This 12 months, Valentine’s Day and the beginning of Lent falls on the identical day. What does a day full of heart-shaped boxes of chocolates and bouquets of roses need to do with a period of fasting and prayer in preparation for Easter? Instead of receiving candy and flowers, many Christians receive an ash cross on their foreheads on the primary day of Lent to remind them of their mortality and sinfulness. The contrast is striking.
However, once I first realized how these holidays would interconnect, I assumed of the way it seemed right – a day known for love and the start of a time of preparation for the celebration of Jesus’ death and resurrection. Cultural observances of Valentine’s Day might clash with Lent services, however the true essence of February 14 is closer to the meaning of Lent than many recognize.
The biggest expression of affection occurred when Jesus laid down His life for our sake. Because of the salvation He gives, believers cannot help but serve Him despite the risks. St. Valentine (whom Valentine’s Day is called after) only risked imprisonment and martyrdom because He was dedicated to Christ.
This overlapping of Valentine’s Day and Lent can teach us more in regards to the ultimate love now we have in Christ, how a period of pain and suffering can bring redemption and joy, and that following Jesus shouldn’t be a passive but lively selection that influences how we live.
Love Involves Sacrifice
Despite popular depictions in movies and other media, love shouldn’t be only a warm feeling. Love involves setting aside our desires and dreams for an additional person. When an individual loves someone, she or he seeks the nice of the opposite, placing themselves last.
Love shouldn’t be easy or low cost. It will be downright difficult at times. We can only love others because God first loved us (1 John 4:19). Without the Father’s loving act of sending His Son and Jesus’ willingness to put down His life, we might not know true love.
The ultimate act of affection comes from the Lord Jesus. He said, “There isn’t any greater love than to put down one’s life for one’s friends” (John 15:13, NLT). That is precisely what He did when He was nailed to the cross. He laid down His life and died for us while we were still sinners to present us salvation (Romans 5:8). As the Apostle John explained, “We know what real love is because Jesus gave up his life for us. So we also ought to present up our lives for our brothers and sisters” (1 John 3:16, NLT). Therefore, love, at its biggest, is connected with sacrifice.
Both Lent and Valentine’s Day remind us of the numerous truth that love involves sacrifice. On Ash Wednesday, many believers receive an ash cross on their foreheads, reminding them that they’re dust, and to dust they are going to at some point return (Genesis 3:19). All individuals are sinners, deserving of punishment (Romans 3:10-12). As sad as our state is, we deserve it because all of us willingly do unsuitable. That is why it’s amazing that Jesus, the Son of God, would come to die in our place and pay for our sins. He did so because of affection.
Valentine’s Day can also be related to this necessary lesson of affection and sacrifice because Jesus calls us to follow Him, which could involve suffering and death. Many believers throughout history have experienced martyrdom due to their faith and devotion to Christ. According to Loyola Press, St. Valentine was imprisoned for helping fellow believers. Later, he was clubbed to death and beheaded because he had led the prison guard and the guard’s family to faith in Christ.
When we love Jesus, we’re willing to sacrifice all, even our lives, if needed. But we only achieve this because He first loved us and gave Himself for us (see 2 Corinthians 5:14-15 and Galatians 2:20).
A Period of Pain and Suffering Can Bring Redemption and Joy
Another necessary truth that Lent and Valentine’s Day can teach us is that a time of suffering can result in redemption and joy. During Lent, Christians prepare themselves for Easter, which celebrates Jesus’ resurrection. However, Jesus’ resurrection is connected to His sacrificial death. These events go together, as Jesus died on the cross, was buried, and rose to life on the third day (1 Corinthians 15:1-4).
He suffered the agony of crucifixion and separation from the Father to save lots of us from our sins. On the cross, where He suffered most, He paid the worth for our rise up and sin. As Peter wrote, quoting from Isaiah, “by his wounds you may have been healed” (1 Peter 2:24, NIV). God took something terrible, the painful death of His Son, and used it for our good: to bring salvation and redemption to all who imagine.
Throughout Lent, we’re reminded of how redemption and joy got here out of Jesus’ painful experience on the cross. Christians spend forty days in preparation by praying and fasting (sacrificing something to spend more time focused on God). The reminder of the physical pain that Jesus experienced is heightened on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday of Holy Week. Then Resurrection Sunday comes, and we experience anew the awesome truth that Jesus is risen (Luke 24:6). With immense joy, we worship and have a good time Him.
Similarly, Valentine’s Day shows us how suffering can bear spiritual fruit. When St. Valentine was in prison, he healed the prison guard’s daughter. As a result, the guard and his family all placed faith in Jesus. St. Valentine’s time in prison, which involved discomfort and pain, was not in vain. God used it to assist more people hear the gospel and place faith in Him.
Loving Jesus Involves Action
The overlapping of Valentine’s Day and the beginning of Lent also teaches us that love for Jesus results in motion. The season of Lent is full of reminders of what God did to redeem and restore us to a relationship with Himself. God’s love was not inactive or passive. He could have left us in our sins but didn’t. Instead, God the Father sent His one and only Son to die for us and rescue us from the punishment we deserve (John 3:16). Ephesians 2:4-5 tells us, “But due to his great love for us, God, who’s wealthy in mercy, made us alive with Christ even after we were dead in transgressions—it’s by grace you may have been saved” (NIV). His love led to motion.
When the Apostle John discussed Jesus’ act of sacrifice, which is the very definition of affection, he emphasized that we must always even be willing to put down our lives for others (1 John 3:16). Christians dedicated to Jesus will gladly pour out themselves for his or her Lord and others. Again, we see that love results in motion.
Love motivated St. Valentine to assist fellow Christians even when it was dangerous. He also shared Christ with others although he was imprisoned. Like other martyrs throughout time, St. Valentine stayed faithful to Jesus even when doing so brought suffering and death. He would likely have echoed the celebration of the disciples who rejoiced “because they’d been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name” (Acts 5:41, NIV).
When we love Jesus greater than anyone and anything, we are going to willingly give all in service to Him. Giving up dreams, items, and even our very lives is price it since now we have received something much more beneficial – an everlasting relationship with Jesus. Our love for Him will compel us to live with wholehearted devotion, but only because He first loved us.
What Does This Mean?
Lent begins on Valentine’s Day this 12 months. We might think these occasions are unrelated, but they’ve an excellent deal in common, especially if we consider the historical meaning of Valentine’s Day as a substitute of the cultural associations with the day. The overlapping of Valentine’s Day and the primary day of Lent teaches us in regards to the connection between love and sacrifice, suffering and redemption, and devotion and motion.
Photo Credit: ©iStock/Getty Images Plus/Kara Gebhardt
Sophia Bricker is a contract author who enjoys researching and writing articles on biblical and theological topics. In addition to contributing articles about biblical questions as a contract author, she has also written for Unlocked devotional. She holds a BA in Ministry, a MA in Ministry, and is currently pursuing an MFA in Creative Writing to develop her writing craft. As someone who’s enthusiastic about the Bible and faith in Jesus, her mission is to assist others find out about Christ and glorify Him in her writing. When she isn’t busy studying or writing, Sophia enjoys spending time with family, reading, drawing, and gardening.
