My Word Won’t 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.

Behold, Your King comes to you

Behold! Your King comes to you

Behold Your King comes to you. It’s a beautiful promise first spoken by the prophet Zechariah but now fulfilled in Jesus. Jesus demands faith that trusts in Him. And the faith Jesus demands, He also gives in His Holy Word and sacrament. Pastor Pautz

Divine Service

Lutheran Service Book (LSB) hymnal

You may purchase a copy of this hymnal here or, if you are the in Muscatine area, we may have one to loan to you. Pastor Pautz

Opening Hymn #334 O Lord How Shall I Meet You

Invocation p. 184

The Confession of Sins

The Absolution

The Psalm 24

The Gloria Patri

The Kyrie p. 186

The Salutation and Collect p. 189

Holy Scripture

Jeremiah 23:5–8         The Righteous Branch

5“Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. 6In his days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell securely. And this is the name by which he will be called: ‘The Lord is our righteousness.’

      7“Therefore, behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when they shall no longer say, ‘As the Lord lives who brought up the people of Israel out of the land of Egypt,’ 8but ‘As the Lord lives who brought up and led the offspring of the house of Israel out of the north country and out of all the countries where he had driven them.’ Then they shall dwell in their own land.”  

Romans 13:11–14              Fulfilling The Law Through Love

11 Besides this you know the time, that the hour has come for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed. 12The night is far gone; the day is at hand. So then let us cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light. 13Let us walk properly as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and sensuality, not in quarreling and jealousy. 14But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.

Matthew 21:1–9                                 The Triumphal Entry

1When they drew near to Jerusalem and came to Bethphage, to the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, 2 saying to them,  “Go into the village in front of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me. 3 If anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord needs them,’ and he will send them at once.” 4This took place to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet, saying, 5  “Say to the daughter of Zion, ‘Behold, your king is coming to you, humble, and mounted on a donkey, and on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.’”

 6The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them. 7 They brought the donkey and the colt and put on them their cloaks, and he sat on them. 8Most of the crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. 9And the crowds that went before him and that followed him were shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!”

Glory be to Thee, O Lord!

Praise be to Thee, O Christ!

The Nicene Creed p. 191

Hymn of the Day #332 Savior of the Nations Come

The Sermon

The Offertory p. 192

Prayer of the Church

The Service of the Sacrament

Preface p. 194

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 334 Prepare the Royal Highway

Distribution Hymn 360 All My Heart Again Rejoices

Distribution Hymn 384 Of the Father’s Love Begotten

Distribution Hymn 341 Lift Up Your Heads Ye Mighty Gates

The Nunc Dimittis p. 199

The Thanksgiving p. 200

The Salutation

The Benedicamus p. 201

The Benediction p 202

Closing Hymn #643 Sent Forth by God’s Blessing

Parable of the Ten Virgins

Parable of the Ten Virgins

Hi everyone. Today is the Last Day in the church calendar. Jesus is teaching the parable of the Ten Virgins which is the whole church. He warns them to be ready for His Second Coming. How is that done? You are ready when you have faith in Jesus which comes by hearing the Word of God. The lessons and sermon are printed below as well as the audio of the whole service. May you receive it as a blessing in the name of Jesus. Pastor Pautz

Divine Service

Lutheran Service Book (LSB) hymnal

You may purchase a copy here.

Opening Hymn                 #544 O Love How Deep

Invocation                  p. 184

The Confession of Sins

The Absolution

The Psalm                           126

The Gloria Patri

The Kyrie                            p. 186

The Gloria in Excelsis

The Salutation and Collect p. 189

The Old Testament (See Printed Scriptures below)

The Epistle   

The Gospel              

Glory be to Thee, O Lord!

Praise be to Thee, O Christ!

The Nicene Creed  p. 191

Hymn of the Day#516 Awake, Awake, The Night Is Flying

The Sermon

The Offertory p. 192

Prayer of the Church

The Service of the Sacrament

Preface p. 194

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 #438 A Lamb Goes Uncomplaining Forth

Distribution Hymn #458 Christ Jesus Lay In Death’s Strong Bands

Distribution Hymn #756 Why Should Cross And Trial Grieve Me

The Nunc Dimittis p. 199

The Thanksgiving p. 200

The Salutation

The Benedicamus p. 201

The Benediction p 202

Closing Hymn #421 Jesus Grant That Balm And Healing

Isaiah 65:17-25                                   The Glorious New Creation

17 “ For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth; And the former shall not be remembered or come to mind.  18 But be glad and rejoice forever in what I create; For behold, I create Jerusalem as a rejoicing, And her people a joy.  19 I will rejoice in Jerusalem, And joy in My people; The voice of weeping shall no longer be heard in her, Nor the voice of crying.  20 “ No more shall an infant from there live but a few days, Nor an old man who has not fulfilled his days; For the child shall die one hundred years old, But the sinner being one hundred years old shall be accursed.  21 They shall build houses and inhabit them; They shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit. 22 They shall not build and another inhabit; They shall not plant and another eat; For as the days of a tree, so shall be the days of My people, And My elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands.  23 They shall not labor in vain, Nor bring forth children for trouble; For they shall be the descendants of the blessed of the LORD,  And their offspring with them.  24 “ It shall come to pass That before they call, I will answer;  And while they are still speaking, I will hear.  25 The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, The lion shall eat straw like the ox, And dust shall be the serpent’s food.  They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain,”  Says the LORD.

1 Thessalonians 5:1-11                        The Day of the Lord

 1 But concerning the times and the seasons, brethren, you have no need that I should write to you. 2 For you yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night. 3 For when they say, “Peace and safety!” then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they shall not escape. 4 But you, brethren, are not in darkness, so that this Day should overtake you as a thief. 5 You are all sons of light and sons of the day. We are not of the night nor of darkness. 6 Therefore let us not sleep, as others do, but let us watch and be sober. 7 For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk are drunk at night. 8 But let us who are of the day be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet the hope of salvation. 9 For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, 10 who died for us, that whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with Him.  11 Therefore comfort each other and edify one another, just as you also are doing.

Matthew 25:1-13                                      The Parable of the Wise and Foolish Virgins

1 “Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. 2 Now five of them were wise, and five were foolish. 3 Those who were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them, 4 but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. 5 But while the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept.  6 “And at midnight a cry was heard: ‘Behold, the bridegroom is coming; go out to meet him!’ 7 Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps. 8 And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ 9 But the wise answered, saying, ‘No,lest there should not be enough for us and you; but go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.’ 10 And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding; and the door was shut.  11 “Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open to us!’ 12 But he answered and said, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.’  13 “Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming.

Sermon Notes

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

The Lord has written in today’s Gospel lesson, Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open to us!’  But Jesus answered and said, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.’  Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming. Thus far the text.

Let us pray, Creator Father, who alone knows the day and the hour of the Last Day, keep us in the faith and protect us from the evil one; in the name of Jesus.  Amen.

We fall asleep so easily and yet the Lord tells us to be ready and watching for Him? We could never do it! Even the bridesmaids can’t keep their eyes open. They fall asleep.  That is, they lived out their lives waiting for Christ’s second coming, but died before He came. The foolish and the wise have this in common: they die. The difference between the foolish and the wise is that the wise ones had oil for their lamps. 

Well, what’s the oil? What is it you need to be ready when the Bridegroom comes? The oil is faith in Jesus Christ. The Word.

In the Bible, lamps were lit with oil and oil was put upon people to anoint them as God’s chosen ones. Oil was made from olives which were pressed and crushed. Think of your Lord on the cross, crushed by your sins. Pressed under the weight of God’s wrath and judgment. Squeezed by your sins until there was no life left in Him. Squeezed until the water and blood of the holy sacraments poured out of the side of Jesus. 

That oil, or faith as it were, is given to you. It is faith in Jesus that fills up your lamps in Holy Baptism and every time you eat and drink Christ’s Body and Blood. Faith is poured into your lamps as you hear God’s Word and the preaching of the Gospel. The thing about the Christian faith is that it is the Bridegroom Himself who has prepared you for His return by giving you faith in Jesus! You don’t even have to go get it. He gives it to us. The Bridegroom Himself makes us ready so we may receive Him when He comes on the last day. Even if you fall asleep, that is, even when you die, faith in Jesus makes you ready for the day the trumpet sounds and Christ returns in all His glory. You, brothers and sisters in Christ, are ready. Water. Word. Body. Blood. Faith stocked up. Ready to go when the shout goes out!

So what about those foolish virgins? They aren’t ready. The have no faith (no oil). They thought they didn’t have to go and hear God’s Word. They didn’t need to go and eat and drink Christ’s body and blood. They didn’t have to learn the Scriptures and have Christ fill their vessels with faith.

In this life they despised the Word and Baptism and Supper. They figured that when Jesus comes back, they’d be in just because they had good intentions or they were nice people or they lived good lives or had their name on a church’s membership rolls. But they had no oil. No faith in Jesus.

They THOUGHT they were fine but on the Last Day they’ll be running around trying to get some faith and there won’t be anymore. For when the Lord comes on that Last Day, there will be no more time for preaching and hearing God’s Word. And the foolish ones will beat on the door of the wedding hall (the door to heaven) and Jesus will say, “I don’t know who you are!”

There’s a warning there for whenever you are tempted to despise Christ’s means of grace!  A warning for whenever you take your God-given faith in Jesus for granted.

And yet you, pure and wise virgins, you are ready. Your faith in Jesus is stocked up because you are stocked up with Jesus. With His Word. His Baptism. His Body and His Blood. His forgiveness. Our Lord is coming and He WILL be here soon! But you’re ready. You’re ready because the Bridegroom has made you ready and wise. Oh sure, you may drift off during a sermon here and there and you may close your eyes in death for a time. But when the Lord arrives, that shout is going to wake you up! And you are going to be full of joy and gladness that now Christ has come for you. And He’s going to gather us up and bring us to His eternal wedding feast of which you will have a foretaste here, this morning.  The End is near! Come quickly, Lord Jesus! For you are ready; in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

The peace of God, which passes understanding, guard you and keep you in Jesus Christ, our Savior.  Amen.

Abomination of Desolation - What's In Your Heart

Abomination of Desolation - What’s In Your Heart

Divine Service

Lutheran Service Book (LSB) hymnal

You may purchase a copy here.

Opening Hymn                 #655

Invocation                 p. 184

The Confession of Sins

The Absolution

The Psalm                           14

The Gloria Patri

The Kyrie                            p. 186

The Gloria in Excelsis

The Salutation and Collect p. 189

The Holy Scripture Lessons (see below)   

Job 14:1-6                     Job’s Despondent Prayer

“Man who is born of woman is of few days and full of trouble.  He comes forth like a flower and fades away; he flees like a shadow and does not continue.  And do You open Your eyes on such a one, and bring me to judgment with Yourself? Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean?  No one! Since his days are determined, the number of his months is with You; You have appointed his limits, so that he cannot pass.  Look away from him that he may rest, till like a hired man he finishes his day.

1 Thessalonians 4:13-18                                  The Comfort of Christ’s Coming

13 But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, 2 lest you sorrow as others who have no hope. 14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus.  15 For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. 16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. 18 Therefore comfort one another with these words.

Matthew 24:15-28            The Tribulation

“Therefore when you see the ‘abomination of desolation,’ spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place” (whoever reads, let him understand), “then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let him who is on the housetop not go down to take anything out of his house. And let him who is in the field not go back to get his clothes. But 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. For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be. And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect’s sake those days will be shortened.  “Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There!’ do not believe it. For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. See, I have told you beforehand. “Therefore if they say to you, ‘Look, He is in the desert!’ do not go out; or ‘Look, He is in the inner rooms!’ do not believe it.

Glory be to Thee, O Lord!

Praise be to Thee, O Christ!

The Nicene Creed          p. 191

Hymn of the Day         #508 The Day Is Surely Drawing Near

The Sermon The Abomination of Desolation - What’s In Your Heart

The Offertory p. 192

Prayer of the Church

The Service of the Sacrament

Preface p. 194

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 621 Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence

Distribution Hymn 384 Of The Father’s Love Begotten

Distribution Hymn 726 Evening and Morning

Distribution Hymn 555 Salvation Unto Us Has Come

The Nunc Dimittis p. 199

The Thanksgiving p. 200

The Salutation

The Benedicamus p. 201

The Benediction p 202

Closing Hymn #880  Now Rest Beneath Night’s Shadow

Sermon Notes

Twenty-Fifth Sunday after Trinity

(Second Last Sunday of the Church Year)

November 18, 2018
Title: The Abomination of Desolation

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

It is written, “Therefore, when you see the ‘abomination of desolation,’ spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place (whoever reads (this) let him understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains” thus far the text.

Sermon Notes

Our Father did not send Jesus into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Jesus might be saved!  So why Jesus preach this fire and brimstone sermon?

Jesus is warning us that the Last Day is drawing near.

Bartholomaus Ringwaldt (1532-1599) wrote today’s hymn and the first line states it well.

He wrote and we sang:

The day is surely drawing near when Jesus, God’s anointed, in all His power shall appear as judge whom God appointed.  Then fright shall banish idle mirth, and flames on flames shall ravage earth as Scripture has warned.

Jesus is warning us that His Second Coming is approaching.  Make yourselves ready. You have been warned.

Jesus warned ancient Israel to live peacefully under Roman rule.

But they would not live peacefully with the Roman authorities even though warned.Jesus warned ancient Israel to leave Jerusalem, the ancient city of God, because a time was coming when He, Jesus Christ, would destroy the Jerusalem Temple.  Along with the warning Jesus also gave them a sign marking the utter nearness of the destruction. The sign was an image of the emperor placed in the Holy Place of the Temple.  This act is the ‘abomination of desolation’ prophesied by Daniel. An idol placed in the heart of God’s temple.

But they would not leave Jerusalem nor recognize the sign.

Some forty years after Christ’s resurrection the Roman army made war on Ancient Israel slaughtering many.  To mock the Israelites they placed an image of the emperor in the Holy Place of the Temple. And some time later, destroyed the Temple so that no one stone remained on another.

Two out of three clear warning were given to Ancient Israel and they did not listen.

The last warning is for you.

You live in the End Times as has the Christian Church since the time of Christ’s Ascension.  The End Times will continue with wars and rumors of war until Christ’s Second Coming.

Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are (1 Corinthians 3:16-17).

The for you today is this, ‘Do not practice idolatry.  Do not place the abomination of desolation in your heart which is the temple of God.”  For this is how a Christian desecrates the temple of God.

What does the abomination of desolation look like within the church today?

All Christians who are sexually active outside of marriage are practicing idolatry.  They are sinning against the temple of God.

This idolatry might look like a young couple living together.  They are just out of High School, or the military, or college. The common excuse is that they don’t have enough money to pay rent on two apartments and they are not ready for marriage yet.  They have exchanged the Holy Spirit for the abomination of desolation - which is unbelief.

This idolatry might look like a retired couple living together.  Should they get married their Social Security checks would lessen.  So they two say they cannot afford to live separately because of finances and yet they don’t want to get married yet.   They, too, have exchanged the Holy Spirit for the abomination of desolation - which is unbelief.

And so, parents and children alike, you are warned in these End Times, hear again the Word of God for your repentance unto faith in Jesus.

Children of all ages, teach your parents or grandparents that living together without marriage is a major modern sign of the abomination of desolation.  They are practicing idolatry against God even if they go to church regularly. Holy Communion would be God’s judgment against them.

Parents and Grandparents of all ages, teach your children and grandchildren that living together without marriage is a major modern sign of the abomination of desolation in their home or apartment.  They are practicing idolatry against God even if they say they believe in Jesus Christ. They despise their Holy Baptism.

It’s not a knowledge problem.  For you know that “as many of you were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death!  Therefore you are buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in the newness of life (Romans 63-4).

Back to the hymn.  Ringwalt wrote and we sang (verse 4):

Then woe to those who scorned the Lord and sought but carnal pleasures, who here despised His precious Word and loved their earthly treasures!  With shame and trembling they will stand and at the judge’s stern command to Satan be delivered.

There is a strange little proverb that comes a few lines after our printed Gospel lesson for the day.  Which is this:

Wherever the carcass is, there the vultures will gather.

This is something different than the judgment of God against unbelievers.

It is rather a Gospel picture to teach us that Christians gather together around the Word of God.  When Jesus comes on the Last Day where will he find you?

Wherever the Word is, there will the Christians gather.

Jesus will find you receiving the gifts He won for you in death and resurrection.  Unbelief is not found with faith. The abomination of desolation is not in the Temple of God (your bodies).  Rather, in body and soul you are the holy Bride of Christ in the forgiveness of all your sins. Day by day you are living in the newness of life even on this earth.  And yet waiting for the glorious second and final coming of the Son of Man.

O Jesus Christ, do not delay, but hasten our salvation; We often tremble on our way in fear and tribulation.  O hear and grant our fervent plea: Come, mighty judge, and set us free from death and ev’ry evil. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, guard and keep you in Jesus Christ, our Savior.  Amen.