11/29/09 - Thanksgiving Sunday - Psalm 100

THE BLESSINGS WILL NEVER END

What blessings did you thank the Lord for this last Thursday? I would hope that you took time to thank the Lord on Thanksgiving Day for a whole variety of different things! Most of you probably thanked the Lord for the food he supplied for you that afternoon - that’s usually a popular item for which to give thanks because there is so much of it in front of us on that holiday. Most of you probably also thanked the Lord for the family and friends that were gathered around you - mainly because it’s a special blessing that doesn’t always happen on a regular basis. But what else did you thank the Lord for? What other blessings did you find deserving of a word of thanks to your God? The weather, a steady job, health, financial stability? But did you end up thanking him only for the blessings that were right in front of your face, or did you also thank him for the blessings that were yet to come?
It’s kind of a strange concept for most of us to thank the Lord for blessings that we do not yet have. Thanksgiving is usually something we reserve for those blessings that the Lord has already given us. But thanking the Lord for the gifts he will grant us in the future is a truth that Psalm 100 clearly teaches. Psalm 100 is entitled “A psalm for giving thanks” and the last two verses of this short song of Scripture are printed for you in your bulletins. I want you to look closely at these verses and see exactly what the psalmist thanks the Lord for. “Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. For the LORD is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.” The psalmist realized that God had not only been good to him in the past, and not only had his love and his faithfulness been evident up to the very day he penned these verses, but God’s goodness and his love and his faithfulness would endure and continue forever. His grace would always be there. And so the blessings would never end. And that is exactly what Psalm 100 thanks the Lord for. It does not dwell on everything the Lord had done in the past or even what the Lord is doing at that very moment. The thanksgiving and the praises of these last two verses of Psalm 100 are focused on what the Lord has promised to do for us in the future.
That’s not something we are in habit of doing, is it? Because as sinful human beings living among other sin-polluted people in the middle of a sin-infected world, we have naturally become a little skeptical. We have come to realize that things do not usually turn out the way they are planned. Accidents happen, problems arise, unforeseen difficulties are inevitable and, in fact, they usually come at the worst possible times. The future is unpredictable. We don’t know what’s going to happen in our lives later today, let alone next week or next month or next year. And so thanking the Lord for the blessings he will continue to give us in the future is almost contrary to the way our minds work. How could we do that? How could we possibly thank the Lord for what’s to come when we don’t know what’s going to happen? What if I get sick? What if one of my family members dies? What if I lose my job or my car or my retirement savings? There are so many terrible things that could happen in the future that I wouldn’t want to give thanks for. And so we feel much more comfortable waiting to see what we get before we actually thank the Lord for it! It makes a lot more sense to us that way, doesn’t it? It’s a little safer (as far as we’re concerned) to thank the Lord after the fact than before it.
It is a very unfortunate thing that our past experiences with sin have hampered our trust in God. We have been burned so many times by the disappointments of this life that we have even become skeptical of what God promises for our future. As if his promises might not turn out the way he planned! As if the future is actually beyond the Lord’s control in some way! We find it so hard to be confident about what lies ahead even though God promises that he will always be good to his people, that his love will endure forever, and that his faithfulness will continue through all generations. And when we do hesitate to thank the Lord for what he promises to do for us in the future we are really implying that he is either not capable, he is not willing, or that he just has no idea what he’s talking about. And I understand that none of us would ever say those things about the Lord out loud, but our hesitation about the future reveals the weakness of our faith. If we aren’t confident about the blessings God has promised us in the future, what can we be confident about?
Because the fact of the matter is: if God promises to be just as good to us in the future as he has in the past, we have nothing to worry about! If God promises that his love will endure forever just as he has always shown his love to us in our lives, we have nothing to be skeptical about! If the Lord promises that his faithfulness will continue through all generations just as it has from the very first generation of Adam and Eve up to the present generation we are now living in, then we have no reason to hesitate to thank the Lord for what is to come! Because just think about the goodness and the love and the faithfulness the Lord has demonstrated on our behalf for the few thousand years this world has existed. When he didn’t have to, when he didn’t need to, when he wasn’t asked to, our Lord decided to create this world. Out of sheer goodness he made the various terrains and climates of this earth, the depth and clarity of the waters, and the vast expanses of the skies. He filled this universe with every living thing imaginable, every shade of color, every texture of fiber, every sound wave that affects our senses, and every shining star that we will never be able to reach. And he hand-crafted every bit of it just for us. So that we could live here and enjoy ourselves. So that we could experience his goodness in so many different ways on so many different levels. This same goodness is the goodness of God that he promises to show us as long as we live. What we will receive in the future will be just as good as what he has done for us in the past. That’s worth thanking the Lord for before it ever happens!
At a time when the Lord was not obligated to, during a period in history when the people of this earth hated him more then ever, God became a man. Out of pure love Jesus subjected himself to the pains and the evils and the dangers of this life. He followed the commands that he had at one time required us to keep, he took upon himself the punishment that we were supposed to receive, and he willingly experienced the death that we were scheduled to die. And he spent those 33 miserable years on this earth just for us. Because he loved us. He wanted us to live with him forever in heaven so badly that he was willing to die for us on this earth. This same love that he has demonstrated for us on the cross is the same love that he will show to us for years to come. That is worth thanking the Lord for before it ever happens!
At times when he never should have, in situations where he could have turned his back on his, the Lord forgave us. Every sin in every place in every way at every time - the Lord wiped away our sins. In fact, we have yet to commit a sin that has not been granted full forgiveness from God himself. And he has forgiven us every time out of unrelenting faithfulness. He has never gone back on his word to us and he has never let us down. This same faithfulness that has forgiven every sin we have every committed is the exact same faithfulness that will forgive every sin that we ever will commit. The nasty sins, the secret sins, the dirty sins, the repeated sins - they will all be forgiven because God is faithful. And he promises that his faithfulness will continue through all generations. That is worth thanking the Lord for before it ever happens!
The Lord’s goodness and love and faithfulness are not only blessings we have right now, they are blessings promised to us in the future. And whatever the Lord has promised us in the future is just as sure as if we had it in our hands right now. Whatever the Lord has planned for us tomorrow and next week and five years from now is something we can be absolutely sure will happen. Sure, the future may still be unpredictable. It may very well be filled with problems and troubles and disasters that are part of living in a sinful world. But the future looks good! Because it is all in the Lord’s hands. And he has promised us that he will continue to shower us with blessings just as he has in the past - whether we see them as blessings at the time or not. The Lord’s goodness and his love and his faithfulness will never end and so the blessings will never end. Yes, thank the Lord for what he has given you in the past. Thank the Lord for what he has blessed you with in the present. But don’t forget to thank the Lord for what he has promised to do for you in the future. He has promised you his goodness. He has promised you his love. He has promised you his faithfulness. And because of all those blessings he has promised you heaven. There is no greater blessing than that. Do not hesitate to thank him now for what you will receive then.
Amen.

“God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus. To our God and Father be glory forever and ever. Amen.” - Philippians 4:19-20

11/25/09 - Thanksgiving Eve - Psalm 136

IT'S WORTH HEARING AGAIN



Psalm 136
1 Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good. His love endures forever.
2 Give thanks to the God of gods. His love endures forever.
3 Give thanks to the Lord of lords: His love endures forever.
4 to him who alone does great wonders, His love endures forever.
5 who by his understanding made the heavens, His love endures forever.
6 who spread out the earth upon the waters, His love endures forever.
7 who made the great lights— His love endures forever.
8 the sun to govern the day, His love endures forever.
9 the moon and stars to govern the night; His love endures forever.
10 to him who struck down the firstborn of Egypt His love endures forever.
11 and brought Israel out from among them His love endures forever.
12 with a mighty hand and outstretched arm; His love endures forever.
13 to him who divided the Red Sea asunder His love endures forever.
14 and brought Israel through the midst of it, His love endures forever.
15 but swept Pharaoh and his army into the Red Sea; His love endures forever.
16 to him who led his people through the desert, His love endures forever.
17 who struck down great kings, His love endures forever.
18 and killed mighty kings— His love endures forever.
19 Sihon king of the Amorites His love endures forever.
20 and Og king of Bashan— His love endures forever.
21 and gave their land as an inheritance, His love endures forever.
22 an inheritance to his servant Israel; His love endures forever.
23 to the One who remembered us in our low estate His love endures forever.
24 and freed us from our enemies, His love endures forever.
25 and who gives food to every creature. His love endures forever.
26 Give thanks to the God of heaven. His love endures forever.



Psalm 136 is quite clearly one of the most unique psalms in all of Scripture. No other psalm is laid out in the same way Psalm 136 is. And no other psalm repeats the same phrase over and over again like Psalm 136 does. But there’s a reason for that. There’s a reason why this psalm repeats “His love endures forever” after every single line. And the reason is simple: it’s worth hearing again. It’s worth hearing again that the Lord’s love endures forever. It’s worth being reminded that in every day of this life and behind every blessing and through any hardship or disaster “His love endures forever.” It’s worth hearing again because we forget it so often!
Think about how many times you have wondered if you would be able to get through a difficulty in your life. A lingering sickness, an unrelenting pain, a family relationship problem, a tragedy that ends in the death of a loved one, a financial crisis, an inner emotional battle… There are plenty of things in this sinful world that have harassed us and have caused us to question what the future would bring. But in any difficult situation you have ever been in, was the outcome ever outside of the Lord’s control? Was he ever only a passive observer and unable to do anything about it? Was his love for you ever absent from any problem or trouble or dilemma? No! He was always in control. He was always an active participant. His love was always there. Because “his love endures forever.” It doesn’t go away. It isn’t overpowered. And it will never let anything happen to God’s people that isn’t ultimately for their good. We just forget about that sometimes. We are so overwhelmed by the problems sometimes that we forget the promises.
The Israelites struggled to remember the promises of God because of their problems at times as well. They had to undergo some very stressful and life-threatening events throughout their lives and Psalm 136 even recounts for us a few of those instances in the history of God’s people - when God’s love prevailed despite the situation. They were at one time enslaved in the land of Egypt. They were mistreated by their rulers there, they were required to meet impossible demands on penalty of severe punishment, and their sons were even ordered to be killed so that their nation would stop growing. They were in a difficult situation and the Lord’s love seemed to be far away. But on the contrary, Psalm 136 says it well, “To him who struck down the firstborn of Egypt - his love endures forever - and brought Israel out from among them - his love endures forever - with a mighty hand and outstretched arm - his love endures forever.” The Lord’s love rescued them from the land of slavery even though the situation seemed hopeless. But soon after they were trapped in between the Red Sea and Pharaoh’s army! What was going to happen! How were they going to escape? Why did Moses bring them all the way out there just to die? Psalm 136 again, “To him who divided the Red Sea asunder - his love endures forever - and brought Israel though the midst of it - his love endures forever - but swept Pharaoh and his army into the Red Sea - his love endures forever.” The dangerous situation they were in was no match for the Lord’s love. He took care of everything - just like usual. And his love continued to guide his people for centuries to come. He led them through the desert for 40 years. He struck down kings and armies. He defeated the Canaanites before them. He gave them the Promised Land as an inheritance. Despite the odds and the doubts and the complaints, the Lord always took care of his people because “his love endures forever.”
And we could even add to this psalm the many things the Lord has done for us. Psalm 136 very well could continue: “He came down to this earth as a human being - his love endures forever - to become one of us - his love endures forever - so that he could live perfectly in our place - his love endures forever. The Lord willingly gave himself up into the hands of his enemies - his love endures forever - he stood on trial - his love endures forever - he was sentenced to death - his love endures forever. He sacrificed himself - his love endures forever - he bled - his love endures forever - he lives - his love endures forever.” There are so many things we can say about what our Lord has done for us that could be followed by “his love endures forever.” In fact, everything that has ever happened can be explained with that phrase because the Lord’s love is always at work. God’s love is always taking every miniscule thing in this life and re-working it for the best of believers. It’s a wonderful thing to know that God’s love is always around, it always has the last say, and it will always be the driving force behind everything God does. After all, “God is love” (1 John 4:16). He is not hate, he is not anger, he is not revenge. God is love. And his love endures forever.
And what a fitting thing to remember on an evening like tonight. We gather together on Thanksgiving Eve to thank the Lord for what he has done throughout our lives this past year; we gather together to thank him for his love. And his love is clearly evident from all of the wonderful blessings he has given us. We have been showered with blessings - more than we could possibly count. It is a good thing to thank the Lord for the blessings we enjoy. But also remember his love when the blessings aren’t so evident. When you’re hurting, when you’re failing, when you don’t know where to turn, when there is no one else to help. Because God’s love is still there even at those times. It is still active. It is still in control. It is there when you can’t see it or feel it or even notice it. Thank the Lord for that. Thank him that his love is much more stable than our lives or emotions or feelings will ever be. Give thanks “To the One who remembered us in our low estate - his love endures forever - and freed us from our enemies - his love endures forever - and who gives food to every creature - his love endures forever. Give thanks to the God of heaven - his love endures forever.” These final verses of Psalm 136 might be a good prayer to pray at your Thanksgiving table tomorrow. In fact, it might be a good prayer to pray every day. It’s worth repeating. It’s always worth hearing again.
Amen.

11/22/09 - Christ the King - Revelation 1:4-8

WE ARE ON THE KING'S STAFF
- We are part of his kingdom
- We are priests of God

Whenever a new president takes office in this country he is allowed to appoint any number of different individuals to fill various government positions. He chooses his own staff; he decides who he wants to sit on certain committees and boards and judge’s seats; he determines who the administrators and representatives and ambassadors will be in many different areas; he is even able to select who he wants on the staffs that are under those whom he appoints. A president has a lot of control over who he wants working for him and he naturally expects that those he appoints will carry out his will and do the things he asks them to do. These people owe him, after all! Their jobs and promotions are based solely on the fact that the president has hand-picked them. And so most people want to do all they can to prove to the president that he made the right decision.
This morning we are celebrating “Christ the King” Sunday. We praise him for being the Lord of lords and the King of kings, the author of our salvation who has defeated our enemies and now sits on his throne with all things under his feet. This King, the Almighty Ruler of all things, also appoints people to fill positions under him. He chooses his own staff. And he considers every one of the positions he fills extremely important. Listen to how the apostle John describes whom this King appoints and to what positions he appoints them. “Grace and peace to you from him who is, and who was, and who is to come, and from the seven spirits before his throne, and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood, and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father - to him be glory and power forever and ever! Amen.” Jesus Christ is the “ruler of the kings of the earth” and he has “made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father.” The King appoints us! We are on his staff! We have been chosen to serve under the administration of the Lord God Almighty! In fact, we as believers make up his kingdom!
The kingdom of God is composed of believers. We have been hand-picked by God himself to serve under him, to carry out his will, to do his bidding, to follow his commands. He has appointed us to be administrators and representatives and ambassadors in many different areas of life. And he expects that because he is responsible for the positions we now hold, we will do everything we can to follow his directives and do whatever he asks us to do.
Of course, that doesn’t always happen, does it? We don’t always want to do what the King wants us to do. We don’t always have the motivation and we don’t always make the time to carry out what we have been appointed to carry out. We are not always loyal subjects to the King. We have our own agendas and our own ideas and our own personal objectives that we would like to get done instead of God’s will. Because let’s face it: the 10 Commandments are not always all that convenient to keep sometimes. Loving our neighbor just as much as we love ourselves is a little too time consuming and much too self-sacrificing to be enjoyable most days. Sharing the Word of God with others is usually a bit embarrassing and all too often more stressful than what we want to deal with. What the King wants us to do isn’t always what we want to do - and so we just flat out don’t do it half the time! And because the King does not immediately strike us dead for disobeying his commands, we become all the more bold each passing year because we know that we will not have to suffer instant consequences for our actions. And so we go about our lives, doing our own things, and taking the King’s order into consideration only if they happen to match up with our own plans.
When a president appoints a particular person to a specific position, the president expects that his directions and plans will be followed by the person he has appointed to that office. The president might tolerate a few mistakes. He may overlook a stupid decision here and there. But if that person he appointed begins to do things directly against the president’s wishes and orders, that person will not hold his position for long. That kind of insubordination will not be allowed. The president will not hesitate to relieve that person of his responsibilities and give the position to someone who will do what the president wants him to do. If an appointed member of the president’s staff decides to do his own thing, he will be replaced.
We should be replaced. We should be replaced as members of Christ the King’s staff. Because we have decided to do our own thing for the majority of our lives. We ignore what the King has written down more often than we would admit. We have pretended not to hear what he asks of us on quite a few occasions. We have often times determined that what we want is a little more important and little more pressing at the time than what the King wants. We should have been replaced along time ago! Someone else, who actually follows the King’s commands a little more carefully and honors the King’s wishes a little more faithfully, should have taken over for us almost immediately.
But here we still are. The King hasn’t replaced us. And he isn’t going to. Because unlike presidential appointments, Christ our King does not base his decisions on our qualifications or abilities or past record or potential. Christ the King appointed us to positions on his staff because of his mercy and compassion. Christ the King chose us not because of anything he saw in us, but because of all the love in him. And so not only will he never replace us, he has even given us a promotion! On top of being made a part of his kingdom, we have also been given the title and the unbelievable privilege of being his priests. “He has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father.” And he calls us his priests for a very important reason.
In Old Testament times the priests stood before God on behalf of the people. They were the ones that were allowed to come into God’s presence when no one else could. The priests were the ones through whom God gave forgiveness to those he loved. And now we have been appointed priests of Christ the King and have been given the very same duties. We stand before God on behalf of the rest of the people in this world - praying for them, pleading for their salvation. We are the ones allowed to come into Christ’s presence when no one else can - because unbelievers are separated from God on account of their lack of faith. We are the ones through him God gives forgiveness to those in this life - by sending us out with the words of the gospel and urging us to proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ and his salvation to all people. We are priests of Christ the King. We hold special positions on his staff that are essential to God’s plan of salvation for all of those lost souls throughout this world. Even though we are sinners and even though we have failed to carry out our priestly duties time after time, we are still the perfect people for the job. We are the perfect people to be appointed as priests of Christ not because we are so godly, but because we are so sinful. We are the perfect people to be God’s priests because of our sinfulness - we know exactly what the King has done for us! We know what he went through to save us from the enemy, we know what kind of sacrifice it took to win us back, and so there is no better group of people than saved sinners to share this exciting news of salvation with others.
Don’t forget how hopeless it once was for us: We were confined in the chains of sin and rotting away in a dungeon of spiritual darkness until Christ the King came. When Christ the King had his hands and feet nailed to the cross, the chains of sin that held our hands and feet broke free. When Christ the King gave up his life into the hands of his Father, our death sentence was lifted. When the first rays of light pierced through the blackness of the empty tomb when the stone was rolled away on Easter morning, the light of the gospel filled up the dark prison where we had been lying and dying and gave us life. Christ the King came and he was victorious. He rescued us from our enemies: Death the Consequence, Sin the Instigator, and Satan the Accomplice, and brought us into his kingdom, into his castle, into his arms. And we know this from experience. We understand what the King sacrificed to pay the ransom for our souls. And there are so many more people need to hear that. They need to hear that Jesus Christ is “the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth.” They need to hear that he “loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood.” And they need to hear it from those of us who used to be in the same situation that they are in now! They need to hear it from the priests of Christ the King - all of us who are appointed to the task of spreading the gospel! That is how we can serve the King! That is how we can thank and praise him for choosing us to serve on his staff and in his kingdom. Sharing this gospel message is how we can glorify his name not only for appointing us to these positions but also for making our positions permanent.
Usually, an individual appointed by the president is able to keep his/her job as long as the president who appointed them remains in office. But as soon as someone else takes over the presidency, those who had been previously appointed are replaced by new people in a new administration. But there will be no new administration now that Christ the King sits on the throne. There is no term limit with the “Ruler of the kings of the earth.” He will never be defeated. And he will never die - he will never die again anyway. The reign of Christ our King will last forever and so the appointments that he has made will last forever as well. We will not be removed because of a new administration taking over. We will not be replaced by anyone else. And we will always be forgiven when we don’t do justice to the office we are honored to hold. And all of these truths about Christ and his rule motivate us all the more to work as hard as we can to honor, thank, serve, and obey him. Because there is no other King who could possibly show us so much love. There is no other King who could have saved us from where we were confined. There is no other King who would want to give up his own life for people like us! There is no other King. Period. Christ the King really is the only Ruler, the only Emperor, the only Leader, the only President. All others serve him. And so whether the rulers of this earth believe in Christ as their King or not is inconsequential. Because the King of kings will make sure that every one of their decisions and every one of their actions will work out according to his ultimate plan for his chosen people. “‘I am the Alpha and the Omega,’” says the Lord God, ‘who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.’” Christ our King is the Almighty. He is the Beginning and he is the Last. He is the one who always has been, the one who is right now, and the one who will always be. And we have been chosen to serve on his staff. It is a privilege to be where we are. It is joy to know where we will one day be.
Amen.

“Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever.” - 1 Timothy 1:17

11/15/09 - Saints Triumphant - John 5:25-29

"ALL RISE"
- There is only one Judge
- The Judge is on our side

As a general rule, judges are treated with respect. They are given the seat that is raised up above everyone else in the courtroom. When anyone addresses a judge they refer to him or her as “Your Honor.” Even when a judge walks into the room the bailiff instructs those who are present: “All rise!” - implying that this person in the judicial robe is to be respected by all those gathered there. Judges are usually treated this way because they have gone through the necessary schooling, they have passed the exams, they have paid their dues, and now they are in control of their respective courtrooms. They have the gavel, they keep the order, they set the pace, many times they make the final decisions, and they hand out sentencing according to their expert assessment of the situation. And everyone must listen to the judge. Disorder, unruliness, and disrespect are not tolerated. There may be many different opinions and ideas and beliefs in any given courtroom, but there is only one judge. And he has the final say.
There may be many different opinions and beliefs and ideas among the people of this earth, but there is only one Judge. And he has the final say. And when that Judge decides it’s time, he will come back robed in all of his glory, he will hold court, and all will rise to meet him. “Do not be amazed at this,” Jesus says. “For a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice and come out.” This Judge whom Jesus is speaking about is himself. And all people will have to listen to him. He will make the final decision. He will determine who is guilty and who is not. And he will hand out sentencing according to his good and perfect will. Jesus is the Judge. No one else is. Jesus is the Judge. We are not. No matter how often we act like it.
It is pretty typical for us to act like judges, isn’t it? There are very few of us who actually are patient and understanding and put the best construction on everything people say and everything people do. And I don’t mean simply determining that a word or an action is sinful - we are called on to make those kinds of “judgments” as Christians when we compare those things to God’s Word. I’m talking about making that final judgment call, that ultimate decision about a person’s faith or their true motivations behind their actions or where they will eventually end up - making a judgment about a person’s heart. And before your tell yourself that you would never judge a person’s heart, let me tell you this: I do it all the time. Instead of giving a person the benefit of the doubt, I tend to immediately make the determination that this person is too stubborn and too far gone to save, and that person has proved to be unapproachable with the gospel so I won’t even try, and this person may seem like he is doing good things but I’m sure he has sinful intentions and motivations, and that person is so far off the deep end in what she believes that there is no way she will ever accept the Truth of God’s Word. I like to be the judge! I like to pound that gavel and make my ruling based on outward appearances and first impressions and past experiences. And those are the determining factors because I certainly can’t base my judgment on what is really in their hearts!
And if I’m not mistaken, you can’t either. Only God can judge the heart. Only he knows why someone does what he does or says what she says; only God knows what their final sentence will be. Not that it stops us! We regularly usurp the authority away from Christ and pretend as if it were ours. We make the decisions about others for him before it is time. We act like we are insightful enough to determine whether or not it is possible for a person to come to faith. We are think we are allowed to write someone off because their hypocritical actions and half-hearted attempts at Christianity aren’t going to fool us - since we really know what lies beneath their supposedly good intentions.
I’m not sure if this is going to be too obvious: but Jesus doesn’t like when we do that. He doesn’t appreciate it when we take the authority that his been given to him alone and then attempt to make the decisions that only he is capable of making. He doesn’t hand us the gavel. He doesn’t give us his seat. He doesn’t rise when we walk into the room. No, on the Last Day we will rise for the one and only Judge along with all those who have gone before us. And he will command us to be quiet. He will tell us to pay attention. He will let us know that every decision and every judgment that we had made about others on this earth does not matter. Because he is the Judge. It is his job to weigh the evidence. It is his call. And we will get what is coming to us just like everyone else.
When I was at the Seminary in Milwaukee, I regularly attended and helped out one of the WELS churches there during my first two years. One of the members of that congregation was a circuit judge who had served in the city of Milwaukee for decades. I took a trip to the courthouse one afternoon to watch him in action and so that he could show me around the back rooms and let me know how the court system worked. When I arrived at the courthouse and found the room in which this WELS judge was residing, court was in session. And so I sat down behind the glass partition in the back with a few other spectators and watched. Judge Manian was sitting on his judge’s seat and there in the center of the room was a teenage kid and his mother facing the front. Their lawyer was sitting down, the bailiff was there and the court reporter, but no one else was in the courtroom proper. Apparently, this young man had been at a party a few months back. And, after an argument with someone there, had left the house in anger. But as he was walking away from the house, he had pulled a gun from his pants and shot a few rounds back at the front side of the home he had just left. No one was hit, no one in particular seemed to be the target, but this kid was in trouble nonetheless. The evidence had already been gathered, this teenager was obviously guilty, and so now it was time for the sentencing.
After Judge Manian recounted his crimes the boy’s mother who had been standing by his side asked for permission to speak. When her request was granted she began to beg for leniency. She said that her son really was a good boy, that she would keep a close eye on him, that he has never done anything like this before, that a prison sentence would ruin his life at such a young age… After she spoke for almost ten minutes, it was time for Judge Manian to make his final ruling. “Whenever you pull a gun and shoot it,” he began, “that is automatic jail time. It doesn’t matter if you hit anyone or not. It doesn’t matter if you were aiming at anyone or not. It doesn’t matter if you are 16 years old or not. When you pull a gun and shoot it, that is automatic jail time.” Judge Manian then went on to express his disappointment in this young man’s behavior and the lack of common sense he had displayed that night. He warned him about the dangers of getting involved with the wrong people and about carrying a firearm as a minor. He informed him about the miserable life of prison and reminded this teenager that his permanent record would be marred because of his actions. In fact, his speech was longer than the mother’s had been. And when he had finally said all that he wanted to say to this boy, he finished his ruling like this: “Whenever you pull a gun and shoot it, that is automatic jail time. But I’m not going to send you to jail. I believe your remorse is sincere. And I don’t want to send you to jail and watch your life come to an end when you have so much of your life ahead of you. But I never want to see you back here again. If I do, the results will not be this pleasant. Do you understand me?”
The mother began to cry, her son was visibly grateful for the mercy he had just been shown, and those two left the courtroom that morning with a renewed sense of life and hope. Now, this kid was put on probation, of course, he had to do quite a bit of community service, and there were other stipulations to his punishment. But the sentence he deserved to receive was not handed down him. Judge Manian had shown compassion to this young man not because of what he had done (of course!) and not because of who he was, but because Judge Manian wanted to have compassion on him. He pardoned him from his crime and had given something back to him that this 16 year old boy had given up when he had pulled that gun and shot it months before. He had been given life again.
On the Last Day each one of us will rise and stand before the Almighty Judge. The evidence will have already been gathered and it will be obvious that we are guilty. There will be no trial; there will only be sentencing. And the Lord our Judge will pull out the long list of offenses that we have committed throughout our lives and say, “Your sins deserve automatic jail time - an eternal life sentence. It doesn’t matter how hard you tried. And it doesn’t matter how “good” you were compared to others. Every sin means automatic jail time in hell for eternity. But I’m not going to send you to jail. Because I have already been there for you myself. I have already taken the punishment. I have already suffered for these sins. They no longer count against you. This rap sheet is mine. And I have already done the time. And now you get to live with me forever in heaven.”
And there’s the difference. There’s the difference between God our Judge and any earthly judge in this life. I can use all of the courtroom analogies that I want, but nothing will ever be able to come close to what our Judge did for us. He not only pardons us, he paid for us! He not only is our Judge but he is the condemned criminal! He was arrested by the posse of the high priest. He stood on trial before his own countrymen and a roman judge. He was sentenced to an execution. He was posted to a beam of wood. He was sent to hell to experience an eternal torture. He was the recipient of the death penalty and much, much more than we can possibly imagine. The one who will sit on the judgment seat on Judgment Day is the one who has hung on a cross and laid in a tomb. The one who will be responsible for our sentencing is the one responsible for our salvation. Our Judge is on our side. And that is the very reason he has been given the authority.
“[God] has given him authority to judge because he is the Son of Man.” Because the Son of Man has taken on the body of a human being, he has been given the honor to judge his fellow human beings. Because the Son of Man has suffered an eternal amount of pain, he has been given the honor of judging those for whom he suffered. Because the Son of Man met death face to face and conquered it, he has been given the privilege to judge those for whom he died and rose again. Because the Son of Man became one of us, he has been given the honor to judge those who do not believe in him and all of us who do. The Son of Man, Jesus Christ, is our Judge, and there is no one else that we would want with the gavel in his hand. Because he is a merciful God. He is a kind and compassionate God. And he is compassionate not because we have done something to earn it, of course, but because he wants to be compassionate to us. And on the Last Day he will give us what we have thrown away. He will give us life. That is his promise to us. Our life is what he died for after all. And so what a glorious day it will be when he comes again! We will all rise to meet our Judge. And then we who believe in him will rise to be with him in heaven for all eternity. There will be no greater day for Christians than Judgment Day. Because on that Day we will see our Savior face to face for the first time. On that Day we will be freed from sin forever. On that Day we will finally go home. And that one Day will last forever.
Amen.

“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come.”
- Rev. 4:8

11/8/09 - Last Judgment - Malachi 4:1-2

HOW CAN YOU BE SURE?
- Our future can look dismal because of sin
- Our future looks promising through faith

There is about a 400 year gap in between the last book of the Old Testament and the first book of the New Testament. The last Old Testament prophet, Malachi, wrote his book around 400 B.C. (Before Christ) and the book of Matthew, of course, describes the life of Christ. And so if you were to guess what Malachi prophesied about in the very last chapter of his book, you might very well guess that he would talk about the Christ that was to come. Especially if there were to be no other biblical books until the Savior arrived - it would make sense if Malachi ended the Old Testament with a prophecy about Christ’s entrance into this world. And if you were to guess that, you would be half-way correct. Malachi did write about Jesus, but he didn’t write about Christ’s first coming as a human being, rather he wrote about Christ’s second coming as the Almighty King. Malachi finishes his book with a prophecy about Judgment Day and it is the last written words of God that believers were given for four full centuries. The first two verses of the last chapter of the last book of the Old Testament are these: “‘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,’ says the LORD Almighty. ‘Not a root or a branch will be left to them. But for you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings. And you will go out and leap like calves released from the stall.’”
These are the words that Malachi left the people with to think about and to ponder for almost half a millennium as they waited for Christ to come. And these are words that are left for us to think about and to ponder as we wait for Christ to come because these words have yet to be fulfilled. Judgment Day is still sometime in the future. And so as we consider Malachi’s prophecy about Judgment Day today, the question needs to be asked: what side of the line will you be on when this Last Day arrives? Will you be like the stubble or chaff in Malachi’s prophecy - the casings and throw-away pieces of a head of wheat that are thrown up into the air and blown away? Will you be burned by the fire along with the arrogant and the evildoers? Or will the sun of righteousness shine on you and will you leap for joy at the Day of the Lord like young calves bounding out of an open stall? I would imagine that every one of you would say that you would be among those upon him the sun of righteousness would shine; you would be among those who would leap for joy at the coming of your Lord because he will come to take you to heaven. And I would say the same thing about myself. And if that’s the case, allow me to ask you a follow-up question: how can you be sure? How can you be absolutely sure that what you want to happen on Judgment Day actually will?
Because there are very few things that you can be absolutely sure about in this life. There are few guarantees. You don’t know if your vehicle will get you home today. You’d like it to and you assume that it will, but vehicles break down sometimes. Or there may be glass on the road that punctures your tire. Or someone might run into you on the way back and although you might make it home, it may be in a rental car. You certainly hope that your vehicle gets you home today, but you can’t be sure.
Similarly, you expect that the contracts you sign to be honored. But contracts have loopholes, some of them have escape clauses, and there will always be situations or special circumstances that a contract doesn’t address. Add to that the fact that there are many people on this earth who will break a signed promise regardless of the legal ramifications. And so you can never be sure that a contract will be carried out in the end no matter how important it is to you.
There may even be a very trustworthy person in your life. Someone that you can count on. Someone who never lets you down. Someone who has kept his/her word time and time again. But no matter how spotless the track record of that reliable individual is, you can’t be absolutely sure that what they promise to do will come true every time. There are too many variables; there are too many extenuating circumstances. There are countless things in this life that this trustworthy person has no control of and never will. You might have become used to depending on this person’s words or advice, but you can never be absolutely sure that things will turn out exactly the way they were planned. There are very few things that you can be sure about in this life. And so let me ask you again: how can you be absolutely sure that you will end up in heaven when Christ comes again?
Despite the uncertainty of this life, regardless of the unreliability of people in this world, when the question comes up whether or not the Lord will take you to heaven when he comes again on the Last Day, you can confidently say “yes” to that question - and be absolutely sure about it. You do not have to think about that answer for any length of time. You do not have to be “mostly” convinced or “relatively” confident or “fairly” certain that you will end up in heaven. You can boldly say “yes” without any doubt in your mind because you know what the Lord has promised: he has promised that “whoever believes in him will be saved” (John 3:16). That is a guarantee. And you can fully rely on the Lord’s unchanging Word.
Of course, most people in this world aren’t that sure. There are those people in this life that want to go to heaven and strive to go to heaven and think it’s a pretty good possibility that they will go to heaven, but they really aren’t sure if they will. There are even those Christians in this world who actually do believe in Jesus as their Savior and they will eventually end up in heaven, but as they live their lives on this earth they sometimes aren’t all that confident that heaven will be their final destination. They hope it will be and they’ve been told it will be, but sometimes it just seems too good to be true. Because when Christians look at their lives and they see the way they’ve acted and they are aware of the multitude of sins that they keep committing every day, it doesn’t seem possible that the Lord would accept someone so awful into his heavenly home. Hasn’t that ever crossed your mind? Haven’t you ever questioned the reality of someone like you being allowed into a perfect place where God himself lives?
What are the top five worst sins that you’ve ever committed? If you had to rank every sin that you’ve committed in your entire life, what are those sins that you would place in the one, two, three, four, and five spots? Do any of those past sins ever work their way back into your memory at certain times of your life? Does any of the guilt or the embarrassment of those sins affect your conscience from time to time and make you feel ashamed all over again? When those big and ugly sins are haunting your thoughts, how easy is it for you to be fully assured of your salvation and completely convinced of your forgiveness so that you have nothing to worry about when the Day of Judgment arrives?
And even apart from those really infamous sins, there are those weeks when we are just off-the-charts sinful. We are in the wrong frame of mind the entire time and we can’t seem to do or say or think anything without it being mired in sin. We show up on a Sunday morning and think back at the seven days we have spent in the gutter and we feel almost unworthy to sit in God’s House and even hypocritical to sing his praises. During those weeks of sinful regurgitation, how confident are you of your salvation? On those days when it seems like you can’t do anything but sin and at those times you would probably even describe yourself as the arrogant and the evildoer whom Malachi says will be burned in the fire, how sure are you that heaven really is the place that you should be going to when it is all said and done?
There are times, even in the minds of the strongest of Christians, when salvation and forgiveness and the eternal home of heaven don’t seem as sure as we would like them to be. And every time that happens, every time we begin to doubt or question or wonder about where we might end up on the Last Day, it is because we are focusing on the wrong thing. We are focusing on ourselves. When we start to look at what we have done in this life, when we dwell on the poor quality of our Christian living, when we are truly honest about the ungodliness of our actions and thoughts and words, we will despair. Every time. And if we linger on the extent of our sinfulness and the depth of our impiety it will inevitably fill us with hopelessness. Heaven will never be a sure thing when our sins are all we see. We will never be confident about our future home in Paradise if we look to ourselves - because the confidence and the hope and the certainty of salvation cannot be found in what we’ve done. So don’t bother trying to find proof from your life that you belong in heaven. It is useless to try to convince yourself that you should go to heaven on the Last Day from evidence of your own actions and thoughts and words on this earth. That would be a hopeless endeavor. The only way you will ever be sure that heaven is where you will be for all eternity is if you stop looking at yourself and you start looking to your Savior.
Yes, you have sinned. And so I have. But Christ has shouldered our sin and has placed his righteousness on our shoulders in return. Yes, you have been doing evil things in evil ways for many years. And so have I. But Christ has been doing miraculous things on our behalf for more years than we have been alive. Yes, you have earned for yourself a terrible eternal punishment and a sentence of death. And so have I. But Christ has already suffered that punishment for us on the cross and has broken that death sentence forever when he rose from the grave. Yes, you do deserve to be placed with the arrogant and the evildoers on Judgment Day. And so do I. But Christ has promised to place us among the saints and the angels in heaven forever. Christ has made it possible for us to go to heaven even though we have done everything possible to exclude ourselves from that honor. And Christ has made heaven possible through one thing only: through faith in his name. It is that simple. Those who trust in their good deeds will be condemned. Those who believe in Jesus Christ will be saved.
And that is exactly what Malachi prophesied in the last chapter of the Old Testament. Listen closely again to how the Lord describes both groups of people on that Final Day. “All the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble, and that day that is coming will set them on fire… But for you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings.” Those who will end up in heaven are those who “revere” the name of the Lord - those who believe. They are not required to do anything for their salvation. They are not asked to prove their worth in any way. They are the people who simply believe in Jesus’ name. The sun of righteousness will shine on them. They will leap for joy like calves coming out of a stall for the very first time. Because that which they had been expecting for years will finally be theirs forever.
And you can expect the same thing. You can have that same confidence. Forget what you have done in the past; it is no longer of any consequence. Rid yourself of all those feelings of guilt and inadequacy; they have already been taken care of. Jesus has accomplished what needed to be done. Jesus has died for everyone who should. Jesus has risen when no one else could. And now Jesus has made a promise to you that cannot be broken: you will be taken to heaven when he comes again. There is no debate. There is no question. There is no doubt. You believe in Jesus’ name. You will be saved. And you can be absolutely sure about that.
Amen.

“He who testifies to these things says, ‘Yes, I am coming soon.’ Amen. Come, Lord Jesus. Amen.” - Revelation 22:20

11/1/09 - Reformation - Revelation 14:6

WE CELEBRATE THE ETERNAL GOSPEL

It was the morning of February 22nd, 1546. And in a town called Wittenberg hundreds of people began to gather inside the castle church. This was the same church on whose doors Martin Luther had nailed the 95 Theses twenty nine years ago, the same church that had been filled with the echoes of his voice from the pulpit on numerous occasions. But there was to be no debate about indulgences or papal authority on this day. In fact, Martin Luther wasn’t even going to speak. Instead, a pastor named John Bugenhagen stepped up into the pulpit, not only because he was the ordained pastor there, but because he had been Luther’s pastor, and this was Luther’s funeral service. The reformer had died four days previously in the town of his birth, a little placed called Eisleben, and his body had now been brought back here to Wittenberg for the burial because this city had been his home and it had also been the center of the Reformation from the very beginning. But as Pastor Bugenhagen began this funeral sermon, he struggled to find the words. Because he had not only been Luther’s pastor, he had also been his close friend. “What shall I say and how shall I speak, since I probably will not be able to utter a word because of my tears?” he said to the crowds that had crammed inside. But this dear friend of Luther’s did eventually find the words to speak. And he boldly preached to the people about the great things the Lord had done through this man who had now passed away. “He was without doubt,” Bugenhagen proclaimed, “the angel concerning whom it is written in Revelation 14, who flew through the midst of heaven and had an eternal Gospel.”
Now, Luther was no angel. He was far too sinful to be one of the Lord’s celestial servants of heaven. But Bugenhagen wasn’t making a point about Luther’s character; he was making a point about what Luther carried. Martin Luther carried the “eternal gospel” to the nations just as the angel in the book of Revelation was seen doing. And the reason I bring this up is because this portion of Scripture from Revelation 14 is the basis for our sermon today. And so this morning we celebrate what John Bugenhagen and the believers at Luther’s funeral celebrated. Today we celebrate what the Lord has done through those who have gone before us so that we too have the true and unchanging Word of God in our lives. Today we celebrate the eternal gospel.
The text that Pastor Bugenhagen quoted and the words that the apostle John writes about the vision he was given Revelation 14:6 are these: “Then I saw another angel flying in midair, and he had the eternal gospel to proclaim to those who live on the earth - to every nation, tribe, language and people.” On this Reformation Sunday we celebrate the same eternal gospel that was carried by an angel in this vision of John. We celebrate the same gospel that was brought back into focus by God’s work through the Christians living in the Holy Roman Empire of the 16th century. We celebrate the same gospel that was preserved by the Lord through faithful men and women throughout Europe and elsewhere for hundreds of years after the Reformation. We celebrate the same gospel that was brought over to this country in the mid 1800’s by those longing for religious peace. And we celebrate the same gospel that the Lord still protects and still proclaims today through his servants around the world. We celebrate this same eternal gospel because this same eternal gospel has never changed.
It has never changed. From the very first time it was announced by God to Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden all the way up to November 1st, 2009, the eternal gospel has never changed. What we believe today is what genuine Christians have always believed. The gospel has never been modified. It has never been adjusted to fit different cultures over time. It has never been morphed into anything different than what it was from the very beginning. The gospel is and always will be this: salvation through faith in Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of our sins. No person, no idea, no devil can ever change that. It is the eternal gospel. It is the gospel that will last forever. It is the gospel worth dying for.
Throughout Scripture we find people putting their lives on the line for the sake of the gospel. The prophet Jeremiah was one of these men who considered this gospel more important than his life. And because of his stance he was arrested on more than one occasion, he was threatened by the authorities, and he was thrown into a well and left for dead by his own people. Generations later the prophet Zechariah was murdered by the king himself in the Lord’s own temple because of the gospel. Jesus’ cousin, John the Baptist, was beheaded, James the brother of John was executed in a prison, and Stephen was stoned to death - all on account of their faith in the gospel. In fact, it is commonly held that all of Jesus’ 12 disciples except for John were martyred for what they believed. And John - although not murdered - was exiled to the island of Patmos for his faith. These men thought it necessary to preserve and defend the teaching of salvation through faith in Jesus over and above preserving and defending their own lives.
And that has been true throughout the centuries. For hundreds of years after the apostles lived and died, Christians across this earth have risked their lives for this eternal gospel. A man named John Hus who lived a full hundred years before the Reformation ever took shape in Wittenberg, refused to take back his confession about faith in Jesus for salvation. He was burned at the stake. And during the Reformation itself, every single believer who held to the true words of God found in Scripture was considered a heretic and even an outlaw by the ruler of the Holy Roman Empire. Because of their confession of faith their lives were in constant danger and any one of them could have been arrested at any time by the government authorities. And yet they remained true to the gospel. They proudly proclaimed what they knew to be the Truth. Regardless of the consequences they held fast to the eternal gospel because it was worth dying for.
And although persecutions and dangers still happen today all over the world on account of the gospel, we usually do not have to deal with any physical threats in this country because of our faith. It truly is a blessing that we are not considered enemies of the state on account of our faith in Christ. It truly is a blessing that swords are not held to our throats or nails pounded into our hands or stones thrown at our heads because of what we believe and confess. The Lord has allowed us to live in a wonderful place at a wonderful time. But I’m afraid that this religious freedom that we experience also leads us to take this eternal gospel for granted at times. We don’t have to fight to keep it and so we usually expend little strength to keep it close to our hearts. No one is trying to rip it away from us and so we don’t find it necessary to grasp it tightly to our chests. We don’t have a government threatening our lives because of this gospel and so it is easy for us to forget how important this gospel is to our lives. We know that it’s important, of course! As Christians we realize what this gospel contains! That’s why we’re here this morning! But sometimes we treat the gospel as if it’s nothing all that urgent: “We’ve always had it, it’ll always be here, and so what’s the rush? If I don’t get to reading my Bible today it’s no big deal; it’ll be there tomorrow. If I don’t quite understand a certain sentence or part of Scripture, that’s OK; I’m in no hurry to figure it out or put in the effort to study it further. If the gospel doesn’t occupy my weekday life all that much, it’s understandable; I’ve got other things that I need to do and other things that I want to do anyway. The gospel doesn’t have to be behind every part of my life, does it?”
I don’t know if the gospel is as precious to us as it was to those who had to put their lives on the line for it. I don’t know if we treat it as pricelessly as those who had to fight to get it back. I don’t know if we appreciate it as much as those who didn’t have it at one time. You know how they say that “You don’t really appreciate something until it’s gone”? I think that can apply to the gospel as well. But we’ve always had it! We’ve had access to it our entire lives with little to no opposition. And so the Bible sometimes becomes just another book on the shelf, a worship service sometimes becomes just another time slot on the schedule, sometimes even Christ and his cross become just another one of those things among the many things that we’ve been taught when we were kids. I wouldn’t say that any of us here actually despise the gospel, but I wonder if we really regard it as our most treasured possession to be guarded and soaked in and shared and adored every day of our lives. I wonder if we truly cherish this gospel as if it were more important than life itself - something we would die to defend.
I hope I never have to find out if I would die to defend it. I hope I’m never put into a situation where my life was on the line for the sake of the gospel. I hope I never have to suffer the kinds of persecution that so many Christians have suffered before me and so many Christians are suffering right now. But I hope that I will always value the gospel as much as they did. I hope I will always treasure the gospel as much as those who went before me did. But the only way that I will ever value the eternal gospel as much as those Christians did who were willing to die rather than give up their faith - is to read it, to study it, to hear it, to immerse myself in it every opportunity I get so that the power of God’s Word can work in my heart and convince me that there is nothing better, there is nothing more precious, there is nothing else. Only the gospel can move me to love the gospel. Only the gospel can move you to love the gospel. There is no other way.
And so the more you read about Jesus, the Son of God, being born of a pregnant virgin in a barn in a town called Bethlehem, the more you will begin to see God’s unwavering commitment to your salvation. The more you hear about the incredible miracles that Jesus performed and the inspiring words that he preached and the passionate prayers that he prayed, the more you will begin to notice his mercy and power for your good. The more you study the prophecies about Christ in the Old Testament - his coming, his suffering, and his coming again - the more you will begin to see that everything the Lord does has all been done for you. The more that you are exposed to the last few days of Jesus’ life when he was arrested and beaten and flogged and mocked and crucified, the more you will be moved by his love. The longer you stare at his wounds, the longer you stand at the base of his cross, the longer you gaze into a tomb that no longer contains a body, the more certain you will become of your forgiveness - because that is how he earned it for you. You will become so certain, in fact, that nothing will be able to shake you from the faith that the Lord has secured to your heart.
The more you are in the gospel, the more you will want to stay in it. The deeper you get into his Word, the deeper you will want to go. It is a sea of unreachable depths on the one hand, but on the other hand it is as simple as two beams of wood put together for our salvation. The gospel - the eternal gospel - will guide you and guard you and strengthen you and give you the peace that you need. And one day this gospel will take you home.
This is the gospel we celebrate today. We rejoice in the fact that Christ died and rose from the dead and then gave us the faith to believe it. We commemorate the fact that he has defended this gospel through centuries of persecutions and hardships and oppression. And we marvel at the fact that the Lord has preserved this gospel among us for so long. I pray that we always realize how precious this eternal gospel is that God promises will be proclaimed “to those who live on the earth - to every nation, tribe, language and people.” This is the gospel that God himself died for. This is the gospel that God himself rescued in the 16th century. This is the gospel that God himself has carefully passed down to you from those who have gone before us. This gospel is the most important thing you have. Never let it go. Never let it go.
Amen.

“May the Lord our God be with us as he was with our fathers. May he never leave or forsake us.” - 1 Kings 8:57