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"For faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ." ~ Romans 10:17

Christ Jesus Will Preserve His Elect

11/11/2019

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Lucas Signroelli, Sermon and Deeds of the Antichrist, 1499-1502, Public Domain
Matthew 24:15-28 

November 10, 2019 
 
You cannot predict when the end of the world will come. Anyone who claims that he knows when Jesus will return is lying. Jesus Christ himself says, “But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only.” (Matt. 24:36) God only knows when the end will come.  
But Jesus does tell us the signs of the end times. And it is precisely because no one knows the day the end will come that we ought to pay attention to the signs and listen to Jesus’ warning. Christ Jesus will return like a thief in the night, unexpectedly, while people are eating and drinking, working and playing, marrying and giving into marriage. Then there will be no time to repent, to change your ways, to turn to Christ. Then there will be sudden judgment. Some will go to everlasting life and others to everlasting contempt.  
 Yet, there will be signs of his coming; signs that we are in the end times. And Jesus says, “From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branches become tender and puts out its leaves, you know that summer is near. So, also when you see all these things, you know that he is near, at the very gate.” (Matt. 24:32-33) So, let us look at these signs of the end times and examine our own day.  
Jesus say that there will be wars and rumors of wars. I suppose you could say that is always the case. Yet, no one can deny that in the 20th century we had the most destructive wars in sheer loss of human life than has been recorded before. And wars have continued. And rumors of wars constantly captivate our minds.  
Jesus says there will be persecution. “They will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake.” (Matthew 24:9) This certainly is true. Christians confess Christ at great risk to their lives. Some sources say that more Christians have been killed for their faith in the past century than in all Church history combined. And even we American Christians, who enjoy religious freedom and are not afraid of physical harassment for worshiping Christ, our culture has become increasingly intolerant of the teachings of Christ. Christians are continually silenced in public discourse and these anti-Christian attitudes are seeping into government policy. Persecution remains a real threat even to us.  
Jesus says in this chapter that many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another. Is this not self-evident? With few exceptions, churches in the western world are emptying and closing down. The word is chocked out of their hearts. People love this world more than Christ Jesus who has overcome the world. Jesus says, “My sheep hear my voice.” Yet, many who hear his voice refuse to hear it any longer.  
Jesus says that lawlessness will be increased. This again is self-evident. Today’s culture celebrates every abomination condemned in Scripture. Few set the Ten Commandments before their eyes and try to live by them. Idolatry, fornication, homosexuality, abortion, drunkenness, profane language, disrespecting elders and authority, divorce without biblical grounds, gossip, lawsuits against fellow Christians, and the list goes on. To speak against any of these as sins against God is often met with hot anger.  
“The love of many will grow cold.”, Jesus says. Isn’t that the truth! We don’t sympathize with others. We’re not patient. We don’t explain everything in the kindest way. We’re quick to judge. Quick to condemn. Quick to say, “He’s dead to me.” And this is the behavior of Christians toward other Christians! Cold love is dead love. Dead love comes from a dead faith.  
Yet, Jesus also says, “And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.” (Matt. 24:14) There are still places in the world where the Gospel is so strongly persecuted that it is difficult for it to be proclaimed in those lands. Yet, there is hardly a corner of the world where the Gospel has not at least been proclaimed.  
I think it’s clear, if we go through the list Jesus gives us, that the times we now live in qualifiy as the End Times. And, so we must beware. We must make sure our lamps have oil and be ready to trim them when the watchman calls. We must repent and believe in the Gospel. And in order to be ready, we must take special heed of the warning Jesus makes in our Gospel lesson. “False christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect.”   
False christs and false prophets are enemies of the church and all Christians. Yet, they are not enemies that fight from the outside. Rather, they are ravenous wolves dressed in sheep’s clothing. False christs look like Christ Jesus to the untrained eye. False prophets claim to speak for God. St. Paul informs the Christians in Thessalonica in 2 Thessalonians chapter 2, “Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him, we ask you, brothers, not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed, ... For that day will not come unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself against every so called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God.” 
This man of lawlessness sets himself up in the temple of God, that is, he dwells in the holy Christian Church on earth. He claims to be God himself, that is, he claims to speak with the authority of God. Christians will follow him and believe in him. They will listen to the lies that come from his mouth. This is the abomination of desolation of the end times. An abomination is a thing hated by God. God hates above all else false gods. It is an abomination set up in the holy place when idolatry, that is, the worship of false gods is set up within the Christian Church to lead Christians astray.  
We Christians should be diligent in marking and avoiding false christs and false prophets. And we should be aware of the man of lawlessness, who sets himself up in the temple of God.  
Many mainline church bodies have in the past century denied that the Bible is 100% true. They teach that much of the Bible is the opinion of human beings. This has resulted in some of the most offensive teachings and practices that have led people away from Christ, even as they remain practicing members of “Christian” congregations. In 2017 an openly lesbian bishop of the United Methodist Church, Karen Oliveto, preached a sermon in which she stated that Jesus Christ didn’t have his life figured out, that he outgrew his bigotry, and in which she warned against making an idol out of Jesus. Whereas the scriptures say that Jesus is our high priest who is able to sympathize with our weaknesses, having been tempted like us in every respect, yet without sin, this woman preached that Jesus was like us even to say that he did sin! This is a false teaching that robs people of a perfect Savior, who takes away sins through his holy sacrifice. Bishop Oliveto presents a false christ. Yet, despite complaints within her church body, Bishop Oliveto continues to preach in the Church.  
Recently a clergy person in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America named Nadia Bolz-Weber wrote a book entitled, “Shameless: A Sexual Reformation.” In this book she criticizes the idea that God teaches in the Bible that we should refrain from sex until marriage and that sex only belongs in marriage, which is a lifelong union between one man and one woman. Instead, she encourages her readers to embrace their sexual identity, whether that involves sex outside of marriage, homosexuality, or being transgender, because she says that God has made us diverse. This teaching leads people away from true repentance and into lives devoid of Christ’s forgiveness and true acceptance. She uses the freedom of Christ as an opportunity for the sinful flesh, which St. Paul explicitly warns us against in Galatians chapter 5. Nadia Bolz-Weber is a false prophet who continues to teach within the church to Christians.  
Recently Pope Francis held an Amazon Synod at the Vatican. During this synod people from the Amazon in traditional indigenous attire bowed down before wooden statues of naked pregnant women called Pachamamas, which is a fertility goddess for the indigenous people in the Andes. These statues were then put on display in a local Catholic Church in Rome. While the Vatican insists that this was not idolatrous worship, some Roman Catholics were upset at this apparent idolatry and took the statues out of the church and threw them into the Tiber River.  
Now this episode appears to be false worship in the very church of Rome that has even upset many within the Roman Catholic Church. Yet, Lutherans have been protesting the pope’s false teaching for five-hundred years, since the pope excommunicated Martin Luther for proclaiming the Gospel. The Pope continues to teach that good works are necessary for salvation and that even those who do not know Christ, but try their best can still enter heaven. This teaching of works righteousness pushes Jesus Christ out of the church and its fruits are seen as many Christians from various denominations now believe that Jesus is not the only way to heaven.  
Now, I am not taking an opportunity to bash other Christian denominations, but rather repeating the warning of our Lord Jesus Christ, who desires the salvation of you all. False christs and false prophets will arise and lead many astray. The abomination of desolation is the man of lawlessness, who places himself in the very Church of God and leads people away from God even as he claims to speak for him. Jesus tells us not to believe what they preach. Jesus tells us when we see these things to run to the mountains, meaning, run to the holy Scriptures. We must judge all teachers based on the truth of God’s word.  
Jesus Christ is the only way to heaven. He himself says, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6) and St. Peter proclaims of Jesus, “there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12)  
When false christs and false prophets tell you that not everything in the Bible is true, do not believe them. When they tell you that you do not need to repent of your sins, remember that false prophets said the same thing to Israel and God punished them for it. When they tell you that you can get to heaven by your own good works, by being a nice person, and without Jesus, do not believe them. Christ Jesus, true God and true man came to earth to save sinners. He lived a perfect life. He didn’t need to figure it out or overcome his bigotry. He came to teach and to save. He died on the cross for idolaters, fornicators, homosexuals, divorcees, murderers, liars, gossips, thieves, people who lose their temper, people confused about their sexual identity and so many more. He died for you! He took away all the sins of all people. He bore them on the cross and washed them away in his blood. Only Jesus has done this. Only Jesus saves.  
In Jesus you have full assurance that you will be saved on the Last Day. In Jesus you have confidence that you do not need to fear when that day comes, but you can look forward to that day, knowing that your redemption is coming near.  
These last days are filled with tribulation. Jesus says that if these days are not cut short that not even the elect will be saved, but for the sake of the elect they will be cut short. The elect are those who were chosen by God before the foundation of the world. St. Paul writes, “God chose us in him before the foundation of the world, … In love he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ...” (Ephesians 1:4, 5). And it is impossible for those chosen by God to be lost on the Last Day. Jesus himself says, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.” (John 10:27-29) 
This teaching of election causes many to worry. How do I know that I am elect? How do I know that I am secure in the Father’s hand? You know through the Gospel of Jesus. St. Paul writes that God chose us in Christ. We are predestined through Jesus. Jesus’ sheep hear his voice. Keep your eyes on Jesus. In Jesus you see your salvation. You see your sins washed away. You see your victor who has overcome death, who will destroy the lawless one with the breath of his mouth, who will shepherd you into eternal life. Run to your Baptism and see that you are clothed in Christ. Receive Christ’s body and blood and know that you will rise with him. Hear the Gospel and know that your sins are forgiven. Those who trust in Jesus will never be put to shame.  
Amen.  
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Third to Last Sunday in Church Year: The Lord Preserves his Church to the End

11/12/2018

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Matthew 24:15-28 
November 11, 2018 
 
What is the Abomination of Desolation? An abomination is a disgusting and hated thing. There is nothing found more disgusting and hated by God than idolatry, that is, the worship of false gods. Desolation is the act of desolating; to lay bare and make uninhabited. In our Gospel lesson Jesus meshes his warning of two different events: the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD and the end of the world. Both of these events coincide with the abomination of desolation.  
In 70 AD the Jewish temple in Jerusalem was burned down and destroyed along with the city of Jerusalem by Roman forces. Jesus predicted this would happen. There were signs leading up to this event. In 40 AD the emperor, Caligula attempted to set up a golden statue in the temple for people to worship. Jesus told the Jews that when they saw these signs to flee. The destruction of the temple, which put an end to Jewish sacrifices to this day, and the destruction of Jerusalem were the Abomination of Desolation.   
The destruction of the temple in 70 AD was the final of many assaults on Jewish worship. Throughout the Old Testament bad kings set up idols in the temple. In 167 BC the king of Syria sacrificed pigs in the temple. These abominations had the goal of destroying the religion of the Jews by desecrating their place of sacrifice. It was through sacrifices that God communicated to his people that he accepted them. If the place of sacrifice is destroyed, then so is the religion of the Jews.  
Every sacrifice of the Old Testament pointed to the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross. When the faithful Jews of the Old Testament looked to the sacrifices in the temple, they remembered God’s promise to send a Savior to redeem them from their sins. So, the attacks on the temple, the place of sacrifice, was an attempt by the devil to remove Christ from God’s people. 
Yet, there is another abomination, which makes for desolation that we must contend with in these last days. This abomination does not deal with a temple made with hands. Rather it is an attack on a spiritual temple. The abomination of desolation, which we must contend with today, is the removal of Christ Jesus from his Church. Jesus warns, “For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible even the elect.” This warning from Jesus is for us. And just as many believers heeded Jesus’ warning concerning the first Abomination of Desolation and fled before Jerusalem was laid bare, so we too should heed Jesus’ warning.  
The abomination of desolation today is not Barrack Obama or Donald Trump or any other political leader. It is not the rulers of the nations Jesus warns us about, but those who infiltrate Christ’s church on earth. Scripture says that the man of lawlessness “takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God.” (2 Thess. 2:4) Further, it says, “The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders.” (2 Thess. 2:9) Satan isn’t really concerned with destroying the United States of America. America will fall just as every other nation will fall. Satan wants to lay the very Church of Christ desolate. He does this by raising false christs and false prophets within the very visible church of God on earth! 
Jesus warns, “if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There he is!’ do not believe it. … “If they say to you, ‘Look, he is in the wilderness,’ do not go out. If they say, ‘Look, he is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it.” Yet, many popes and bishops dressed in religious vestments have sent Christians out into the wilderness on pilgrimages or into monasteries and convents seeking Jesus through a life of good works, while ignoring the salvation Christ earned for them through his blood. Many preachers, with their own churches, radio and television shows or internet podcasts tell millions of people where to find Christ. They lead people astray with great wonders and signs. Some seem to perform miracles by healing the crippled and sick or speaking in tongues or prophesying. Jesus said they would do these things. They lead people astray with impressive performances and clever arguments. They’re successful and attractive. And they call themselves Christians. Yet, all these false christs and false prophets have something in common: they distract from Christ’s suffering and death on the cross for the forgiveness and salvation of his people.  
Satan attacks Christ’s Church from the inside. The abomination of desolation standing in the holy place is false faith standing in the place of Jesus’ blood and righteousness. The temple is no longer needed, because Jesus has fulfilled all sacrifices. Now you are the holy place where God dwells. Through faith in Jesus’ blood shed for you, God dwells in your heart. This is how he is with his people. Satan wants to replace Jesus’ blood and righteousness from your faith with a false faith. He doesn’t do this with threats of physical force. He does this by impersonating Christ and his church. This is why it is so important for you never to take your eyes off of Jesus and what he has done for you on the cross.   
How do you identify the true Christ from an imposter? How do you know that you are in the true Church or a bad counterfeit? Like many young children, when I was a small child I once wrapped my arms around the legs of a lady at church, because I thought she was my mom. They were wearing similar skirts. And likewise, Christians get deceived. They identify the church by looking at things that remind them of church. But not all building with steeples, crosses, and pulpits actually have Christ inside! Just as not all women, who wear skirts are my mom.  
You identify the true Church by listening for the true teaching of Jesus. Jesus died on the cross for your sins and rose for your justification. If you believe that God forgives you for Christ’s sake, you truly are forgiven and will be saved. Yet, even if a church has all the other familiar markings of a church, an altar and pews, a pastor and people, candles and hymn books, this does not mean that it is the true church; if Christ is not preached. If you do not hear that the blood shed on the altar of the cross washes away your sins, then that is not the church of Christ.  
The abomination of desolation stands in the holy place not only when false teachers remove Christ’s work of salvation from the preaching of the church, but when Christ, his blood and righteousness are removed from your heart. You can belong to an orthodox Lutheran church, yet if you do not believe in the forgiveness of sins from Christ then an abomination dwells in your heart instead of Christ Jesus.  
“Where the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.” Christians gather around the cross of Christ. While Satan calls us to go out and see more glorious christs, who offer you success, who don’t tell you to repent of your sins, who are rich and successful, Christians gather around a broken and despised Christ, who died upon the cross. While Satan calls you to go to a vibrant, growing church that is adored by the world, the elect are scorned for going to Jesus, where he can be found, even when the numbers dwindle.  
The true church is despised in this world because Christ is despised. To trust in his sacrifice for sins is offensive, because it means that we must acknowledge that we are sinners, who need to repent. God’s wrath against Jesus on the cross is hated, because it reveals God’s wrath against our own personal sins. To believe that God can punish Jesus for sins that we’ve committed is scoffed at even by so-called Lutheran theologians and deemed ridiculous. Yet, we fools trust in this foolishness. We cherish the cross of Christ, his blood poured, and his broken body laid in a tomb.  
We gather to eat the true body and blood of Jesus for the forgiveness of our sins; the same body nailed to the cross and blood which dripped from the nails and spear. The world finds this grotesque. Even many Christians don’t understand this. Yet, Jesus himself bids us to eat and drink. His flesh is true food and his blood is true drink. We do not devour Christ like vultures around a corpse as the mocking world imagines, rather, we partake of the risen body of Christ. We eat and drink and receive Christ’s living body and blood in a way that we do not understand, yet we believe that just as Christ is risen from the dead, so will we, who have been joined to him through this meal.  
The tribulation in these latter days will be greater than the world has ever seen. The number of false christs and false prophets will only increase and attack Christ’s church from the inside out. Satan is dead set on laying the Church of Christ desolate. Yet, God will preserve his Church. Built on the rock the Church shall stand, even when steeples are falling. Church buildings may be burnt to the ground. Churches and synods might go belly up or reject the Gospel, even the Missouri Synod might fall away. But Christ’s Church will never fall away. The elect of Christ will remain gathered around the preaching of Christ crucified, wherever that might be. No one will be able to remove Christ from his proper place in their hearts. Nations and empires have risen and fallen, and yet many still will fall. Yet, the Church, that despised flock, who trusts in a foolish Gospel, she will remain forever. Amen. 
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Trinity 25

11/13/2017

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​Matthew 24:15-28 

11/12/2017 
 
Our Gospel lesson is actually a chunk taken out of the middle of an answer Jesus gives his disciples, which takes up the entire 24th chapter of Matthew. At the beginning of the chapter Jesus tells his disciples that the temple will be destroyed. His disciples then go up to him and ask a flurry of questions, "When will these things be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the close of the age?" And in our Gospel lesson Jesus answers these questions in one big mesh.  

Jesus addresses the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem, which was actually destroyed in the Siege of Jerusalem in the year 70. This is the abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel in chapter 7. Roman troops burned the temple and killed hundreds of thousands of people in Jerusalem. The temple was never rebuilt and sacrifices were never offered on its altar again. Jesus warns his disciples to flee when they see these things beginning to place.  

Jesus also addresses his coming and the close of the age. On the Last Day, Christ will return on clouds of heaven with power and great glory and he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other (Matt. 24:30-31) 

So, it might seem like this Gospel lesson doesn't apply to you that much. The temple in Jerusalem was destroyed nineteen and a half centuries ago, so you don't need to heed the warning to flee to the mountains. And the return of Christ and the closing of the age seems so far away. Every generation of Christians is told to expect it, but they die before it happens. But do not be mistaken. This warning Jesus gives applies to you and me today.  

We are living in the end times. In the 24th chapter of Matthew Jesus perfectly describes what it is like to live in the end times. Lawlessness will be increased and the love of many will grow cold. False christs and false prophets will arise to deceive the people. There will be wars and rumors of wars, famines and earthquakes, Christians will be persecuted and killed, and people with betray and hate one another. Does this sound familiar? 

We're an impatient people. Just like the children of Israel, we think Jesus has been delayed for too long, so we go after other gods. Sure, we may not worship a golden statue, but we fear, love, and trust in things that are not the true God. We worship money, fear the influence of people, love our friends and family more that Christ, we trust in ourselves, in our own jobs, and our government instead of the God, who has promised to continue to take care of us.  

Christ warns that false christs and prophets will lead astray, if possible, even the elect. The elect! Those, who are chosen before the foundation of the world to sit at the feast of salvation! Satan and his false teachers will go after you. It doesn't matter if you are a life-long Lutheran or your father was a charter member of the congregation or you go to church every Sunday, those are exactly the people these false christs and false prophets will seek to lead astray. And so, you must never put down your guard.  

False prophets will lead people astray with great signs and wonders. How many times over the centuries and still today do people flock to a statue or grave of a saint, because it is claimed that it provided healing remedies. Roman Catholics and those in the Eastern Orthodox Church continue to put their trust in saints instead of Christ alone, because they are convinced by a supposed miracle. While their devotion is certainly religious, it is not centered on Christ, who alone saves!  

And I'm sure you've seen them on television: faith-healers. People flock to churches that promise to heal various diseases. Many are fooled into thinking others are healed or even that they themselves are healed of an illness they may or may not have had. And even perhaps, by some satanic power some are even temporarily healed from actual ailments. And they'll claim to speak in tongues, saying they have the gift of the Holy Spirit. And that is why many flock to these healers and tongue speakers: they want to have the Holy Spirit. Yet, God's Word promises the gift of the Holy Spirit in Baptism and in the Lord's Supper with Christ Jesus, himself! Yet, these churches reject Baptism as a work of God and the Lord's Supper as the true body and blood of Christ. So, they look for some other assurance of the presence of God. And they are led astray by faux wonders instead of the true means of grace given by God and promised in Scripture.  

Of course, these false prophets will lead many astray even without wonders, as many probably wouldn't even believe in Jesus' miracles if they saw them. So, they lead many away with smooth talk. They scratch the itching ears by giving the people what they want to hear. "Let's not talk of sin, that makes us uncomfortable. Repentance is so archaic. The Church really needs to get in step with the 21st century, doesn't it? Let's not talk about true and false doctrine, that's so divisive." So, many are willingly led astray, because they don't want to deny themselves and follow Jesus.  

And of course, if miracles and rhetoric won't work, Satan will try violence, which is actually the least effective weapon against Christ's saints. We saw this last Sunday, when people gathered to worship Christ were gunned down in their church building. Twenty-six people died and twenty more injured. It outraged the nation, because church should be a safe place to gather in this free country. It was a horrible and wicked action that was no doubt instigated by the evil one.  

Yet, even in that moment of horror, God was able to do good. The most persistent warning Jesus gives concerning his return is to stay on guard. You do not want to be caught unawares when the Master returns, lest you be found unfaithful. The Christians greatest fear is to die with an unrepentant heart or in the state of unbelief. In the Lord's Prayer, we ask God to "deliver us from evil." Certainly, this would include delivering us from a mad man shooting up our church. Yet, much more, we pray that God would deliver us from an evil death. An evil death is to die a sinner without repentance and without faith. So, we thank God that he was patient with us, so that we did not die when we had a hateful or unrepentant, or unbelieving heart, but has turned us back to him. And we pray that God would continue to keep us repentant and trusting in Jesus, so that we are ready to die or Christ's return, whichever comes first.  

And so, God did deliver even those shot and killed in that church in Sutherland Springs, Texas from an evil death. They died trusting in Jesus. To die a Christian is the greatest way to die. To die confessing Christ is to die well. And no amount of bullets or bombs can make the Christian death evil. The murder is evil. But the death of his saints is precious in God's sight (Psalm 116:15). 

You do not know your dying hour. And even more, you do not know the hour of Christ's return. He will return like a thief in the night. And so, you must be prepared today to meet your God. You are prepared by trusting in Christ and his death for your sins.  

When the temple was destroyed all sacrifices stopped. The Jews trusted in the sacrifices, because through them God forgave their sins. Of course, the sacrifices of animals didn't forgive their sins, but the sacrifices pointed to Christ, who has once and for all died for all sins. This is why God has not and will not have the temple be rebuilt. Christ has replaced the temple. The temple was where God's presence was. The destruction of the temple was called the abomination of desolation, because it removed God's presence from his people.  

The warning of the abomination of desolation is still valid today. The abomination of desolation is the removal of God's presence from us his people. It is the removal of Christ from us. "Christ's over here! He's over there! This is what Jesus really says." These are the cries we will hear. And they'll be accompanied with signs and wonders and sweet talk. But Jesus says not to listen to them. Christ is only where his blood is offered to his Christians; where the forgiveness he won on the cross is faithfully proclaimed. False christs and false prophets, they all have the same goal: to take you away from the sacrifice of Christ for your sins. You identify these false christs and false prophets by what they teach. They teach contrary to God's Word. And their aim is to take your focus away from Christ and his work of forgiveness.  
​

No one can predict when Jesus will return. So, if anyone claims to know when, you can mark him as a false prophet. Yet, when Christ does return there will be no mistake what's happening. Just as lightning lights up the sky, everyone will see it and it will be too late to prepare when it happens. But those gathered around Christ will be prepared. They will not be caught off guard. And so we continue to gather where Christ promises to be, where his sacrifice for our sins is proclaimed and where his forgiveness is administered to us in both Word and Sacrament. Right here, we are prepared to die well. And right now, we are prepared for Christ's return. Oh, Lord, Keep us steadfast in your Word and Faith. Amen.  
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    Rev. James Preus

    Rev. Preus is the pastor of Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church in Ottumwa, IA. These are audio and text of the sermons he preaches at Trinity according to the Historical Lectionary. 

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