“And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts are overcharged with surfeiting, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that day come upon you unexpectedly. For as a snare, it shall come on all those who dwell on the face of the whole earth. Therefore, be watchful all the time, praying that you may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass and to stand before the Son of man.” Luke 21:34-36 (Read Luke 21:5-36)

Jesus tells us in Luke 21 what will happen before His second advent, in clouds of glory, to judge the living and the dead. He speaks of what would happen to Jerusalem and the temple and what would befall His disciples (Luke 21:5ff.; cf. Matt. 24:1ff.; Mark 13:1ff.); and He then speaks about what will take place immediately before He comes.

“And there shall be signs in the sun, in the moon, and in the stars, and upon the earth distress of nations in perplexity because of the roaring of the sea and the waves. Men’s hearts will fail them for fear and for apprehension of those things which are coming on the earth, for the powers of heaven shall be shaken. And then they shall see ‘the Son of man coming in a cloud’ with power and great glory” (Luke 21:25-27).

He tells us: “And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up and lift up your heads, for your redemption draws near” (v. 28).

And He adds the parable of the fig tree: “Behold the fig-tree and all the trees. When they now shoot forth, you see and know of your own selves that summer is now near at hand. So likewise, when you see these things come to pass, you know that the kingdom of God is near at hand” (v. 29-31).

Jesus said (v. 32-33): “Truly I say to you, this generation shall not pass away until all is fulfilled. Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my word shall not pass away.”

Indeed, these signs were already fulfilled in the first century. There were “wars and commotions,” false Christs and false prophets. Christians were betrayed and persecuted, and Jerusalem was destroyed for its impenitence and unbelief, as Jesus had warned (cf. Luke 19:41-44).

And Jesus also warns us to “take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts are overcharged with surfeiting, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that day come upon you unexpectedly. For as a snare, it shall come on all those who dwell on the face of the whole earth. Therefore, be watchful all the time, praying that you may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass and to stand before the Son of man” (Luke 21:34-36).

Instead of being weighed down and overindulging in food, drink, or in the cares and concerns of this life, we are to be watching and praying that we not be caught off guard and, like the rest of the world, be found living in sin and impenitence and not ready at Jesus’ return.

Rather, we are to live in continual repentance, confessing our sins and holding fast in faith to Jesus and His cross for pardon and forgiveness so that we might be found ready to stand before Him when He appears.

The Bible tells us in Acts 3:19-21: “Therefore, repent and be converted so that your sins may be blotted out, and that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that he may send Jesus Christ, who before was preached to you, whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God has spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began.”

If we are found on that day continuing on in our sinful ways, impenitent and unbelieving, that day will find us unprepared and bring upon us God’s wrath and judgment. We will be condemned to the eternal torments of hell!

God’s Word says that “the Lord Jesus [will be] revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, in flaming fire, taking vengeance on those who do not know God and who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. They shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his power, when he comes to be glorified in his saints and to be admired by all those who believe (because our testimony among you was believed) in that day. …” (2 Thess. 1:7-10).

But If we are found acknowledging our sins — agreeing with God about our sinfulness — and looking to Jesus and His cross in faith for pardon and forgiveness, we will be ready on that day. Instead of being condemned, we will be pardoned, forgiven and given eternal life for Jesus’ sake (cf. John 5:24).

God’s Word tells us in 1 John, chapters 1 and 2: “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. My little children, these things I write to you so that you do not sin. And if any man sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. And he is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world” (1 John 1:8 – 2:2).

Jesus said (in John 3:14-18): “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up, so that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life. For this is how God loved the world: he gave his only-begotten Son, so that whoever believes in him, should not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through him may be saved. He who believes in him is not condemned, but he who does not believe is condemned already because he has not believed in the name of the only-begotten Son of God.”

God grant that, on that day, we not be found living in disobedience and sin but in the true and saving faith, acknowledging our sins and failures but trusting in the shed blood of Christ Jesus for pardon, forgiveness, and life everlasting. God grant this to us for Jesus’ sake. Amen.

O gracious and merciful Savior, grant that we continue in daily repentance and faith that we might be found ready on that day when You come to judge the living and the dead. Amen.

[Scripture is quoted from the Revised Common Version of the Bible.]

John testified concerning him, and cried, saying, “This was he of whom I spoke, ‘He who comes after me is preferred before me, for he was before me.’” John 1:15

What should be the focus of our witness? Should it be on us and our service to God? Should it be about our church and all that we are doing? Or should it be on Christ and what He has done for our salvation?

Look at John the Baptist. “John testified concerning him, and cried, saying, ‘This was he of whom I spoke, “He who comes after me is preferred before me, for he was before me.”’” Did John testify of himself and all the work he was doing? Did he focus on how many people he baptized in the Jordan River? No, he pointed people to Jesus.

And what did he say of Jesus? “He who comes after me is preferred before me, for he was before me.”

Even though Jesus was born after John (being about six months younger), and even though John’s ministry came before that of Jesus, John directed people to Jesus and said that Jesus was to be preferred before him. Even though John was a few months older than Jesus, John testified that Jesus already was before him, for Jesus is the eternal Son of God who was made man to redeem us!

John pointed people to Jesus and not to himself, for Jesus is God the Son, the Messiah and Savior! John pointed people to Jesus, saying, “Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29).

It is through Jesus’ holy life and His innocent sufferings and death on the cross that we sinners can have forgiveness and life. He fulfilled the righteous demands of God’s law for us and then took upon Himself the full punishment for our sins and the sins of all when He suffered and died on the cross and rose again in victory!

Through faith in Jesus, there is pardon and peace for lost and condemned sinners like you and me. When we repent of our sinful ways and look in faith to Jesus and His perfect sacrifice on the cross, God forgives our sins and pardons us; and He credits us with the perfect righteousness of Christ Jesus, making us acceptable in His sight and heirs of eternal life in God’s kingdom.

And the Bible tells us: “There is not salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).

O Jesus, the eternal Son of God, come into this world to redeem us; grant that we place our faith in You and Your cross, and also direct others to You and not ourselves, for only in You is there forgiveness, life and eternal salvation. Amen.

[Scripture is quoted from the Revised Common Version of the Bible.]

Lutheran Service Book #344 “On Jordan’s Bank the Baptist Cry”

“May grace be to you and peace from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.” (2 Cor. 1:2)

Psalm 130 [A Song of Degrees.]
1 Out of the depths I have cried to you, O LORD. 2 Lord, hear my voice. Let your ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications. 3 If you, LORD, should mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand? 4 But there is forgiveness with you so that you may be feared. 5 I wait for the LORD. My soul waits, and I hope in his word. 6 My soul waits for the Lord more than those who watch for the morning, even more than those who watch for the morning. 7 Let Israel hope in the LORD, for with the LORD there is mercy and with him is plenteous redemption. 8 And he shall redeem Israel from all his iniquities.

Malachi 4:1-6:
1 “For behold, the day comes that shall burn as an oven, and all the proud and all who do wickedly shall be stubble. And the day that comes shall burn them up,” says the LORD of hosts, “so that it shall leave them neither root nor branch. 2 But to you who fear my name, the Sun of righteousness shall arise with healing in his wings, and you shall go forth and grow up as calves of the stall. 3 And you shall tread down the wicked, for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day which I am preparing,” says the LORD of hosts. 4 “Remember the law of Moses my servant, which I commanded to him in Horeb for all Israel, with the statutes and judgments. 5 “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD. 6 And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.”

Luke 1:1-25:
1 Because many have taken in hand to set forth in order a declaration of those things which are most surely believed among us, 2 Even as they delivered them to us, who, from the beginning, were eye-witnesses and ministers of the word, 3 It seemed good to me also, having had perfect understanding of all things from the very first, to write to you in order, most excellent Theophilus, 4 So that you may know the certainty of those things in which you have been instructed.
5 There was in the days of Herod the king of Judea, a certain priest named Zechariah, of the course of Abia. And his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. 6 And they were both righteous before God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord. 7 And they had no child because Elizabeth was barren and they were both far advanced in years.
8 And it came to pass, that, while he executed the priest’s office before God in the order of his course, 9 According to the custom of the priest’s office, his lot was to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord. 10 And the whole multitude of the people were praying outside at the time of incense. 11 And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense. 12 And when Zechariah saw him, he was troubled and fear fell upon him. 13 But the angel said to him, “Do not fear, Zechariah, for your prayer is heard. Your wife Elizabeth shall bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. 14 And you shall have joy and gladness, and many shall rejoice at his birth, 15 For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord. He shall drink neither wine nor strong drink, and he shall be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb. 16 And many of the children of Israel he shall turn to the Lord their God. 17 And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah to ‘turn the hearts of the fathers to the children’ and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”
18 And Zechariah said to the angel, “By what shall I know this? For I am an old man and my wife is far advanced in years.” 19 And the angel, answering, said to him, “I am Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God, and am sent to speak to you and to show you these glad tidings. 20 And behold, you shall be mute and not able to speak until the day that these things are performed because you do not believe my words which shall be fulfilled in their season.”
21 And the people waited for Zechariah and marveled that he tarried so long in the temple. 22 And when he came out, he could not speak to them. And they perceived that he had seen a vision in the temple, for he beckoned to them and remained speechless. 23 And it came to pass that as soon as the days of his ministration were accomplished, he departed to his own house.
24 And after those days his wife Elizabeth conceived and secluded herself five months, saying, 25 “Thus the Lord has dealt with me in the days in which he looked at me to take away my reproach among men.”

Why did God send John the Baptist?

“For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord. He shall drink neither wine nor strong drink, and he shall be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb. And many of the children of Israel he shall turn to the Lord their God. And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah to ‘turn the hearts of the fathers to the children’ and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.” Luke 1:15-17

The words of Gabriel to Zachariah echo the Word of the Lord recorded by Malachi, the prophet: “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD. And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse” (Mal. 4:5-6).

And, as we prepare for the second advent of the LORD, our Lord Jesus Christ, we continue in the ministry of John the Baptist by calling sinners to repentance and pointing them to Christ Jesus and His atoning sacrifice on the cross for the sins of the world.

As God’s Word teaches us, we are to preach “that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that he was buried and that he rose again the third day according to the Scriptures” (1 Cor. 15:3-4). We are to preach “repentance and remission of sins … in his name among all nations” (Luke 24:45-47). We are to point people to Jesus and proclaim the truth that Jesus is “the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29), that He is our “advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. And he is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world” (1 John 2:1-2).

While many think lightly of Christ’s return and the final judgment and see no need for repentance, it is indeed a serious matter. If the LORD judges us according to His law, who can stand, as we read in Psalm 130:3? The answer, of course, is none of us, for we have all sinned and come short of what God, in His law, demands (cf. Rom. 3:19-20,23).

In Malachi 3:2, we read: “But who may endure the day of his coming? And who shall stand when he appears? For he is like a refiner’s fire and like fuller’s soap.”

In Malachi 4:1,5-6, we read: “‘For behold, the day comes that shall burn as an oven, and all the proud and all who do wickedly shall be stubble. And the day that comes shall burn them up,’ says the LORD of hosts, ‘so that it shall leave them neither root nor branch. … Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD. And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.’”

It is for that reason that John the Baptist came to call upon sinners to repent and look to Christ Jesus, the Lamb of God, for pardon and forgiveness (cf. Luke 3:2ff.; Ps. 130:4ff.). And the Church, through its ministers, still preaches the same message today (cf. Luke 24:46-47; John 20:20-23; Acts 3:19ff.). Both John and the Church seek “to ‘turn the hearts of the fathers to the children’ and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”

Through the preaching of God’s Word, the fathers and their descendants are united again in the true fear of the LORD. Those who were disobedient to the true faith are awakened to their sinfulness by God’s Spirit and turned to the wisdom of the just — to the wisdom of those who acknowledge and repent of their sinful ways and look in faith to the LORD God for mercy and forgiveness for the sake of the promised Messiah and His redeeming work.

What is the message in this for you and for me? The only way for you and me, or anyone, to be ready for the Lord’s return and to escape the curse and condemnation of God’s holy law is to repent and trust in the holy life and innocent sufferings and death of Christ Jesus for the sins of the world (cf. Rom. 3:21-26; Gal. 3:10,13; Acts. 3:17ff.)

It is as we read in Acts 4:12, “There is not salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” And Acts 16:31 says, “Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you and your house shall be saved.”

O LORD God, we have sinned and come short of the righteousness Your law demands. We are guilty and justly stand condemned. Have mercy on us and forgive us our sins for the sake of the holy life and innocent sufferings and death of Christ Jesus, Your Son and our crucified and risen Savior, that we may be found in Him, just and holy and acceptable in Your sight on that day when Christ returns to judge the living and the dead. Amen.

Prayers
Almighty and everlasting God, who, by the mouth of Your prophets, proclaimed the advent of Your Son, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, the Hope of Israel and the Savior of the world; By Your Holy Spirit, move us to humble ourselves before You, sincerely repent of our sins, and look in faith to Christ Jesus and His cross for mercy and forgiveness that we may be prepared for His second coming, when He shall appear in the clouds of heaven with all His holy angels to judge the living and the dead. Let not that day come upon us unexpectedly and surprise us in unbelief and sin, but grant that we be always watchful, continuing in Your Word and prayer. And, when that day does come, grant that we may lift up our heads with joy because our redemption draws nigh.

Hear us, O Father, for the sake of the holy life and innocent sufferings and death of Your dear Son in our stead. In His name, we pray. Amen.

Lord’s Prayer
Our Father who is in heaven, may your name be hallowed. May your kingdom come. May your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us for our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For yours is the kingdom, the power, and the glory forever. Amen. (Matthew 6:9-13)

Benediction
May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen. (2 Cor. 13:14)

Lutheran Service Book #878 “Abide with Me”

[Scripture is quoted from the Revised Common Version of the Bible.]

“The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, the glory as the only Son of the Father, full of grace and truth.” John 1:14 (Read John 1:1-14)

Who is the Child born of the Virgin Mary in Bethlehem and laid in a manger?

We find God’s answer to that in John 1:1-4,14: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were created through Him, and without Him nothing was created that was created. In Him was life, and the life was the light of mankind … The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, the glory as the only Son of the Father, full of grace and truth.”

That Babe born in Bethlehem was none other than God Himself, the eternal Word, made flesh that He might dwell among us and redeem us from sin and eternal death and damnation.

The Apostle John also writes of Him: “We saw His glory, the glory as the only Son of the Father …” John and the other disciples witnessed Jesus’ divine glory in His mighty miracles, in His glorious transfiguration, and in His resurrection and ascension. Jesus is the eternal Son of God, come into this world a true man.

Indeed, God did the most amazing thing! With us being totally dead in our sins and unable to please God or come to Him, He sent His only-begotten Son (the eternal Word, true God with the Father and Holy Spirit, the Creator of all things visible and invisible) into His own creation as a man to redeem fallen mankind and give us life! God’s Son became flesh — a true man with flesh and bones and blood, like you and me — when He was conceived and born of the Virgin Mary through the miraculous working of God’s Spirit.

The Bible tells us in Galatians 4:4-5: “But when the fullness of time came, God sent forth His Son, born from a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.”

In fulfillment of God’s promises of old, God the Son took on human flesh and blood and became true man so that He might take our place under God’s law and fulfill it for us and then redeem us from the curse and condemnation of God’s law by suffering our just punishment by means of His death on the cross.

The Bible tells us: “Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law by being made a curse for us — as it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree” (Gal. 3:13).

And why did He do it? “That we might receive the adoption as sons” through faith in His name (Gal. 4:5), that we might look to Him and His atoning sacrifice in faith and be received as God’s children.

Again, St. Paul writes in Galatians 3:26-27: “You are all sons of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.”

As our text says, Jesus is “full of grace and truth.” In Jesus, we see the fullness of God’s grace toward us sinners. In Jesus and His atoning sacrifice on the cross, God’s undeserved love reached down and provided a way of salvation for lost mankind; and, in Jesus, God still reaches down to us lost and condemned sinners, offering forgiveness of sins and life everlasting through faith in Christ and His cross.

In this sin-darkened world, God’s truth is revealed to us through His Son, Jesus Christ. Jesus is the truth — only in Him is there forgiveness and life everlasting! He is “the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6). Only in Him can we obtain forgiveness of sins and life everlasting (cf. John 14:6; Acts 4:12)!

God grant that we look to Him in faith!

O eternal God, our heavenly Father, we thank you for the gracious gift of Your only-begotten Son, Jesus Christ, to be our Savior and the only true way to life everlasting. Graciously grant to us true faith in Your Son and our Savior. Amen.

[Scripture is quoted from The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.]

“He was in the world, and the world was created through Him, yet the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and His own people did not receive Him. Yet to all who received Him, He gave the power to become sons of God, to those who believed in His name, who were born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.” John 1:10-13

It is an amazing thing that God the Son, the Creator of the world, was in the world, and yet the world did not recognize Him! Jesus Christ, God Himself in human flesh, came into this world, and the people of this world did not know Him or acknowledge Him to be who He truly is.

Of course, nothing is different today. People still do not know or recognize Jesus for who He is. He made us and redeemed us, and yet we, by nature, do not acknowledge Him as our Creator or our Redeemer.

Jesus, the promised Messiah and Savior, came to His own people — to those who had the promises of God’s Word and looked for His coming — but they did not receive Him. And today as well, He comes through His Word to those who have known and heard the promises, but still, people are unwilling to receive Him.

But to those who do receive Him — to those who trust that in Him and for the sake of His blood shed on the cross for the sins of all mankind, God is gracious toward us and forgives sins — God has given the right and privilege to be His children.

As the Scripture says, “You are all sons of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ” (Gal. 3:26-27).

However, our receiving of Jesus as the Messiah and Savior is not the result of our natural birth or bloodline. It is not because we were born to Christian parents or were raised in a church. It’s not even the result of our own will or decision. Rather, it is the gracious working of God the Holy Spirit in our lives. Through His Word, God reveals Himself to us and reveals to us Jesus as God the Son and our Savior, leading us to trust in Him for forgiveness and life.

It is as God’s Word says: “Yet to all who received Him, He gave the power to become sons of God, to those who believed in His name, who were born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.”

We give You thanks, O Lord Jesus Christ, for graciously revealing to us that You are both our Creator and our Redeemer. We thank You for going to the cross and paying in full for our sins and the sins of the world so that we might have forgiveness of sins and everlasting life through faith in Your name. Thank You for moving us to trust in Your name and for giving us the right and privilege to be called children of God. Amen.

[Scripture is quoted from The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.]