The Last Sunday in the Church Year

The Last Sunday in the Church Year – November 24, 2024

Psalm 39; Isaiah 65:17-25; 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11

St. Matthew 25:1-13

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

At the end of the year, it is helpful to take stock of how things are going. Businesses do this every year. They must review not only the budget but see how sales went over the last year and based on last year’s trends, they must decide whether to stock more or fewer goods for the coming year. Athletes must take stock of their performance and make decisions on how to adjust their training to meet new challenges, see greater improvement, or manage an injury. Individuals do this when they start making resolutions for the new year. They find a vice they want to stop doing or set a new goal to improve over the coming year.

This is a helpful practice even for Christians. This, the Last Sunday of the Church Year, is a good time to reflect on your own faith and spiritual disciplines. This isn’t for the purpose of feeling bad about what you have failed to do or the sins you’ve committed over the last year, those I’ll address those in a minute. Rather, such an exercise is for the purpose of being honest with yourself. How has your prayer and devotional life been? If it hasn’t been consistent, now is the time to recognize that and renew your effort to engross yourself in Scripture and prayer. How has your attendance at the divine service been? If it hasn’t been great, now is the time to consider what has gotten in the way and renew your efforts to be in the Lord’s House and to be here with joy.

How about your acts of charity toward others? Not just financial charity but simply kindness, conversation, and mutual consolation of the brethren? Now is the time to make an effort to seek out the lonely and offer the right hand of fellowship. Now is the time to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, visit the sick and imprisoned. And more importantly, now is the time to consider how you might make a consistent practice of these blessed activities.

Lest you think this is just a list of things to do, remember that this is the purpose of the parable of the virgins. Our Lord admonishes us, “Watch, therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Manis coming.”[1] That word, “watch,” means to take careful notice of or carefully examine, or the phrase I used earlier, “take stock.”

Now the parable of the virgins is a parable concerning the church, specifically the church on earth. We know that it is the visible church on earth because five virgins are wise and five are foolish. All have been invited to the wedding feast of Christ and all are in attendance but five have taken great care of the faith that has been delivered to them and five have not. The five foolish virgins are hypocrites, that is, they have all the outward trappings of Christians, but they do not attend to the flame of faith that was born within them in Holy Baptism. They do not retain the faith once delivered. They are more interested in the outward show of faith. They have all the outward good works of Christians. Perhaps their lamps even shown more brightly than that of the wise, at least at the beginning of the night.

But when the herald’s call comes, they are found without oil, that is, they are found without the faith by which their works are made good before God. They must run to those who sell—in the middle of the night, no less—and try to draw the attention of men, thinking this will also get them attention before the Bridegroom. Even at this last hour, they have deceived themselves into thinking that what impresses man will also impress Christ. This fatal mistake leaves them outside the wedding hall.

In the days of Noah, mankind was given 100 years to repent. Noah preached the Word of God to all around him and built a giant ark, a physical preaching of the Word, and yet the world refused to listen. They shut their ears against God. Then there came a day when all the animals, Noah, his wife, their three sons, and their wives boarded the ark for the last time. And God shut them in, sealing the side of the ark against the sins of the world. So too, when the Bridegroom comes, the door is shut against the sinful world. The five foolish virgins are left outside the wedding hall in the darkness, where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth.

The Lord has great patience and is willing to delay the return of the Bridegroom for the sake of the faithful but even His patience has an end. He has clearly stated that there will be a last day, and no one knows the day or the hour.[2] It will come as a thief in the night and the Bridegroom will return as quick as lightning flashes from the east to the west.[3]

“Watch, therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Manis coming.”[4] If, in taking stock of the last year, you find there are sins that burden your conscience, or even the idea of reviewing the last twelve months is a burden on your soul, then flee toward the things of God. Repent of your sins and receive the Holy Absolution. Do not slumber and sleep on your sins. Come to your pastor for confession and absolution. This blessed gift of God will help you to unburden your soul. Conversation with your pastor can help you sort out the confusions regarding your spiritual life that are weighing down your soul.

And you, beloved in the Lord, are not in darkness. You know of the coming of the Lord even if you know neither the day nor the hour. In fact, as you daily pray the Lord’s Prayer, you pray that He would come quickly, that He would return and gather you home.[5] “You are all sons of light and sons of the day.”[6] The coming of the Lord is a joyous occasion for the wise virgins and all the elect, those who endure unto salvation. As those wise virgins, the Lord is encouraging us and admonishing us to remain vigilant, “putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet the hope of salvation.”[7]

Whenever we consider the Last Day, we must remember that it is a joyous occasion for Christians. It is the culmination, the consummation of our faith. It is the day when all that we’ve hoped for comes to fruition. Even the blessed saints who have fallen asleep in Christ look forward to that day because their souls will be reunited with their bodies made glorious. The sometimes terrifying descriptions of Scripture are to be used as warning, lest you should fall into the deception of the foolish virgins. The terrifying aspects of that Last Day are terrifying for the unbeliever, the apostate, and the sons of darkness. For the sons of light, they serve as a call to vigilance, but vigilance for the sake of receiving your eternal reward, your eternal inheritance as sons of the Father and brothers of Christ.

After the floodwaters receded, even faithful Noah fell into drunkenness and sinful sleep. His faithful son, Ham, fell into even worse sin. Yet Noah was called back into the fold, back into faith, and repented of his own sin. He remained vigilant in the face of his own sinful flesh, attending to the Word of God and guarding the oil of his own faith. In like manner, we too, will fall to temptation. The Old Adam was drowned in Holy Baptism but is a great swimmer. So we, like Noah and the wise virgins, must watch, take stock, and guard our hearts and minds against sin. We must turn our thoughts, words and actions toward Christ that we too, would be found faithful, vigilant, and heir of the eternal glory that is made ours in Christ.

In + Jesus’ name. Amen.

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[1] St. Matthew 25:13.

[2] Isaiah 65:17; St. Matthew 24:36; St. Mark 13:32.

[3] 1 Thessalonians 5:2; 2 Peter 3:10.

[4] St. Matthew 25:13.

[5] “Thy kingdom come;” “Deliver us from evil.”

[6] 1 Thessalonians 5:5.

[7] 1 Thessalonians 5:8.

The Third Last Sunday in the Church Year

The Third Last Sunday in the Church Year – November 10, 2024

Psalm 31; Job 14:1-6; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

St. Matthew 24:15-28

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

The first half of the book of Daniel is mostly a narrative. It tells the story of how Daniel came to Babylon and his rise to prominence. In these chapters, we hear how Daniel and the three Young Men are sustained by faith rather than eating food sacrificed to Babylonians idols,^[1] how Daniel interpreted the dreams of Nebuchadnezzar,^[2] the three young men being cast into the fiery furnace yet returning unharmed,^[3] the feast of Belshazzar and the writing on the wall interpreted by Daniel,^[4] and how Daniel was preserved by faith in the lions’ den.^[5]

It is not until the second half of the Book of Daniel that the prophet begins to receive visions. One gets the sense that Daniel does not understand much of what he sees. He says as much after some of the visions. Later, when the angel Gabriel comes to Daniel to interpret the visions, the prophet still seems a bit confused about what it could all mean. Such confusion is somewhat in the nature of prophecy. When a prophet is granted such a vision, he is seeing events and people from God’s perspective; a perspective not bounded by time and space. A day is as a thousand years and a thousand years as a day with God because He sees all time at once yet perfectly perceives each moment as distinct from every other moment with perfect clarity. This is beyond the ability of man. It is beyond our ability to comprehend with our minds and it is beyond the ability of our eyes to receive such sights.

And yet, the Prophets have been called by God to faithfully communicate on God’s behalf. They are to communicate what they have seen and what they have been told to the rest of God’s people. They are not alone in this endeavor. The Holy Spirit is with them and guides them to knowledge of the truth. The Prophet Daniel has given a faithful testimony of what he saw in these visions from God, even if the frailty of our minds cannot understand it.

With Daniel, we get a special insight into how the Prophet reacted to seeing such visions. Seeing such terrible things to come, knowing they were prophecies of destruction, what did Daniel do? He devoted himself more fervently to the things of God—that is, he repented and diligently set about offering the morning and evening sacrifices, devoted himself to the Word of God and prayer.

Prior to the visions, we know that Daniel was a very pious young man. He was already devoted to the Word of God and prayer, but the frightful visions of destruction led him to continued devotion and especially to repentance.

Next week, we will hear one of these visions the Prophet Daniel received, specifically the vision of the Ancient of Days and One like a Son of Man. This morning, we heard our Lord make a reference to Daniel’s vision of the “abomination of desolation.” To rightly understand this phrase and our Lord’s use of it, we must recognize that what we heard this morning rightfully treats two distinct topics and yet these topics have been boiled together into one soup. These two topics are the destruction of the kingdom of the Jews and the destruction of the kingdom of the world.

The concrete fulfillment of the prophecy of the abomination of desolation happened in the first century when an idol of a Roman eagle was placed in the Holy of Holies. The Jews of that time began to riot, leading to Roman soldiers descending upon Jerusalem and destroying the city and the temple.

The destruction of the temple in 70 AD was conducted according to the will of God. Forty years earlier, Jesus Christ prophesied that though they destroy the temple of His body, in three days, He would rise again.^[6] The temple curtain was torn in two at the crucifixion, signifying the end of any need for a temple built with hands or altars of sacrifice for bulls and goats. Yet the Pharisees and Sadducees hardened their hearts against God. They led many astray by preaching a false gospel, denying Jesus to be the Son of God and the rightful King of all mankind. God could not abide their idolatry.

The sign of the Roman eagle placed in the temple told the Christians it was time to flee. They left the city as quickly as possible. They did not know the day or the hour when the Romans would descend upon Jerusalem, but they knew it was coming. The destruction that followed was for the purpose of erasing the idol that the temple had become. It was now a monument to the false teachings of the Jews.

Those who had become Christians knew there was no significance left in the temple, so when they saw the abomination, they fled. The Jews could not abide the sight of the eagle. They clung more fervently to the idol they had made of something that once belonged to God. Just as their fathers demanded Aaron make an idol out of the very gold God commanded them to carry out of Egypt, so these Jews set up the temple as their new god.

Such is the destruction of the kingdom of the Jews. As for the destruction of the kingdom of the world, the abomination of desolation is spiritually fulfilled by an idol set up in the house of God, that is, an idol erected in your heart. It is abominable before God that you would seek comfort in being financially stable; that you would find pride in having your own way; that you would choose time with a sports team over the worship of Him. It is a desolation because such idolatry leaves your soul dry and hollow – a truly desolate place.

Such a spiritual fulfillment is found in the Office of the Papacy, the true Office of Antichrist, who seats himself within God’s church and calls himself the supreme authority on earth, capable of speaking on Christ’s behalf where no other men may understand. According to Unum Sanctum, a 14^th century papal bull or declaration, it is necessary for the salvation of man that he submit to the Pope above all others in spiritual and worldly matters.^[7] Thus the Pope has set himself up as an idol in the house of God, an idol in the house of the Church, a seat reserved for Christ alone.

Other spiritual fulfillments include the heresy of dispensationalism, the teaching that God saves different people in different ways, at different times. In other words, Adam and Eve were saved by divine fiat; Noah was saved by obedience; ethnic Jews are saved by their race, that is, being born in the right family; and it is only New Testament Gentiles who are in fact saved by grace on account of the death and resurrection of Jesus.

Often associated with dispensationalism are various human actions being required to bring about the return of Christ and the end of days; whether it is the birth of a red heifer, the rebuilding of the Temple, the founding of a new nation-state of Israel, or the branding of all humanity with barcode tattoos.

These false teachings fail to understand the words of our Lord. The world is a wicked place. It is wicked because man is born in sin and conceived in iniquity. It is wicked because men make it wicked and the heart of man will always pervert the Word of God, placing himself and his own desires at the center.

But do not miss the greatest aspect of our Lord’s prophetic words today. These are words of tremendous comfort. Will the final days of this world be terrifying? Will there be suffering of Christians? Yes. But that suffering will be cut short for the sake of the elect. You have been warned of the wickedness of the world because of God loves you. All who believe and are baptized will be saved. There is no need to run back into your house to gather your treasures. There is no need to gather the laundry or put your tools back in the shed before fleeing before the destruction of the world.

There is no need because you have the greater portion. The Lord has called you out of this world of suffering. He has called you to life eternal with Him. He has called you to eternity in the bliss of heaven. His prophetic words even enumerate what is truly important – His people. He gives care and sympathy to those who are pregnant and nursing babies; to those enduring the cold of winter; and to those at prayer. The greatest gift you can give your children and grandchildren is the heritage of the Lord – His Word and Holy Sacraments. All other gifts of God in this world are to be used for a time and even to be enjoyed, but they will not last. The Word of the Lord endures forever and to those who have had that Word sealed on their foreheads in Holy Baptism, they too will endure forever.

In + Jesus’ name. Amen.

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[1] Daniel 1.

[2] Daniel 2.

[3] Daniel 3.

[4] Daniel 5.

[5] Daniel 6.

[6] St. John 2:19.

[7] Unam Sanctum is a papal bull issued in 1302 by Pope Boniface VIII.

The Commemoration of All Saints

The Commemoration of All Saints (obs.) – November 3, 2024

Psalm 31; Revelation 7:2-17; 1 John 3:1-3

St. Matthew 5:1-12

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

In Holy Baptism, your soul, stained with the impurity of your sin, is washed in the blood of the Lamb. It is made white in the purity and righteousness of Christ. His righteousness is imputed to you, that is, it is made yours by faith. This robe of righteousness is not strictly figurative. Christ is, Himself, united to you in Holy Baptism. And, since Christ is in the Father and the Holy Spirit proceeds from both the Father and the Son, Holy Baptism joins the entire Trinity to you. This spiritual union is a glorious gift of God.

There is another union with Christ. The Sacramental Union with Christ occurs when you receive the Holy Body and Precious Blood of our Savior. In the Holy Supper, Christ joins His physical body with yours. What is spiritually joined in Baptism is physically joined in the Supper. It is in this way that faith is strengthened and for this reason we can proclaim that the Holy Supper strengthens and preserves you in body and soul unto eternal life.

They physical union with Christ is necessary because we are physical beings. If we were somehow only spiritual, then a spiritual union with Christ would suffice. But we are created, embodied beings. We are the crown of creation. We have been given dominion over all the rest of creation and as such, it is meet and right that God would join Himself to us not only spiritually, but physically.

And if the Lord has said that He is physically present in the Supper, if He has said that This is His Body and This is His Blood, then who are we to deny it? Or who are we to treat it as common food? If we cannot trust the Lord who has joined Himself to us in such a physical manner, how can we trust His other physical promises?

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, Blessed are those who mourn, Blessed are the meek, Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, Blessed are the merciful, Blessed are the pure in heart, Blessed are the peacemakers, Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake.”[1]

Each of the Beatitudes praises and proclaims blessings on those who are seen as weak and reviled by the world. No one will advance in the world by seeking to be poor in spirit, mourning, meek, or pure. This is something Christ tells us directly, “because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you.”[2]

Almost every year, on the Commemoration of All Saints, I have taught that the Beatitudes have their first fulfillment in Christ. He fulfills each of these statements to their fullest. At the same time, the Beatitudes find fulfilment in you, Christians. This is precisely because Christ has joined Himself to you. You are spiritually and physically united with Him and if the world hates Christ, so too the world will hate you.

What is worse is the truth that hypocrites exist in the Church on earth. There are those who will persecute you and think they are doing service to God.[3] And these will seek to tempt, to deceive, to persuade even the elect, if possible, to join them in the persecution of the Church.[4] Therefore we must holdfast to the true Word of God. We must holdfast to the true Bridegroom of the Church, who has united Himself to all His people.

And it is, in fact, because of this union that we experience persecution, affliction, and suffering. This is, in fact, a promise and a blessing of God. By persecution, affliction, and suffering – both spiritual and physical – we know that we have been united to Christ. He has chosen you to be united with Him in a death like His, that you might also rise to a new life like His.[5] Like a father proudly training his son in the family business so that one day, he might inherit his father’s life’s work, Christ joins you to Himself. He joins you to His own suffering and affliction because He loves you. It is not torment. It is not masochistic. It is an act of love.

On the one hand, He does it so that you would be driven away from sin and into His loving arms. He allows the suffering of the saints on account of our sin and that we would know that we have been truly united to Him. Even the martyrs sit beneath the altar of the Lamb in glory, crying out ‘How long until our blood is avenged?’[6] They are not so arrogant as to believe their blood is more righteous than Christ’s. They are crying out for the vengeance against their persecutors on account of the Blood of Christ’s. It is Christ’s blood that speaks better things than that of Abel’s. Abel’s blood cries out for redemption in the very blood of Jesus.[7]

We do not seek out suffering. We don’t have to. The Lord has promised that it will come to His faithful because they have been united with Him. At the same time, we do not have to earn our rest. He has promised that our reward will be great in heaven.

We commemorate, today, all those who have received that reward, or at least have received it in part. The saints in glorious array who have fallen asleep in Christ enjoy the nearer presence of Christ. They enjoy a union with Christ that we, the Church on earth, are still looking forward to. While our union with Christ is by faith through Baptism and physical in the Holy Supper, their union is glorious as they stand before Christ in His flesh. Their souls enjoy the company of the whole host of heaven, and they are given to worship Christ, whom they can see with their own eyes.

And yet even these have something greater to look forward to. Their glorious union with Christ will be made complete in the resurrection of the flesh. Currently, they worship Him in soul, freed from sin and in joyous rest in Christ. At the resurrection, they and all the saints of God, will worship Him in their own flesh. At that time, our union with Christ will not be mediated by water, bread, or wine. It will be in actuality, in a way that we can only dream of now. St. John says “now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.”[8]

While the saints in glory are at rest, even they long for the day when we will be made like Him, receiving bodies glorious as He is glorious; pure as He is pure. Thanks be to God that He has joined Himself to us, united us to His Holy Body and Precious Blood in spirit and truth; even if that means we must endure a time of suffering, just as our Lord did on our behalf. Let us rejoice with angels and archangels, and all the company of heaven as we look forward to the day when we too, will be at rest in body and soul, united with Him in glory.

In + Jesus’ name. Amen.

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[1] St. Matthew 5:3-11.

[2] St. John 15:19-20.

[3] St. John 16:2.

[4] St. Matthew 24:24.

[5] Romans 6:5.

[6] Revelation 6:10.

[7] Genesis 4:10; Hebrews 12:24.

[8] 1 John 3:2-3.