Lent Midweek 1

Lent Midweek 1 – March 12, 2025

Psalm 91; 1 Kings 19:3b-8

St. Matthew 12:38-50

In the Name of the Father, and of the + Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Hezekiah was the greatest king of Judah during the time of the divided kingdom. He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, tore down the places of false worship, destroyed the false idol Nehushtan, and walked in the commandments of the Lord.[1] During his reign, Assyria laid siege to Jerusalem and the Lord delivered Hezekiah and his people from their evil oppression. Then came the time when Hezekiah fell gravely ill, and the prophet Isaiah told him that this sickness would be his death. Hezekiah wept bitterly and prayed that God would extend his life. The Lord heard his prayer, saw his tears of repentance, and granted him fifteen more years of life. At that time, Hezekiah asked the prophet Isaiah for a sign that his life would be extended. The Lord gave him a sign by turning back the shadow on a sundial by 10 degrees.[2]

When Hezekiah asked for a sign, he was asking for a small symbol to embolden his confidence in the promise of the greater miracle of his extended life. In a sense, he was asking for a small token, a promissory note, that he could cling to should his faith waver in the Lord’s word of promise. This was granted to Hezekiah.

The scribes and Pharisees of our reading this evening were not asking for a sign the same way that Hezekiah did. They had already seen Christ perform great miracles, fulfilling the words of the prophets when they described the coming of the Christ. They had both His words of promise and many signs by which they could be confident that this carpenter from Nazareth was God in the flesh. Yet they demanded more signs. They were not content with the signs given by God, they demanded more. They wanted signs on their own terms to satisfy their own definition of God.

That is why Christ is severe with them. He calls them an “evil and adulterous generation.”[3] They want a god who acts according to their laws, not the Lord God, creator of heaven and earth, who has ordered the universe according to His will. Christ tells them they will receive no sign but the sign of Jonah and instructs them with three illustrations. He is teaching them concerning repentance, wisdom, and perseverance in the faith once delivered.[4]

When considering the sign of Jonah, we shouldn’t get distracted by the number of days. It is true, Jonah was in the belly of the fish for three days and Christ rested in the tomb for three days. This is a historical fact. But the sign of Jonah is that he was in the belly of the fish only for three days. After that time, he rose again. He came back to life. The sign of Jonah is the resurrection. Christ will spend three days in the belly of the earth, resting in the tomb, but then He will rise again. There is no point in stating how long Jonah was in the fish if he didn’t come out of the fish. So too, there is no point to Christ being in the tomb for three days unless He comes out of the tomb at the end of those three days.

This fact does not escape the Pharisees. They petition Pilate to set a guard at the tomb because they fear that the Christ will rise again on the third day. If He does rise from the dead, their doctrine is proved false. They are shown to be false teachers and are liable to the judgment of God.

This sign of Jonah is followed by three illustrations of judgment against the evil and adulterous generation. First are the Ninevites. The Ninevites were a wicked and perverse generation. Nineveh was an important city of the Assyrian Empire, at various times serving as its capital. We are not told of the specific evils committed by the Ninevites at the time of Jonah, only that “their wickedness had come up before” the Lord.[5] Idolatry and sexual immorality were certainly among their sins. Human sacrifice, specifically the murder of children, was also likely among their transgressions. For their wickedness, the Lord resolved to destroy the city, but before executing His judgment, the Lord sent Jonah to preach repentance to the Ninevites.

And they listened. From the king down to the cows, every citizen of Nineveh sat in sackcloth and ashes, repenting of their sins and crying out to the true God of heaven and earth for mercy. They heard the word of God and saw their own sinful condition. The Word of God entered deeply into their souls and brought about such repentance that has rarely been seen on that scale. They did not seek to avoid the Lord. They did not hide behind a law of their own creation. They did not excuse their sin. They repented and cried out to God for mercy and forgiveness. The Lord heard their cries and forgave the city. He relented of His destruction of Nineveh. By the preaching of His Word, the Lord brought the entire city of Nineveh into the fold of the faithful.

 It is these repentant sinners that Christ says will judge the scribes and Pharisees. These repentant saints of God will sit in judgment over those who would have God bow to their own wills and act according to the will of man.

Then Christ speaks of the queen of the South. This is the Queen of Sheba, who came to Solomon because she had heard of his great wisdom and wanted to learn of this wisdom for herself.[6] Sheba was a kingdom on the southwest tip of the Arabian Peninsula. It was a rich and powerful kingdom but was committed to the worship of false gods. Her journey to Jerusalem was likely as much for economic and military reasons as for curiosity about this wise king to her north.

But once she heard the teachings of Solomon, she couldn’t help but sing the praises of the True God of Solomon. “Blessed be the Lord your God, who delighted in you!”[7] He spoke to her concerning wisdom in this world but certainly told her of the True God who would save this sinful world from damnation. Through the preaching of Solomon, the Queen of Sheba brought the true faith back to her people. Again, a nation of people was saved by the preaching of God’s Word. The Queen repented of her belief in demons and turned toward the True God, who would be born in Bethlehem and save her from her sins.

Christ says that this queen will also sit in judgement over this evil and adulterous generation. She who sought the wisdom of God through Solomon will sit among all the faithful in the day of judgment and pronounce condemnation on scribes and Pharisees, who prefer their own wisdom to the Word of God.

After these historic examples, our Lord provides a sort of parable of a man who has been freed from the possession of a demon.[8] But once he has been freed, the man does not make way for the Holy Spirit. He prefers to remain an empty house, open to all the possibilities of the world. If he is not with Christ, then he is against Him, as the parable shows. The demon returns with seven more powerful demons, who then possess the man, leaving him in a state worse than the first.

This man is the personification of the scribes and the Pharisees, the wicked generation. He has been delivered from the oppression of Satan by the Word of God but does not care about what comes next. He has heard the Word of God but no longer clings to it.

Christ is highlighting the importance of perseverance in the faith. Not long ago we heard the parable of the sower, or more accurately, the parable of the soils.[9] Every field will eventually turn up stones and weeds, becoming unfit for growing crops. It is necessary that the good soil receiving the seed of the Word be tended. When it comes to tending to your soul, it shouldn’t sound like a burden. It is a joy! To be in God’s house, to hear and read His Word, to meditate on His Word, to foster a faithful family and faithful community is the very air the saints of God breathe. It is our lifeblood. Does it involve effort? Can it be difficult? Of course. Anything worth doing involves effort and can be difficult. But the reward is eternal life. In the struggle is the joy of life in Christ! The man in the parable goes to the effort of sweeping his soul clean and putting it in order but he fails to fill it with the Holy Spirit. In the end, he achieves nothing more than creating an ideal home for eight demons.

So then, our Lord’s mother and brothers arrive, wanting to speak with Him. But Christ says that these are His mother, brothers, and sisters, those who do the will of the Father. In this context, the will of the Father is everything our Lord has been speaking about. He is referring to those who repent like the Ninevites; those who seek the wisdom of God like the queen of the South; and those who cling to the faith once delivered, who diligently invite the Holy Spirit into their souls and tirelessly strive to maintain the salvation given to them freely. These are His disciples, His mother, brothers, and sisters. 

In T Jesus’ name. Amen.

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[1] 2 Kings 18:1-8.

[2] 2 Kings 20:1-11.

[3] St. Matthew 12:39.

[4] Jude 3.

[5] Jonah 1:2.

[6] 1 Kings 10:1-13; 2 Chronicles 9:1-12.

[7] 1 Kings 10:9.

[8] St. Matthew 12:43-45.

[9] St. Luke 8:4-15, the Gospel text for Sexagesima.

Populus Zion (Advent 2)

 Populus Zion (Advent 2) – December 8, 2024

Psalm 80; Malachi 4:1-6; Romans 15:4-13

St. Luke 21:25-36

In the Name of the Father, and of the + Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Our Lord, Jesus Christ, makes a vow to mankind this morning. He says, “Amen, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all things take place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away.”^[1]

The first part of this vow requires an understanding of the word “generation.” I can think of three ways to understand “generation,” and each is closely related to the others, but it is helpful to distinguish them. The first and common understanding of “generation” refers to the group of people born during a certain time. We might think of the Baby Boomers, Generation X, Millennials, Zoomers, or Gen Alpha. The bible uses the term this way whenever there is a list of generations or a genealogy. Applied to the vow of our Lord, this understanding of generation would severely limit His words and possibly invalidate them. It would mean that all the signs of the end times, including the return of Christ, would have been fulfilled by the death of the Apostles.

“Generation” can also refer to a set time period that is much broader than all those who live and die within a few years of each other. In this second case, it would have a sense like an “age,” a long timeframe that has distinct characteristics that set it apart from other generations. Examples would be the age of the Roman Republic, the age of the Roman Empire, the Gothic Era, the Age of Discovery, the Industrial Revolution, or the Digital Age. There are distinct characteristics that set each apart and everyone who lived during those times shared a basic way of life.

When applied to the life of the Church, we can see how this type of generation is appropriate. The Ante-Diluvian generation, that which existed after the Fall but before the Flood, was significantly different from the generation after the Flood. Those who lived in the time of the Judges experienced a very different life from those who lived under the kings – first the united monarchy and then the Divided kingdom. Again, the age of the Apostles was very different from that of Moses, David, the Early Church, the Medieval Age, the Reformation, or today.

The third understanding of a “generation” has less to do with how you define one generation against another but where that generation comes from. We call genealogies “generations” because fathers generate sons. The word relates to the origin of something and overlaps with the previous two definitions. Whether we think of generations by relative birth timing or of sweeping ages, they receive their distinction because of their origin. Baby boomers are so called because their origin is in the baby boom following World War II. Millennials are so called because their origin is just prior to the turning of the millennium, and they will spend their adult lives entirely in the new millennium. The Industrial Revolution began with steam and water powered mechanization. The dawning of a new generation in this sense begins with a significant change in origin.

Theologically, we can see developments across the generations of God’s people. Adam and Eve were created in the Image of God, perfectly understanding and conforming to God’s will.[2] But after the Fall, this relationship changed.[3] Man distanced himself from God and yet the promise of the Seed endured.

At the time of Noah, all the imaginations of the heart of man were evil.[4] All but Noah, his wife, their sons and their wives and entirely cut themselves off from God. For this reason, God destroyed the unbelieving world in the Flood, but saved Noah and his faithful family. So that these would not despair, God placed His rainbow in the clouds.[5] This signified that His promise of the coming Seed of Eve, the Savior, still endured.

Through Moses, God delivered the Holy Law.[6] God was establishing His people as a nation and made sure this new nation was established on His, unchanging Word. His people were to be the keepers of His Holy Word, that the promise of the coming Seed, the Savior, would endure throughout the generations, right down to a lowly virgin, a daughter of David.

By that time, the time of Blessed Mary and John the Baptist, the nation had been taken away into exile and was never reconstituted, at least not how it was before God sent it away into exile. Sure, it was independent for a short time but soon the Greeks, then the Romans, once again conquered the Holy Land. By the time of the birth of Christ, the Church was but a beggar on the earth, looking for her Savior.

Throughout these generations, man’s relationship toward God changed and developed but God’s relationship to man did not change. Even at the height of the Israelite nation, under King David, when the sacrifices were offered daily and faithfully, God desired not the blood of bulls and goats. He desired a pure and contrite heart.[7] The angels in heaven rejoiced over the repentance of one sinner in the days of David just as they do in the days of John, Luther, and today.

And yet, we do live in a generation distinct from Noah, Moses, and David. We belong to the generation of the Church, begun on this side of the Resurrection of Christ, born from the pierced side of the Crucified Christ and baptized when the Holy Spirit descended upon the Apostles at Pentecost.[8] God’s Word has not changed. The promise of the Seed is for you just as it was for Adam and Eve. The only difference is that we know the name of the Seed. We have heard and read of His death for the forgiveness of sins and we look not to His coming in humility, but His coming in glory on the Last Day.

In this sense, we are living in the same generation as the Apostles. Our way of life may look very different from that of the Apostles, but our life of faith is unchanged—or at least should be. This, I believe, is the simplest understanding of the vow of Christ. This generation of the Church, the coming of Christ in Word and Sacrament without the works of the Law, will not pass away until He returns in power and glory.

Our generation is not separated from the generations prior to the birth, life, death, resurrection, and ascension of Christ but it is distinct. We are not waiting a further development in our relationship toward God. We are not looking for a return to a geographic location, our promised inheritance. The promise of the Seed has been fulfilled and we await its consummation. This is the promise Christ is making: “My word will never pass away. Everything in heaven and earth will change but My word will not. Gunpowder will change the nature of war, but wars will not cease. Kingdoms will become Empires and Empires will become Republics, and Republics will fall but My Word will endure forever.”

Because of this vow of Christ, we shouldn’t be surprised to see wars and rumors of wars. Nor should we be surprised by signs in the heavens—be they shooting stars, narrow misses by comets, or other celestial phenomena. It is for the pagan and the unbelieving world to see these things and be distressed in their hearts. But for the Christian, He says that when you see these things, these signs, “look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near.”^[9]

Christ gives you these signs that you might look up in joy to see Christ returning.[10] You look with joy for the return of Christ because it is the fulfilling of your hope, the fruition of your faith. It is also the manifestation of your deliverance from sin, death, and the devil. You look with joy for the return of Christ just as the bride looks with great joy upon her beloved leaping upon the mountains and skipping upon the hills.^[11]

At the same time, Christ admonishes you to pray that you would be counted worthy to escape all these terrible signs. That means Jesus recognizes the suffering that comes with the sea and waves roaring, the powers of the heavens being shaken, and the distress of nations. This suffering isn’t reserved only for the unbeliever. “Woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! And pray that your flight may not be in winter or on the Sabbath.”^[12] It is not a contradiction for God to command excitement and joy in the midst of suffering, especially when talking about the last things and the return of Christ.

Understanding that the generation that will not pass away is the generation, or age, of the Church, Christ gives us a warning. Pay attention to yourself that you won’t be weighed down by frivolous living, sins of the flesh, or the cares of this world. He literally says, “carousing, drunkenness, and the cares of this life,”^[13] but these can easily stand in for three categories—living for pleasure, indulging in sin, and concern for this life.

Living for pleasure does not need to be overtly sinful living. That is covered by drunkenness. Carousing is “eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die.” It is the extreme understanding of living for today with no care for tomorrow; no mind for the consequences. The soccer mom who makes sure her kids are well fed and educated, preparing them for a long career and good retirement is doing nothing more than carousing if she isn’t raising her children in the fear and love of the Lord. Not only is she condemning herself by giving no heed to Christ, but she is also endangering her children by not teaching them to place Christ above all other things. Knowing the catechism is more important than going to college. Receiving the Lord’s Supper is more important than being on a sports team—any sports team.

Drunkenness is the category of indulging in sin. This is the obvious, manifest, and outward sinning from which we not only flee but from which we are able to abstain. Do not cheat your neighbor. Do not look at pornography. Do not waste your life in greed. Do not waste your twenties so you can rebuild in your thirties. These things destroy your soul. They will rot you from the inside out.

The third category – the cares of this life – is uniquely a warning to Christians. It is not to say, “Ignore paying your bills or mowing the lawn.” Rather, do not be weighed down with these things as though they matter in eternity. Are you sick? Will you lose a limb or your eyesight? You should be concerned, and you should carefully consider what types of medical intervention you receive or refuse. But even in such difficult matters, there is no need to be weighed down.

Our current age is incredibly weak compared to our fathers. We get sad and call it depression. We get nervous and call it anxiety. Have trouble focusing? You must have ADHD. You might even be on the spectrum. Sure, there are cases where real medical intervention might be necessary for these things, but there is also a reality that sometimes people get sad. Sometimes people get nervous. But then you get over it. How has the church usually taught her people to deal with these problems? Through prayer and fasting. Through repentance. Through confession and absolution.

Our Lord’s purpose in giving us this warning is so that we would not be weighed down such that we miss the substance of His promise and His return. Christ’s return will come a snare on everyone, that is, it will happen in the blink of an eye. What will you be doing when it happens? Don’t be weighed down, face toward your naval, curved inward in carousing, drunkenness, or the cares of this life. Instead, see in these signs the occasion to lift up your head and look for the coming of Christ, rejoicing that your Redeemer is near.

Our Lord’s vow concludes with a commandment. He tells you to “watch and pray always.”^[14] For what shall you pray? First, that God would have mercy on you by allowing you to escape the worst of the events of the end of time. Second, that when Christ returns, you would be able to stand before Him, that is, that you would be sustained in the faith delivered to you by the Holy Spirit to stand before Christ in the gleaming robe of your Holy Baptism, unstained by sin.

In + Jesus’ name. Amen.

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[1] St. Luke 21:32-33.

[2] Genesis 1:26.

[3] Genesis 3:14-19.

[4] Genesis 6:5.

[5] Genesis 9:12-17.

[6] Exodus 20.

[7] Psalm 51:16-17.

[8] St. John 19:34-35; Acts 2:1-4.

[9] St. Luke 21:28.

[10] Psalm 24:7.

[11] Song of Songs 2:8b

[12] St. Matthew 24:19-20.

[13] St. Luke 21:34.

[14] St. Luke 21:36.