+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: Mark 13:7-9
Theme: Stability Within Upheaval
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
Maturity has its limits. Understanding has its thresholds. That is, until Christ comes in glory. Tell a young child that something will happen in nine months’ time and it will mean very little to them. Explain that a relative lives several thousand kilometers away and their eyes may glaze over. The concepts of time and space present difficult challenges for the human mind. Even in adulthood we struggle. They are not abstract concepts, yet the actual experience of these realities is often complex. Today Jesus reminds us of the profound spiritual implications.
As we approach the end of the Church Year we encounter again those Scriptures which speak of the circumstances of Christ’s return. The challenge is not to see this as just an annual trigger, a reminder of Christ’s promise much like the annual notices we get to remind us of dental check-ups, insurance reviews, or tax submissions. The specter of Christ’s imminent return looms over our perspective of the here and now. The One who has come is coming again. We are living on borrowed time. Yet we are already in sync with eternity. That is part of the mystery of Christ’s resurrected and ascended presence among us.
Today Jesus instructs His disciples using the temple and its surrounds as the point of reference. The disciples are impressed with the magnificence of the temple. It would seem to be a paradigm of stability. But Christ says it will all crumble. Then follows an extended description of the turmoil that will precede Jesus’ return. “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places, and famines.”1
The instability initiated by the fall into sin will run its course and only be brought to conclusion by Jesus’ Second Coming. Believers should have no misgivings about these truths.
Nations rise and fall. Empires come and go. Societies prosper; then falter. Ideologies flourish; then fade. Novelties become fads. Fads become customs. Customs become traditions. Traditions become dogmas- seemingly unalterable parts of the fabric of the culture. But then they are overthrown- sometimes with violence, sometimes through apathy- and they quickly vanish and are forgotten. Legends become myths. Myths become forgotten until they are reincarnated by those who had no prior knowledge of the consequences of their false foundations; those who were never taught the lessons of history. Then they slowly, subtly at first, begin to show the symptoms of corruption they had displayed before.
You see, idolatry never ages. It’s perennially rejuvenated youthfulness must continue as evidence of Satan’s desperate agenda of denying the living God. Don’t thinks for an instant that Satan is on holiday. Don’t imagine that sin is passé, a thing of the past. Don’t believe for a moment that your internal desires, those seedy, selfish cravings will just cease to exist. You are no less of a sinner in your maturity than you were in your youth. You might be more adept at covering up your sin, but you are no less guilty. The need for repentance never ceases until we take our final breath. We pray that the Holy Spirit would justly convict us; working a humility within us that cherishes the grace we have in our Lord.
Sometimes we must consider whether our expectations are misguided, unreasonable or altogether false. They must be continually measured against the Scriptures and revised accordingly. If our expectation is that Christianity should benefit us with some worldly recognition or praise for being faithful to God, well, then we’re laboring under a grand delusion. If we expect life to be carefree and painless then we’ve misread or are ignorant of the clear message of Jesus to His followers. Baptismal living is a struggle. If we think this world can march on in unbridled prosperity and that our own mortality can be avoided then we are naïve or willfully ignorant about biblical truth.
Everything created is fragile, but the words and promises of God are indestructible.
Some foundations are unshakeable. Christ is the perfect and complete incarnation of the living God. His work of sacrifice can never be torn down. The cross can never be gainsaid. The disciples marveled at the magnificence of the Jerusalem temple today. But Jesus warns it would all be destroyed. What makes a church a worthy place of worship is not the quality or character of its architecture but the presence of the Word of God. The church is ancient. It is the fellowship of God’s people right back to the first sinners who were redeemed.
Now what do these truths have to do with you? Much in every way! Each and every day you are Christ’s witnesses in the world. You provide the listening ear, the gentle embrace, the hard truth according to the situation you’re in. Your support, encouragement, and even chastisement are part of your vocation of serving others. What does our Scripture say, “Let hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for He who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us no give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another- and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”2 In Christ we have stability within upheaval. We have peace in the midst of chaos. We have certainty in the face of doubt. We have the foundation of truth smack in the middle of a sea of falsehood.
Many still desperately lack that certainty. No one is beyond the reach of God’s redeeming love. No one has descended so far into the abyss of utter darkness that the rays of Christ’s light cannot penetrate. If we doubt this truth then we have surrendered the central teaching of the Christian faith. Christ came to reconcile sinners. “For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by His life.”3 In baptism believers are incorporated into the death and resurrection of God’s one and only Son. The Holy Spirit has sealed you for the day of redemption.
Meanwhile, we live on borrowed time yet in sync with eternity. And how we live matters. Good habits should be recognized and strengthened. Bad habits should be identified and reformed. Christian life involves litany and liturgy. Litany involves the practice of beseeching God with prayers of supplication and thanksgiving. It is characterized by the ongoing conversation we have with and through our Great High Priest. Liturgy involves the rhythm of worship- of receiving the giftings of the Giver and responding in humble reverence. It is characterized by God’s service to us in Christ- through word and sacrament- and our response through the power of the Holy Spirit.
A sandcastle built in the path of a rising ocean tide doomed for destruction. It cannot stand. Our fallen world cannot stand. But we look forward to a more stable foundation. Christ has built His kingdom on much firmer ground. The foundation is built on the righteousness and truth of God Himself. Immortal and indestructible He promises that we will share in His life. Come, Lord Jesus. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
Twenty-Fifth Sunday After Pentecost
15 November, 2015
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Mark 13:8
2 Hebrews 10:23-25
3 Romans 5:10
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