My Word Won’t Pass Away

My Word Will Not Pass Away

My Word Will Not Pass Away

My Word Will Not Pass Away is the title of this Sunday’s sermon for the Second Sunday in Advent. The theme is the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. The signs are among us. The heavens will shake. The nations will be distressed. Unbelief sees these as normal, but God has given them for our comfort so that you know He is near at the Last Day is at hand. Faith in Jesus responds, Thy kingdom come & Come quickly Lord Jesus..

Divine Service

Lutheran Service Book (LSB) hymnal

Opening Hymn  350 Come , Thou Precious Ransom, Come

Confession Absolution

Invocation p. 184

The Confession of Sins

The Absolution

The Psalm 50:1-15

The Gloria Patri

The Service of the Word p.186

The Kyrie p. 186

The Salutation and Collect p. 189

First Reading Malachi 4:1-6 The Great Day of the Lord

Epistle Romans 15:4-13 Exhortation to Bear with the Weak

Gospel Luke 21:25-36 The Coming of the Son of Man         

Glory be to Thee, O Lord!

Praise be to Thee, O Christ!

The Nicene Creed p. 191

Hymn of the Day #336 Lo! He Comes with Clouds Descending

The Sermon

The Offertory p. 192

Prayer of the Church


The Service of the Sacrament p.194

Preface

Sanctus p. 195

The Lord’s Prayer p. 196

The Words of Our Lord p. 197

The Pax Domini

The Agnus Dei p. 198

Distribution

Distribution Hymn 618 I Come, O Savior, to Thy Table

Distribution Hymn 355 O Savior, Rend the Heavens Wide

Distribution Hymn 354 Arise, O Christian People

Distribution Hymn 346 When All the World Was Cursed

The Nunc Dimittis p. 199

The Thanksgiving p. 200

The Salutation

The Benedicamus p. 201

The Benediction p 202

Closing Hymn 454 Sing My Tongue The Glorious Battle

December 9-10, 2018

Second Sunday in Advent

Luke 21:25-36

Title: My Word will not pass away


Grace and mercy to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.  Amen.


The Lord has spoken and His evangelist has written:  Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.  Thus far the text.


Let us pray: Almighty Lord, who has promised that even though heaven and earth will pass away, His words will not.  O Lord keep us in Your Word that we not perish; in the name of Jesus. Amen.


Jesus will return bodily and everybody will see Him.  Whether you believe in Jesus or not, you will see Jesus, true God begotten of the Father from eternity, and true man born of the Virgin Mary.  You will see God in the flesh, who is Jesus.


And you pray, “Thy Kingdom Come”


It is Jesus who is preaching a fire and brimstone sermon.  Why? To scare you into the Christian faith? No. To force unbelievers in the Christian faith?  No. They why?


Jesus preaches to comfort you who already believe in Him.


Comfort?  Yes, Jesus is showing you the signs to point to the nearness of His second coming so that you will be comforted with the knowledge that Jesus is coming soon.  So that you may sincerely pray. So that you may rejoice in the nearness of the Last Day.


There are two kinds of signs God gives announcing Jesus Christ’s Second Coming.

The world will laugh at the signs because they seem so ordinary.  But Your Father has given them as signs for your comport.

The Shaking of the Heavens

Our Father will shake all He made in those first six days of creation.


The Sun will dim. And you pray, Thy kingdom come


The moon will eclipse.   And you pray, Thy kingdom come.


The stars will shoot as even you have seen shooting stars from time to time;  the waters will hurricane; the winds will tornado; the animals will go extinct.  And you pray, Thy kingdom coming rejoicing that your Savior is nearer now than when you first believed.


The unbelievers laugh signs of Christ’s Second Coming because they are so normal.  Yes, they are normal. They are also mini-judgements as a prelude to the final judgement. BUT for you who believe in Jesus, it is meant for your comfort because you know your Savior is nearer now that when you first believed.


The Distress of Nations

Our Father will shake nations and governments.


Riots will erupt. And you pray, Thy kingdom come.


Wars will be rumored. And you pray, Thy kingdom come.


Buildings will be bombed; wars will flash and long endure; revolutions will rise and governments will fall; and you pray, Thy kingdom come.


The unbelievers will laugh at theses signs of Jesus Christ’s Second Coming and the End of Days.  The unbelievers will laugh because these signs are happening all the time.


Yes, they are normal from our experience but they are the signs of the End.  And you know that your Savior is nearer now than when you first believed. This is your comfort.


If you are not comforted by the increased frequency of these signs, well, then you may have found your repentance for today!


Stop praying Thy kingdom come from lack of faith meaning in your heart you are saying, ‘Lord, stop shaking the heavens and stop distressing the nations.’  When what your really mean is, ‘Lord, I don’t want Your Kingdom to come; Lord, my life would be perfect except that You keep shaking the heavens and distressing the nations; Lord, let me live in this fallen creation forever - except without all the problems You cause by shaking the heavens and distressing the nations.


Stop praying with a double-mind.  Repent this Advent Season and believe again that even though this heaven and this earth be rolled up and burned in a lake of fire with all the demons and unbelievers.


Rather, His Word will never pass away which mean you will never pass away; you will in no way be harmed.


Your Creator Father wants all to believe in His Son Jesus and come into His Kingdom.  This is why He has given you to pray, ‘Thy kingdom come.”


What does this mean?  God’s kingdom comes by itself without our prayer, but we pray in this petition that it may come to us also.  So lift up your heads and see the signs increasing. God is shaking the heavens so when you see eclipses, and hurricanes, and tornadoes, and such occurring anywhere in the world, be comforted that the Lord has not forgotten to return to you.  God is distressing the nations, so when you see riots and revolutions and bombings and wars, lift up your heads and be comforted that the Lord is coming and bringing you into His kingdom.


How does God’s kingdom come?  God’s kingdom comes when our Father gives us His Holy Spirit, so that by His grace we believe His holy Word and we lead godly lives - here in time and there in eternity.


Repent from your fears and believe in Jesus; in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.