3rd Sunday in Advent, 12/16/18
Philippians 4:4-7
What Does Advent Joy Look Like?
I. It’s gentle.
II. It’s prayerful.
III. It’s peaceful.
You hear it countless times during the Christmas season. It’s the song which informs you that “it’s the most wonderful time of the year.” In fact, the song repeatedly asserts that it’s the “hap-happiest season of all. There’ll be parties for hosting and marshmallows for toasting. There’ll be much mistletoeing and hearts will be glowing.” Sounds wonderful, doesn’t it? But then there’s reality. The reality is our stress levels are often higher at this time of year than any other. The reality is we loath the traffic and the crowds in the stores. The reality is before the calendar even turns to the first day of December we’re already tired of the incessant Christmas advertising. The reality is we’re not really looking forward to the company Christmas party. The reality is we’re only going to participate in the gift exchange because that’s what’s expected or even required. I’ll stop there. I’m sure you agree with me, at least to some degree. We’re not always sure this is the most wonderful time of the year. And I didn’t even mention spending time with that annoying relative you only see once a year.
But, as Christians, we know that none of those things are what this time of year is really about. It’s really about Christ, our Savior from sin. Advent is the season of repentance as we prepare our hearts for Christ, but it’s also a joyful season because of who Jesus is and what he has done for us. The pink candle on our Advent wreath symbolizes our Advent joy.
And that Advent joy is the very heart of this morning’s reading from Philippians 4. We hear our Lord’s encouragement to rejoice. In fact, he wants our hearts to be filled with joy. But at such a busy time of year, when our expectations are often unrealistic, when our schedules are so hectic we wonder how we’re ever going to manage things, just what does that joy look like? What does Advent joy look like? Let’s keep that question in front of us as we look once again at these words from Philippians 4.
Part I.
If you watched any of the coverage of the funeral for President Bush more than a week ago, you likely heard the comment that he was known for being kind and gentle. He got things done by reaching across the aisle. You saw photos of him smiling and waving, not ranting and raving.
Kinder. Gentler. If given the opportunity, I don’t think you’d use those words to describe our world today. It’s vicious out there, whether you’re talking about politics, business, or even society in general. And with cameras literally being everywhere these days, we aren’t limited to hearing accounts of the brutality; we’re subjected to actual photos and videos of it. The terrible things that people say and do are seen and heard daily.
In the midst of that vicious reality, Paul encourages us, “Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near.” Let’s focus on that last phrase first. “The Lord is near.” There’s the theme of Advent. Jesus is coming. We’re completely familiar with how he arrived as a child and was laid in a manger. In a little more than a week, we’ll rejoice to hear that account of his birth once again. But we also know that Jesus has promised to return to this earth, and when he does, he will finally put an abrupt end to the evil in our world, raise our bodies from the dead, glorify them, and take us—soul and body—into the new heavens and new earth that he will create for us.
And it’s with that unshakable truth in mind that our Lord can and does encourage us, “Let your gentleness be evident to all.” That word “gentleness” really doesn’t capture the meaning of the word Paul used here. Literally, it’s “yieldingness.” It’s a word that describes how we should treat others. As Christians we’re encouraged to yield to others instead of demanding our rights or what we expect. It even includes suffering at the hands of others because of our connection to Christ. Our motivation to yield to others is our love for Jesus who displayed that quality perfectly when he yielded to death on the cross for us. So what does it matter if we yield to others and miss an opportunity to advance ourselves, or even if we yield and suffer? The Lord is near and that truth fills us with Advent joy no matter what the circumstance we’re facing.
What does Advent joy look like? It’s gentle.
So, how does your Advent joy show? Truthfully, if it’s like mine, it’s absent at the worst times. Just when I know I should be patient and kind, just when I know I should put in a good word about someone else, just when I should be thinking the best about someone instead of the worst, that’s when my gentleness is absent, and I get vicious. How about you? The truth is we can’t even be loving and kind and gentle at this most wonderful time of the year. In fact, in some cases, it’s even harder at this time of year because we’re under a lot of pressure. Our schedules are packed. And our patience is razor thin. That’s why it’s a good thing it’s Advent, when the major focus is on preparing our hearts for Jesus by repenting of those very sins. Those sins and all others are why Jesus came—to live and die for them, and then to rise again. His resurrection fills us with joy no matter what season of the year it is and it also empowers us to yield to others. To be gentle. That’s what Advent joy looks like.
Part II.
It happened again. A shooting at a school. And this one just an hour away. While we’re sad it happened, we’re glad that only the perpetrator died. No students were harmed. Part of the reason for that is that law enforcement officers literally rushed into the crisis. That’s what they have been trained to do.
What’s your approach to crises? How do you deal with them? As you ponder in an instant how to respond, what do you plan to do first? Second? Third? Call 911? Rush to safety? Find your loved ones?
Before you answer those questions in your mind, and before you form such a plan of action, listen once again to Paul’s Advent theme: “The Lord is near.” With those words Paul reminds us that Jesus might return any second. He’s winding down all of time to that glorious moment. And nothing can stop it from happening just as he has determined. The absolute certainty of that event should fill us with Advent joy—a quiet and subdued joy—even as we face the crises of life.
So what does that Advent joy look like practically? Paul has a second description. “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” Advent joy is prayerful. Paul reminds us to be thankful first. Even in the crises of life. How can we be thankful when a crisis surrounds us? Because we know that Jesus surrounds us, too. We know that everything is in his almighty hands. We know and believe that we belong to him no matter if we live or die. We know that forgiveness of sins and heaven are ours by faith in him. So, be thankful as you pray.
And then “present your requests to God.” What’s on your mind? What’s heavy on your heart? What are your loved ones facing? Present your requests to God. That’s a result of your Advent joy. Advent joy knows that Jesus is near. He entered our world once to be our Savior. He’ll enter it again as King of kings and Lord of lords. And on that day he promises to claim us as his own.
What does Advent joy look like? It’s prayerful.
The pretense at this time of year is that all is well. We have everything under control. Our Christmas is going to be everything we dreamed it would be. The next two weeks of our lives are going to be so wonderful, we’ll be the envy of all who know us. That’s the pretense. The reality is that we have issues. Problems. Perhaps even a crisis or two. And you’re not the only one. We all do. Compound that with the fact that our daily sins create a crisis with our God and you really have a tragedy on your hands. So what’s a Christian to do this Advent season? Don’t despair! Rejoice! Find your abiding comfort in the truth that Jesus came to this earth the first time to deal with your sins once and for all. And be confident of your eternal glory because Jesus rose from the dead and assures you of it. With that confidence, present your requests to God. Be filled with the inner joy that Advent brings and pray about whatever life is throwing your way at the moment. That’s what Advent joy looks like. It’s prayerful.
Part III.
Next week you’ll hear these words of the Christmas angels, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace.” But just what is Christmas peace?
It’s the peace we already enjoy in Advent, and that peace fills us with joy. It’s not the peace between individual humans or between two earthly nations. It’s the peace between the holy God and sinful human beings.
That peace is a done deal. It was established for us by Jesus. He accomplished it by living a holy life for us and then by dying for our sins. By faith in him his holy life is our holy life. By faith in him our sins are washed away. So the holy God has nothing against. We have peace with him.
Paul wrote, “And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” The peace which Jesus established for us stands like an armed guard, allowing nothing to harm us spiritually. We live each day surrounded with that peace. We sleep at night, covered in God’s peace. And that fills our hearts with a quiet, inner joy.
What does Advent joy look like? It’s peaceful. May Advent joy overwhelm you! Amen.
December 19, 2018
How Will You Prepare for Christ?
2nd Sunday in Advent, 12/9/18
Luke 3:1-6
How Will You Prepare for Christ?
I. Get “straight” with your God.
II. See his salvation.
It’s easier than ever to find recipes. Just Google what you’re looking for and “Viola!” more recipes for Christmas cookies, apple pie, or how to smoke ribs than you care to peruse. And each recipe either unashamedly or covertly makes the claim that this recipe is the best. Follow the directions of this recipe and you’ll prepare the finest food you’ve ever tasted. But how do you know which recipe to choose? No two of them give you the same instructions for food preparation.
And that’s true with many tasks we set our minds to. What’s the best way to prepare the exterior walls of your home for painting? How should you prepare for college? Are you prepared for marriage? And if you’re not sure, here’s how. And here’s a preparation question you see and hear nearly every day: How do you prepare for retirement? I’m guessing that every source of information is slightly different.
How do you prepare? What’s the best way to prepare? We all know that solid preparation is the wise and prudent course of action, but just making the effort to investigate it seems overwhelming at times, and that only plays into our natural propensity to procrastinate.
Advent is the season of preparation—preparation for the Lord’s coming to this earth. I ask you: is there any person in the world whose arrival is more important than that of Jesus? Obviously not.
So, how will you prepare for him? Don’t bother Googling it; it’s right here in front of us this morning in this account from Luke 3. Yes, this is the account of John the Baptist preparing the people for the coming of the public ministry of Jesus, but his words encouraging us to prepare are appropriate any time we are preparing for Jesus.
So, how will you prepare for Christ? Let’s keep that question before us this morning and search God’s word for his answers.
Part I.
Preparing for something important can be a very personal matter. What I mean by that is one person’s way of preparing for an event might be completely different from another person’s way. How many husbands have been told by their wife, “You’re not going out looking like that. Get back in there, clean up, and wear something much better”? Obviously there was a huge difference of opinion in what proper preparation entailed.
Again, there is no more important arrival to this world than Jesus. How will you properly prepare? How will you avoid being told, “That’s not proper! Get back in there!”?
Let’s listen to the preparation strongly suggested by the one whom God himself appointed to be the one to prepare sinful people for the arrival of his Son, the world’s Savior from sin. “[John] went into all the country around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. As is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet: ‘A voice of one calling in the desert, “‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him. Every valley shall be filled in, every mountain and hill made low. The crooked roads shall become straight, the rough ways smooth.”’”
Luke tells us first that John preached a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. Theologians have debated just exactly what this baptism was. The best interpretation is that it was essentially the same as your baptism. It was a means of grace that bestowed the forgiveness of sins. To whom? To those who came out to John and took to heart his direct law-preaching, condemning the people for their sins, calling upon them to repent and to look to the coming Savior for their forgiveness.
But make no mistake—the Lord was not fooled by mere sham attempts at repentance. He was calling for an inward change of heart that was reflected in outward living. That should have come as no surprise to these people to whom John preached. That’s exactly what God had foretold through his prophet Isaiah 700 years earlier. Make straight paths. Fill in valleys. Level out hills and mountains. Make crooked roads straight. Make rough roads smooth.
In ancient times, just imagine the hard labor involved to do any one of those engineering feats, let alone all of them. We travel interstate highways nearly daily that have been constructed with minimal inclines and declines using massive earth moving equipment. But not so in Bible times. Roads were constructed by hand with shovels. Imagine what it took to cut a road through a range of hills.
But, obviously, the Lord isn’t speaking here about highway engineering. He’s speaking about the human heart. He wants us to recognize, admit and confess the sinful hills and valleys in our hearts and lives. Instead of lives that are bent with sin, he requires hearts that are straight with holiness. And when God’s holy law does that work of exposing our sinfulness, then God’s gospel stands ready to do its saving work—bringing us the forgiveness of sins, filling in and leveling out our spiritual lives. Making our crooked hearts straight for him. For Jesus.
How will you prepare for Christ? Get “straight” with your God.
What “crooked” ways seems too hard for you to address? In other words, what sinful habits are hindering or even preventing you from being prepared for the arrival of Christ? For some it’s materialism. For others it’s sinful worry and anxiety. Maybe it’s a sinfully critical attitude. Perhaps its substance abuse or some online addiction. Maybe it’s the unloving way you speak to and about others. Those, and a host of other sins, can be hard to break. And as we struggle to overcome them, we might be led to ask, “What’s the cost of non-compliance?” In other words, if I don’t come clean with God about this sin, what will it cost me? The Apostle John declared, “If we claim we have not sinned, we make [God] out to be a liar and his word has no place in our hearts” (1 John 1:10). In short, a refusal to come clean with God is a refusal of our Savior, who makes us clean through the forgiveness he won on the cross for us. That means confession of sin and trust in Christ for forgiveness is the only proper preparation for Christ. There is no other method. There is no other way of receiving Christ. So, how will you prepare for Christ? Get “straight” with your God. Recall your sins, and then recall how your Savior suffered and died for each one of them, for every one of them. Your risen Savior assures you of your forgiveness. Prepare your heart for him!
Part II.
Intended learning outcomes have been the norm in education for quite some time. In other words, educators want to be clear on what they intend for students to learn in a specific course or period of time. Learning simply for the sake of learning isn’t the goal. In other words, intended learning outcomes are a way of measuring what a student should know at a particular grade level or point in their education.
Striving for an intended outcome is one way to look at this season of the year. Many of us place tremendous stress on ourselves because we have an intended outcome for what we want Christmas to look like in just a little more than two weeks. By that we usually mean what we intend for decorating, gifts, and good things to eat.
But what are your intended spiritual outcomes for this time of year? We’re now well into the Advent season of the church year. The intended outcome of the Advent season is that you’re prepared for the coming of your Lord. So, make a hasty self-evaluation. How are you doing with that? If Advent is meant to focus your heart and mind on the coming of Jesus, and the only way to prepare for his coming is through repentance, how close to the intended outcome are you? How can I help you get there?
And after Advent comes your celebration of Christmas, which is the celebration of the birth of your Savior. Have you positioned yourself spiritually to celebrate your Savior’s birth and to ponder what that birth means for you personally, or, does it appear that such a spiritual celebration will be an after-thought? Could it even happen that you might celebrate Christmas with little or no “Christ” in it? The unthinkable suddenly becomes possible.
If that’s true, then listen to the final words of our text, “And all mankind will see God’s salvation.” That’s God’s intended outcome for you. What your God wants for you more than anything else at this time of year is for you to see your salvation through Jesus. That Child born in Bethlehem’s manger wasn’t simply a nice idea; he was absolutely essential for you to have any relationship with the holy God and any hope for eternal life with him. God gave you his best at the first Christmas. What will you give him in return this Christmas? How about your best? What would please your God more than anything else is for you to see Jesus as the Savior you desperately need every sinful day of your life. What would please your God more than anything else is for you to rejoice over that Savior, not just for a day or two each December, but every day of your life.
How will you prepare for Christ? In the words of our text, see God’s salvation.
No doubt you’ve heard the expression, “Keep Christ in Christmas.” But here’s one you probably haven’t heard: “Keep Christ in Advent.” That expression doesn’t have the same ring to it, and people might even wonder what it means. But it’s really all about properly preparing for Christ. The Advent season is all about Jesus. John made that perfectly clear in his encouragement to prepare our hearts. When you keep Christ in Advent, you are reminded each day of the Advent season of your daily sins: selfishness, pride, prejudice, arrogance, greed, and lust—to name just a few—and on the other end of the sin spectrum: depression, guilt, doubt, and despair. Jesus came to this earth to save you from every sin—all those included. His death washed every sin away. That’s seeing your salvation this Advent season. That’s preparing for Christ. May our God fill each of you with his Holy Spirit and prepare your heart for Christ! Amen.
Luke 3:1-6
How Will You Prepare for Christ?
I. Get “straight” with your God.
II. See his salvation.
It’s easier than ever to find recipes. Just Google what you’re looking for and “Viola!” more recipes for Christmas cookies, apple pie, or how to smoke ribs than you care to peruse. And each recipe either unashamedly or covertly makes the claim that this recipe is the best. Follow the directions of this recipe and you’ll prepare the finest food you’ve ever tasted. But how do you know which recipe to choose? No two of them give you the same instructions for food preparation.
And that’s true with many tasks we set our minds to. What’s the best way to prepare the exterior walls of your home for painting? How should you prepare for college? Are you prepared for marriage? And if you’re not sure, here’s how. And here’s a preparation question you see and hear nearly every day: How do you prepare for retirement? I’m guessing that every source of information is slightly different.
How do you prepare? What’s the best way to prepare? We all know that solid preparation is the wise and prudent course of action, but just making the effort to investigate it seems overwhelming at times, and that only plays into our natural propensity to procrastinate.
Advent is the season of preparation—preparation for the Lord’s coming to this earth. I ask you: is there any person in the world whose arrival is more important than that of Jesus? Obviously not.
So, how will you prepare for him? Don’t bother Googling it; it’s right here in front of us this morning in this account from Luke 3. Yes, this is the account of John the Baptist preparing the people for the coming of the public ministry of Jesus, but his words encouraging us to prepare are appropriate any time we are preparing for Jesus.
So, how will you prepare for Christ? Let’s keep that question before us this morning and search God’s word for his answers.
Part I.
Preparing for something important can be a very personal matter. What I mean by that is one person’s way of preparing for an event might be completely different from another person’s way. How many husbands have been told by their wife, “You’re not going out looking like that. Get back in there, clean up, and wear something much better”? Obviously there was a huge difference of opinion in what proper preparation entailed.
Again, there is no more important arrival to this world than Jesus. How will you properly prepare? How will you avoid being told, “That’s not proper! Get back in there!”?
Let’s listen to the preparation strongly suggested by the one whom God himself appointed to be the one to prepare sinful people for the arrival of his Son, the world’s Savior from sin. “[John] went into all the country around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. As is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet: ‘A voice of one calling in the desert, “‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him. Every valley shall be filled in, every mountain and hill made low. The crooked roads shall become straight, the rough ways smooth.”’”
Luke tells us first that John preached a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. Theologians have debated just exactly what this baptism was. The best interpretation is that it was essentially the same as your baptism. It was a means of grace that bestowed the forgiveness of sins. To whom? To those who came out to John and took to heart his direct law-preaching, condemning the people for their sins, calling upon them to repent and to look to the coming Savior for their forgiveness.
But make no mistake—the Lord was not fooled by mere sham attempts at repentance. He was calling for an inward change of heart that was reflected in outward living. That should have come as no surprise to these people to whom John preached. That’s exactly what God had foretold through his prophet Isaiah 700 years earlier. Make straight paths. Fill in valleys. Level out hills and mountains. Make crooked roads straight. Make rough roads smooth.
In ancient times, just imagine the hard labor involved to do any one of those engineering feats, let alone all of them. We travel interstate highways nearly daily that have been constructed with minimal inclines and declines using massive earth moving equipment. But not so in Bible times. Roads were constructed by hand with shovels. Imagine what it took to cut a road through a range of hills.
But, obviously, the Lord isn’t speaking here about highway engineering. He’s speaking about the human heart. He wants us to recognize, admit and confess the sinful hills and valleys in our hearts and lives. Instead of lives that are bent with sin, he requires hearts that are straight with holiness. And when God’s holy law does that work of exposing our sinfulness, then God’s gospel stands ready to do its saving work—bringing us the forgiveness of sins, filling in and leveling out our spiritual lives. Making our crooked hearts straight for him. For Jesus.
How will you prepare for Christ? Get “straight” with your God.
What “crooked” ways seems too hard for you to address? In other words, what sinful habits are hindering or even preventing you from being prepared for the arrival of Christ? For some it’s materialism. For others it’s sinful worry and anxiety. Maybe it’s a sinfully critical attitude. Perhaps its substance abuse or some online addiction. Maybe it’s the unloving way you speak to and about others. Those, and a host of other sins, can be hard to break. And as we struggle to overcome them, we might be led to ask, “What’s the cost of non-compliance?” In other words, if I don’t come clean with God about this sin, what will it cost me? The Apostle John declared, “If we claim we have not sinned, we make [God] out to be a liar and his word has no place in our hearts” (1 John 1:10). In short, a refusal to come clean with God is a refusal of our Savior, who makes us clean through the forgiveness he won on the cross for us. That means confession of sin and trust in Christ for forgiveness is the only proper preparation for Christ. There is no other method. There is no other way of receiving Christ. So, how will you prepare for Christ? Get “straight” with your God. Recall your sins, and then recall how your Savior suffered and died for each one of them, for every one of them. Your risen Savior assures you of your forgiveness. Prepare your heart for him!
Part II.
Intended learning outcomes have been the norm in education for quite some time. In other words, educators want to be clear on what they intend for students to learn in a specific course or period of time. Learning simply for the sake of learning isn’t the goal. In other words, intended learning outcomes are a way of measuring what a student should know at a particular grade level or point in their education.
Striving for an intended outcome is one way to look at this season of the year. Many of us place tremendous stress on ourselves because we have an intended outcome for what we want Christmas to look like in just a little more than two weeks. By that we usually mean what we intend for decorating, gifts, and good things to eat.
But what are your intended spiritual outcomes for this time of year? We’re now well into the Advent season of the church year. The intended outcome of the Advent season is that you’re prepared for the coming of your Lord. So, make a hasty self-evaluation. How are you doing with that? If Advent is meant to focus your heart and mind on the coming of Jesus, and the only way to prepare for his coming is through repentance, how close to the intended outcome are you? How can I help you get there?
And after Advent comes your celebration of Christmas, which is the celebration of the birth of your Savior. Have you positioned yourself spiritually to celebrate your Savior’s birth and to ponder what that birth means for you personally, or, does it appear that such a spiritual celebration will be an after-thought? Could it even happen that you might celebrate Christmas with little or no “Christ” in it? The unthinkable suddenly becomes possible.
If that’s true, then listen to the final words of our text, “And all mankind will see God’s salvation.” That’s God’s intended outcome for you. What your God wants for you more than anything else at this time of year is for you to see your salvation through Jesus. That Child born in Bethlehem’s manger wasn’t simply a nice idea; he was absolutely essential for you to have any relationship with the holy God and any hope for eternal life with him. God gave you his best at the first Christmas. What will you give him in return this Christmas? How about your best? What would please your God more than anything else is for you to see Jesus as the Savior you desperately need every sinful day of your life. What would please your God more than anything else is for you to rejoice over that Savior, not just for a day or two each December, but every day of your life.
How will you prepare for Christ? In the words of our text, see God’s salvation.
No doubt you’ve heard the expression, “Keep Christ in Christmas.” But here’s one you probably haven’t heard: “Keep Christ in Advent.” That expression doesn’t have the same ring to it, and people might even wonder what it means. But it’s really all about properly preparing for Christ. The Advent season is all about Jesus. John made that perfectly clear in his encouragement to prepare our hearts. When you keep Christ in Advent, you are reminded each day of the Advent season of your daily sins: selfishness, pride, prejudice, arrogance, greed, and lust—to name just a few—and on the other end of the sin spectrum: depression, guilt, doubt, and despair. Jesus came to this earth to save you from every sin—all those included. His death washed every sin away. That’s seeing your salvation this Advent season. That’s preparing for Christ. May our God fill each of you with his Holy Spirit and prepare your heart for Christ! Amen.
Watch…and Pray!
1st Sunday in Advent, 12/2/18
1 Thessalonians 3:9-13
Watch…and Pray!
I. For an increase of faith
II. For an abundance of love
III. For a stronger heart
Multi-tasking has become a way of life. We have no problem paying attention to more than one of the multitude of devices in our lives. Want some proof? Who doesn’t have a smart phone on and close at hand while watching a two-hour movie? Who watches a game either in person or on TV undistracted by anything else? I don’t know of anyone. Instead, we make sure we have our devices with us, powered-up and ready to use. That way we can communicate with others what we’re seeing and hearing at the moment.Today marks the beginning of a new church year. It’s the first Sunday in Advent. During Advent we prepare for our Savior’s coming to this earth. Our preparation focus at the beginning of Advent is for the second coming of Christ on the Last Day. But as Christmas gets nearer, we prepare our hearts to celebrate his first coming to this earth.
Today our God’s encouragement is for us to watch for the coming of our Lord. Just watch. And it’s as if I can hear fingers tapping already, trying to pass the time while watching. It’s as if I can imagine minds are engaged in mental gyrations, trying to arrive at some ideas for what to do while we simply watch. It’s as if I can hear the sounds of slumber, as people begin to nod off while just watching.
Would you like a suggestion of what to do while watching for Jesus to return? A little multi-tasking? The Apostle Paul suggests one by his example in this morning’s reading from 1 Thessalonians 3. He states, “Night and day we pray most earnestly.” There’s a fine suggestion for all of us multi-taskers out there, a suggestion of what else to do while watching for Jesus. Watch…and pray! But what should we pray for? Let’s search Paul’s Spirit-inspired words for some direction.
Part I.
In the next few weeks I imagine you’ll spend a good deal of time thinking about what your loved ones want for Christmas and sharing with them what you want as well. Before you do that, let’s back up a moment. Let’s back up and consider what we already have. And among all the things you possess, which of those things are most important and precious to you? Already you’re thinking about your family members, your happiness, your health. But how about this one: your Christian faith? When you think about it, isn’t your faith in Jesus one of your most important possessions?
The people to whom Paul originally wrote these words—the Christians in the ancient city of Thessalonica—were in danger of losing their most important possession—their faith in Jesus. How come? Paul informs us in the opening words of this letter that they were experiencing severe suffering for their faith in Jesus. They were being persecuted for their connection to Christ and some of them were tempted to deny their faith so that the suffering would end.
So, what does Paul do, and, by example, what does he encourage the Thessalonians to do while they wait for Jesus to return? Listen once again to his words, “Night and day we pray most earnestly that we may see you again and supply what is lacking in your faith.” Paul was not able to stay as long he wished the first time he came to Thessalonica. He could only give these new Christians limited Christian instruction. So Paul prays that the Lord would enable him to return so that he can build them up in their faith. How so? The only way faith is strengthened. The only way your faith is strengthened—through the means of grace—the gospel of Jesus in word and sacraments. Paul’s unspoken encouragement is for them to pray for a stronger faith as they hear and study God’s word and receive the Lord’s Supper.
He wants them to possess a stronger faith so that they can withstand the persecutions they are facing and to remain faithful until Jesus returns or calls them home to heaven. Can you think of anything more important to pray for as you wait for Jesus to return?
So, watch…and pray. Pray for a deeper faith.
What do you plan to do with your time in the next 22 days—the number of days you have before Christmas Eve arrives? Perhaps your mind is already spinning and that spinning is causing anxiety and frustration to arise. You’re confronted with the reality that you plan to do more than you have time to accomplish. And that’s nothing new. We tend to overwhelm ourselves at this time of year and miss the point of it all. The point of this season of Advent is to prepare your hearts for the arrival of Jesus. That might happen later today. So watch…and pray. Your greatest possession is your faith in Jesus. The means to feed that faith is God’s word and sacraments. So how about doing this during these four weeks of Advent? Focus on your sins, your need for a Savior from sin. Confess them, silently to your God or with your fellow Christians here in worship. And then hear God’s proclamation that your sins are forgiven through Jesus. Make plans this Sunday to receive the Lord’s Supper next Sunday. Now that’s time well spent, because it’s time spent focusing on your greatest possession—your faith in Jesus. Watch…and pray for a deeper faith.
Part II.
Facing tight spots in life helps us focus on what’s nearest and dearest to us. For instance, some months ago a WELS pastor and his wife were on a flight when the engine exploded and blew a hole in the side of the aircraft. He related that he and his wife prayed, and then sent text message to their children, telling them how much they loved them. They are forever grateful that they survived the ordeal, but they did what most would do in that situation—they focused on the ones they love.
The Thessalonians were also in a tight spot. For some their predicament was potentially deadly. Did some of the Thessalonian Christians die for their faith? We don’t know for sure. But listen to Paul’s advice, “May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else, just as ours does for you.” He encourages them to love one another. Just what does he mean? Well, Paul is not simply urging them to have deep emotions for one another or simply to think of each other.
He wants them to display their love for each other. The word for “love” that Paul uses stresses that aspect of love. It’s not idle; it moves a person to act in a way that helps the object of love. Recall that might not have been so easy. The easy thing would be to do nothing that would call attention to yourself as a Christian, and, in doing so, increase the likelihood of suffering persecution. Paul encourages the opposite. Show your love for one another.
Watch…and pray! Pray for an abundance of love.
I know you’re about to launch into the busiest month of your year. Can I give you a piece of advice? Stop your busy-ness at least once a day, preferably at the beginning of each day, and ponder Christ’s love for you and your love for him. The easy thing in this hectic season is to marginalize love for Jesus so that you can expand what you accomplish. But that’s not who you are and that’s not what pleases your Savior. Recall that he might return at any time. Realize that you’re ready for his return because, by faith in Jesus, you live in forgiveness. And then let your love for Jesus motivate you to carry out your day. Watch…and pray for an abundance of love.
Part III.
According to the Centers for Disease Control, heart disease is the number one cause of death in the US. It’s attributed to 1 in 4 deaths. Obviously, it’s a huge problem.
The Apostle Paul would agree that our hearts are the problem. Listen to what he prays, “May [the Lord] strengthen your hearts so that you will be blameless and holy in the presence of our God and Father when our Lord Jesus comes with all his holy ones.” He has the coming of Jesus in mind and he prays that the Lord would strengthen the hearts of the Thessalonians Christians. How? Not with any number of cardiovascular medications. But with confidence—confidence in our Lord Jesus. You have nothing to fear in the day of our Lord’s return. The One who is coming to judge all people is the One who sacrificed himself for you on Calvary’s cross. He suffered and died to make you holy. That’s what are you are right now and that’s what you’ll be on the Last Day by faith in Jesus.
So live in that confidence! You’re not under compulsion to do anything to get God to love you or to forgive you. God loves you because of who he is and has already given you forgiveness for all your sins. And therefore, there’s no good reason to live with guilt. Jesus has taken your guilt away. You’re free to live each day with a guilt-free life. And there’s no reason to fear anything, even death itself. Whether you live or die, you belong to Christ who loves you, died for you, and earned a place in heaven for you.
So watch…and pray for a stronger heart.
As I mentioned earlier, the question of the day is, “What do you want for Christmas?” But it isn’t Christmas yet. It’s Advent, the season when we prepare our hearts for Jesus. So, a more seasonal question is, “What do you want for Advent?” Take Paul’s cue in answering that question. What could you use more right now than a stronger heart, a heart that lives each day in the confidence that only a crucified and living Savior can give? With such a strong heart, you’ll be amazed at how little the world’s distractions bother you or its attacks on your faith harm you. You have Christ living in your heart by faith in him. With such a heart you’re ready to celebrate his birth. More importantly, you’re ready for his return on the Last Day.
So watch…and pray! Pray for a stronger heart. May God give you that heart of faith and may it overflow with love for others! Amen.
1 Thessalonians 3:9-13
Watch…and Pray!
I. For an increase of faith
II. For an abundance of love
III. For a stronger heart
Multi-tasking has become a way of life. We have no problem paying attention to more than one of the multitude of devices in our lives. Want some proof? Who doesn’t have a smart phone on and close at hand while watching a two-hour movie? Who watches a game either in person or on TV undistracted by anything else? I don’t know of anyone. Instead, we make sure we have our devices with us, powered-up and ready to use. That way we can communicate with others what we’re seeing and hearing at the moment.Today marks the beginning of a new church year. It’s the first Sunday in Advent. During Advent we prepare for our Savior’s coming to this earth. Our preparation focus at the beginning of Advent is for the second coming of Christ on the Last Day. But as Christmas gets nearer, we prepare our hearts to celebrate his first coming to this earth.
Today our God’s encouragement is for us to watch for the coming of our Lord. Just watch. And it’s as if I can hear fingers tapping already, trying to pass the time while watching. It’s as if I can imagine minds are engaged in mental gyrations, trying to arrive at some ideas for what to do while we simply watch. It’s as if I can hear the sounds of slumber, as people begin to nod off while just watching.
Would you like a suggestion of what to do while watching for Jesus to return? A little multi-tasking? The Apostle Paul suggests one by his example in this morning’s reading from 1 Thessalonians 3. He states, “Night and day we pray most earnestly.” There’s a fine suggestion for all of us multi-taskers out there, a suggestion of what else to do while watching for Jesus. Watch…and pray! But what should we pray for? Let’s search Paul’s Spirit-inspired words for some direction.
Part I.
In the next few weeks I imagine you’ll spend a good deal of time thinking about what your loved ones want for Christmas and sharing with them what you want as well. Before you do that, let’s back up a moment. Let’s back up and consider what we already have. And among all the things you possess, which of those things are most important and precious to you? Already you’re thinking about your family members, your happiness, your health. But how about this one: your Christian faith? When you think about it, isn’t your faith in Jesus one of your most important possessions?
The people to whom Paul originally wrote these words—the Christians in the ancient city of Thessalonica—were in danger of losing their most important possession—their faith in Jesus. How come? Paul informs us in the opening words of this letter that they were experiencing severe suffering for their faith in Jesus. They were being persecuted for their connection to Christ and some of them were tempted to deny their faith so that the suffering would end.
So, what does Paul do, and, by example, what does he encourage the Thessalonians to do while they wait for Jesus to return? Listen once again to his words, “Night and day we pray most earnestly that we may see you again and supply what is lacking in your faith.” Paul was not able to stay as long he wished the first time he came to Thessalonica. He could only give these new Christians limited Christian instruction. So Paul prays that the Lord would enable him to return so that he can build them up in their faith. How so? The only way faith is strengthened. The only way your faith is strengthened—through the means of grace—the gospel of Jesus in word and sacraments. Paul’s unspoken encouragement is for them to pray for a stronger faith as they hear and study God’s word and receive the Lord’s Supper.
He wants them to possess a stronger faith so that they can withstand the persecutions they are facing and to remain faithful until Jesus returns or calls them home to heaven. Can you think of anything more important to pray for as you wait for Jesus to return?
So, watch…and pray. Pray for a deeper faith.
What do you plan to do with your time in the next 22 days—the number of days you have before Christmas Eve arrives? Perhaps your mind is already spinning and that spinning is causing anxiety and frustration to arise. You’re confronted with the reality that you plan to do more than you have time to accomplish. And that’s nothing new. We tend to overwhelm ourselves at this time of year and miss the point of it all. The point of this season of Advent is to prepare your hearts for the arrival of Jesus. That might happen later today. So watch…and pray. Your greatest possession is your faith in Jesus. The means to feed that faith is God’s word and sacraments. So how about doing this during these four weeks of Advent? Focus on your sins, your need for a Savior from sin. Confess them, silently to your God or with your fellow Christians here in worship. And then hear God’s proclamation that your sins are forgiven through Jesus. Make plans this Sunday to receive the Lord’s Supper next Sunday. Now that’s time well spent, because it’s time spent focusing on your greatest possession—your faith in Jesus. Watch…and pray for a deeper faith.
Part II.
Facing tight spots in life helps us focus on what’s nearest and dearest to us. For instance, some months ago a WELS pastor and his wife were on a flight when the engine exploded and blew a hole in the side of the aircraft. He related that he and his wife prayed, and then sent text message to their children, telling them how much they loved them. They are forever grateful that they survived the ordeal, but they did what most would do in that situation—they focused on the ones they love.
The Thessalonians were also in a tight spot. For some their predicament was potentially deadly. Did some of the Thessalonian Christians die for their faith? We don’t know for sure. But listen to Paul’s advice, “May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else, just as ours does for you.” He encourages them to love one another. Just what does he mean? Well, Paul is not simply urging them to have deep emotions for one another or simply to think of each other.
He wants them to display their love for each other. The word for “love” that Paul uses stresses that aspect of love. It’s not idle; it moves a person to act in a way that helps the object of love. Recall that might not have been so easy. The easy thing would be to do nothing that would call attention to yourself as a Christian, and, in doing so, increase the likelihood of suffering persecution. Paul encourages the opposite. Show your love for one another.
Watch…and pray! Pray for an abundance of love.
I know you’re about to launch into the busiest month of your year. Can I give you a piece of advice? Stop your busy-ness at least once a day, preferably at the beginning of each day, and ponder Christ’s love for you and your love for him. The easy thing in this hectic season is to marginalize love for Jesus so that you can expand what you accomplish. But that’s not who you are and that’s not what pleases your Savior. Recall that he might return at any time. Realize that you’re ready for his return because, by faith in Jesus, you live in forgiveness. And then let your love for Jesus motivate you to carry out your day. Watch…and pray for an abundance of love.
Part III.
According to the Centers for Disease Control, heart disease is the number one cause of death in the US. It’s attributed to 1 in 4 deaths. Obviously, it’s a huge problem.
The Apostle Paul would agree that our hearts are the problem. Listen to what he prays, “May [the Lord] strengthen your hearts so that you will be blameless and holy in the presence of our God and Father when our Lord Jesus comes with all his holy ones.” He has the coming of Jesus in mind and he prays that the Lord would strengthen the hearts of the Thessalonians Christians. How? Not with any number of cardiovascular medications. But with confidence—confidence in our Lord Jesus. You have nothing to fear in the day of our Lord’s return. The One who is coming to judge all people is the One who sacrificed himself for you on Calvary’s cross. He suffered and died to make you holy. That’s what are you are right now and that’s what you’ll be on the Last Day by faith in Jesus.
So live in that confidence! You’re not under compulsion to do anything to get God to love you or to forgive you. God loves you because of who he is and has already given you forgiveness for all your sins. And therefore, there’s no good reason to live with guilt. Jesus has taken your guilt away. You’re free to live each day with a guilt-free life. And there’s no reason to fear anything, even death itself. Whether you live or die, you belong to Christ who loves you, died for you, and earned a place in heaven for you.
So watch…and pray for a stronger heart.
As I mentioned earlier, the question of the day is, “What do you want for Christmas?” But it isn’t Christmas yet. It’s Advent, the season when we prepare our hearts for Jesus. So, a more seasonal question is, “What do you want for Advent?” Take Paul’s cue in answering that question. What could you use more right now than a stronger heart, a heart that lives each day in the confidence that only a crucified and living Savior can give? With such a strong heart, you’ll be amazed at how little the world’s distractions bother you or its attacks on your faith harm you. You have Christ living in your heart by faith in him. With such a heart you’re ready to celebrate his birth. More importantly, you’re ready for his return on the Last Day.
So watch…and pray! Pray for a stronger heart. May God give you that heart of faith and may it overflow with love for others! Amen.
Here’s a King to Embrace Eternally!
Last Sunday of End Time, Christ the King, 11/25/18
Revelation 1:4b-8
Here’s a King to Embrace Eternally!
I. One who frees you from your sins
II. One who rules all things for you
Another election cycle has just ended. I think, by now, all the results are in. And as those new terms of office begin, let’s see what happens. Will changes occur, and, if they do, will you approve of them? Or, will things go on as they were before the election, with no discernable differences? Only time will tell.
But no matter what happens among our elected officials, another election cycle will begin sooner than we realize. Within months, candidates for the various offices will declare themselves running for office just to see what kind of support they can muster. Soon after that, the ads will begin and we’ll suffer through them for months, all leading up to the next election 23 months from now. Are you getting disillusioned already?
It’s at times like these that a monarchy doesn’t seem so bad. No more elections. No more influence on candidates from big business bucks or political action committees. No more political ads or debates. No more mudslinging politics. Just a king who rules over our country. How does that sound to you?
Fine, as long as you get to choose your king, right? But even if you do, there are no guarantees. History is full of examples of kings who started well, but quickly went sour. And when you have a king who is only concerned with himself and not the least bit concerned for his subjects, the people suffer. They can’t wait until his reign is ended.
So what’s your reaction to today’s worship celebration—Christ the King? Honestly, there’s a part of us that doesn’t want anyone to rule over us. We want to call all the shots. And to be honest, we’re not always happy with the way Jesus is ruling.
And that’s exactly why we need his encouragement this morning. Our sinful hearts and minds need an adjustment on just what Jesus’ rule is all about. Jesus does that for us in these words from John’s Revelation. Here’s a King to embrace eternally. Let’s hold onto that truth this morning and rejoice over Christ our King!
Part I.
No matter how you feel about the last election cycle, or what you hope the next one will bring, there’s a debate that never seems to die, and that’s the discussion over what we need from our government. On one end are those who want as little as possible from the government—just keep law and order. On the other end are those who feel the government needs to provide all sorts of programs for the people. I’m guessing you have your own opinion on the matter.
But we aren’t here to discuss such things this morning. Instead, we’re hear to get what we need from our eternal King, Jesus Christ. So, what is it that you need from Jesus? Wow, that’s a loaded question! Where do you start?
How about starting with the things you pray for? Do you pray for things for yourself, or, do you find that you pray more for things for others? And just what are those “things”? We pray for patience and happiness. We pray for the Lord to alleviate our pain or grant success to a surgery. We pray for the same things for friends and loved ones. We pray that the Lord uses us to help others. Perhaps you pray for the Lord to bless your day at work or school. You pray for him to protect your children. What more would you add to your list? But recall our main question: What do you need most from Jesus?
And with this being Christ the King Sunday, what tends to disappoint you about Christ, your King? That question is closely tied to what things you pray for. After all, if he’s your King, shouldn’t he provide the things you truly need? Isn’t the focus of any good king directly on what’s good for his subjects? And if you find yourself praying to your King for things each and every day, and you aren’t receiving them, are you more than a little disappointed?
But back to our original question: What do you need most from Jesus, your King? Well, what’s your biggest problem? Our Catechism students know that I ask this question just about every class, sometimes more than once. What’s our biggest problem? It’s not pain or poverty or politics. Our biggest problem is sin. We come into this world under the curse of sin and we commit countless sins every day of our sinful lives. That’s bad enough, but the clincher that makes sin our biggest problem is that we can do nothing to remove a single one of them from our record. We’re helpless!
So, if sin is our biggest problem, then forgiveness of sins is our greatest need. So now, take to heart these words of John, “To him who has freed us from our sins by his blood.” Think back to that list of things you pray for. If you received every one of them but didn’t have the forgiveness of sins, none of them would mean anything. They would merely be a spiritual opioid that lulls you into thinking everything is fine because you’re receiving what you want from your Lord and King, but in reality, you’re headed to hell loaded with your sins. Instead, your Savior gives you what you truly need—the forgiveness of sins.
And recall what your sins cost—the very sacrifice of the Son of God and nothing less. The God-man, Jesus, out of the greatest and purest love ever known, willingly sacrificed himself for you. You don’t have an eternal King who simply grants your wishes to keep you happy for 8 or 9 decades on this planet we call earth. He supplies your greatest need every day—the forgiveness of sins!
Bottom line: there’s no need to switch this King out for any other. Instead, embrace him! Here’s a King to embrace eternally—One who frees you from your sins.
We have what we need most from our King every day—the forgiveness of sins. But what’s your reaction to that unlimited blessing? Let’s admit it—too often we’re not impressed. And there are two reasons for that. Either we’re so caught up with this life and what we think we need for it, that our forgiveness simply gets shoved far into the background of our lives, or, we fail to grasp the depths of our sinfulness. We convince ourselves that our sins aren’t so great. And the result is that we want our King Jesus to supply us with what we feel we really need. So, stop for a moment. Internalize this truth of Scripture, “There is no one who does good, not even one” (Rom. 3:12). And every single sin condemns us. What we need more than anything is the forgiveness of sins—and your King supplies it! You have forgiveness full and free through faith in Jesus. So embrace him! Here’s a King to embrace eternally!
Part II.
What’s your personal assessment of how things are going in our world? If you had a meter which measured your outlook on things in our world, with happiness on one side of the meter and alarm on the other, where would your needle be pointing? I’m going to guess that almost every needle here would be pointing somewhere in the middle. You’re neither completely happy nor paralyzed by alarm.
Now, let me ask you something else. How are you managing your life? Are you on top of things, or, are you overwhelmed? Are things going in the right direction for you, or, do you lose sleep over where your life seems to be heading? Are you confident of hitting your goals in life, or have you given up even trying?
One more question and then I promise I’ll stop asking. Ten years from now, if you’re not in heaven yet, will things be better or worse in your life and in our world?
Pretty unsettling, isn’t it? At best we all seem to be striving for, but not achieving, our hopes and dreams. In fact, you may have already concluded that the entire world is on a slow downward spiral and that fairly describes your personal life as well.
It would all be hopeless if it weren’t for one thing. Listen to these words of Jesus, your King, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, who is, and who was and who is to come.” Jesus is the beginning and the end of all things. There is nothing outside of him. He has everything under control. I know it doesn’t look like it at times. In fact, there are times when we’re convinced eternal tragedy is right around the next corner. But your King will come again. He has promised to return on the Last Day and then everything will reach their fulfillment in him. “He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him.” Those who oppose Jesus will never oppose him again. He will return, raise us from the dead, and usher us into eternal life with him.
So relax. Chin up. Be filled with inner hope and joy. I realize things might go from bad to worse now, but that doesn’t mean things are out of control. Jesus rules. Your King rules.
Here’s a King to embrace eternally. Friends, don’t let anything separate you from Jesus. He wants to embrace you through his word and sacrament. Keep a proper Christian perspective on everything in your life and, all the while, keep your spiritual focus on your King, who will return one day to make everything right for you forever.
Now there’s a King to embrace eternally. Don’t ever let him go! Amen.
Revelation 1:4b-8
Here’s a King to Embrace Eternally!
I. One who frees you from your sins
II. One who rules all things for you
Another election cycle has just ended. I think, by now, all the results are in. And as those new terms of office begin, let’s see what happens. Will changes occur, and, if they do, will you approve of them? Or, will things go on as they were before the election, with no discernable differences? Only time will tell.
But no matter what happens among our elected officials, another election cycle will begin sooner than we realize. Within months, candidates for the various offices will declare themselves running for office just to see what kind of support they can muster. Soon after that, the ads will begin and we’ll suffer through them for months, all leading up to the next election 23 months from now. Are you getting disillusioned already?
It’s at times like these that a monarchy doesn’t seem so bad. No more elections. No more influence on candidates from big business bucks or political action committees. No more political ads or debates. No more mudslinging politics. Just a king who rules over our country. How does that sound to you?
Fine, as long as you get to choose your king, right? But even if you do, there are no guarantees. History is full of examples of kings who started well, but quickly went sour. And when you have a king who is only concerned with himself and not the least bit concerned for his subjects, the people suffer. They can’t wait until his reign is ended.
So what’s your reaction to today’s worship celebration—Christ the King? Honestly, there’s a part of us that doesn’t want anyone to rule over us. We want to call all the shots. And to be honest, we’re not always happy with the way Jesus is ruling.
And that’s exactly why we need his encouragement this morning. Our sinful hearts and minds need an adjustment on just what Jesus’ rule is all about. Jesus does that for us in these words from John’s Revelation. Here’s a King to embrace eternally. Let’s hold onto that truth this morning and rejoice over Christ our King!
Part I.
No matter how you feel about the last election cycle, or what you hope the next one will bring, there’s a debate that never seems to die, and that’s the discussion over what we need from our government. On one end are those who want as little as possible from the government—just keep law and order. On the other end are those who feel the government needs to provide all sorts of programs for the people. I’m guessing you have your own opinion on the matter.
But we aren’t here to discuss such things this morning. Instead, we’re hear to get what we need from our eternal King, Jesus Christ. So, what is it that you need from Jesus? Wow, that’s a loaded question! Where do you start?
How about starting with the things you pray for? Do you pray for things for yourself, or, do you find that you pray more for things for others? And just what are those “things”? We pray for patience and happiness. We pray for the Lord to alleviate our pain or grant success to a surgery. We pray for the same things for friends and loved ones. We pray that the Lord uses us to help others. Perhaps you pray for the Lord to bless your day at work or school. You pray for him to protect your children. What more would you add to your list? But recall our main question: What do you need most from Jesus?
And with this being Christ the King Sunday, what tends to disappoint you about Christ, your King? That question is closely tied to what things you pray for. After all, if he’s your King, shouldn’t he provide the things you truly need? Isn’t the focus of any good king directly on what’s good for his subjects? And if you find yourself praying to your King for things each and every day, and you aren’t receiving them, are you more than a little disappointed?
But back to our original question: What do you need most from Jesus, your King? Well, what’s your biggest problem? Our Catechism students know that I ask this question just about every class, sometimes more than once. What’s our biggest problem? It’s not pain or poverty or politics. Our biggest problem is sin. We come into this world under the curse of sin and we commit countless sins every day of our sinful lives. That’s bad enough, but the clincher that makes sin our biggest problem is that we can do nothing to remove a single one of them from our record. We’re helpless!
So, if sin is our biggest problem, then forgiveness of sins is our greatest need. So now, take to heart these words of John, “To him who has freed us from our sins by his blood.” Think back to that list of things you pray for. If you received every one of them but didn’t have the forgiveness of sins, none of them would mean anything. They would merely be a spiritual opioid that lulls you into thinking everything is fine because you’re receiving what you want from your Lord and King, but in reality, you’re headed to hell loaded with your sins. Instead, your Savior gives you what you truly need—the forgiveness of sins.
And recall what your sins cost—the very sacrifice of the Son of God and nothing less. The God-man, Jesus, out of the greatest and purest love ever known, willingly sacrificed himself for you. You don’t have an eternal King who simply grants your wishes to keep you happy for 8 or 9 decades on this planet we call earth. He supplies your greatest need every day—the forgiveness of sins!
Bottom line: there’s no need to switch this King out for any other. Instead, embrace him! Here’s a King to embrace eternally—One who frees you from your sins.
We have what we need most from our King every day—the forgiveness of sins. But what’s your reaction to that unlimited blessing? Let’s admit it—too often we’re not impressed. And there are two reasons for that. Either we’re so caught up with this life and what we think we need for it, that our forgiveness simply gets shoved far into the background of our lives, or, we fail to grasp the depths of our sinfulness. We convince ourselves that our sins aren’t so great. And the result is that we want our King Jesus to supply us with what we feel we really need. So, stop for a moment. Internalize this truth of Scripture, “There is no one who does good, not even one” (Rom. 3:12). And every single sin condemns us. What we need more than anything is the forgiveness of sins—and your King supplies it! You have forgiveness full and free through faith in Jesus. So embrace him! Here’s a King to embrace eternally!
Part II.
What’s your personal assessment of how things are going in our world? If you had a meter which measured your outlook on things in our world, with happiness on one side of the meter and alarm on the other, where would your needle be pointing? I’m going to guess that almost every needle here would be pointing somewhere in the middle. You’re neither completely happy nor paralyzed by alarm.
Now, let me ask you something else. How are you managing your life? Are you on top of things, or, are you overwhelmed? Are things going in the right direction for you, or, do you lose sleep over where your life seems to be heading? Are you confident of hitting your goals in life, or have you given up even trying?
One more question and then I promise I’ll stop asking. Ten years from now, if you’re not in heaven yet, will things be better or worse in your life and in our world?
Pretty unsettling, isn’t it? At best we all seem to be striving for, but not achieving, our hopes and dreams. In fact, you may have already concluded that the entire world is on a slow downward spiral and that fairly describes your personal life as well.
It would all be hopeless if it weren’t for one thing. Listen to these words of Jesus, your King, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, who is, and who was and who is to come.” Jesus is the beginning and the end of all things. There is nothing outside of him. He has everything under control. I know it doesn’t look like it at times. In fact, there are times when we’re convinced eternal tragedy is right around the next corner. But your King will come again. He has promised to return on the Last Day and then everything will reach their fulfillment in him. “He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him.” Those who oppose Jesus will never oppose him again. He will return, raise us from the dead, and usher us into eternal life with him.
So relax. Chin up. Be filled with inner hope and joy. I realize things might go from bad to worse now, but that doesn’t mean things are out of control. Jesus rules. Your King rules.
Here’s a King to embrace eternally. Friends, don’t let anything separate you from Jesus. He wants to embrace you through his word and sacrament. Keep a proper Christian perspective on everything in your life and, all the while, keep your spiritual focus on your King, who will return one day to make everything right for you forever.
Now there’s a King to embrace eternally. Don’t ever let him go! Amen.
Saints, See Your Triumph Coming!
3rd Sunday of End Time, Saints Triumphant, 11/18/18
Daniel 12:1-3
Saints, See Your Triumph Coming!
I. God defeats your enemy, Satan.
II. God defeats your enemy, Death.
Winning streaks in sports are impressive. The media report them weekly, and they also report when they inevitably come to an end, and then fans shift their attention to the next now-longest winning streak. Fans are impressed by such things.
I’m more impressed on the other end of things: losing streaks. What impresses me is not that a team can establish a losing streak—it’s not that hard to do; just go out there and don’t try to win. What impresses me is that athletes will enter every contest trying to win in the midst of an unimaginable losing streak.
Take the CalTech men’s basketball team for instance. They play Division III NCAA basketball, which is non-scholarship. Beginning in 1985 their team lost 207 consecutive games. 207 consecutive games! But now imagine this: They lost 310 consecutive conference games! For 26 years they lost every conference game they played. In the midst of that losing streak, can you imagine even considering playing basketball for CalTech? If the object of the game is to win, and you’ve lost more than 250 in row, what’s the point? You’d be better off spending your time doing something at which you have much better odds of succeeding.
Being a part of that losing streak must have been demoralizing. How could you find the motivation to keep trying?
I imagine we know that feeling, at least a little. Perhaps a lot. We know what it’s like to keep trying to succeed but not experiencing it. Take a look at what’s happening around us. We’re the Church. We’re God’s people. We’re the ones standing up for what is good and right and fighting against what is evil and wong. But it doesn’t look like we’re winning. And it’s not even a stalemate. It looks like we’re losing! And we have no idea when the tide will turn in our favor. In fact, it looks as if things are going to continue to slide down spiritually as long as we’re alive. Is that how things appear to you at times?
God’s prophet Daniel knew that very thing. Daniel’s God gave him a series of visions of the future which troubled Daniel so much that they made him physically ill. The future looked very dark for God’s people.
But then Daniel saw victory coming—eternal victory—and not just for Daniel, or just for his fellow Jews living at that time, but for all God’s people. For us—you and me.
God’s word calls us saints—people who are holy in God’s eyes by faith in Jesus. Today we celebrate Saints Triumphant. So, look, saints of God! Look with Daniel. Saints, see your triumph coming! Let’s look at it together this morning on the basis of this portion of God’s word.
Part I.
In sports you almost always have an opponent. You certainly do in a military battle. As I mentioned a minute ago, as God’s people, we’re in a constant battle. Do you know who the opponent is? I’m guessing you do; it’s Satan. We’re all familiar with him, but what’s your concept of Satan?
I’m guessing that it won’t surprise you when I say that there’s a tremendous amount of misinformation out there regarding Satan. Here’s one view of Satan. It comes from Elaine Pagels, professor of religion at Princeton University and the author of ¬The Origin of Satan: “I thought of Satan as a kind of joke, a kind of throwaway character.” No surprise there. Professor Pagels doesn’t think Satan exists.
For far too many people, Satan is a mythical character dressed in red underwear and wielding a red pitchfork. He’s viewed as this character of our imagination who sits on our left shoulder, advising us to do what we know is wrong. Is that your concept of Satan?
If not, do you view him as merely a pest to be ignored? An occasional pull in the wrong direction? A desire arising from within, which you know is bad, but seems so good?
Or, is Satan simply some impersonal force in the world? The bad “yang” that balances out the good “yin”?
Daniel would disagree with you. More importantly, so would your God. When you get back home, open your Bible to Daniel 11. First, Daniel sees what evil rulers from various empires will do to God’s people for the next 500 years, especially the Greeks. And every detail of his vision occurred exactly as God showed him. This all happened before Jesus was born.
Then Daniel saw a vision after the Savior had come to this earth. He saw a vision of the antichrist who will wreak havoc in God’s Church upon God’s people. He will wield his hellish power and control vast riches.
But then this: “At that time Michael, the great prince who protects your people, will arise. There will be a time of distress such as has not happened from the beginning of nations until then. But at that time your people—everyone whose name is found written in the book—will be delivered.” Daniel saw God’s archangel, Michael, fighting for the Church against whatever forces Satan brought against the Church. And God’s people will be delivered—rescued from Satan’s constant attack. From the rest of Scripture, we know that will happen when the King of kings—Jesus Christ—returns. It occurs individually every time God calls one of his saints home to heaven. It will occur for all God’s people collectively when God consigns Satan to hell and brings all his people—body and soul—into heaven.
Are you tired of losing, people of God? Then saints, see your triumph coming! God defeats your enemy, Satan.
The truth is that Satan, whose name means “enemy,” is real. And the truth is that he wants to destroy you—eternally. And he will use anything and everything to chip away at your faith in Jesus until he attains complete victory over you. The problem is that he’s so good at disguising what he’s doing that we don’t realize it. What is it that tends to draw you away from your Savior, Jesus? Jealousy? Discontentment? Materialism? Greed? Lust? Work? Recreation? Family? And while he daily attempts to claim you as his next victim, he’s wreaking havoc in our world to cause us to despair, to think that either God doesn’t care about the evil going on or he can’t do anything about it. What’s a beleaguered saint, like you and me, to do? Look to Christ, who proclaimed’ “It is finished!” on the cross. The battle for supremacy is over. And his resurrection from the dead three days later proclaims him the Victor. By faith in Jesus, we triumph, too. Ultimately, that will be the case when God puts Satan in his place—hell—forever, never to bother a single saint again. Saints, see your triumph coming!
Part II.
Now that most of the leaves have fallen off of area trees, it’s not so noticeable anymore. I’m talking about the countless ash trees scarring stands of trees that are dead reminders of a force that was unstoppable—a small green worm, the dreaded emerald ash borer. We knew it was coming, and we knew what it would do, but we couldn’t do anything about it.
That reminds me of another unstoppable force—or what appears to be unstoppable. This Sunday is a grim reminder of it—our Christian brothers and sisters who are no longer with us. Death claimed them—one by one. And no matter how far medical science advances, death still marches on, relentlessly, day by day, hour by hour, minute by minute. How long before it claims you? Me?
Pretty sobering, isn’t it? If only we had the answer, the solution, the power to stop this deadly force!
Lo and behold, we do! In fact, God’s people have had the solution ever since death entered the world through sin. Listen to what Daniel saw, “Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt. Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever.” Daniel saw you living, even though you die. How so? First, God’s word makes it clear that God has given you real life—spiritual life—through faith in Jesus. You are alive with God in Christ. You live with God now and God lives with you, in a spiritual, but real, way.
Next, you will live forever with Christ. The place and the mode of existence change, but at your death, only your body dies; your soul lives on forever with your Savior, Jesus, in heaven. It’s a life of perfect, unending happiness and bliss.
But there’s more. Daniel saw a vision of the Last Day when Jesus returns, raises all the dead, glorifies the bodies of Christians, and takes those Christians—soul and body—into heaven forever. Just as Jesus rose from the dead, so you, too, will rise. Just as Jesus gained the victory over death, so, too, will you. Your last enemy to be conquered is death, and your victory in that battle is guaranteed by the One who won that battle first, your Savior, Jesus Christ.
With the eyes of faith, can you see it, Christian? Can you see that victory? Saints, see your triumph coming! God defeats your enemy, Death.
I stood in his living room, his hospital bed pushed up to the large picture window, tubs of gauze and ointments and medical gadgets all around him. Cancer was slowly claiming his life. He could no longer speak, but he could still scratch out short messages with a pencil and pad of paper. As I stood there with him for what would be the last time I saw him alive on this earth, he wrote, “Death is my friend.” Friend? How could such an unstoppable force be his friend? Because he knew what his Lord and Savior had in store for him. Triumph! The triumph of a life in heaven without a cancer-wracked body. The triumph of life after the resurrection on the Last Day in a cancer-free, glorified body with Jesus forever. That’s what Jesus has promised you. If it’s not cancer, something else will get you. But it doesn’t matter. The victory is yours! Saints, see your triumph coming! May your Lord Jesus make you confident of it! Amen.
Daniel 12:1-3
Saints, See Your Triumph Coming!
I. God defeats your enemy, Satan.
II. God defeats your enemy, Death.
Winning streaks in sports are impressive. The media report them weekly, and they also report when they inevitably come to an end, and then fans shift their attention to the next now-longest winning streak. Fans are impressed by such things.
I’m more impressed on the other end of things: losing streaks. What impresses me is not that a team can establish a losing streak—it’s not that hard to do; just go out there and don’t try to win. What impresses me is that athletes will enter every contest trying to win in the midst of an unimaginable losing streak.
Take the CalTech men’s basketball team for instance. They play Division III NCAA basketball, which is non-scholarship. Beginning in 1985 their team lost 207 consecutive games. 207 consecutive games! But now imagine this: They lost 310 consecutive conference games! For 26 years they lost every conference game they played. In the midst of that losing streak, can you imagine even considering playing basketball for CalTech? If the object of the game is to win, and you’ve lost more than 250 in row, what’s the point? You’d be better off spending your time doing something at which you have much better odds of succeeding.
Being a part of that losing streak must have been demoralizing. How could you find the motivation to keep trying?
I imagine we know that feeling, at least a little. Perhaps a lot. We know what it’s like to keep trying to succeed but not experiencing it. Take a look at what’s happening around us. We’re the Church. We’re God’s people. We’re the ones standing up for what is good and right and fighting against what is evil and wong. But it doesn’t look like we’re winning. And it’s not even a stalemate. It looks like we’re losing! And we have no idea when the tide will turn in our favor. In fact, it looks as if things are going to continue to slide down spiritually as long as we’re alive. Is that how things appear to you at times?
God’s prophet Daniel knew that very thing. Daniel’s God gave him a series of visions of the future which troubled Daniel so much that they made him physically ill. The future looked very dark for God’s people.
But then Daniel saw victory coming—eternal victory—and not just for Daniel, or just for his fellow Jews living at that time, but for all God’s people. For us—you and me.
God’s word calls us saints—people who are holy in God’s eyes by faith in Jesus. Today we celebrate Saints Triumphant. So, look, saints of God! Look with Daniel. Saints, see your triumph coming! Let’s look at it together this morning on the basis of this portion of God’s word.
Part I.
In sports you almost always have an opponent. You certainly do in a military battle. As I mentioned a minute ago, as God’s people, we’re in a constant battle. Do you know who the opponent is? I’m guessing you do; it’s Satan. We’re all familiar with him, but what’s your concept of Satan?
I’m guessing that it won’t surprise you when I say that there’s a tremendous amount of misinformation out there regarding Satan. Here’s one view of Satan. It comes from Elaine Pagels, professor of religion at Princeton University and the author of ¬The Origin of Satan: “I thought of Satan as a kind of joke, a kind of throwaway character.” No surprise there. Professor Pagels doesn’t think Satan exists.
For far too many people, Satan is a mythical character dressed in red underwear and wielding a red pitchfork. He’s viewed as this character of our imagination who sits on our left shoulder, advising us to do what we know is wrong. Is that your concept of Satan?
If not, do you view him as merely a pest to be ignored? An occasional pull in the wrong direction? A desire arising from within, which you know is bad, but seems so good?
Or, is Satan simply some impersonal force in the world? The bad “yang” that balances out the good “yin”?
Daniel would disagree with you. More importantly, so would your God. When you get back home, open your Bible to Daniel 11. First, Daniel sees what evil rulers from various empires will do to God’s people for the next 500 years, especially the Greeks. And every detail of his vision occurred exactly as God showed him. This all happened before Jesus was born.
Then Daniel saw a vision after the Savior had come to this earth. He saw a vision of the antichrist who will wreak havoc in God’s Church upon God’s people. He will wield his hellish power and control vast riches.
But then this: “At that time Michael, the great prince who protects your people, will arise. There will be a time of distress such as has not happened from the beginning of nations until then. But at that time your people—everyone whose name is found written in the book—will be delivered.” Daniel saw God’s archangel, Michael, fighting for the Church against whatever forces Satan brought against the Church. And God’s people will be delivered—rescued from Satan’s constant attack. From the rest of Scripture, we know that will happen when the King of kings—Jesus Christ—returns. It occurs individually every time God calls one of his saints home to heaven. It will occur for all God’s people collectively when God consigns Satan to hell and brings all his people—body and soul—into heaven.
Are you tired of losing, people of God? Then saints, see your triumph coming! God defeats your enemy, Satan.
The truth is that Satan, whose name means “enemy,” is real. And the truth is that he wants to destroy you—eternally. And he will use anything and everything to chip away at your faith in Jesus until he attains complete victory over you. The problem is that he’s so good at disguising what he’s doing that we don’t realize it. What is it that tends to draw you away from your Savior, Jesus? Jealousy? Discontentment? Materialism? Greed? Lust? Work? Recreation? Family? And while he daily attempts to claim you as his next victim, he’s wreaking havoc in our world to cause us to despair, to think that either God doesn’t care about the evil going on or he can’t do anything about it. What’s a beleaguered saint, like you and me, to do? Look to Christ, who proclaimed’ “It is finished!” on the cross. The battle for supremacy is over. And his resurrection from the dead three days later proclaims him the Victor. By faith in Jesus, we triumph, too. Ultimately, that will be the case when God puts Satan in his place—hell—forever, never to bother a single saint again. Saints, see your triumph coming!
Part II.
Now that most of the leaves have fallen off of area trees, it’s not so noticeable anymore. I’m talking about the countless ash trees scarring stands of trees that are dead reminders of a force that was unstoppable—a small green worm, the dreaded emerald ash borer. We knew it was coming, and we knew what it would do, but we couldn’t do anything about it.
That reminds me of another unstoppable force—or what appears to be unstoppable. This Sunday is a grim reminder of it—our Christian brothers and sisters who are no longer with us. Death claimed them—one by one. And no matter how far medical science advances, death still marches on, relentlessly, day by day, hour by hour, minute by minute. How long before it claims you? Me?
Pretty sobering, isn’t it? If only we had the answer, the solution, the power to stop this deadly force!
Lo and behold, we do! In fact, God’s people have had the solution ever since death entered the world through sin. Listen to what Daniel saw, “Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt. Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever.” Daniel saw you living, even though you die. How so? First, God’s word makes it clear that God has given you real life—spiritual life—through faith in Jesus. You are alive with God in Christ. You live with God now and God lives with you, in a spiritual, but real, way.
Next, you will live forever with Christ. The place and the mode of existence change, but at your death, only your body dies; your soul lives on forever with your Savior, Jesus, in heaven. It’s a life of perfect, unending happiness and bliss.
But there’s more. Daniel saw a vision of the Last Day when Jesus returns, raises all the dead, glorifies the bodies of Christians, and takes those Christians—soul and body—into heaven forever. Just as Jesus rose from the dead, so you, too, will rise. Just as Jesus gained the victory over death, so, too, will you. Your last enemy to be conquered is death, and your victory in that battle is guaranteed by the One who won that battle first, your Savior, Jesus Christ.
With the eyes of faith, can you see it, Christian? Can you see that victory? Saints, see your triumph coming! God defeats your enemy, Death.
I stood in his living room, his hospital bed pushed up to the large picture window, tubs of gauze and ointments and medical gadgets all around him. Cancer was slowly claiming his life. He could no longer speak, but he could still scratch out short messages with a pencil and pad of paper. As I stood there with him for what would be the last time I saw him alive on this earth, he wrote, “Death is my friend.” Friend? How could such an unstoppable force be his friend? Because he knew what his Lord and Savior had in store for him. Triumph! The triumph of a life in heaven without a cancer-wracked body. The triumph of life after the resurrection on the Last Day in a cancer-free, glorified body with Jesus forever. That’s what Jesus has promised you. If it’s not cancer, something else will get you. But it doesn’t matter. The victory is yours! Saints, see your triumph coming! May your Lord Jesus make you confident of it! Amen.
Surely the Day Is Coming!
2nd Sunday of End Time, Last Judgment, 11/11/18
Malachi 4:1-2a
Surely the Day Is Coming!
I. When God’s righteous anger will burn
II. When God’s righteousness will shine
I believe we started seeing them this past June. They mercifully ended last Tuesday. I’m referring to the political ads that drenched media, especially TV. Is it just me, or did these ads appear to sink lower than ever before? And as we suffered through them, the only solace we had was that we knew we would no longer see a single one of them once the calendar turned to Nov. 7.
But that leads us into another unsettling situation: when will our elected officials finally serve as we want them to? When will they always do what is best for us and right in the eyes of God? Don’t hold your breath.
And here’s another “when” situation: When will the senseless violence in our society end? Another horrific mass murder occurred last week. Every time such a tragedy occurs in our country, we hope and pray it will be the last, but who knows? When will it end?
Meanwhile, the Christian church on earth continues to suffer. When will the next crime of clergy abuse be uncovered? When will we hear about Christians in another part of the world suffering martyrdom? And when will it all end?
When? When will the scales of justice balance? When will the wicked receive their just punishment? When will God finally do something about the atrocities being committed daily in our world?
Do you find yourself asking those same questions? If so, then God’s word this morning has just the thing for you. Today we observe what God has revealed to us about the judgment on the Last Day. Judgment Day is God’s final answer to all those questions we just asked. And even though it might seem as if God doesn’t care about the evil in our world or that he has changed his mind about calling people to account for what they’ve done, that day is surely coming.
That was the message God’s prophet Malachi had for God’s people 400 years before Jesus was born and it’s God’s message for us on this Sunday of Last Judgment. Malachi lets us know in no uncertain terms that surely the day is coming. Let’s see what that means for our world and for us as ponder God’s holy word this morning.
Part I.
“He jumped out of the frying pan and into the fire.” Have you used that observation recently? Maybe so. It’s an appropriate way of describing a situation which goes from bad to worse and the person has no one to blame but himself. He jumped out of the frying pan and into the fire.
Malachi doesn’t use that phrase, but it accurately describes what had been happening spiritually among God’s people during the time Malachi served them. The Jews of Malachi’s day were just a few generations separated from one of the Jews’ darkest periods—the Babylonian captivity. For 70 years God’s people lived in exile from the Promised Land and they had no one to blame but themselves. Their sinfully hard hearts and their stubborn worship of false gods caused the only true God to unleash his righteous anger against them.
Eventually, God led them back to the land of promise, and, for a while, things went well, but not for long. Their priests became corrupt and the people soon followed suit. They ignored God’s law and did as they pleased. Meanwhile, they charged God with being unjust as they observed “evil” people prosper and “good” people suffer. It took only a few generations, but God’s people had jumped out of Babylon’s frying pan and into Israel’s fire.
So, what was God to do? Sit idly by? Allow things to sink into the abyss of corruption? Change his mind about what he expected from his people? Watch in aggravation as Group A oppressed Group B and Group B charge God with being unconcerned or even being the cause of evil?
Absolutely not! This was his response: “Surely the day is coming; it will burn like a furnace. All the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble, and that day that is coming will set them on fire.” In the wee hours of last Friday morning a devasting fire scorched Paradise, CA. Thousands fled the inferno. Some say it happened in minutes without warning and now everything is gone. Nothing left but ashes. As horrific as it was, it pales in comparison to what the Lord is describing here. This fire is worldwide. This fire will consume “all the arrogant and every evildoer.” Bottom line: God will not be mocked. His absolute holiness cannot and will not stand for sinful rebellion against him. He will call all people to account. And those who thought they could get away with it will find out to their eternal shame and dismay that they were dead wrong. Justice will be served.
Surely the day is coming when God’s righteous anger will burn.
And our initial reaction is, “Go get ‘em, God!” Finally, no more evil. Finally, no more oppression. Finally, divine justice will be served. And that’s true.
But God is also looking for us to take that judgment to heart. How so? If you think you can get away with something or that you, in fact, are getting away with something, and that God won’t mind, think again. God demands accountability. “The soul that sins is the one who will die” (Ez. 18:20). He did not say, “The soul that is less evil or the soul that is basically good will live.” “The soul that sins is the one who will die.” He calls each of us to account and it won’t do any good for us to point to others more wicked than we are to claim that we’re the ones who try to do what’s good and right. “The soul who sins is the one who will die.” So, what’s a sinful soul to do? Flee to God and beg him for mercy, because no matter how good you think you might be, you’re not good enough. Deep down inside, we’re no better than anyone else. Surely the day is coming when God’s righteous anger will burn!
Part II.
Pretty rough to hear, isn’t it? But that’s often the way it is with the truth. The truth about ourselves can be dreadfully painful. That’s why it’s a good thing Malachi’s message to you this morning doesn’t end there. There IS hope for us. There IS help for us. There IS good news for us—eternal good news. And that good news centers in God’s love for each sinner, God’s love for you! Malachi continues, “But for you who love my name…”
I believe it was Shakespeare’s Romeo who asked the question, “What’s in a name?” Romeo’s plight was caused by the fact that the love of his life had the wrong last name. Romeo contended that names don’t matter.
But God’s name surely does. Again, Malachi addresses people who love God’s name. Just what does he mean? In holy Scripture, the name of God is his revelation about himself. God’s name stands for everything he is and does. God’s name is what he’s all about.
And in his word he informs us, “God is love” (1 John 4:16). I’ve never read the Koran, but I’ve been told by people who have that the Koran never states, “Allah loves you.” How different is the only true God! His love for us is evident in the opening chapters of the Bible in which he creates all things for the human race, and, as soon as that human race utterly ruins the perfect world which he created, in love he seeks out his newly sinful creatures and announces a Savior from sin. Now what kind of divine Being would do such a thing?
Your God would…and did. Yes, it’s true that God will not look the other way at our sins. He will not change his mind about what violates his holy will. He will call all people to account. But God is not in the business of damning sinners; he’s in the business of saving them. Recite it with me silently, “God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). Your God loved you so much that he paid the price for your sins. In fact, he sacrificed his greatest treasure for you—his only Son.
I imagine some of you are already planning on how you’ll enjoy this Thanksgiving. If you’re hosting dinner that day, imagine spending a great deal of time and money placing before your guests the finest to eat and drink. Imagine doing so, and then having your guests abruptly push themselves away from the Thanksgiving dinner table and rudely exclaim, “Is that it? Can’t we have hot dogs and potato chips?” You’d be insulted, wouldn’t you?
Don’t insult the holy God when he sets before you his only Son as the Savior of the world.
In love for you God offers his best—his only Son. That Son willing lived the perfect life that you and I can’t live and don’t live. Then he drags his cross up Calvary’s hill and sacrificed himself on it for the sins of the world—your sins and mine. And in place of our sins, he gives us his righteousness or holiness (2 Cor. 5:19). That’s God’s great exchange, and that’s what he’s done out of his great love for you.
So, in the judgment on the Last Day, as people who love Jesus and trust in him as our Savior from sin, this is what our God will say to us, “Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world” (Mt. 25:34). On that day, God will announce his judgment concerning us. And because of Christ, we have nothing to fear. By faith in Jesus our hearts are filled with confidence. That will be the most glorious day in history for all of God’s people. That will be the day when your everlasting glory will begin. In Malachi’s words, that will be the day when “the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings.”
Surely that day will come! What a day it will be for God’s people! What a day it will be for you! Spend all your days until then praising your God for it! Amen.
Malachi 4:1-2a
Surely the Day Is Coming!
I. When God’s righteous anger will burn
II. When God’s righteousness will shine
I believe we started seeing them this past June. They mercifully ended last Tuesday. I’m referring to the political ads that drenched media, especially TV. Is it just me, or did these ads appear to sink lower than ever before? And as we suffered through them, the only solace we had was that we knew we would no longer see a single one of them once the calendar turned to Nov. 7.
But that leads us into another unsettling situation: when will our elected officials finally serve as we want them to? When will they always do what is best for us and right in the eyes of God? Don’t hold your breath.
And here’s another “when” situation: When will the senseless violence in our society end? Another horrific mass murder occurred last week. Every time such a tragedy occurs in our country, we hope and pray it will be the last, but who knows? When will it end?
Meanwhile, the Christian church on earth continues to suffer. When will the next crime of clergy abuse be uncovered? When will we hear about Christians in another part of the world suffering martyrdom? And when will it all end?
When? When will the scales of justice balance? When will the wicked receive their just punishment? When will God finally do something about the atrocities being committed daily in our world?
Do you find yourself asking those same questions? If so, then God’s word this morning has just the thing for you. Today we observe what God has revealed to us about the judgment on the Last Day. Judgment Day is God’s final answer to all those questions we just asked. And even though it might seem as if God doesn’t care about the evil in our world or that he has changed his mind about calling people to account for what they’ve done, that day is surely coming.
That was the message God’s prophet Malachi had for God’s people 400 years before Jesus was born and it’s God’s message for us on this Sunday of Last Judgment. Malachi lets us know in no uncertain terms that surely the day is coming. Let’s see what that means for our world and for us as ponder God’s holy word this morning.
Part I.
“He jumped out of the frying pan and into the fire.” Have you used that observation recently? Maybe so. It’s an appropriate way of describing a situation which goes from bad to worse and the person has no one to blame but himself. He jumped out of the frying pan and into the fire.
Malachi doesn’t use that phrase, but it accurately describes what had been happening spiritually among God’s people during the time Malachi served them. The Jews of Malachi’s day were just a few generations separated from one of the Jews’ darkest periods—the Babylonian captivity. For 70 years God’s people lived in exile from the Promised Land and they had no one to blame but themselves. Their sinfully hard hearts and their stubborn worship of false gods caused the only true God to unleash his righteous anger against them.
Eventually, God led them back to the land of promise, and, for a while, things went well, but not for long. Their priests became corrupt and the people soon followed suit. They ignored God’s law and did as they pleased. Meanwhile, they charged God with being unjust as they observed “evil” people prosper and “good” people suffer. It took only a few generations, but God’s people had jumped out of Babylon’s frying pan and into Israel’s fire.
So, what was God to do? Sit idly by? Allow things to sink into the abyss of corruption? Change his mind about what he expected from his people? Watch in aggravation as Group A oppressed Group B and Group B charge God with being unconcerned or even being the cause of evil?
Absolutely not! This was his response: “Surely the day is coming; it will burn like a furnace. All the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble, and that day that is coming will set them on fire.” In the wee hours of last Friday morning a devasting fire scorched Paradise, CA. Thousands fled the inferno. Some say it happened in minutes without warning and now everything is gone. Nothing left but ashes. As horrific as it was, it pales in comparison to what the Lord is describing here. This fire is worldwide. This fire will consume “all the arrogant and every evildoer.” Bottom line: God will not be mocked. His absolute holiness cannot and will not stand for sinful rebellion against him. He will call all people to account. And those who thought they could get away with it will find out to their eternal shame and dismay that they were dead wrong. Justice will be served.
Surely the day is coming when God’s righteous anger will burn.
And our initial reaction is, “Go get ‘em, God!” Finally, no more evil. Finally, no more oppression. Finally, divine justice will be served. And that’s true.
But God is also looking for us to take that judgment to heart. How so? If you think you can get away with something or that you, in fact, are getting away with something, and that God won’t mind, think again. God demands accountability. “The soul that sins is the one who will die” (Ez. 18:20). He did not say, “The soul that is less evil or the soul that is basically good will live.” “The soul that sins is the one who will die.” He calls each of us to account and it won’t do any good for us to point to others more wicked than we are to claim that we’re the ones who try to do what’s good and right. “The soul who sins is the one who will die.” So, what’s a sinful soul to do? Flee to God and beg him for mercy, because no matter how good you think you might be, you’re not good enough. Deep down inside, we’re no better than anyone else. Surely the day is coming when God’s righteous anger will burn!
Part II.
Pretty rough to hear, isn’t it? But that’s often the way it is with the truth. The truth about ourselves can be dreadfully painful. That’s why it’s a good thing Malachi’s message to you this morning doesn’t end there. There IS hope for us. There IS help for us. There IS good news for us—eternal good news. And that good news centers in God’s love for each sinner, God’s love for you! Malachi continues, “But for you who love my name…”
I believe it was Shakespeare’s Romeo who asked the question, “What’s in a name?” Romeo’s plight was caused by the fact that the love of his life had the wrong last name. Romeo contended that names don’t matter.
But God’s name surely does. Again, Malachi addresses people who love God’s name. Just what does he mean? In holy Scripture, the name of God is his revelation about himself. God’s name stands for everything he is and does. God’s name is what he’s all about.
And in his word he informs us, “God is love” (1 John 4:16). I’ve never read the Koran, but I’ve been told by people who have that the Koran never states, “Allah loves you.” How different is the only true God! His love for us is evident in the opening chapters of the Bible in which he creates all things for the human race, and, as soon as that human race utterly ruins the perfect world which he created, in love he seeks out his newly sinful creatures and announces a Savior from sin. Now what kind of divine Being would do such a thing?
Your God would…and did. Yes, it’s true that God will not look the other way at our sins. He will not change his mind about what violates his holy will. He will call all people to account. But God is not in the business of damning sinners; he’s in the business of saving them. Recite it with me silently, “God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). Your God loved you so much that he paid the price for your sins. In fact, he sacrificed his greatest treasure for you—his only Son.
I imagine some of you are already planning on how you’ll enjoy this Thanksgiving. If you’re hosting dinner that day, imagine spending a great deal of time and money placing before your guests the finest to eat and drink. Imagine doing so, and then having your guests abruptly push themselves away from the Thanksgiving dinner table and rudely exclaim, “Is that it? Can’t we have hot dogs and potato chips?” You’d be insulted, wouldn’t you?
Don’t insult the holy God when he sets before you his only Son as the Savior of the world.
In love for you God offers his best—his only Son. That Son willing lived the perfect life that you and I can’t live and don’t live. Then he drags his cross up Calvary’s hill and sacrificed himself on it for the sins of the world—your sins and mine. And in place of our sins, he gives us his righteousness or holiness (2 Cor. 5:19). That’s God’s great exchange, and that’s what he’s done out of his great love for you.
So, in the judgment on the Last Day, as people who love Jesus and trust in him as our Savior from sin, this is what our God will say to us, “Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world” (Mt. 25:34). On that day, God will announce his judgment concerning us. And because of Christ, we have nothing to fear. By faith in Jesus our hearts are filled with confidence. That will be the most glorious day in history for all of God’s people. That will be the day when your everlasting glory will begin. In Malachi’s words, that will be the day when “the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings.”
Surely that day will come! What a day it will be for God’s people! What a day it will be for you! Spend all your days until then praising your God for it! Amen.
December 18, 2018
Let the Eternal Gospel Fly!
1st Sunday of End Time, Reformation Sunday, 11/4/18
Revelation 14:6-7
Let the Eternal Gospel Fly!
I. Into your saved-by-grace heart
II. Into our judged-by-God world
It seems we live in a world of two information extremes.
On the one hand, we wonder what really happened, what’s really going on, what are they not telling us? We’re certain that, in this particular situation, there’s a cover-up going on and we may never know the truth. People might even mysteriously lose their lives, all in an effort to keep the truth from seeing the light of day.
On the other extreme, people seem to be comfortable saying whatever they want. It doesn’t have to be the truth. It’s simply what a person wants other people to think is true. Statements are thrown out there simply to get a desired reaction. Powerful people have a goal in mind and they will say anything, even repeatedly, to attain that goal. They simply let words fly.
Those two extremes make you wish you always heard the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. Those two extremes make you wish the verbal noise would cease, allowing us to listen to, take to heart, and enjoy some information that really matters. Wouldn’t that be something? In our age of instant worldwide communication, where anything and everything is thrown out there for people to listen to, wouldn’t it be a slice of heaven to hear only what is useful, only what is true, only what truly matters?
If that’s how you feel—even if only marginally—then you’ve come to the right place this morning. Today we’re celebrating Luther’s Reformation of the Church. Five hundred one years ago a Catholic monk named Martin Luther was convinced that the truth was being covered up and lies were being unleashed by the very institution that should have been proclaiming God’s truth—the Christian Church on earth. The only true God used Luther to unleash his gospel—the message of forgiveness and eternal life solely through faith in Jesus. That’s the eternal gospel—good news that will never change. And not even Satan himself will ever be able to silence the gospel.
As people who bear the name “Lutheran” today, we are the recipients of that eternal gospel. It’s ours to guard and keep, and it’s ours to share. So, in keeping with St. John’s vision here before us this morning in Revelation 14, let’s let the eternal gospel fly! Fellow heirs of the Reformation, let’s see what that’s all about.
Part I.
Unless you’ve had your head in the sand, you know that our country is in the grips of an epidemic. The one I’m referring to is the opioid epidemic. You’ve likely heard a lot about it with elections occurring this Tuesday. Law enforcement officers and politicians might disagree on how to battle this national problem, but everyone agrees how deadly it is. One source I checked states that more than 200,000 Americans have died in the
past 10 years due to opioid overdoses. And just because the addict has beaten addiction once, doesn’t mean the battle is over. The next addiction is just a pill away. And they’re everywhere, or so it seems.
But while opioid addiction affects 100s of thousands of people, there’s another addiction that affects billions of people. It’s a spiritual epidemic and it afflicts each and every human being by nature. It’s the spiritual opioid that thinks we can do what God demands in order to receive forgiveness and eternal life. Thank God that you and I know that isn’t true, that it’s Satan’s greatest lie. But 500 years ago that was the message being proclaimed in pulpit and classroom throughout the civilized world. The Church fed sinners the daily drivel, “Do this and you can be forgiven.” Fear, guilt and despair filled countless hearts.
And while modern people might not be filled with the same level of fear and guilt, they still hold on to the addictive vapor of doing what’s required to be accepted by God. The greatest lie of Satan still rules in the hearts of billions of people—just try to be a good person and that’s all God expects.
As Lutheran Christians, you and I know that to be the spiritually deadly lie that it is. I don’t think hell is filled with mafia crime bosses. But I know it’s filled with souls who were falsely believed that being a good person is all that God required and they died convinced that they had accomplished it. That spiritual epidemic still rages on!
But you and I know the truth. Nothing we can do makes us acceptable to God. We have nothing to give him. Meanwhile, our daily sins condemn us. “There is no one righteous; not even one” (Rom. 3:10). By God’s grace we know the sinful truths about ourselves. But by that same grace of God we know his saving good news. Just verses later in Romans 3 Paul wrote, “But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe.” (Rom. 3:21-22). That’s the truth that Luther rediscovered and proclaimed in his Reformation of the Church and that’s the truth that you and I have received. John’s vision is being fulfilled before our very eyes, “Then I saw another angel flying in midair, and he had the eternal gospel to proclaim to those who live on the earth.” Angels are literally messengers of God. Consider how many messengers of the gospel God has placed in your life so that you know and believe the only truth that rescues you from hell and makes you heirs of eternal life. The gospel has flown to you!
So, what do you need now? Now that you know and believe the truth that rescues you from sin and hell, what do you need? The very same gospel that lives in your heart by faith in Jesus. We still need that gospel! Remember that the spiritual epidemic still surrounds you! The deadly lie that you don’t need a Savior named Jesus, that you’re spiritually fine just as you are, that surely God will accept your efforts to please him—those lies will attempt to suffocate any faith in Jesus you have. So don’t rest on your Lutheran gospel laurels! Instead, let the eternal gospel fly! Let it fly into your saved-by-grace heart!
We turned another page on the calendar this past week. It’s November, and, among other things, this month is known as a month of Thanksgiving. But that begs the question, “For what are you thankful?” And I would hope, that as we sit and praise God today for the blessings of the Reformation, that the truth of the gospel would not only make your “thankful” list, but that it would be at the top. Of all the things you know and believe to be true, there is only one truth that will matter at all once you draw your final breath—that you are forgiven solely by faith in Jesus as your Savior. God has caused his eternal gospel to fly into your heart! But what does that mean to you? Would you sacrifice everything rather than lose the gospel? Or is that truth simply something you take the time to enjoy now and then when you don’t have anything more important to do? Would you guard and defend that truth against all error? Or are you willing at times to make concessions, to allow sinful pride to chip away at the rock-solid confession that we are worthy of nothing but punishment from our God? This opportunity today—to celebrate the Reformation—gives us a blessed opportunity to ask ourselves what it means to us that Jesus sacrificed himself for our sins. What does it mean to you that of all the spiritual lies in our world, you, by God’s grace, believe God’s saving truth? Surely our gracious God is worthy of our praise, not just with our lips, but with our lives! And not just on this Reformation Sunday, but every day, every moment of our saved-by-grace lives! The eternal gospel has flown to you! Let it fly to you each day!
Part II.
Have you ever been late for something, so late that you completely missed out of whatever you had planned? We’ve all been there. And we regret it so much that we take great pains not to let it happen again.
For how many people living today will tomorrow be too late? What I mean is this: God has caused his eternal gospel to fly into your heart and mine, but what about the people who still don’t have it? What if tomorrow is too late for them? That’s painful for us to consider, isn’t it?
If the Reformation gospel is God’s only saving truth, and if God has caused that eternal gospel to fly into our hearts, then we have a mountain of work to do, don’t we? Listen to the angel’s words in John’s vision, “Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come. Worship him who made the heavens, the earth, the sea and the springs of water.” The angel’s words are filled with urgency. God’s will is for all to repent and believe in Jesus as their Savior from sin. And he uses us to let that eternal gospel fly. He uses us worldwide, as we support our synod’s mission work to the ends of the earth. But he also uses you and me personally to let that gospel fly. And I can think of no better time than now to join in that work. Our Sunday Bible class is searching the word of God to be equipped to bring the eternal gospel to the people we know—friends, relatives, acquaintances, and neighbors. Whom do you know who needs to hear about forgiveness and eternal life in Jesus? Christmas is coming up. Christmas Eve will make a perfect time to invite them to join you in hearing the eternal gospel. What an opportunity to let the eternal gospel fly!
Yes, the Reformation is a wonderful time to sit and feast on the grace of God, to fill our souls with the eternal gospel. But it’s also time to get busy, to get busy sharing the gospel. Let the eternal gospel fly! And may God richly bless our gospel flight efforts! Amen.
Revelation 14:6-7
Let the Eternal Gospel Fly!
I. Into your saved-by-grace heart
II. Into our judged-by-God world
It seems we live in a world of two information extremes.
On the one hand, we wonder what really happened, what’s really going on, what are they not telling us? We’re certain that, in this particular situation, there’s a cover-up going on and we may never know the truth. People might even mysteriously lose their lives, all in an effort to keep the truth from seeing the light of day.
On the other extreme, people seem to be comfortable saying whatever they want. It doesn’t have to be the truth. It’s simply what a person wants other people to think is true. Statements are thrown out there simply to get a desired reaction. Powerful people have a goal in mind and they will say anything, even repeatedly, to attain that goal. They simply let words fly.
Those two extremes make you wish you always heard the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. Those two extremes make you wish the verbal noise would cease, allowing us to listen to, take to heart, and enjoy some information that really matters. Wouldn’t that be something? In our age of instant worldwide communication, where anything and everything is thrown out there for people to listen to, wouldn’t it be a slice of heaven to hear only what is useful, only what is true, only what truly matters?
If that’s how you feel—even if only marginally—then you’ve come to the right place this morning. Today we’re celebrating Luther’s Reformation of the Church. Five hundred one years ago a Catholic monk named Martin Luther was convinced that the truth was being covered up and lies were being unleashed by the very institution that should have been proclaiming God’s truth—the Christian Church on earth. The only true God used Luther to unleash his gospel—the message of forgiveness and eternal life solely through faith in Jesus. That’s the eternal gospel—good news that will never change. And not even Satan himself will ever be able to silence the gospel.
As people who bear the name “Lutheran” today, we are the recipients of that eternal gospel. It’s ours to guard and keep, and it’s ours to share. So, in keeping with St. John’s vision here before us this morning in Revelation 14, let’s let the eternal gospel fly! Fellow heirs of the Reformation, let’s see what that’s all about.
Part I.
Unless you’ve had your head in the sand, you know that our country is in the grips of an epidemic. The one I’m referring to is the opioid epidemic. You’ve likely heard a lot about it with elections occurring this Tuesday. Law enforcement officers and politicians might disagree on how to battle this national problem, but everyone agrees how deadly it is. One source I checked states that more than 200,000 Americans have died in the
past 10 years due to opioid overdoses. And just because the addict has beaten addiction once, doesn’t mean the battle is over. The next addiction is just a pill away. And they’re everywhere, or so it seems.
But while opioid addiction affects 100s of thousands of people, there’s another addiction that affects billions of people. It’s a spiritual epidemic and it afflicts each and every human being by nature. It’s the spiritual opioid that thinks we can do what God demands in order to receive forgiveness and eternal life. Thank God that you and I know that isn’t true, that it’s Satan’s greatest lie. But 500 years ago that was the message being proclaimed in pulpit and classroom throughout the civilized world. The Church fed sinners the daily drivel, “Do this and you can be forgiven.” Fear, guilt and despair filled countless hearts.
And while modern people might not be filled with the same level of fear and guilt, they still hold on to the addictive vapor of doing what’s required to be accepted by God. The greatest lie of Satan still rules in the hearts of billions of people—just try to be a good person and that’s all God expects.
As Lutheran Christians, you and I know that to be the spiritually deadly lie that it is. I don’t think hell is filled with mafia crime bosses. But I know it’s filled with souls who were falsely believed that being a good person is all that God required and they died convinced that they had accomplished it. That spiritual epidemic still rages on!
But you and I know the truth. Nothing we can do makes us acceptable to God. We have nothing to give him. Meanwhile, our daily sins condemn us. “There is no one righteous; not even one” (Rom. 3:10). By God’s grace we know the sinful truths about ourselves. But by that same grace of God we know his saving good news. Just verses later in Romans 3 Paul wrote, “But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe.” (Rom. 3:21-22). That’s the truth that Luther rediscovered and proclaimed in his Reformation of the Church and that’s the truth that you and I have received. John’s vision is being fulfilled before our very eyes, “Then I saw another angel flying in midair, and he had the eternal gospel to proclaim to those who live on the earth.” Angels are literally messengers of God. Consider how many messengers of the gospel God has placed in your life so that you know and believe the only truth that rescues you from hell and makes you heirs of eternal life. The gospel has flown to you!
So, what do you need now? Now that you know and believe the truth that rescues you from sin and hell, what do you need? The very same gospel that lives in your heart by faith in Jesus. We still need that gospel! Remember that the spiritual epidemic still surrounds you! The deadly lie that you don’t need a Savior named Jesus, that you’re spiritually fine just as you are, that surely God will accept your efforts to please him—those lies will attempt to suffocate any faith in Jesus you have. So don’t rest on your Lutheran gospel laurels! Instead, let the eternal gospel fly! Let it fly into your saved-by-grace heart!
We turned another page on the calendar this past week. It’s November, and, among other things, this month is known as a month of Thanksgiving. But that begs the question, “For what are you thankful?” And I would hope, that as we sit and praise God today for the blessings of the Reformation, that the truth of the gospel would not only make your “thankful” list, but that it would be at the top. Of all the things you know and believe to be true, there is only one truth that will matter at all once you draw your final breath—that you are forgiven solely by faith in Jesus as your Savior. God has caused his eternal gospel to fly into your heart! But what does that mean to you? Would you sacrifice everything rather than lose the gospel? Or is that truth simply something you take the time to enjoy now and then when you don’t have anything more important to do? Would you guard and defend that truth against all error? Or are you willing at times to make concessions, to allow sinful pride to chip away at the rock-solid confession that we are worthy of nothing but punishment from our God? This opportunity today—to celebrate the Reformation—gives us a blessed opportunity to ask ourselves what it means to us that Jesus sacrificed himself for our sins. What does it mean to you that of all the spiritual lies in our world, you, by God’s grace, believe God’s saving truth? Surely our gracious God is worthy of our praise, not just with our lips, but with our lives! And not just on this Reformation Sunday, but every day, every moment of our saved-by-grace lives! The eternal gospel has flown to you! Let it fly to you each day!
Part II.
Have you ever been late for something, so late that you completely missed out of whatever you had planned? We’ve all been there. And we regret it so much that we take great pains not to let it happen again.
For how many people living today will tomorrow be too late? What I mean is this: God has caused his eternal gospel to fly into your heart and mine, but what about the people who still don’t have it? What if tomorrow is too late for them? That’s painful for us to consider, isn’t it?
If the Reformation gospel is God’s only saving truth, and if God has caused that eternal gospel to fly into our hearts, then we have a mountain of work to do, don’t we? Listen to the angel’s words in John’s vision, “Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come. Worship him who made the heavens, the earth, the sea and the springs of water.” The angel’s words are filled with urgency. God’s will is for all to repent and believe in Jesus as their Savior from sin. And he uses us to let that eternal gospel fly. He uses us worldwide, as we support our synod’s mission work to the ends of the earth. But he also uses you and me personally to let that gospel fly. And I can think of no better time than now to join in that work. Our Sunday Bible class is searching the word of God to be equipped to bring the eternal gospel to the people we know—friends, relatives, acquaintances, and neighbors. Whom do you know who needs to hear about forgiveness and eternal life in Jesus? Christmas is coming up. Christmas Eve will make a perfect time to invite them to join you in hearing the eternal gospel. What an opportunity to let the eternal gospel fly!
Yes, the Reformation is a wonderful time to sit and feast on the grace of God, to fill our souls with the eternal gospel. But it’s also time to get busy, to get busy sharing the gospel. Let the eternal gospel fly! And may God richly bless our gospel flight efforts! Amen.
Do You Think God Doesn’t Know What You’re Going Through?
23rd Sunday after Pentecost, 10/28/18
Hebrews 5:1-10
Do You Think God Doesn’t Know What You’re Going Through?
I. Then look how Jesus suffered.
II. Then be confident of your salvation.
Misery loves company. How true that is! I have yet to meet the person who is perfectly comfortable suffering and doing so without anyone else knowing or acknowledging that they are suffering. It seems to be part of our human nature that, when we’re suffering, we feel the need to let others know or at least reach out to someone else who has endured or is enduring the same thing we are. And the reason for it is that there’s some solace in knowing that someone else can understand what we’re going through. It helps the person who is suffering.
But how can anyone truly know what you might be suffering? How can they possibly know the pain, the agony, the frustration that you’re experiencing at the moment? There is no other person in the world who has gone through exactly what you’ve gone through. And no two people are alike. No one tries to process and make sense of what you are experiencing in the same way you do. You are truly unique, even in your sufferings. So how can anyone know what you’re going through?
Even God? Our God assures us in his word that he knows everything. In fact, he knows us better than we do ourselves. Therefore, he does know what we’re suffering. But as we suffer on, that truth becomes more and more difficult for us to believe. Sooner or later in our suffering continuum, we doubt that he knows what we’re going through. And when our sufferings stretch on with no end in sight, we convince ourselves that he can’t possibly know what we’re enduring.
Have you ever felt like that? Ever thought that? You’re not alone. Ever since the fall into sin God’s people have been suffering and one of the sinner’s default responses is to become convinced that our God doesn’t know what we’re facing.
How about you? Do you think God doesn’t know what you’re going through? That was the unspoken question on the mind of the writer of these words to the Hebrews. As such, it makes a good question for us to ask and then listen to his answers to suffering Christians here in Hebrews 5.
Part I.
Are you suffering through something at the current moment? I’m sure you are. It might be some nagging pain that you learned to live with long ago. Then again it might be something new and incredibly sharp and it’s consuming you. And misery loves company.
So let’s find someone to share your suffering with. How about the Jewish Christians to whom these words of our text were originally written? We don’t know exactly what sufferings they faced, but it’s apparent from this letter that they were suffering because of their Christian faith. It’s possible that they were Jewish Christians living in Rome and that the persecution of Christians in Rome had begun. You know how things ended for many Christians under the Roman Emperor Nero. It was horrific! So much so, that they were tempted to abandon the Christian faith and go back to the Jewish faith.
The writer spends chapter after chapter encouraging them not to make that spiritual mistake, and the reason he points to in this section of his letter is that Jesus suffered, too.
Consider first what the Bible states about every difficulty that comes into the Christian’s life. It’s not God’s way of punishing you. It’s not the result of God’s hatred or his anger towards you. The Bible clearly states that God allows difficulties in our lives in order to draw us closer to him. The troubles we face are his way of disciplining us for our good and refining our faith. God wants us to reach out to him in our suffering and exercise our faith—holding on to him ever more tightly.
He states in our text, “He is able to deal gently with those who are ignorant or gone astray.” God has a perfect knowledge of who we are and what we need. He deals with us exactly as we need to keep us close to him—not too harshly and not too leniently.
And in his perfect knowledge and love for us, he doesn’t punish us for our sins; instead he sends us Jesus. The writer makes mention that no high priest among the Jews took that position for himself; instead, he was chosen by God. In the same way, God chose Jesus to be our great High Priest, who came to this earth to suffer the punishment that we deserve. In fact, he came to take on himself the punishment for the sins of every sinner. You talk about suffering!
But Jesus didn’t stubbornly refuse this all-important assignment from God. Listen to the writer describe Jesus’ approach. “During the days of Jesus’ life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission.” No doubt the writer has in mind the prayer of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane on the night before his death. He prayed so fervently that his sweat was like drops of blood. And his prayers were heard by his heavenly Father because of his reverent submission. Recall how his prayers that night ended: “Not my will, but yours be done.” When the Father indicated that his will was for Jesus to suffer and die for the sins of the world, that’s what Jesus did.
“He learned obedience,” our text states. He didn’t learn it from a book or through someone else telling him what it was like. He learned it the best way—by experience. Bottom line, Jesus suffered hell on the cross and by that I mean he suffered something we have never suffered—separation from God. That’s what hell is. That’s what Jesus suffered—the spiritual agony of separation from his Father.
Do you think God doesn’t know what you’re going through? If so, then look at how Jesus suffered.
You hear this comment from people all the time: “It was hell.” It’s their way of putting an exclamation mark on what they suffered. Perhaps you’ve used the same comparison. But it wasn’t hell. Not even close. Only Jesus can honestly make that claim, because that’s exactly what he suffered for us. That’s what he had to suffer for us as the punishment for our sins. Imagine that! He is the only One who didn’t deserve to suffer but he willingly suffered for us. And why? Because of his divine love for us. And now, he shows his daily love for us by dealing with us exactly as we need. He knows just how much difficulty to allow into our lives to cause us to cling to him in prayer and faith. He wants to make sure that we never get so attached or enamored with this life that we lose sight of the eternal life he’s won for us. Bottom line—Jesus is intent on keeping you close to him and if that takes allowing us to suffer for a little while here, so be it. Do you think God doesn’t know what you’re going through? Not a chance! Look at Jesus!
Part II.
In an unremarkable building in Clinton Township, MI, just north of downtown Detroit, are about 160 bodies each in separate tanks, preserved at -321 degrees Fahrenheit. It’s assumed that each of these bodies represents a human being who suffered some malady when they were alive and decided that, upon their deaths, they would spend the money to be placed in a deep freeze until the cure for whatever they suffered from was discovered. At which point their bodies could be thawed out and healed. Thus they could live once again and enjoy life as they did before they began to suffer.
I’m more than a little pessimistic that will ever happen and for many reasons. And one of them is the truth before us this morning, that this life will never be what we want it to be. The root cause of suffering and death is sin, and no matter how low temperatures might be and how far our medical knowledge and skill advance, sin brings suffering and death. Period. As God declared, life will be marked by the sweat of our brows and painful toil until we return to dust.
By now, you might be thinking, “Thanks for the pick-me-up, Pastor! So glad I made the trip this morning to church to be reminded of that!”
Fair enough. But that’s not the last word. Jesus knows what suffering is and he knows perfectly what we’re suffering through at the moment. But he has a goal in mind for each one of us. In fact, he knew you by name before the creation of the world and destined you to reach that goal—to reach it in spite of whatever suffering, pain and tragedy you might endure in this life. That life is certain for you because of what Jesus did. The writer states, “And once made perfect, he became the source of salvation for all who obey him.” “Obey him?” Isn’t salvation a gift of God’s grace and not by our works? Indeed it is! The “obedience” the writer has in mind here is this command of God: to believe in Jesus as your Savior from sin, and through Jesus, to receive the gift of eternal life That’s the life Jesus won for you. He wants you to be certain of it even in the midst of the sufferings you’re enduring right now.
Do you think God doesn’t know what you’re going through? Not a chance! Indeed he does know. That’s why Jesus won a better life, a perfect life, eternal life in heaven for you. So be confident of it!
Think about what you’re going through right now in this way: Your God does know what you’re facing, and that’s not what he wants your life to be. But the life he wants for you is not here and now; it’s with him forever. He wants that life for you so much that he sacrificed his Son to win it for you. Sure the troubles of this life weigh us down, even knock us over for a time. Your God knows it. He’s with you in it every day. And he’s promised to end it and then take you to be with him. Your God not only knows what you’re going through in this life, he knows what he has in store for you in the life to come. So chin up, Christian friend, and keep your eyes fixed on your Savior, Jesus! Amen.
Hebrews 5:1-10
Do You Think God Doesn’t Know What You’re Going Through?
I. Then look how Jesus suffered.
II. Then be confident of your salvation.
Misery loves company. How true that is! I have yet to meet the person who is perfectly comfortable suffering and doing so without anyone else knowing or acknowledging that they are suffering. It seems to be part of our human nature that, when we’re suffering, we feel the need to let others know or at least reach out to someone else who has endured or is enduring the same thing we are. And the reason for it is that there’s some solace in knowing that someone else can understand what we’re going through. It helps the person who is suffering.
But how can anyone truly know what you might be suffering? How can they possibly know the pain, the agony, the frustration that you’re experiencing at the moment? There is no other person in the world who has gone through exactly what you’ve gone through. And no two people are alike. No one tries to process and make sense of what you are experiencing in the same way you do. You are truly unique, even in your sufferings. So how can anyone know what you’re going through?
Even God? Our God assures us in his word that he knows everything. In fact, he knows us better than we do ourselves. Therefore, he does know what we’re suffering. But as we suffer on, that truth becomes more and more difficult for us to believe. Sooner or later in our suffering continuum, we doubt that he knows what we’re going through. And when our sufferings stretch on with no end in sight, we convince ourselves that he can’t possibly know what we’re enduring.
Have you ever felt like that? Ever thought that? You’re not alone. Ever since the fall into sin God’s people have been suffering and one of the sinner’s default responses is to become convinced that our God doesn’t know what we’re facing.
How about you? Do you think God doesn’t know what you’re going through? That was the unspoken question on the mind of the writer of these words to the Hebrews. As such, it makes a good question for us to ask and then listen to his answers to suffering Christians here in Hebrews 5.
Part I.
Are you suffering through something at the current moment? I’m sure you are. It might be some nagging pain that you learned to live with long ago. Then again it might be something new and incredibly sharp and it’s consuming you. And misery loves company.
So let’s find someone to share your suffering with. How about the Jewish Christians to whom these words of our text were originally written? We don’t know exactly what sufferings they faced, but it’s apparent from this letter that they were suffering because of their Christian faith. It’s possible that they were Jewish Christians living in Rome and that the persecution of Christians in Rome had begun. You know how things ended for many Christians under the Roman Emperor Nero. It was horrific! So much so, that they were tempted to abandon the Christian faith and go back to the Jewish faith.
The writer spends chapter after chapter encouraging them not to make that spiritual mistake, and the reason he points to in this section of his letter is that Jesus suffered, too.
Consider first what the Bible states about every difficulty that comes into the Christian’s life. It’s not God’s way of punishing you. It’s not the result of God’s hatred or his anger towards you. The Bible clearly states that God allows difficulties in our lives in order to draw us closer to him. The troubles we face are his way of disciplining us for our good and refining our faith. God wants us to reach out to him in our suffering and exercise our faith—holding on to him ever more tightly.
He states in our text, “He is able to deal gently with those who are ignorant or gone astray.” God has a perfect knowledge of who we are and what we need. He deals with us exactly as we need to keep us close to him—not too harshly and not too leniently.
And in his perfect knowledge and love for us, he doesn’t punish us for our sins; instead he sends us Jesus. The writer makes mention that no high priest among the Jews took that position for himself; instead, he was chosen by God. In the same way, God chose Jesus to be our great High Priest, who came to this earth to suffer the punishment that we deserve. In fact, he came to take on himself the punishment for the sins of every sinner. You talk about suffering!
But Jesus didn’t stubbornly refuse this all-important assignment from God. Listen to the writer describe Jesus’ approach. “During the days of Jesus’ life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission.” No doubt the writer has in mind the prayer of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane on the night before his death. He prayed so fervently that his sweat was like drops of blood. And his prayers were heard by his heavenly Father because of his reverent submission. Recall how his prayers that night ended: “Not my will, but yours be done.” When the Father indicated that his will was for Jesus to suffer and die for the sins of the world, that’s what Jesus did.
“He learned obedience,” our text states. He didn’t learn it from a book or through someone else telling him what it was like. He learned it the best way—by experience. Bottom line, Jesus suffered hell on the cross and by that I mean he suffered something we have never suffered—separation from God. That’s what hell is. That’s what Jesus suffered—the spiritual agony of separation from his Father.
Do you think God doesn’t know what you’re going through? If so, then look at how Jesus suffered.
You hear this comment from people all the time: “It was hell.” It’s their way of putting an exclamation mark on what they suffered. Perhaps you’ve used the same comparison. But it wasn’t hell. Not even close. Only Jesus can honestly make that claim, because that’s exactly what he suffered for us. That’s what he had to suffer for us as the punishment for our sins. Imagine that! He is the only One who didn’t deserve to suffer but he willingly suffered for us. And why? Because of his divine love for us. And now, he shows his daily love for us by dealing with us exactly as we need. He knows just how much difficulty to allow into our lives to cause us to cling to him in prayer and faith. He wants to make sure that we never get so attached or enamored with this life that we lose sight of the eternal life he’s won for us. Bottom line—Jesus is intent on keeping you close to him and if that takes allowing us to suffer for a little while here, so be it. Do you think God doesn’t know what you’re going through? Not a chance! Look at Jesus!
Part II.
In an unremarkable building in Clinton Township, MI, just north of downtown Detroit, are about 160 bodies each in separate tanks, preserved at -321 degrees Fahrenheit. It’s assumed that each of these bodies represents a human being who suffered some malady when they were alive and decided that, upon their deaths, they would spend the money to be placed in a deep freeze until the cure for whatever they suffered from was discovered. At which point their bodies could be thawed out and healed. Thus they could live once again and enjoy life as they did before they began to suffer.
I’m more than a little pessimistic that will ever happen and for many reasons. And one of them is the truth before us this morning, that this life will never be what we want it to be. The root cause of suffering and death is sin, and no matter how low temperatures might be and how far our medical knowledge and skill advance, sin brings suffering and death. Period. As God declared, life will be marked by the sweat of our brows and painful toil until we return to dust.
By now, you might be thinking, “Thanks for the pick-me-up, Pastor! So glad I made the trip this morning to church to be reminded of that!”
Fair enough. But that’s not the last word. Jesus knows what suffering is and he knows perfectly what we’re suffering through at the moment. But he has a goal in mind for each one of us. In fact, he knew you by name before the creation of the world and destined you to reach that goal—to reach it in spite of whatever suffering, pain and tragedy you might endure in this life. That life is certain for you because of what Jesus did. The writer states, “And once made perfect, he became the source of salvation for all who obey him.” “Obey him?” Isn’t salvation a gift of God’s grace and not by our works? Indeed it is! The “obedience” the writer has in mind here is this command of God: to believe in Jesus as your Savior from sin, and through Jesus, to receive the gift of eternal life That’s the life Jesus won for you. He wants you to be certain of it even in the midst of the sufferings you’re enduring right now.
Do you think God doesn’t know what you’re going through? Not a chance! Indeed he does know. That’s why Jesus won a better life, a perfect life, eternal life in heaven for you. So be confident of it!
Think about what you’re going through right now in this way: Your God does know what you’re facing, and that’s not what he wants your life to be. But the life he wants for you is not here and now; it’s with him forever. He wants that life for you so much that he sacrificed his Son to win it for you. Sure the troubles of this life weigh us down, even knock us over for a time. Your God knows it. He’s with you in it every day. And he’s promised to end it and then take you to be with him. Your God not only knows what you’re going through in this life, he knows what he has in store for you in the life to come. So chin up, Christian friend, and keep your eyes fixed on your Savior, Jesus! Amen.
Bring Salvation to the Ends of the Earth!
22nd Sunday after Pentecost, Synod Mission & Ministry Sunday, 10/21/18
Acts 13:38-48
Bring Salvation to the Ends of the Earth!
I. By proclaiming the forgiveness of sins through Jesus
II. By speaking the word of the Lord to the world
Are you familiar with the movie Toy Story? I’m guessing many of you are. I’ll admit that I’ve never watched a minute of any of the Toy Story films, mostly because my children were already grown-up by the time the first movie appeared and so I didn’t have the opportunity to enjoy those movies with them and I certainly didn’t want to watch them all by myself.
But I am familiar with the main character, Buzz Lightyear, and his famous phrase, “To infinity and beyond!” In fact, I just watched a YouTube clip of him declaring that very thing as he launched himself from a bedpost into the air while his animated friends watched. It makes for great entertainment, but think about that phrase for a minute—to infinity and beyond. How do you arrive beyond infinity? In fact, how do you even get there? If that’s your travel goal, isn’t it unreasonable to think that you’ll ever attain it?
Today we’re joining our fellow brothers and sisters in the faith across the Wisconsin Synod in celebrating our Synod Mission and Ministry Sunday. As we do so, we recall that our Savior gave his church on earth this mission just before he ascended into heaven, “You will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8). “To the ends of the earth.” Imagine being a follower of Jesus about 30 AD and hearing those words. You didn’t even know where the ends of the earth were, let alone what they looked like or whom you might encounter when you finally arrived there. “To the ends of the earth.” And even though we modern followers of Jesus are far more familiar with the nooks and crannies of this carbon ball on which we live, to the ends of the earth still seems like a mythological place, a destination unknown, perhaps even an unrealistic goal.
But make no mistake about it, that’s exactly what Jesus meant when he gave his church on earth its marching orders. He literally meant for us to take his gospel to the ends of the earth. And we hear that very same truth repeated for us this morning in Acts 13. That was the ministry goal the Apostle Paul embraced and it’s still our goal as a synod, as a congregation of followers of Jesus that has taken to itself the name Shepherd of Peace of Powell, Ohio, and as individual Christians who have been redeemed by the blood of Christ and now live to serve him with all that we are and have. Bring salvation to the ends of the earth! By the working of the Holy Spirit, let’s embrace that goal and receive the power of our risen Lord Jesus to attain it.
Part I.
There’s a term in Christian circles that has been used by churches to reach out to others. It’s the term “felt needs.” Are you familiar with it? Maybe so. If you’re a congregation operating under the outreach philosophy of meeting felt needs, you strive to offer a person what they feel they need. For instance, if a person struggles with substance abuse, you offer that person individual or group therapy. If your congregation operates in an economically depressed area, you offer life’s basics—food, clothing, shelter. If your church is surrounded by families with young children, you offer activities for kids and family events. For some churches, that’s where it ends—just meeting these felt needs. But other churches use those opportunities as a door to meeting every sinner’s greatest need—the forgiveness of sins.
The Apostle Paul’s approach on this day in his ministry was to leap over felt needs and to jump right into the main point. He was on his first missionary journey and he was standing in the synagogue in the city of Antioch in Pisidia, which is in modern day Turkey. It doesn’t appear that Paul spoke to them about addictions, or the lack of food or employment. Instead, he cut right to the sinful heart of the matter and stated, “Therefore, my brothers, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you.”
What’s your greatest problem? It’s not your job or your relatives or your finances or your health. Our greatest problem is sin, for two reasons. One, we can’t do a single thing about a single sin. And, two, a single sin is more than enough to condemn us to hell. And my life is full of sins. How about yours? That was true of the people sitting before Paul on this day as well. Their greatest problem was sin. That means their greatest need was the forgiveness of sins and that’s what Paul was there to proclaim to them through Jesus.
Sounds fairly simple, doesn’t it? Our biggest problem is sin. Our greatest need is the forgiveness of sins. Jesus gives forgiveness to us. Done! End of story!
If only it were that simple for us. You see, we’re our own worst enemies to embracing that saving truth. So were these Jewish people to whom Paul originally spoke these words. What do I mean? Listen to what Paul said, “Through [Jesus] everyone who believes is justified from everything you could not be justified from by the law of Moses.” What was Paul saying? That Jesus is option two when it comes to forgiveness? That the law of Moses is option one? Not at all. Like every other person in the world, these people were under the impression that they could earn God’s forgiveness by being good people. Just do what God says and all will be well. That has always been Satan’s number one lie.
And it still is today. That’s why we, as God’s people, have so much work to do. Billions of people in our world adhere to one of several other world religions. Contrary to modern thinking, these other religions don’t lead to anywhere good; they are all the lies of Satan because they all teach that life beyond the grave depends on doing your part now. And the number of those people who believe that lie right now is staggering.
But, sad to say, that’s even a problem within Christianity. Some who profess Christianity still struggle with that lie. Look how many Christian churches preach about Jesus as the Savior but still require sinful people to live good lives to be sure of forgiveness and eternal life!
Without a doubt, the number of people living without the forgiveness of sins is beyond count. The task of bringing them the forgiveness of sins through the truth about Jesus seems insurmountable. But the goal still stands. Bring salvation to the ends of the earth by proclaiming the forgiveness of sins through Jesus.
But have you ever doubted your forgiveness? Ever tossed and turned at night in bed with a guilty conscience? Been there. Done that. It’s proof that we have trouble believing the very heart of our Christian faith—that Jesus forgives sins. And that’s why we meet regularly—weekly—to hear that good news and through the working of the Holy Spirit to believe that good news. But just because we have trouble at times believing it, doesn’t excuse us from the responsibility of proclaiming it to the ends of the earth. In fact, our struggles with that truth make us just the ones to proclaim it. Share your struggles with sin and forgiveness with someone who doesn’t know Jesus as their Savior. Be real with them. Trust me—they struggle in life. Hearing that you have struggles, too, makes your message to them all the more real. And then share with them the only real Savior the world has ever known—Jesus who forgives sins.
Part II.
Like I stated earlier, I’ve never watched Toy Story. I’ve also never tweeted—you know, used Twitter to send a message. But I understand it’s an incredibly fast method of sharing information. For instance, a tweet regarding a Philippine TV show was retweeted 41 million times in 24 hours. 41 million times!
In today’s text we hear about Paul and Barnabas sharing the message of forgiveness on their first missionary journey. Can you imagine how long it would have taken Paul to reach 41 million people? I think it’s safe to say that in his entire ministry, he didn’t even come close to reaching that many people.
But notice what happened on this day in his ministry. Our text tells us, “As Paul and Barnabas were leaving the synagogue, the people invited them to speak further about these things on the next Sabbath. When the congregation was dismissed, many of the Jews and devout converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas, who talked with them and urged them to continue in the grace of God. On the next Sabbath almost the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord.” First, the people extended an invitation to hear more about this forgiveness through Jesus. Then they tagged along with Paul and Barnabas who talked with them and encouraged them to hold on to the saving truth about Jesus. And then notice what they did: they spent the next seven days talking with their relatives, friends and neighbors. I can hear them saying, “You should have been at the synagogue with me last Saturday. I heard the most amazing thing from this guy named Paul!” And then they invited them to join them the next Saturday in doing that very thing. And they didn’t have phones, the internet, Facebook or Twitter.
They didn’t need them, because Jesus is the one who opens doors for us to share his truths with others no matter what the time or place in history. He did for these people. They shared his word and he blessed their efforts.
He’s still doing that very thing. Whom did God place in your life last week who needed to hear God’s truth about whatever they were facing in life? Whom will he place in your life this week who needs to hear that Jesus died and rose for them? That’s all he has called us to do—just share the message; he’ll take care of the results…
…All the way to the ends of the earth. This past Thursday I received some information from our synod to review prior to publication. I read through some materials about an opportunity you and I have to spread the gospel in Vietnam. I’ll admit, the information was so moving and the opportunity so urgent, that it was difficult for me to finish it because I became emotional. There were quotes from your fellow Christians in Vietnam thanking you for sharing the truth of God’s word with them and now asking you to help them share that truth with millions of other people in their country. Vietnam isn’t the end of the earth, but it’s got to be close. And you and I are part of God’s plan to share his saving truth there soon. And that’s just one corner of the earth. Through your synod you are working in all four corners of the world right now to share the gospel of Jesus with one and all. Every single person.
Is that an unrealistic goal? Not at all. Not when you have the risen Lord Jesus with you, blessing you. So do it! Bring salvation to the ends of the earth! Amen.
Acts 13:38-48
Bring Salvation to the Ends of the Earth!
I. By proclaiming the forgiveness of sins through Jesus
II. By speaking the word of the Lord to the world
Are you familiar with the movie Toy Story? I’m guessing many of you are. I’ll admit that I’ve never watched a minute of any of the Toy Story films, mostly because my children were already grown-up by the time the first movie appeared and so I didn’t have the opportunity to enjoy those movies with them and I certainly didn’t want to watch them all by myself.
But I am familiar with the main character, Buzz Lightyear, and his famous phrase, “To infinity and beyond!” In fact, I just watched a YouTube clip of him declaring that very thing as he launched himself from a bedpost into the air while his animated friends watched. It makes for great entertainment, but think about that phrase for a minute—to infinity and beyond. How do you arrive beyond infinity? In fact, how do you even get there? If that’s your travel goal, isn’t it unreasonable to think that you’ll ever attain it?
Today we’re joining our fellow brothers and sisters in the faith across the Wisconsin Synod in celebrating our Synod Mission and Ministry Sunday. As we do so, we recall that our Savior gave his church on earth this mission just before he ascended into heaven, “You will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8). “To the ends of the earth.” Imagine being a follower of Jesus about 30 AD and hearing those words. You didn’t even know where the ends of the earth were, let alone what they looked like or whom you might encounter when you finally arrived there. “To the ends of the earth.” And even though we modern followers of Jesus are far more familiar with the nooks and crannies of this carbon ball on which we live, to the ends of the earth still seems like a mythological place, a destination unknown, perhaps even an unrealistic goal.
But make no mistake about it, that’s exactly what Jesus meant when he gave his church on earth its marching orders. He literally meant for us to take his gospel to the ends of the earth. And we hear that very same truth repeated for us this morning in Acts 13. That was the ministry goal the Apostle Paul embraced and it’s still our goal as a synod, as a congregation of followers of Jesus that has taken to itself the name Shepherd of Peace of Powell, Ohio, and as individual Christians who have been redeemed by the blood of Christ and now live to serve him with all that we are and have. Bring salvation to the ends of the earth! By the working of the Holy Spirit, let’s embrace that goal and receive the power of our risen Lord Jesus to attain it.
Part I.
There’s a term in Christian circles that has been used by churches to reach out to others. It’s the term “felt needs.” Are you familiar with it? Maybe so. If you’re a congregation operating under the outreach philosophy of meeting felt needs, you strive to offer a person what they feel they need. For instance, if a person struggles with substance abuse, you offer that person individual or group therapy. If your congregation operates in an economically depressed area, you offer life’s basics—food, clothing, shelter. If your church is surrounded by families with young children, you offer activities for kids and family events. For some churches, that’s where it ends—just meeting these felt needs. But other churches use those opportunities as a door to meeting every sinner’s greatest need—the forgiveness of sins.
The Apostle Paul’s approach on this day in his ministry was to leap over felt needs and to jump right into the main point. He was on his first missionary journey and he was standing in the synagogue in the city of Antioch in Pisidia, which is in modern day Turkey. It doesn’t appear that Paul spoke to them about addictions, or the lack of food or employment. Instead, he cut right to the sinful heart of the matter and stated, “Therefore, my brothers, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you.”
What’s your greatest problem? It’s not your job or your relatives or your finances or your health. Our greatest problem is sin, for two reasons. One, we can’t do a single thing about a single sin. And, two, a single sin is more than enough to condemn us to hell. And my life is full of sins. How about yours? That was true of the people sitting before Paul on this day as well. Their greatest problem was sin. That means their greatest need was the forgiveness of sins and that’s what Paul was there to proclaim to them through Jesus.
Sounds fairly simple, doesn’t it? Our biggest problem is sin. Our greatest need is the forgiveness of sins. Jesus gives forgiveness to us. Done! End of story!
If only it were that simple for us. You see, we’re our own worst enemies to embracing that saving truth. So were these Jewish people to whom Paul originally spoke these words. What do I mean? Listen to what Paul said, “Through [Jesus] everyone who believes is justified from everything you could not be justified from by the law of Moses.” What was Paul saying? That Jesus is option two when it comes to forgiveness? That the law of Moses is option one? Not at all. Like every other person in the world, these people were under the impression that they could earn God’s forgiveness by being good people. Just do what God says and all will be well. That has always been Satan’s number one lie.
And it still is today. That’s why we, as God’s people, have so much work to do. Billions of people in our world adhere to one of several other world religions. Contrary to modern thinking, these other religions don’t lead to anywhere good; they are all the lies of Satan because they all teach that life beyond the grave depends on doing your part now. And the number of those people who believe that lie right now is staggering.
But, sad to say, that’s even a problem within Christianity. Some who profess Christianity still struggle with that lie. Look how many Christian churches preach about Jesus as the Savior but still require sinful people to live good lives to be sure of forgiveness and eternal life!
Without a doubt, the number of people living without the forgiveness of sins is beyond count. The task of bringing them the forgiveness of sins through the truth about Jesus seems insurmountable. But the goal still stands. Bring salvation to the ends of the earth by proclaiming the forgiveness of sins through Jesus.
But have you ever doubted your forgiveness? Ever tossed and turned at night in bed with a guilty conscience? Been there. Done that. It’s proof that we have trouble believing the very heart of our Christian faith—that Jesus forgives sins. And that’s why we meet regularly—weekly—to hear that good news and through the working of the Holy Spirit to believe that good news. But just because we have trouble at times believing it, doesn’t excuse us from the responsibility of proclaiming it to the ends of the earth. In fact, our struggles with that truth make us just the ones to proclaim it. Share your struggles with sin and forgiveness with someone who doesn’t know Jesus as their Savior. Be real with them. Trust me—they struggle in life. Hearing that you have struggles, too, makes your message to them all the more real. And then share with them the only real Savior the world has ever known—Jesus who forgives sins.
Part II.
Like I stated earlier, I’ve never watched Toy Story. I’ve also never tweeted—you know, used Twitter to send a message. But I understand it’s an incredibly fast method of sharing information. For instance, a tweet regarding a Philippine TV show was retweeted 41 million times in 24 hours. 41 million times!
In today’s text we hear about Paul and Barnabas sharing the message of forgiveness on their first missionary journey. Can you imagine how long it would have taken Paul to reach 41 million people? I think it’s safe to say that in his entire ministry, he didn’t even come close to reaching that many people.
But notice what happened on this day in his ministry. Our text tells us, “As Paul and Barnabas were leaving the synagogue, the people invited them to speak further about these things on the next Sabbath. When the congregation was dismissed, many of the Jews and devout converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas, who talked with them and urged them to continue in the grace of God. On the next Sabbath almost the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord.” First, the people extended an invitation to hear more about this forgiveness through Jesus. Then they tagged along with Paul and Barnabas who talked with them and encouraged them to hold on to the saving truth about Jesus. And then notice what they did: they spent the next seven days talking with their relatives, friends and neighbors. I can hear them saying, “You should have been at the synagogue with me last Saturday. I heard the most amazing thing from this guy named Paul!” And then they invited them to join them the next Saturday in doing that very thing. And they didn’t have phones, the internet, Facebook or Twitter.
They didn’t need them, because Jesus is the one who opens doors for us to share his truths with others no matter what the time or place in history. He did for these people. They shared his word and he blessed their efforts.
He’s still doing that very thing. Whom did God place in your life last week who needed to hear God’s truth about whatever they were facing in life? Whom will he place in your life this week who needs to hear that Jesus died and rose for them? That’s all he has called us to do—just share the message; he’ll take care of the results…
…All the way to the ends of the earth. This past Thursday I received some information from our synod to review prior to publication. I read through some materials about an opportunity you and I have to spread the gospel in Vietnam. I’ll admit, the information was so moving and the opportunity so urgent, that it was difficult for me to finish it because I became emotional. There were quotes from your fellow Christians in Vietnam thanking you for sharing the truth of God’s word with them and now asking you to help them share that truth with millions of other people in their country. Vietnam isn’t the end of the earth, but it’s got to be close. And you and I are part of God’s plan to share his saving truth there soon. And that’s just one corner of the earth. Through your synod you are working in all four corners of the world right now to share the gospel of Jesus with one and all. Every single person.
Is that an unrealistic goal? Not at all. Not when you have the risen Lord Jesus with you, blessing you. So do it! Bring salvation to the ends of the earth! Amen.
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