Signs - November 28, 2021 - First Sunday in Advent - Text: Luke 21:25-36

Our text for this morning reminds us of signs and the importance of signs. There are signs such as, when you see the buds on the tree you know that Spring is on its way. There are signs of the changing of weather. There are billboard signs and ads. There are street signs to point us in the right direction. There are many signs we depend on in our world.
 

Today is the first Sunday in Advent. The word Advent means “coming.” In particular the season of Advent is the time we set aside to prepare ourselves for our celebration of Jesus’ first coming, as a baby, born and placed in a manger, in the small town of Bethlehem.
 

Yet, much of our focus, for preparing ourselves for our celebration of Jesus’ first coming, is on Jesus’ second coming. This is true because the events of and Jesus’ first coming have brought us to the beginning of our waiting for His second coming. So, how do we approach these events? In our text, Jesus tells us to approach these events by looking at the signs. The signs will help us to know when these future events will play out. So let us talk a little about the future.
 

One view of the future is what I would call a “doomsday” view. A doomsday view of the future includes prophecies or predictions of the last days and how bad things will be. We see this in the “signs” of what is happening on earth. We see this in the fact that there are wars and rumors of wars, there are nations rising against nations and kingdoms against kingdoms. It seems like the forces of nature, tornadoes, hurricanes, earthquakes, monsoons, wildfires and the like, are more and more working to destroy the world.
 

Have you ever watched futuristic movies or television’s view of how bad things will be in the future. I would say that 99% of all movies and television movies depict our future and the end of the world in a very bleak manner. The suggestion has always been that art depicts reality and if that is true then what else could we expect from movies and television? Our nature is that we are sinful from conception. According to our human nature what else could we expect except a bleak future.
 

Why is this bleak view of the future the case? This bleak view of the future is the case, because apart from Jesus and faith in Jesus there is no hope, only despair. Apart from Jesus and faith in Jesus there is only eternal death and hell. For the unbeliever they only have themselves to depend on and that leaves them only with despair. What happens when a person turns into themselves, looks inside themselves, to find hope? They find more sin. They find sadness and despair. They turn to drugs and alcohol as a way to relive their depression. And it becomes a vicious cycle. The worst of it is the fact that apart from Jesus and faith in Jesus there is only eternal death and hell.
 

And to this we want to add what our text says.  “25And there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and on the earth distress of nations in perplexity because of the roaring of the sea and the waves, 26people fainting with fear and with foreboding of what is coming on the world. For the powers of the heavens will be shaken” (v. 25-26). It does not look good, does it?
 

But, before we despair, before we buy into the rhetoric of the doomsday naysayers of our culture, I think we should take a look at the future from a Christian perspective. As Christians we may dread, not necessarily the end of the world, rather the way the events are to take place. In other words, as a Christian we know that our future is set, yet while we remain in this world we will have to contend with the catastrophic events that await as this cursed world comes to an end.
 

As Christians we see the signs of the times and we may have doubts. We might wonder if God is so powerful, why does He not do something? We might rather give into the beliefs of our society than suffer for our faith. These temptations are great and they will only get worse. Just take a look at how many people, even how many other denominations have succumb to the pull and temptations of our society. Too many churches have exchanged the truth of the Bible for the lies of society. What was once considered sin, according to the morals of society and church, is now considered normal and natural and what was once considered normal and natural is now considered sin. It is getting harder and harder to be a Christian in our world today.
 

But, rather than be dismayed, we take refuge in what our text says. “27And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. 28Now when these things begin to take place, straighten up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near” (v. 27-28). As the writer of the book of Job helps us to understand, while things may not always seem fair while we live in this world, while it may appear that the righteous are punished and the unjust are rewarded, the day of Judgement will arrive when God will indeed make all things fair, right and just.
 

And even more, as Christians we take refuge in the fact that we have God’s promise as we read, “33Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. 34But watch yourselves lest your hearts be weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and cares of this life, and that day come upon you suddenly like a trap. 35For it will come upon all who dwell on the face of the whole earth. 36But stay awake at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that are going to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man” (33-36).
 

This text sounds a lot like our Gospel reading from last Sunday. Again we are reminded that God’s Word is sure! God’s Word will never pass away. Heaven and earth, our present physical living quarters may pass away, but God’s Word is permanent. God’s Word will never pass away. We have seen this truth in that God has and continues to keep His promises, the promises made in His Word. As He has kept His promises, especially as He has kept His promise to send a Savior, a Messiah in the life of His Son, Jesus, so He will continue to keep His promises, especially His promise to return on the day of Judgement. These are the signs of the things to come and the signs that He will continue to do what He says in His Word.
 

As Christians we are not to worry about what will occur, rather we are to watch, and pray that our faith may be strengthened so that we might stand firm. Really, there is no other way in which we would be able to stand firm. On our own we would perish. From the moment of our conception we are destined to meet the Lord. So, one question we all need to ask ourselves is the question, “Are we ready to die?” And another question we need to ask ourselves is the question, “Are we ready for Jesus’ return?” These are the two questions we need to ask ourselves, because either way, at our own passing or at the Lord’s return, we will meet the Lord. As Christians we answer these questions with a resounding “YES!” with the help of God.
 

As Christians we look with joy to the sure hope of the resurrection and to our being in heaven with Jesus, the Son of Man. As Christians, we may struggle with the events which will take place, especially since these events could well include our own suffering, however, we do not despair because we have the hope and the certainty that because of our faith in Jesus, because of His life, suffering, death and resurrection, because of His giving His life and shedding His blood for us, we have the certainty of eternal life in heaven.
 

Today we begin the season of Advent. Why do we begin Advent talking about the end times? Because Jesus’ birth, life, death, resurrection and ascension ushered in the beginning of the end times. We are living in the last days. As incredible as that may seem and probably as much as we really do not believe it, it is true. Jesus’ promise is that He will return, when we least expect it, and just as He kept His first promise to come and save us, so He will keep His promise to return.
 

We begin Advent talking about the end times because we, as Christians, joyfully look forward to and eagerly anticipate the second coming of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. And, unfortunately, very much like the fact that there was only a handful of Israelites who were still looking for the coming of the Savior in Jesus’ day, so by the time Jesus does return there may only be a handful still waiting, anticipating and eagerly expecting His return today. By God’s grace we are a part of that handful.
 

We begin Advent talking about the end times in order to remind ourselves that we do not live in a vacuum, rather our lives, our short life here on this earth and especially our future lives in heaven, have been determined by the past perfect life of Jesus. Unlike the unbeliever who has only to look forward to a future of despair, we have a bright eternal future awaiting us in heaven with Jesus and all the saints who have gone on before us. The signs are all around us. The Word of God gives us faith, forgiveness of sins and strengthens us in our faith so that we do believe the signs. The Holy Spirit works faith in our hearts and through the means of grace continues to work strengthening of faith in our hearts, that is why it is imperative that we make regular and diligent use of His means of grace.
 

Advent is a joyous occasion to look back and see all that our Lord has done for us and to look forward and see all the good gifts and blessings He has in store for us. My prayer for each one of you is that you will continue steadfast in your faith so that you are ready, so that we might joyously celebrate Christ’s first coming on Christmas morning, and even more so that we might all be ready for His second coming when He will come to take us all to be with all the saints standing before His throne and saying, “To God be the glory.” For Jesus’ sake. Amen.

Where Are You? - November 24, 2021 - Thanksgiving Eve - Text: Luke 17:11-19

This evening we come to say “thank you,” which is something I pray we do every day. This evening we take the time to come, and with special emphases, we say “thank you,” as we celebrate a national day of giving thanks. “Thank you,” is not naturally in our vocabulary. I remember as a child and now that I have I children I am again reminded of that constant reminder when someone gives you a gift, “what do you say?” “Thank you.” Our text for this evening is the Gospel lesson and the all familiar historical account of the ten lepers, but before you drift off into thinking about who will win the football game, or how much still needs to be done before the guests arrive, when to put the turkey in the oven, or the side dishes, let us keep our ears and minds open to what really happened in the account of the ten lepers.
 

One day Jesus was on His way from Samaria to Galilee. Somewhere between Samaria and Galilee, as He was going on His way, ten men who had leprosy met Him. At this point in the narrative we are not told of their nationality we are simply told of their disease, leprosy. Like many diseases even today, diseases such as cancer, leprosy was a disease that was no respecter of persons, that is it had no cultural or national boundaries and actually if leprosy did  anything it united those who would have otherwise been divided. A leper was a person who had a skin disease that was so bad and so infectious that they had to live separate from the rest of the community. They had to live outside of town. The person with leprosy was literally rotting to death and for the safety of others they must yell “unclean, unclean,” when anyone came near, in order to warn them to stay away lest they might get this dreaded, fatal disease. Not much was known about the disease, how it was communicated from one person to another so lepers were not allowed contact with the rest of the world. Certainly these lepers lead very lonely, deary lives. Their only companions would be other lepers.
 

What is evident from the response of the lepers to Jesus coming is that they must have at least heard of Him or heard about Him, even if they did not necessarily believe that He was the Messiah. It is evident that they had heard of His ability to cure and heal so that when He did come into town they cried out to Him for healing. Well, even if one did not believe, the rest did and besides, what could it hurt to try? Notice that their felt need was to be healed. They believed they needed physical healing and that is what they asked, for physical healing from leprosy.
 

Although their desire was for physical healing their cry was a cry for mercy, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!” Now notice what Jesus does on His part. He does not wave His hands around or up in the air. He does not put His hand on their head and push them over. He does not say, “Be healed” (said in a deep “faith healing” voice). Instead, He simply asks them to demonstrate their faith. He says, “Go show yourselves to the priest.” Why should they go and show themselves to the priest? They were to show themselves to the priest because he was the one who could announce that they were clean and no longer infected with leprosy. He was the one who could give them back their lives. But they were leprous. Perhaps the question on their mind was, should they go? Did they believe that Jesus healed them?
 

Now, we may want to pause here in this account and make sure that we understand it was not their own personal faith that healed them. Many times Jesus healed people and although, as here, He alludes to faith making them well, it is not one’s faith in Jesus that brings healing. Certainly that would limit God’s power. Their healing was effected by God. And actually, it was their healing that effected faith in their hearts. In other words, Jesus’ healing the lepers is what confirmed Jesus as God and is what confirmed their faith. Remember, we get it right when we point to Jesus. Jesus is the one who tells them to go and show themselves as being healed, thus speaking faith into their hearts.
 

Getting back to our narrative, on their way to show themselves to the priest they are healed, all ten of them, but only one man notices. Or at least only one man notices and returns to Jesus to give Him thanks. When he gets to Jesus, he throws himself at Jesus’ feet, a sign of unworthiness and our text adds that “he was a Samaritan,” that is, he was a foreigner. Now we get to this social, national distinction. Again, as a leper this social/national barrier was knocked down, but now that they are healed it comes back into play. Actually, Jesus uses this social/national distinction to strike at His fellow Israelites for their thinking more highly of themselves. Jesus asks (rhetorically) “where are the other nine?” And He tells the man that his faith has saved him, saved him as in healing him and saved him for eternal life. Pointing to Jesus we might suggest that this man had faith, saving faith, that was given to him by Jesus and confirmed in his being healed. The other nine believed more in the healing than in the healer.
 

Now, that is a nice historic narrative and a nice account for celebrating a national day of Thanksgiving, a nice reminder to us to be thankful. Yes, we know that Thanksgiving is not necessarily a religious holiday, rather it is a secular holiday. Yet, we might compare this secular holiday to the Old Testament festival of Pentecost which was a harvest festival. And as Christians, certainly our desire should be to be on the forefront of thankfulness and demonstrating that thankfulness. But, we might ask, how does it relate to our own lives?
 

In a very real way we are like the ten lepers. We are sick, spiritually sick. We are full of sin, enemies of God, we are outcasts, leading lonely, dreary lives. We know we are in need of healing, especially in need of spiritual healing.
 

And we know Jesus. We know even more than the lepers knew about Jesus. We have hind sight. We can look back and know that Jesus is the Messiah, the Savior. We know that He did live perfectly for us, in our place, as our substitute, because we cannot be perfect as God demands. We know that Jesus did take all our sins upon Himself, that He did suffer and die the eternal death penalty of hell for us in our place, that He did rise and ascend into heaven. We know that He did send His Holy Spirit to be with us to guide and lead us in life. We are continually reminded of all that Jesus did for us; all that He still continues to do for us; and all the He will do for us especially as He comes to us through the means of grace. As we read His Word we meet Him. As we make regular and diligent use of reading our Bibles we meet Him. As we come to Bible class and divine service we meet Him. As we read our Bibles we meet Him. As we remember our Baptism, as we partake of the Lord’s body and blood in His holy supper, as we confess our sins and hear His most beautiful words of absolution He gives us faith, forgiveness, life and salvation.
 

Jesus comes to us daily and weekly through His means of grace. Daily we are confronted with the question, do we believe? The temptations of the world are to put our trust in the creation rather than the Creator. Do we see Jesus’ hand in all things in life? Do we notice His good gifts and blessings? Each new day, the rain, the ability to work, the gifts, talents and abilities to work, good health to work, the food we eat, the clothes we wear, the roof over our heads and so on. Do we believe these are from our good and gracious God or that somehow we may have earned them, even a little?
 

Are we the one about whom Jesus asks “where are the others to whom I have given life?” Do we forget, or maybe we should ask, how often do we forget to give our Lord the thanks and praise He deserves. Or are we the one who came, throwing ourselves at Jesus’ feet in unworthiness and thanking Him for all His good gifts and blessings? Do we live for the creation or for the Creator? My prayer is that we are all like the foreigner.
 

Yet, whether we are like the foreigner or one of the nine, the fact remains that even for us, Jesus has given us healing, perfect healing through the forgiveness of sins which He earned for us and which He gives to us through His means of grace. He gives us perfect healing with forgiveness, He gives us faith and we know that we are saved. Thanks be to God.
 

Thanksgiving is a time to be like the leper who returned to give thanks, but not just at Thanksgiving, but all year long. As God has given to us, we respond, with His help in giving thanks to Him. We respond by speaking and singing words of thanks and praise. We respond by giving of our time, talents and treasure, as we are moved by the Lord to do so. We respond by simply offering ourselves and our lives to the Lord and living our life to His glory. We respond by being in Divine Service where the Lord pours out on us and gives us even more of the gifts He has to give the greatest gifts of forgiveness, life and salvation. I thank the Lord that you have come and began your Thanksgiving by coming here first and recognizing and giving thanks to the Lord for all His good gifts and blessings. My pray is that the Lord will continue to work through His means of grace to strengthen and keep you in faith and that He will continue to bless you as you give yourself back to Him. To Him be the glory, for Jesus’ sake. Amen.

Watch with Eyes That See - November 14, 2021 - Twenty-fifth Sunday after Pentecost (Proper 28) - Text: Mark 13:1-13

Twenty-two years ago, already, as we approached the end of 1999 there was an air of anxiety and anticipation concerning what might happen as we moved into the year 2000. And even twenty-one years ago as we approached the end of that year, 2000, there was still some of that same anxiety and anticipation by those who believed that was the year change, which really moved us into the 21st century, was going to bring the end of the world. And still today, there are some in our world who live anxiously each year as the old year approaches an end and the new year approaches a beginning. You might remember that some were anxious about the possibility that the Mayan calendar might be true. I only mention this, because we in the church have a different calendar. Our calendar ends at the end of the Pentecost season. You may have noticed that today is the twenty-fifth Sunday after Pentecost and actually is the second-last Sunday in the Church year, meaning that there is only one more Sunday left in our current church year. Our church calendar, our church year begins with the first Sunday in Advent, this year that will be November 28.
 

This year, like years past, our emphasis at the end of our church year is on the end times, the final days of our time on this earth and especially the coming of Jesus on Judgement day. I believe that it is, indeed, fitting that each year, as we approach the end of the church year, that we concentrate on things of the end times. I believe this is fitting, because I believe too many people, even too many Christians have lost their focus on the fact that, just as God kept His first promise to send a Savior, even though it took Him some 4500 years to keep that promise, and many people missed the fulfillment of that promise because they had come to deny its possible fulfillment, so today, we have waited some 2000 years since Christ promised to return and since He has already waited so long, I believe there are many who no longer believe that God will keep that promise. It is imperative then, that we review the promise and remind ourselves of the fact that Christ will return and it may be that He will return during our lifetime. Now, certainly to the unbeliever these will be times of terror, but for us Christians we have the hope and confidence that God is with us and that, when our last hour comes, we will go to be with Him in heaven. This morning we watch with eyes that see, that is, we watch with eyes of faith.
 

There is a lot of watching that goes on in this world. As we watch television we see one advertisement after another asking us to watch and see if they do not make their promises come true. We have all heard the phrase, “Have I got a deal for you” and we all know what that phrase means. When we hear that phrase it makes us listen very carefully. Because of the skepticism of our world we hear that phrase and usually we try to find out what is the catch.
 

Yet, there are other signs which we watch in our world today. We watch for the budding of the trees and know that this budding is a sign of spring. We watch the clouds in the sky, the wind pick up speed, and it looks like we might be in for a storm. We watch the weather radar and the Doppler radar to see what the weather might be. We watch the vector coordinates to see when is the best time to go fishing. We all have the little things we watch to help us get through each day.
 

For many their eyes are looking to see when the little hand is on the five and the big hand is on the twelve and that is quitting time. For little children they want to know how many days it will be until their birthday or until Christmas or until school starts or is out. There is indeed a lot of watching going on in this world and much of the watching has to do simply and only with this world and the things of this world.
 

In our text Jesus talks about watching for the end of the world to come. Jesus is talking about Judgement day, the day He promised He would come in order to take us from this vale of tears, this earth, to be with Himself in heaven. Jesus encourages us to watch out so that we are not deceived and lose faith. He even gives us hints of some things which will be happening as the end of this world approaches. He says that there will be wars and rumors of war, but we are not to be alarmed. At first glance we might come to the conclusion that we are at the end of the world, because especially today we continue to hear about wars and rumors of war and we continue to be in a war against terrorism. And we should be mindful that we might be close to the end of our time on this earth.
 

Jesus says that nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom. Have you noticed all the conflicts that are going on around the world. Read the paper, watch the news on television, listen to the radio. One look at the land of the middle east brings Jesus’ words to mind. All around the world there continues to be conflicts as one nation and one kingdom fights against another. Again, we should be mindful that we might be close to the end of our time on this earth.
 

Jesus also mentions the fact that there will be earthquakes and famines. At other times He mentions other, what we call, “natural disasters” such as tornadoes and hurricanes and earthquakes and wildfires, and so forth. Every year we see, again, how what we call the forces of nature have great and devastating affects on the earth. Paul reminds us that the whole world is groaning with the pains from the sins of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. The whole world is waiting and watching for Jesus’ return.
 

And while the whole world is watching and waiting, there is also the personal side of watching and waiting. As Christians, Jesus reminds us that we will undergo personal persecution. Jesus tells us that we will be arrested simply for the fact that we are Christians. While we may not fear this type of persecution, yet, here in the United States, I understand that in Canada, to the north of us, and in other countries around the world, there are, already, laws which do not allow for the preaching of any kind of intolerance. In other words, a person could be arrested for suggesting that any behavior listed as sin in the Bible is wrong. Today we are getting close to such laws as our lawmakers discuss such laws as anti-discrimination laws. In other words, there may soon come a day here in the United States that you or I could be arrested for speaking the truth of the Bible when we declare deviant behavior as sinful and wrong.
 

Yet, Jesus comforts us and tells us that we are not to worry about what to say when we are confronted with the issues of our faith, when we are put in jail and asked to stand before the courts. He comforts us by telling us that he will give us the words to speak to give testimony of the faith that is in our hearts. Where do we get these words? We learn what to say through Divine Service and through the Word and the Sacraments. Why do you think personal reading of God’s Word is so important? Why do you think Divine Service and Sunday School and Bible Class are so important? Why do you think family devotions are so important? Why do you think I make such a big deal about making regular and diligent use of the means of grace? These are the times and the places, these are the means where and through which we learn the answers God gives us to speak out for the faith and the hope that is in us.
 

Jesus comforts us and tells us that we will give testimony to the nations. This is not a have to, but a get to. What a privilege the Lord has bestowed on us as His children. He allows us to be able to go out and speak for Him. He gives us His authority to proclaim His message of salvation. Particularly, right here at St. Matthew He has given us a great location, even if our access is a bit difficult. People drive by and see our church and so we pray they will be able to find their way over and come to visit. God has also given us our Associate Pastor and our ESL Program and only He knows how much He will bless our program and whose lives we may touch through this program. Through this program, as well as through our Vacation Bible School, even our Sunday School and Bible class, parents and children come in contact with the message of Jesus and His work of salvation.
 

Again, the words of comfort of Jesus are that the Holy Spirit will give us the words to speak so that it is not we who are speaking, but the Holy Spirit who is speaking through us. Here let me say it this way, not if, but when our time comes, when we are faced with persecution, we can find comfort first in Jesus’ love for us, seen in His death and resurrection for us. Greater love has no one than this than that they would give their life for another and that is exactly what Jesus did, He gave His life, He paid the price for our sins, on the cross, for you and for me. We can find comfort in Jesus’ words of giving us His authority and His promise that He is with us, always, even to the end of the world, and now here in our text we find comfort in His words that He will give us the words and the courage to speak and give testament of the faith that is in us. He will be with us in our own personal watching.
 

So what? Do we live life with a fatalistic attitude? Do we live life for what we have here? Or do we live life watching for the world to come? Jesus helps us, here too, by giving us the measure for judgement. Jesus does not tell us to be successful while we are in this world, rather He tells us, “The one who endures to the end will be saved.” He has given us faith, through Holy Baptism and through His Word. The world defines success, usually in terms of power, wealth and fame, as we have said in other messages. Jesus wants from us, not success, especially not success according to the ways of the world, but He wants us to remain faithful, to endure to the end, and stand firm on His will and Word.
 

And even more, He also promises to be with us, to give us faith, to strengthen and keep us in faith until He comes again. As we confess in the explanation of the third article of the Apostles’ Creed, “the Holy Spirit, calls, gathers, enlightens and sanctifies” us while we are still on this earth. And He does His work as we make use of His means of grace, the Word and the Sacrament. Here again we see the importance of continuing to make use of reading the Bible, attending Divine Service and Bible class, having family devotions and the like. All this is included in our watching.
 

The end of the world will come. It will come for each one of us either at our own time of death or when Jesus returns to take us all to heaven, both of which I believe will be sooner than we know and sooner than we might expect. Until that time we are to watch. We are to watch for the world to come. We are to make sure that we are prepared. And we know we are prepared as He prepares us, by having our faith firmly planted in Jesus and His death and resurrection for us.
 

The signs of this world do show that the end of the world is near. The signs remind us of our need to be ever ready and ever believing in Jesus. We cling to His promise to never leave us nor forsake us. We find comfort in His promise that at the right time He will give us the words we need to speak in testimony of the faith which He gives to us. His word to us is to be faithful until death and He will give us the crown of life, so that we might stand before His throne with all the saints and say, to Him be the glory for Jesus’ sake. Amen.