Shout for Joy and Sing - November 23, 2022 - Thanksgiving Eve - Text: Psalm 65:1-13

How fitting it is that we celebrate a national day of thanksgiving. That does not mean that this is the only day we are thankful for all the blessings our Lord has bestowed on us. We are thankful every day, or at least we should be thankful every day. We have so many things for which to be thankful and really only so many days on this earth in which to express our thanks to our Lord. Yet, it is not as if God needs our expression of thanks, but that we need to express our thanks out of the overflow from our hearts. This evening my message is based on the Psalm which we read responsively for the Introit. If you would like you may follow along in your hymnal as we use this Psalm to help us give thanks to the Lord.
 

The Psalmist begins by praising God for (v. 1-4) the mercy with which He rules out of Zion. In verse one he reminds us to praise the Lord as He rules over us from heaven. Our God is not a God who is a far off, rather He is a God who is very near to us. He is in heaven watching over us, ruling over us, interceding for us, and at the same time He is right here with us. For where two are three are gathered in my name, there I am in the midst of them.
 

In verse two he reminds us to praise the Lord as He hears our prayers and answers them. Our God is not a God who turns a deaf ear to our petitions, rather He is a God who hears our every prayer and answers our every prayer, according to our need, according to what He knows is best for us according to His good and gracious will.
 

In verse three he reminds us to praise the Lord as He forgives our sins. Our God is not a God of vengeance, rather our God is a God of love, who loved us so much that He sent His one and only Son, to suffer and die on the cross for our forgiveness. We praise the Lord for His forgiveness because we know with forgiveness is life and salvation.
 

In verse four he reminds us to praise the Lord as He has chosen us to be His children, indeed each of us are reminded that He chose me to be His child. Our God is not an impersonal God, rather our God is a God who loves each one of us. He has chosen us to be His own. At our Baptism He has put His name on us. He has made us His.
 

The Psalmist praises God for (v. 5-8) the loving kindness which Israel as a people among the peoples has experienced. We can relate well to this because our great God also shows His loving kindness to us. In verse five the Psalmist reminds us to praise the Lord as He answers us with awesome deeds of righteousness. The deeds of righteousness with which the Lord answers us include our conversion, that is bringing us to faith, especially through the waters of Holy Baptism and His Word, earning our forgiveness on the cross, giving us life, eternal life and salvation.
 

In verse five he also reminds us to praise the Lord as He is our hope and is the hope for all the world. Here we are reminded that not only is Jesus our personal Savior, that is, not only did He die on the cross for me personally, He is also the Savior of all people of all time of all places.
 

In verse six he reminds us to praise the Lord as He is the Creator and Preserver of all things, of all the world. With these words the Psalmist reminds us that our God not only created the world and all things, but that He is also always with us with His ever preserving hand. God is not watching us from a distance, He is right here with us. It is the all preserving hand of the Father who keeps this world going.
 

In verse seven he reminds us to praise the Lord as He has power over the seas, the wind, the rain, over all nations. It is God who tends this world, giving us the rain in its season. He gives us the sun by day and the moon by night. He gives us the four seasons for planting, growing and harvesting. And His promise, contrary to what is believed by some in our society, is that the seasons, seed time and harvest will remain until the end.
 

In verse eight he reminds us to praise the Lord as He gives us each day, morning to evening. The Psalmist reminds us that each day is a gift from God. Yesterday is over that is why we call it the past. Tomorrow has yet to come, that is why we call it the future. Today is a gift from God, that is why we call it the present.
 

The Psalmist praises God for the past and (v. 9-13) the present year’s rich blessings, which He has bestowed upon the land of His people. In verse nine the Psalmist reminds us to praise the Lord as He sends the rain to water the earth. God gives us the rain.
 

In verse nine he also reminds us to praise the Lord as He waters the crops for an abundant harvest. God gives us the rain so that the crops grow so that we have an abundant harvest. Rain and harvest are gifts from God.
 

In verse ten he reminds us to praise the Lord as He sends the rain as we need it. God knows our needs and supplies them accordingly.
 

In verse eleven he reminds us to praise the Lord as He abundantly gives us bounty from His gracious hand. God gives everything and we are given everything. God gives graciously.
 

In verse twelve he reminds us to praise the Lord as He even cares for the desert which is ignored by man. God remembers and cares for even the little things about which we forget, the things for which we are negligent in caring, and the most seemingly menial things, the Lord cares for them all.
 

In verse thirteen he reminds us to praise the Lord as He covers the earth with meat and grain to eat. God supplies us with all that we need and more than we need.
 

In verse thirteen he also reminds us to praise the Lord, shout for joy and sing. Our response is to worship and praise the Lord. Our response is to come to Divine Service to be given the gifts that He has to give, and to respond with shouts of joy and sing praises to His Holy Name.
 

The only way to sum up this Psalm. The only way to answer, “What does this mean?” to this Psalm is to go back to Dr. Luther’s Small Catechism and to remind ourselves of his explanations of the articles of the Apostles’ creed. I say that because the Apostles’ Creed so well expresses our belief in God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. And Dr. Luther’s explanations so well explain what our great God does for us and gives to us as our God. I want you to follow along and read along with me. Please turn in your hymnal to page 322.
 

In the first article we confess that I believe in God the Father who is the giver of all. This means (please read with me): I believe that God has made me and all creatures; that He has given me my body and soul, eyes, ears, and all my members, my reason and all my senses, and still takes care of them. He also gives me clothing and shoes, food and drink, house and home, wife and children, land, animals, and all I have. He richly and daily provides me with all that I need to support this body and life. He defends me against all danger and guards and protects me from all evil. All this He does only out of fatherly, divine goodness and mercy, without any merit or worthiness in me. For all this it is my duty to thank and praise, serve and obey Him. This is most certainly true.
 

In the second article we confess that I believe in God the Son who is the giver of all. This means (please read with me): I believe that Jesus Christ, true God, begotten of the Father from eternity, and also true man, born of the Virgin Mary, is my Lord, who has redeemed me, a lost and condemned person, purchased and won me from all sins, from death, and from the power of the devil; not with gold or silver, but with His holy, precious blood and with His innocent suffering and death, that I may be His own and live under Him in His kingdom and serve Him in everlasting righteousness, innocence, and blessedness, just as He is risen from the dead, lives and reigns to all eternity. This is most certainly true.
 

And in the third article we confess I believe in God the Holy Spirit giver of all. This means (please read with me): I believe that I cannot by my own reason our strength believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to Him; but the Holy Spirit has called me by the Gospel, enlightened me with His gifts, sanctified and kept me in the true faith. In the same way He calls, gathers, enlightens and sanctifies the whole Christian church on earth, and keeps it with Jesus Christ in the one true faith. In this Christian Church He daily and richly forgives all my sins and the sins of all believers. On the Last Day He will raise me and all the dead, and give eternal life to me and all believers in Christ. This is most certainly true.
 

This evening we come especially to give thanks and praise to God for His many good gifts and blessings. This does not mean that this is the only time we acknowledge and confess that God is the giver of all, rather this is just an extra day, an extra opportunity, a special time to give Him thanks and praise. To God be the glory for Jesus’ sake. Amen.

Watch - November 13, 2022 - Twenty-third Sunday after Pentecost (Proper 28) - Text: Luke 21:5-28 (29-36)

Today is the second last Sunday in our present church year. You may have noticed and you will notice again next week, our lessons focus our attention on the last days of this world and the fact that this world is a temporary place. As I have said before and as you will hear me say again and again, our lives on this earth are short, especially compared to eternity which is forever. At the moment of conception we are destined to die a physical death. We will meet our Lord, either at our passing or at His return, which ever comes first and believe me when I tell you, that day will be sooner than you know and sooner than you might imagine. So, as Jesus says in our text, so I too exhort you, “Stay awake at all times.” Quit focusing so much of your time and attention to this world and the temporary business of this world and focus you attention on making sure you are ready and those of your loved ones are ready for that final day, because after that day, it will be too late.
 

Getting to our text for today, we make note that Jesus is hanging around the temple and there are those there who are admiring the temple and especially the outward beauty of the temple. Jesus uses this event and this admiration of the temple as an opportunity to teach. To those who were admiring the physical temple and its beauty and especially to His disciples, Jesus spoke about the destruction of the temple. Now, one of our first thoughts might be that of Jesus’ words in the Gospel of John, but unlike in John’s gospel, Jesus is not speaking of  the destruction of the temple compared to destroying His body, that is He is not pointing to His death at this time, He is simply describing the destruction of the physical temple in Jerusalem as a sign of the coming of the end of the world.
 

Jesus explains some of the signs of the end of the world. Please understand that we recognize that Jesus’ birth ushered in the end times. Indeed, we are living in the end times. What are the signs of the end times? “8And [Jesus] said, ‘See that you are not led astray. For many will come in my name, saying, “I am he!” and, “The time is at hand!” Do not go after them. 9And when you hear of wars and tumults, do not be terrified, for these things must first take place, but the end will not be at once.’ 10Then he said to them, ‘Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. 11There will be great earthquakes, and in various places famines and pestilences. And there will be terrors and great signs from heaven’” (v. 8-11).
 

Just look at the world in which we live today. Of course, throughout history there have been similar signs of the end times and as has been said, each generation believes the world they live in is worse than the time before them, thus each generation believes they are living in the end times and even so today. Today we constantly hear of wars and rumors of war. We hear of terrorist attacks and bloodshed. We hear of uprisings and violence around the world and even in our own country and neighborhoods.
 

But there is even more, as we look at our world we are constantly being bombarded with news of man made climate change, as if we human beings really had enough control and power over God’s creation. We hear of earthquakes, tornadoes, hurricanes, and typhoons. We hear of flooding and drought. We hear of famine and plague. We hear of one “natural” disaster after another as if there is no end to what sounds like bad news and even more bad news.
 

As we look at our world we can see that it is running down. It is getting worse. Of course as Christians this running down should not surprise us. Ever since the fall into sin, ever since Adam and Eve’s sin the world has been cursed and so the world will continue to run its cursed course until the last day. The whole world is groaning in eager expectation of the last day Paul tells us.
 

As Christians, how do we approach the events of the last days? We approach the events of the last days by being about the Lord’s business, by making regular and diligent use of the means of grace, those means the Lord has given and through which He comes to give us all the good gifts and blessings He has to give and through which He gets us ready and keeps us ready. We approach the events of the last days by being mindful of God’s plans and purpose in our lives.
 

We approach the events of the last day by being reminded that the events which we are experiencing are a direct result of the fall into sin and God’s curse in the Garden of Eden. At the same time we are reminded of God’s promise to Adam and Eve to send a Savior for all people, of all places, of all times, in other words God’s promise to send a Savior was not simply a promise to a certain group or ethnicity of people, but God’s promise was made before there were any people culture groups as we have in our world today. God’s promise was to all people, and especially to you and to me.
 

We approach the events of the last day by being reminded that God’s promise to send a Savior was reiterated throughout history and that when God called Abraham to be the one through whom He would fulfill His promise to send a Savior, His promise continued to be a promise of a Savior for all people, not just the children of Abraham. As a matter of fact, as we get into the New Testament, as the physical children of Abraham, indeed the children of Israel rejected Jesus as God’s promised Messiah, so Jesus reminds us that by faith in Him we who believe are now the true children of Abraham, children of the promise.
 

We approach the events of the last day by being reminded that Jesus is true God born in human flesh. Jesus entered into human history for a purpose, to reconcile and make right our relationship with Himself because we cannot. And Jesus’ birth ushered in the end of the world, so that we are now living in the end times.
    We approach the events of the last day by being reminded that Jesus lived perfectly for all people. Jesus was born as a human, one with us, one like us, except without sin, in order to live for us, that is to perfectly obey God’s command to be perfect. Jesus lived perfectly for us, in our place because we cannot. The fullness of the Gospel is not simply that Jesus died for us, but the fact that Jesus lived for us.
 

We approach the events of the last day by being reminded that after living perfectly and after obeying all of God’s laws perfectly, after fulfilling all God’s promises and all the ceremonial laws that pointed to Himself, perfectly, Jesus took all our sins as well as all the sins of all people on Himself. The price for sin was set in Eden, death, physical death and apart from faith in Jesus, eternal death and hell. Jesus died a physical death, but even more, He died the eternal death penalty of hell which would have and should have been ours.
 

We approach the events of the last day by being reminded that Jesus did not stay dead, but He rose from the dead. As we were reminded as Jesus confronted the Sadducees who did not believe in a physical resurrection, Jesus’ was not only a spiritual resurrection, but also a bodily resurrection. He rose in the body and showed Himself alive in His own body many times. Death and the grave had no hold over Him. He defeated sin, death and the devil.
 

We approach the events of the last day by being reminded that through Jesus’ suffering, death and resurrection, He earned forgiveness of sins for us. And the forgiveness He earned is distributed to us through the means of grace, through our Baptism and our remembering our Baptism, through our confession and our hearing the words of absolution, “your sins are forgiven,” through our reading and hearing God’s Word, and through our partaking of His true body and blood in His Holy Supper. Again, Jesus lived for us, took our sins and died for us paying the price for our sins for us, and rose for us giving us His victory so that now we have forgiveness of sins, and death and the grave have no power over us.
 

We approach the events of the last day by being reminded to point to Jesus. We are reminded that faith is not something we get on our own, not something we can claim, not something we dedicate ourselves to, rather faith is a gift from God. God gives faith by the power of the Holy Spirit working through His means of grace when and where He pleases. Indeed God gives faith, forgiveness and eternal life and we are passively being given to.
 

We approach the events of the last day by being reminded that Jesus makes us ready for His return. How does Jesus make us ready? How does He get us ready? And how do we live readied lives? Again, Jesus explains in our text, “12But before all this they will lay their hands on you and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues and prisons, and you will be brought before kings and governors for my name’s sake. 13This will be your opportunity to bear witness. 14Settle it therefore in your minds not to meditate beforehand how to answer, 15for I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which none of your adversaries will be able to withstand or contradict. 16You will be delivered up even by parents and brothers and relatives and friends, and some of you they will put to death. 17You will be hated by all for my name’s sake. 18But not a hair of your head will perish. 19By your endurance you will gain your lives” (v. 12-19).
 

God does not and never has promised us an easy life. As a matter of fact, as Christians we should expect to be treated as our Savior was treated and in many instance in this world Christians are treated with such disrespect. Christians are tormented, tortured and martyred around the world and somewhat even here in our own country. I believe a day will come in the not so distant future when we Christians here in America will be thrown in jail because we cannot abide by certain laws of this land. When we speak against the sins of this world we will be imprisoned and punished for our faith. Jesus’ words encourage us to rejoice in such times of conflict because those will be times when we will have an opportunity to give an answer for our faith and hope. And He tells us that we are not to be concerned about our witness and answer because He will give us the words to speak, words which will give Him glory.
 

And finally we have Jesus’ own words of encouragement and exhortation, “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.” (v. 36). We are living in the end times. I say that not to be an alarmist, but to remind you that the most important thing in this life is not to be about the business of this world, but to be about the Lord’s business, that is to make every effort and take every opportunity to be in Divine Service and Bible Class, to have personal reading of God’s Word as well as personal and family devotions, to remember your baptism, to come to confession and hear His words of absolution, to partake of our Lord’s body and blood for the forgiveness of sins.
 

Today is the second last Sunday in our present church year. Next week is our last Sunday in this present church year and again we will be reminded of the temporariness of this world. But even more we will be continually reminded of God’s love for us, His looking out for us, His reconciling us with Himself, His giving us and pouring out on us all the gifts and blessings He has to give, faith, forgiveness, life and salvation. What a great God we have. What a loving God we have. What a gift giving God we have. And He also shows His greatness in stirring in us to say, to Him be the glory for Jesus’s sake. Amen.

Washed in the Blood of the Lamb - November 6, 2022 - All Saints’ Day - Text: Revelation 7:(2-8) 9-17

Although today is the twenty-second Sunday after Pentecost, because All Saints Day was Tuesday, this morning we take the time to celebrate All Saints Day. Please understand that when we celebrate all saints day, we are not worshiping, nor are we praising all the saints who have gone on before us, instead we are placing their lives before us as examples of how we are to live our lives, that is that we are to live lives of faith so that others see our faith and give praise to God for our faith as well. Remember, as Lutherans we understand that we are at the same time sinners and saints. By faith in Jesus Christ, faith given to us at our Baptism or faith given to us through the Word of God, we are redeemed, we have been purchased, we are saved, yes, we are saints. At the same time, while we remain on this earth we continue to sin and so we are sinners in need of forgiveness. Thus we understand, we believe, teach and confess that we are at the same time sinner saints.
 

Our text for this morning is from the book of Revelation, and notice this is not a book of revelations, plural, but is one revelation. Revelation is a look into heaven and a look into what our last days on earth and our first days in heaven will be like. As we look into heaven we see the enumerable number of people in heaven. We see them wearing white robes and holding palm branches. We hear them speak. We see how, even John, is unable to answer the question from God concerning what he is seeing, so he refers the question back to God answering, “Sir, you know.” John’s answer reminds us that we do not need to know all the answers to all the questions about the Bible, rather we need to realize that God is so much bigger than we are and He does know all the answers. Which in turn encourages us to continue steadfast in the Apostles’ Doctrine to learn more about Him and be strengthened in our faith.
 

Our text begins with John telling us that he sees “a great multitude that no one could number.” These words remind us that the reference to 144,000 which is the number Revelation speaks about being the number in heaven, this number is not an actual counting figure, not an actual number one can count, but it is a symbolic figure. In this instance the 144,000 means the Old Testament believers from the twelve tribes of Israel times (X) twelve, (v. 8-10) or 12,000 x 12, the number 144,000. When we understand that the true Israel, the true Children of Abraham, Children of God includes all believers in Jesus then we might better understand that this 144,000 includes all the Old Testament believers from the twelve tribes of Israel times (X) the New Testament believers from the twelve apostles times (X) the number of completion, ten, cubed (v.9-10). In other words, 12 x 12 x 1000, the number 144,000 is what John is seeing, but even more, suggesting that this number is not an actual counting number but that this is a great multitude, all believers who ever lived, from Old and New Testament times. Indeed, everyone who believes in Jesus’ life, death and resurrection is included in the great multitude, and in the 144,000. We, you and I, are included in that 144,000.
 

Their words, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” (V. 10b) reminds us that salvation is given by God to those who believe. Notice who is doing what? Salvation is not something we get. It is not something we earn. It is not something we claim for ourselves. Salvation belongs to God. Our salvation was earned by Him and it is given out by Him. It is given to us by Him through His means of grace through faith in Jesus. God is the one doing the doing and we are the ones being done to.
 

The words of the great multitude is followed by a word by the angels, elders and four living creatures, “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever! Amen” (v. 12). We are told that “they fell down on their faces before the throne.” They fell down in fear, in awe and in respect. They fell down in worship. In the Old Testament we are often told of people falling prostrate before the Lord, or a king or whoever. To fall prostrate means to fall on your face, completely flat, face down on the ground. This is a posture of complete submission. Thus, even the angels, elders and four living creatures recognize Jesus as Lord and fall down in complete submission to Him.
 

They worshiped and said “Amen!” They spoke the word which reminds us that God is faithful. In His faithfulness He remembered His promise to send a Savior, Christ the Lord. In His faithfulness Jesus was born as a baby, a human being, as one of us. In His faithfulness Jesus lived a perfect life. He obeyed all God’s laws perfectly. He fulfilled all God’s commands, perfectly. In His faithfulness He lived His life for us, in our place, as our substitute. Then, in His faithfulness Jesus took all our sins upon Himself, our sins of thought, word and deed. Our sins of omission and commission, all our sins. In His faithfulness Jesus gave His life for ours on the cross, suffering the punishment, the price for our sins, eternal death and hell. And after rising from the dead, in His faithfulness Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to bring us to faith, to give us faith, and to keep us in faith until He comes again.
 

The angels, elders and four living creatures speak a sevenfold word of praise. This sevenfold word of praise is very similar to their previous sevenfold chorus of praise and it is a word of complete praise.
 

John is then questioned by one of the elders. The elder asks, “These in the white robes—who are they, and where did they come from”(v. 12-17)? John rightly answers, “Sir, you know.” John does not know and so he turns the question back to the man who asked so that he might get an answer. The answer is that they are those who have suffered for their faith. The word that is used for tribulation is the same word that Jesus used when He said that we would have trouble in this world, but we are to take heart, because He has overcome the world. This trouble, this tribulation that we suffer is what we have suffered since the fall into sin in the Garden of Eden. To be a Christian means that you inevitably suffer trials and tribulations.
 

You might think of it this way, the devil does not spend time working on those he already has. He spends his time working on those he does not have. Which means that if you are not having troubles in this world, if you are not having tribulation, if you are not suffering from the trials and tribulations of the devil you might want to take a hard look at yourself to make sure that he does not have you already [smile :)]. And this does not mean the troubles, the trials and tribulations we bring on ourselves, which we do because of our sinful nature.
 

The elder continues by saying that these are they who “have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the lamb.” It is faith in Jesus’ death on the cross, the shedding of His blood that brings the white robes of righteousness. By faith in Jesus, we stand before God in His perfection, washed in His blood, robed in His white robes of righteousness.
 

“Therefore,” the elder says, meaning, as a result of Jesus’ redeeming work, because Jesus shed His blood on the cross, by faith in Him, faith given by God, therefore, salvation comes to those who believe. The perfect bliss of the redeemed people of God is described in the next series of ten statements. Remember too, that the number ten is the number of completeness and so we are reminded by these ten statements that there is complete release from all evil and complete fullness of joy which is ours, given to us by God.
 

The first three lines describe the blessedness of the redeemed who stand in the presence of God spending their days and nights in service to Him. Their service is a worship service, a time spent in praise and adoration to Jesus. While we are on earth it is most important and necessary that we come to the Lord’s House, to Divine Service first and foremost to be given to by God. It is only as we are given to by God that we can respond with lives of faith. In heaven we will be perfected and so we will be able to offer a service of worship, worthy of our Creator God.
 

The next four lines speak about the freedom we Christians will have in heaven from the effects of sin. The curse which was placed on all creation in the Garden of Eden is now broken. In heaven there is no hunger, no thirst, no being beaten down by the sun. In heaven there is no sorrow or sadness, only joy and rejoicing. In heaven we will eat eternal manna and drink of the river of pleasure forever.
 

The final three lines describe heaven in positive terms. We are reminded first that Jesus is the Good Shepherd as John reminds us in His Gospel. Jesus compares us to His sheep and He is our Shepherd. He leads us beside the quiet waters as we read in the Psalms. Jesus is the living water. We are Baptized into faith through water. We need water to live. Jesus is that living water for us. And with God there will be no suffering, no more tears. Heaven is a place of complete and unending joy.
 

This morning as we get another glimpse of heaven. We are reminded that heaven is a gift, given by God, earned by Jesus’ death on the cross and the shedding of His blood. We are reminded that heaven is a place of forever joy. And we are reminded that heaven is a place of forever worship.
 

The question we might ask ourselves this week is “are we ready?” If you ask young people “are you ready to go to heaven?” Many times you will get the answer, “Yes, I am ready, but I would rather grow up before I go.” How often do we find ourselves answering in like manner. “I think I am ready for Jesus to come again, but I would rather get done doing the things I think I need to do here on earth.” I think that answer begs the question even more. Are we ready? Are we ready if we believe that there is more for us to do on this earth than to get ourselves ready for Jesus’ to come? Or to get ourselves ready for our going to Him, which might be sooner than His coming to us. And maybe we need to spend time getting others ready as well. I wonder if we are ready as we continue to keep our focus on the things of this world instead of on things heavenward.
 

How do we get ourselves ready? We get ourselves ready by making regular and diligent use of those means through which our Lord gives to us and uses to get us ready, His means of grace. In other words, it is not so much we who get ourselves ready, but it is the Lord who gets us ready. He gets us ready by our remembering our Baptism. He gets us ready by our confessing our sins and hearing His most beautify words of forgiveness. He gets us ready by our hearing and reading His Word, by our having personal and family devotions, by our being in Divine Service and Bible Class. He gets us ready as we come to His table, where He is the host and the meal, where He offers and gives to us His true body and blood to eat and drink for the forgiveness of sins and for strengthening of faith.
 

When I was attending the Seminary, one of my classes followed chapel. Every morning we had chapel at 9 a.m. It was a short service in which we heard the Word of God and sang some hymns. Our professor noticed that some of the men from our class were not making it to chapel, but were missing for some reason. He chastened us one morning by using the following words, “Gentlemen, receive the gifts.” So, too, I come to you and as I come to you I ask you to share these words with those who are not here. Ladies and gentlemen, receive the gifts. Because it is only through the gifts God gives, the gifts of His Word and Sacraments that He can prepare us for Jesus’ coming and/or our going to Him. And now more than ever is the time to be prepared. To God be the glory for Jesus’ sake. Amen.

Truth and Freedom - October 30, 2022 - Reformation Sunday - Text: Rev. 14:6-7

October 31, 1517 marked a day in infamy. October 31, 2022 continues to mark the struggle. Around 6 to 8000 years ago Lucifer, the light-bearer, approached an innocent, naive, perfect Eve and Adam and asked a question, “Did God really say?” Of course, his question was not so much a question as a challenge. His challenge was a challenge to God, to challenge God’s Word, as well as the authority of God. Did God really say whatever it was He said and did He mean it?
 

About six hundred years ago a man name Jan Hus questioned whether or not the Pope, or any human being for that matter had the authority to speak for, in the place of, or above God. In particular Jan Hus questioned the leader of what was the church at the time. He questioned the Pope, the seeming vicar of God on earth. He also questioned human councils that had declared certain teachings to be the Word of God, even though they were not the Word of God, but were rather the word of humans, fallible humans at that.
 

Five hundred years ago a man named Martin Luther questioned the authority of man over against the authority of the Word of God. As Luther so well pointed out, Councils and Popes have long contradicted themselves and have been know to be wrong. Now please understand, neither Jan Hus nor Martin Luther questioned God as Satan did. No, Jan Hus and Martin Luther questioned the words of fallible human beings who attempted to speak in the place of God and as they so well pointed out, human beings who often spoke incorrectly.
 

Today we continue to hear similar such questions. We hear questions challenging the Word of God as truth and as authority. We hear questions such as: “Did God really mean . . . ?” “God did not know about such things as ‘committed homosexual relationships’?” “Are you sure your are interpreting the Bible correctly?” “Who gives you the right to speak for God?” “Truth is relative.” “There are no absolutes.” “My God is not like that.” And on and on it goes as the Word of God and the authority of the Word of God is questioned still today. But it is no wonder; when you have a good thing that works, keep doing it. The devil is after all, the father of lies and as the saying goes, the devil is in the details and the details continue to question God, His Word and His authority.
 

At one time it seemed as if it was the world against the church and one knew who their enemies were. Now the devil is attacking the church not just from without, but within as well. Churches today are tempted to question the Word of God and His authority by seeking to be relevant, by seeking to be tolerant, by seeking to be contemporary, which means for the time as in here today and gone tomorrow, by seeking to be fun, entertaining, engaging, experiential and just about any other adjective you might think to use, rather than simply seeking to be faithful. When the church agrees with and looks like the culture is it really any different than the culture? And we know the devil thrives in the culture which acquiesces to the morals and values of the least of them.
 

Our text for today points us were we need to be pointed, to Jesus. Our text assures us of the authority of the Word of God, especially over and above the word of fallible human beings. Our text begins at verse six. We read, “6Then I saw another angel flying directly overhead, with an eternal gospel to proclaim to those who dwell on earth, to every nation and tribe and language and people” (v. 6). Now, we must remember, first and foremost that the book of Revelation is a vision and it is a vision of things to come. Certainly you have heard some interesting interpretations of this book including those that would assign certain parts of the vision to various modern day countries and people. Our best and surest understanding of this book is to let Scripture interpret Scripture, to let the Lord speak for Himself, and to hear and believe the words as given, not adding to nor taking away. As our first verse tells us, in this vision John saw an angel with the eternal Gospel and this eternal Gospel is to be proclaimed to all the earth, to every nation, tribe, language and people.
 

What is this Gospel, this eternal Gospel? This Gospel is the truth of Holy Scripture and we would say the authority of Holy Scripture. The truth of Holy Scripture is the truth of Jesus, the truth of the exclusive claim of the Christian Church and why the Christian Church is so hated by the rest of the world, that is that Jesus is the way, only Way, the only Truth, the only Life, that it is by God’s grace, through faith in Jesus Christ alone that one has forgiveness of sins and eternal life. This is the Gospel message, this is the heart of Holy Scripture, this is the key to eternal life, this message is the eternal Gospel.
 

This Gospel is a message that is eternal, it has no beginning and no end, like the Savior it presents. People may come and go, nations may rise and fall, religions, cults and sects may come and go, but God’s Word is eternal, it will remain even through times of struggle. Not only is God’s Word eternal it is also true. As we just said, Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life. Apart from Jesus there is and can be no truth. Why do the generations of this world have such a hard time with truth? Because apart from Jesus it cannot know truth. Apart from Jesus there is no truth. Jesus is truth and all truth comes from and through Him. And we may add one more truth about the eternal Gospel that is that it does what it says, that is we say it is efficacious, it effects what it says. The power of God’s Word is that it does what it says. And because it does what it says we know it has all authority. When God’s Word says we have faith, we have faith. When God’s Word says we have forgiveness, we have forgiveness. Whatever God’s Word says we know it is true and it will happen according to what God says in His Word. God’s Word promises that the Gospel is eternal. Siegbert Becker in his commentary on Revelation says, “It is perfectly proper, then, to see one fulfillment of that promise in the Lutheran Reformation which is history’s most prominent illustration of the principle that God will not allow his word to be silenced. But we may also see an illustration of this truth in every other historical movement in which the gospel has been clearly and emphatically proclaimed. The vision simply assures us that false teachers will never silence the preaching of the gospel.”
 

Many Lutheran Commentators have identified this angel as Dr. Martin Luther as he stood firm in the fight for the truth and the authority of the Gospel in his day in the midst of those who threatened his life for such preaching. He testified that the faith of the Christian should rest, not in the word of the Pope, or any man for that matter, but in the Word of Scripture alone.
 

Moving on to verse seven of our text we read, “7And he said with a loud voice, ‘Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come, and worship him who made heaven and earth, the sea and the springs of water’” (v. 7). These are the words of the angel given to the angel by God to proclaim. Remember, angels are messengers sent by God to do His bidding. They do not proclaim their own words but the words of Him who sent them.
 

The angel says to fear God. As we memorized and as we were taught, especially in the explanations for the Ten Commandments, we are to fear and love God. To fear God means two things. We are to fear God, that is we are to be afraid of God, when we are in our sin. God’s wrath is indeed harsh as we see Him take out His wrath on Jesus on the cross, punishing Him for our sin. So, when we are in our sin we are to be afraid, because left in our sin we would be eternally condemned. Yet, fear has a second meaning. We are to fear God that is we are to love and respect Him. As Christians we fear God, that is we love and respect Him and we give Him glory because of His Words of Gospel which give us faith, forgiveness and life. By faith in Jesus we fear, love and trust in God above all things.
 

Finally, the angel encourages us to worship, kneel before, and acknowledge the Lord as Creator God. While this may sound easy enough, the difficulties of this in our modern society are great indeed. The teaching of Darwinism, the teaching of humanism, the teaching of may other isms, the temptations of sin and unbelief, the struggle to fight against our very nature, that is that we are conceived and born in sin, that every inclination of our heart is evil all the time, make it difficult to fear God and give Him glory, to worship, kneel before and acknowledge Him as the Lord, Creator God. We see how difficult this is as we see so many people in our world resist and refuse the gifts God has to give and even in our own congregation and in Christian congregations around the world as even our own members, even each one of us on a daily and weekly basis give in to temptation and sin, refusing and rejecting the gifts God has to give.
 

So, we ask, what does this mean? Today we celebrate 505 years of the reformation of the Church, the reaffirmation of the Word of God. Today we celebrate the endurance of the Word of God, that is that His Word is eternal that it never fails, that it never departs from us. Even when we may think the Word of God is removed as through history we have seen time and again how it seems as if God’s Word were removed from or absent from one heathen nation after another, we see that God’s Word is never completely rooted out, but His Word remains forever.
 

Today we celebrate the truth of the authority of the Word of God, especially that it is inerrant. Certainly this is where Satan makes his greatest attacks. Well, this was his first temptation and it worked so well in the Garden of Eden that he continues to use this temptation even today. His temptation is a subtle temptation concerning the authority of God’s Word. Today we have this authority questioned as the inerrancy of the Word of God. The question of Satan in the Garden was, “Did God really say?” Today his question is, “Is the Bible God’s Word or does the Bible merely contain God’s Word?” Which is another way of saying, “Did God really say?” To suggest that the Bible merely contains God’s Word leaves us open to interpreting His Word our way which means all kinds of aberrations such as we see in many heterodox churches today. What does inerrancy mean? It means that we believe the Bible does not merely contain God’s Word so that we have to search through the pages to find it, but the Bible is God’s Word and it is a word with God’s authority and power. So the Bible is eternal, it is true and it does and gives what it says.
 

Today we celebrate the gifts given through the Word of God. Although we are conceived and born in sin, although every inclination of our heart is evil all the time, God is greater than our sin. God gives us His Word and His Sacraments and through these means of grace He gives us all His good gifts and blessings. As we remember our baptism we are reminded that it was He who, at our baptism, put His name on us and claimed us as His children. It was He who put faith in our hearts, gave us forgiveness of sins, which cost us nothing, but cost Jesus His life, He wrote our names in the book of Life. As we confess our sins we hear His most beautiful words, “Your sins are forgiven.” As we read and hear His Holy Precious Word, we are given the gifts that He gives through His Word. And as we come to His table to eat His body and drink His blood we are again given His gifts, forgiveness of sins and strengthening of faith. What great gifts, what wonderful gifts, who would think of refusing or rejecting such great gifts and blessings.
 

Today we celebrate that we respond in faith, in worship, in kneeling before and acknowledging our Creator God as Lord. Of course our response is not something that comes from inside ourselves, but is something that is motivated in us by God from outside of us. Just as we do not find the answers to life’s questions inside of us, just as we do not find life, forgiveness or faith inside ourselves, so we are not motivated by ourselves. We are given all these things and our response of faith from God who comes to us from outside of us, who comes to us through means the very means He gives us to come to us.
 

And so, today we celebrate. We celebrate the reformation of the Holy Christian Church. We celebrate the work of Dr. Martin Luther and God’s work through him. We celebrate the gift of God’s Word, His eternal Word, His eternal Word made flesh in Jesus, and His Word of Holy Scripture which does and gives what it says. We celebrate what a great and awesome God we have, a God who does all and gives all. And so, I leave you will the words of the angel of the Lord, “Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come, and worship him who made heaven and earth, the sea and the springs of water” (v. 7b). To God be the glory, for Jesus’ sake. Amen.