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INJ
Romans 15:4-13 | St Luke 21:25-36
God's Patience, Our Expectation
Morning Service
Populus Zion, The 2nd Sunday in Advent | December 10, 2006
Dear Saints,
Introduction: Advent and the Three-fold Coming of Jesus
Advent is the time for considering the coming of Jesus, His three fold coming: first, that He has all ready come; second, that He continues to come to us today; and third, that He will come again.
His first coming was in the womb of the virgin Mary, Christmas, His coming in the flesh to suffer and die in our place. This will be emphasized in the next two Sundays.
Jesus also still comes to us today in His Word and gifts: baptism and the Lord's Supper. This was especially the theme of last Sunday, Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem. On that day the crowds sang Psalm 118, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord.” We still sing that hymn today in the church, it's the second part of the Sanctus, sung right before the Lord's Supper.
“Blessed is He, blessed is He, blessed is He who already came in the name of the Lord...” No, that's not it, “Blessed is He who cometh,” who comes, still today comes. This is, in fact, what is going on every Sunday, Jesus gathers us to His name, to His Word, to His altar from which He serves His meal, so that He would be in our midst with His comfort and peace. “Where ever two or three are gathered together in My name, there I am in the midst of them.” [St Matthew 18:20] That's His promise for us; Jesus still comes even today.
And Jesus will come again. This is the third of the three-fold coming of Jesus, the promise of His return in judgment. This is really the theme of the second week in Advent, as we have in our Gospel reading today from St Luke 21 these words of Jesus:
25“And there will be signs in the sun, in the moon, and in the stars; and on the earth distress of nations, with perplexity, the sea and the waves roaring; 26men’s hearts failing them from fear and the expectation of those things which are coming on the earth, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 27Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. 28Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near.”
He will come again soon, St Luke 21
We've been talking about this quite a bit lately, with the end of the church year and all the texts we've had about Jesus' return and the resurrection of the flesh and the judgment of all mankind.
Yesterday the mortal remains of L. K. were buried at Fairmount Cemetery. Many of you were there, L., I understand, was a charter member of this congregation. We heard this as we stood there by the casket, “Earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust. We commit this body to the ground in the sure hope of the resurrection of the body.” The sure hope of the resurrection of the body.
As I was driving out of the cemetery I was looking at the hundreds, thousands of tombstones on the grounds, trying to read the names and dates and was noticing the symbols that people put on their tombstone: a cross, a star of David, there was some sort of lamp, maybe a lodge symbol. And as I was driving and thinking about the funeral and today's text I wondered, what would it be like if Jesus was to return now, and all of these people would be called out of the grave? There would be quite a crowd. How many of them would raise to the resurrection of life, and how many of these people would be raised to the resurrection of death?
It was a stunning thought to have; it's the thought that Jesus is pushing us toward with His words,
34“But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you unexpectedly. 35For it will come as a snare on all those who dwell on the face of the whole earth. 36Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man.”
Jesus is callings us to a readiness, to a watchfulness, to repentance, to cast off the works of darkness and the cares of this life, carousing, loose living, drunkenness, and all other wickedness. Jesus is calling us to faith in His promises, to a looking for our redemption which is even now drawing near.
And so, dear saints, repent. Cast off the works of darkness, the sins that you cling unto, that you love, that the devil loves, that you think bring you comfort, cast off those sins, repent. That the Son of Man who is soon coming in power and great glory will not catch you unaware. Be not unbelieving, but believing, that His return would bring to you the joy of your salvation and the fullness of the redemption that Jesus has won for us. He has promised it, He will return very soon.
Why the delay? Romans 15:4
“But wait a minute, Pastor,” you might say, “Preachers have been saying Jesus was going to return for two thousand years. But still Jesus hasn't come back. It seems silly to think that He would come back now, in our life time. Why this long delay?”
This is what our Epistle text will teach us, Romans 15, especially verse 4:
4For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope.
The next verse calls God the “God of patience and comfort”. God is patient. This two thousand years may seem like a long time to us, but for the Lord it is but a few days. God is patient, He, and this is of a great comfort to us, He is not anxious to judge the world.
St Peter tells us this: “You should remember the predictions of the holy prophets and the commandment of the Lord and Savior through your apostles, knowing this first of all, that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires. They will say, "Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation."... But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. ... But according to his promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. Therefore, beloved, since you are waiting for these, be diligent to be found by him without spot or blemish, and at peace. And count the patience of our Lord as salvation, just as our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you according to the wisdom given him...” [2 Peter 3:2-4,8-9,13-15]
The patience of the Lord is our salvation. It is not too much for Him to wait, to wait another hour or another day or another thousand years. He is patient, generous, full to the brim with love for us and desire for our salvation. We know that. We see it in front of us. His patience and love and grace and generosity are here, on the cross, for you.
So we wait, and hope, and pray, and sing, and believe and love and do good and fight the devil, knowing this, dear saints: our redemption draws nigh.
May the Jesus who has come and who still comes even today, comes soon to rescue us from this veil of tears and by His grace call us forth to the resurrection of life, where we will know the bliss of His grace, world without end. Amen.
And the peace of God which passes all understanding, guard your hearts and minds through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
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Pastor Bryan Wolfmueller
Hope Lutheran Church | Aurora, CO