Trinity 25

Mark 13:24-31 - Trinity 25 - November 10, 2013 

The World remains evil; the Word remains true.

The World is Very Evil.  It’s true.  There is an old hymn in our hymnal that used to have these very words as its title.  The hymn has undergone some editions through the years, and in our hymnal, the first line of the hymn now reads, The Clouds of Judgment Gather.  Now at first it kind of annoyed me that they changed the words, and I suppose they didn’t need to.  But the difference of translation offers us a fitting interpretation of what’s going to happen.  Why do the clouds of judgment gather?  Because the world is very evil.  That’s why.  Jesus tells us that the Son of Man will come with great power and glory in the clouds to judge the living and the dead.  Now, you can’t do anything to stop the clouds from coming, and I suppose that’s why Jesus talks the way he does.  Talk about something impending, and making everything around you dark, and suddenly you have to reckon with what is about to happen … when the clouds come. 

Jesus used an example from nature to explain to us how we will know when this will occur.  As soon as the fig tree’s branch becomes tender and puts out its leaves, you know that summer is near.  The meaning of this is really simple.  Just as nature gives certain and definite signs that summer is coming, so also Jesus has told us to look for certain and definite signs that Judgment Day is coming. 

Trinity 25

Exodus 32:1-20 & Luke17:20-30 - Trinity 25 - November 9, 2014

Christian Worship Is Divine Service

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Last week, I spoke of two mountains.  There was the mountain of curse, and the mountain of blessing.  The mountain of curse was Mt. Sinai from where God spoke the 10 Commandments to Israel.  It is the mountain of curse because the law curses all who disobey.  The mountain of blessing is where Jesus fulfills the law for us and blesses us with the righteousness that he earned in our place.  For the sake of contrast, last week I spoke of this mountain as the place where Jesus preached the beatitudes — “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven,” and so forth.  But the mountain of blessing is more than just where God speaks the blessing.  It is where God earns the blessing.  It is Mt. Calvary.   It is where the curse of the law was spoken against the Son of God in our place.  Jesus placed himself under the law for us, and suffered and died as our holy Substitute.  Without the cross, there is no blessing.  Without Mt. Calvary, there is no Mt. Zion.