Pentecost 25 Year C
A sermon based on: Malachi 4:1-2a; Psalm 98; 2 Thessalonians 3:6-13; and Luke 21:5-19
In the name of Jesus; amen.
There are times I wish I could be an apocalyptic preacher. I would pull out the fire and brimstone; preach about hell and all the things that would take us there. If I was an apocalyptic preacher I could pound on the pulpit, raise my voice and shout about the end of the world and all the woes of Armageddon.
If I was an apocalyptic preacher I could get really worked up, my face might turn red and I’d need to wipe the sweat from my brow. Maybe some of you would start to swoon or shout out “Amen.”
If I was an apocalyptic preacher all the tragedies of this world would turn into signs of the end time: reports of war, famine, natural disasters, plagues would turn into “I told you so’s” and “Get your houses in order because Jesus is coming” speeches.
If I was an apocalyptic preacher the day of the Lord would be a truly awful thing; it would scare the Jesus right into you.
Except that I’m not an apocalyptic preacher. I don’t believe that we can predict the end of the world or that floods and earthquakes are God’s way of reminding us that an even greater wrath is coming. I don’t have any trouble talking about trials and tribulations, I just don’t really believe that four horsemen are going to come and wreak havoc on us before a final judgment.
But I do believe in the judgment to come. It isn’t something that I take lightly or dismiss easily. I’ve never read the Left-Behind books or even seen the movie; I don’t subscribe to that type of thinking. I’m not a literalist about those things.
I know that the day of the Lord will come, that the sheep will be separated from the goats, and that Christ will rule over a new heaven and a new earth, but the how and when that will happen… none of us knows, only God.
The readings today are concerned with that time. Malachi prophesied about the day that was coming, “burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and all the evildoers will be stubble; the day that comes shall burn then up… so that it will leave them neither root nor branch.”
Paul chastises people from the Christian community in Thessalonica who are so certain that the Day of Judgment is about to happen, any second now, that they have stopped working and relying on others for their food.
Jesus tells his disciples that the Temple, God’s very own fortress on earth, will be destroyed and that they will be betrayed, arrested, and persecuted by those closest to them before the end occurs.
And even the Psalmist writes that God will judge the world.
All of which makes me wish I was an apocalyptic preacher. All of which makes me wish that I could subscribe, even if just once, to that kind of preaching, but I can’t.
Malachi’s prophesy, Paul’s criticism, Jesus’ warning, and the Psalmist’s song don’t scream of wrath and judgment, but hope in the judgment to come.
A tree of arrogance and evil that is burned away so that no root or branch might come from it, a day of righteousness that rises with healing in its wing…
An exhortation to do what is right at all times while trusting that Jesus is still coming…
A promise that we will endure without losing one hair on our heads…
A song of God’s victory, steadfast love and faithfulness…
These things are words of hope for the things to come, not words of condemnation and worry.
These are texts that we read today are supposed to propel us forward to an eternal hope of what is to come and to take us into a season when we prepare to remember that Jesus Christ was born for us. Our hymn version of Psalm 98 is none other than Joy to the world, the Lord is come! Let earth receive her king; let every heart prepare him room and heav’n nature sing.
If I was an apocalyptic preacher I could tell you about the day of wrath, but instead I can share with you the good news of the day of joy and thanksgiving to God; thanks be to God! Amen!
A sermon based on: Malachi 4:1-2a; Psalm 98; 2 Thessalonians 3:6-13; and Luke 21:5-19
In the name of Jesus; amen.
There are times I wish I could be an apocalyptic preacher. I would pull out the fire and brimstone; preach about hell and all the things that would take us there. If I was an apocalyptic preacher I could pound on the pulpit, raise my voice and shout about the end of the world and all the woes of Armageddon.
If I was an apocalyptic preacher I could get really worked up, my face might turn red and I’d need to wipe the sweat from my brow. Maybe some of you would start to swoon or shout out “Amen.”
If I was an apocalyptic preacher all the tragedies of this world would turn into signs of the end time: reports of war, famine, natural disasters, plagues would turn into “I told you so’s” and “Get your houses in order because Jesus is coming” speeches.
If I was an apocalyptic preacher the day of the Lord would be a truly awful thing; it would scare the Jesus right into you.
Except that I’m not an apocalyptic preacher. I don’t believe that we can predict the end of the world or that floods and earthquakes are God’s way of reminding us that an even greater wrath is coming. I don’t have any trouble talking about trials and tribulations, I just don’t really believe that four horsemen are going to come and wreak havoc on us before a final judgment.
But I do believe in the judgment to come. It isn’t something that I take lightly or dismiss easily. I’ve never read the Left-Behind books or even seen the movie; I don’t subscribe to that type of thinking. I’m not a literalist about those things.
I know that the day of the Lord will come, that the sheep will be separated from the goats, and that Christ will rule over a new heaven and a new earth, but the how and when that will happen… none of us knows, only God.
The readings today are concerned with that time. Malachi prophesied about the day that was coming, “burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and all the evildoers will be stubble; the day that comes shall burn then up… so that it will leave them neither root nor branch.”
Paul chastises people from the Christian community in Thessalonica who are so certain that the Day of Judgment is about to happen, any second now, that they have stopped working and relying on others for their food.
Jesus tells his disciples that the Temple, God’s very own fortress on earth, will be destroyed and that they will be betrayed, arrested, and persecuted by those closest to them before the end occurs.
And even the Psalmist writes that God will judge the world.
All of which makes me wish I was an apocalyptic preacher. All of which makes me wish that I could subscribe, even if just once, to that kind of preaching, but I can’t.
Malachi’s prophesy, Paul’s criticism, Jesus’ warning, and the Psalmist’s song don’t scream of wrath and judgment, but hope in the judgment to come.
A tree of arrogance and evil that is burned away so that no root or branch might come from it, a day of righteousness that rises with healing in its wing…
An exhortation to do what is right at all times while trusting that Jesus is still coming…
A promise that we will endure without losing one hair on our heads…
A song of God’s victory, steadfast love and faithfulness…
These things are words of hope for the things to come, not words of condemnation and worry.
These are texts that we read today are supposed to propel us forward to an eternal hope of what is to come and to take us into a season when we prepare to remember that Jesus Christ was born for us. Our hymn version of Psalm 98 is none other than Joy to the world, the Lord is come! Let earth receive her king; let every heart prepare him room and heav’n nature sing.
If I was an apocalyptic preacher I could tell you about the day of wrath, but instead I can share with you the good news of the day of joy and thanksgiving to God; thanks be to God! Amen!
No comments:
Post a Comment