What can you do a little differently in your life to show love for God and others?
Lent is a season not only of fasting, but of growth and renewal spiritually. It is a great opportunity to give to and serve others and to allow students opportunities to serve the church and community. Remind kids that they can do special things to let God know they love Him, and that they’ll likely feel blessed and encouraged along the way! Invite them to practice devotion and service however they can.
Close with prayer, thanking God for His grace and for a time to reflect on it.
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