Rather late... from this past week.
Pr. Ron Rock
The Time Is at Hand!
Sermon Text Luke 21:5-28 & LSB 508
Sun. & Wed., November 14 & 17, 2010
Pentecost 25, Proper 28, C
Old Testament Reading Malachi 4:1-6
Epistle Reading 2 Thessalonians 3:6-13
Gospel Lesson Luke 21:5-28
Zion Lutheran Church, Beecher, IL
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
St. Luke tells us in todays Gospel reading that The time is at hand.
But what does he mean by that?
Does he mean that the season of fall is winding down and that winter is
just around the corner?
Or does Luke mean that the time to make your plans for Thanksgiving
dinner is now
and if you delay any longer
well
to paraphrase an old
Jerry Seinfeld episode: No turkey for you!
Actually, Luke has something much more somber in mind when he tells us
The time is at hand. He joins in with Malachi and St. Paul (who wrote
todays other readings)
he joins with them to give us a strong warning
of what God has promised He will do when the time is right.
Luke, Malachi, and Paul all join their voices to warn us that the time
of Gods grace on this earth is surely, inevitably, and relentlessly
drawing to an end. In fact, todays Hymn of the Day is partially based
on these words of Luke!
And so, to get to the bottom of whats meant when were told that The
time is at hand! well use the text of our Sermon Hymn to drive our
investigation. Youre encouraged to open your hymnals to hymn #508 and
follow along as we consider this hymn before us.
The words of the 1st stanza get right to the point. They are:
1. The day is surely drawing near
When Jesus, Gods anointed,
In all His power shall appear
As judge whom God appointed.
Then fright shall banish idle mirth
And flames on flames shall ravage earth
As Scripture long has warned us.
The day is drawing near
the day when the all-powerful, almighty Lord
of lords and King of kings, Jesus Christ, shall return to this earth. On
this day those who had lived in idle mirth thinking that they could
live their lives ignoring God
well
as Luke tells us
their tune
will be changed.
Heres how it will be then:
people [will be] fainting with fear and
[have a sense of] foreboding of what is coming on the world. For the
powers of the heavens will be shaken. 27And then they will see the Son of
Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. (Luke 21:26-27, ESV)
And on that day, Jesus will return to earth, this time, coming not as a
meek Baby born to Mary in Bethlehem. No
this time
Hell come to
serve as the Judge of all men, women, and children. No one
no one
will escape His judgment
and above Him theres no court of appeals
that is, whatever His judgment is
its final!
And, dont let this escape you, Scripture long has warned us
that
Jesus wont sit back forever and let the world and its people go the way
that they choose. No! In His Word, He has repeatedly said that He will
return to judge the earth!
The words of the second stanza are:
2. The final trumpet then shall sound
And all the earth be shaken.
And all who rest beneath the ground
Shall from their sleep awaken;
But all who live will in that hour
By Gods almighty boundless powr
Be changed at His commanding.
The final trumpet then shall sound
St. Matthew tells us more about
that:
and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will
see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great
glory. 31And he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and
they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to
the other. (Mt. 24:30b-31, ESV)
When Jesus comes again, loud trumpet blasts will literally permeate the
air
and no one will
or can
miss it! The earth will shake with the
return of its Maker
and all who have died will rise from where their
earthly bodies had been resting to face the mighty Judge. From the four
corners of the world the dead will arise and be gathered with those who
still live in that hour
and together theyll stand before the Lord of
the Universe.
Again
as Scripture long has warned us: For we will all stand before
the judgment seat of God; 11for it is written, As I live, says the Lord,
every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God. (Rom.
14:10-11, ESV)
Let us sing hymn #508, the first two stanzas.
Some people use the expression: Are we going to fish, or just cut bait?
Literally those words mean: Will we ever go fishing
or are we just
going to constantly prepare to go fishing
by cutting up the baitfish
and cleaning the equipment
but never actually go fishing?
That popular expression is used when someone wants to know if a promised
action will ever come about. The next two stanzas fully
and
completely
answer that question! Verse 3:
3. The books are opened then to all,
A record truly telling
What each has done, both great and small,
When he on earth was dwelling,
And evry heart be clearly seen,
And all be known as they have been
In thoughts and words and actions.
In other words, the almighty Lord Jesus
now serving as Judge of all
people
is doing more than cutting bait
by a long shot! Hes going
fishing! Hes going about His long-promised action to return to the
earth and judge all men!
The record books are full and complete and what each has done will be
clearly seen. In other words
every action
every word
every
thought
of every person who has ever lived
is known
and will be
judged! Verse 4:
4. Then woe to those who scorned the Lord
And sought but carnal pleasures,
Who here despised His precious Word
And loved their earthly treasures!
With shame and trembling they will stand
And at the judges stern command
To Satan be delivered.
Judgment is rendered. The opened book shows account after account of one
sin after another. Each person
one after the other
stands before the
almighty Lord of heaven and earth and can only look down in shame and
trembling
as the charges are read.
ü He sought carnal pleasure GUILTY!
ü He despised the precious Word and neglected the Sacraments
GUILTY!
ü She hoarded earthly treasure refusing to share it, keeping it
all for herself while the kingdom of God was left wanting GUILTY!
And then the sentence is pronounced: To Satan, deliver him. To Satan,
turn her over
with no 2nd chance
for the 2nd chance was already
given
and rejected! Let us sing verses 3 & 4.
The first four stanzas that weve considered speak of what will happen
when Jesus comes that second and final time to the earth. But now, in
stanzas 5 and 6, the words remind us of what Jesus did during His first
appearance on this earth
and how that
changes everything for Gods
people.
5. My Savior paid the debt I owed
And for my sin was smitten,
Within the Book of Life I know
My name has now been written.
I will not doubt, for I am free,
And Satan cannot threaten me
There is no condemnation!
Jesus came the first time to earth as a humble Servant to fulfill the Law
of God on our behalf. He came to bring about whats known as The Great
Exchange trading His righteousness for our sin. And with our sin upon
His shoulders He indeed paid the debt I owed
in fact, the debt that
all mankind owed to God
He being lifted up on the cross to be
stricken, smitten, and afflicted (Is. 53:4, ESV) unto His death
all
for us
all because of us
all so that we might not be delivered to
Satan.
He did all this out of His incredible, eternal, undying love for you and
for the whole world. He did all this so that you might be with Him
and
He with you
throughout eternity!
In your Baptism He called you by name and gave you the gift of faith in
Him and His work on the cross. And with faith comes nothing less than
forgiveness, life, and salvation! You see, with faith
your name
your
name
is written in another book the Book of Life because, as Paul
writes to the Romans: There is therefore now no condemnation for those
who are in Christ Jesus. (Rom. 8:1, ESV)
Verse 6:
6. May Christ our intercessor be
And through His blood and merit
Read from His book that we are free
With all who life inherit,
Then we shall see Him face to face
With all His saints in that blest place
Which He has purchased for us.
Truly, through Jesus blood and merit were at peace with God
our debt
paid in full
and were free to live under Him in His kingdom and serve
Him in everlasting righteousness, innocence, and blessedness. (Small
Catechism, 2nd Art. Explanation)
And when we arrive there well realize the goal of our faith the
salvation of our souls. Well have whats known as the beatific vision
of God; that is, well see Him face to face in all His glory, majesty,
and love
and do so forever! We sing verses 5 and 6.
The last stanza reads:
7. O Jesus Christ, do not delay,
But hasten our salvation;
We often tremble on our way
In fear and tribulation.
O hear and grant our fervent plea;
Come, mighty Judge, and set us free
>From death and every evil!
As Gods redeemed ones, and knowing that only joy and peace are awaiting
us. We dont cringe when we hear Jesus say The time is at hand! Not
at all! Rather, we rejoice that that great Day is coming!
Like a child who eagerly awaits Christmas by marking the days off on the
kitchen calendar, so do we Christians eagerly long for that great Day of
the Lord to Draw Near. In prayer we beg our dear Savior to come, and to
come quickly, so that we might all the sooner be free of this world of
sin and death and every evil.
And so, dear Christians, hear Jesus speak to you. Hear His words of
hope:
straighten up
raise your heads, because your redemption is
drawing near. (Lk. 21:28, ESV) Thanks be to God! [Amen.]
Please stand to sing the last verse.
`
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