Church Sermon - November 30, 2003

Rev. Mark F. Bartels

Old Testament Lesson; Jeremiah 33:14-16
Gospel Lesson; Luke 21:25-36
Sermon Text, 1 Thessalonians 3:9-13

About a month ago I was at a football game, at Camp Randal Stadium. As the clock was ticking down toward the end of the game, I began to imagine in my mind how we were going to get out of that great big, giant stadium. I looked at the exit that we were going to go out and started to think to myself, "There are going to be tens of thousands of people, a mass of humanity, trying to get out of that one exit!"

Then I thought to myself, "I am not sure if I remember exactly where the car is parked!"

I didn’t want to get lost, so I talked to the person next to me. I knew that they knew where the car was parked. I said, "As we leave, can you make sure that you stay close by me, so that we can all get out of here and make it to the car safely?"

Then I looked at my two younger boys, who were with me. I thought, "I don’t want them to get lost on their way out of here. They will never be able to find their way to the car."

So I said to them, "You two boys hold onto my hands and don’t let go. We are going to stay together, until we make it to the car."

Together, helping one another, we made it safely to the car.

The clock is ticking down, to the End of the World. Everyone here wants to be ready for that day, when it comes. We want to be found in faith in Jesus, as our Savior.

Today’s scripture reading encourages us to

One of the senior pastors in our synod (who is a very highly respected man) took a call to a congregation that is an old, established congregation that has been around for many, many years. It is out in the country, with a rural congregation of about 200 members. Unfortunately, only about 50 show up for church, on a Sunday.

It was the first Sunday that this pastor was there, when he looked out over the congregation of about 50 people (knowing that 200 people could have been there) and said, "I am so happy that all of you are here today! I am happy that you are here, to hear the Word of God and be strengthened in your faith in Jesus, as your Savior."

But then he looked at them and said, "But just think about all the people who are not here, today. Some of them are your brothers and sisters. Some of them might be your mom or your dad. It might be your son or your daughter. It might be an aunt or an uncle. It might be your neighbor. It might be someone who you were confirmed with, here at church. Look at all of the people who are not here today."

Finally, he looked at them and said, "I would like all of you to go home this week and I would like all of you to talk to somebody. Talk to them about how important it is to come to God’s House and hear the Word and be strengthened in their faith. Next week, next week I expect to see a lot more people here at church."

The following Sunday the church was packed, because those Christians had all taken the time to be concerned about another Christian’s soul. They had reached out their hands, and together they were gathering around Word and Sacrament.

Today’s scripture’s reading is talking about a love for one another’s souls, as the Day of Judgment is approaching. It is talking about the desire for one another to be ready for Judgment Day, when it comes. And, that requires a love for souls. You know that the Bible tells us that Jesus said,

As you think about yourself, and how you love yourself, what is your number one concern for yourself? I hope that your number one concern for yourself is that you get to heaven some day, by faith in Jesus, as your Savior.

Remember, Jesus said, "Love your neighbor, as yourself." If there is one concern, above all others that you should have for your neighbor, whether it be the person sitting next to you today, or ten pews ahead of you today, your number one concern for them, should be that they get to heaven. That is a great love for souls.

One of the great examples in scripture of someone who had a deep compassion and love for other people’s souls was St. Paul. It almost takes your breath away, when you think about his love for the souls of others! St. Paul, in the book of Romans, said that he wished he could be damned forever, if only it meant that all of the rest of the Jewish people could be saved. Just think about that! He loved other people’s souls so much that he wished he could be damned, if only their souls could be saved! That is an awesome love for souls!

It is that same man, out of love for other people’s souls, in a desire to get to them the Gospel message of Jesus, their Savior, who was willing to be whipped, beaten, put in prison, mocked, stoned, shipwrecked and we could go on and on! He had an intense love for other people’s souls.

He had a love for the souls of the Thessalonians. He had gone to Thessalonica, started a little church and had only been there for three or four weeks, when all of a sudden severe persecution arose. And so, St. Paul was driven from the town of Thessalonica.

After he left Thessalonica, he was concerned about the souls of those new Christians. Because there was persecution in Thessalonica, he was worried and concerned that they had fallen away from their faith in Jesus, as their Savior, and would not be ready for Judgment Day when it came. He was so concerned that he sent Timothy, (who was as close to him as a son), to the Thessalonians’ church to find out whether they were still in their faith.

Paul waited desperately to hear from Timothy, to find out what had happened to the Thessalonians. Timothy came back to Paul and reported that they were still believers in Jesus as their Savior, despite all of the persecution.

This takes us to the beginning of today’s scripture reading, where St. Paul says, "How can we thank God enough for you in return for all of the joy we have in the presence of our God because of you?"

Because Paul so dearly loved his fellow believers, he was thrilled that they were still in the faith.

That same Paul, in today’s scripture reading, says to you and me,

"May the Lord make

your love

increase and overflow

for each other and for everyone else,

just as ours does for you."

There, Paul encourages us to love one another, and have compassion for one another’s souls, just as Paul had a compassion for souls. As we look at our own lives, do we have a compassion for our fellow believers’ souls the way scripture encourages us to? Do you think about the souls of the people in your family? Do you think about the souls of the people who are in your Ladies’ Circles, or on the boards, or committees you serve, here at Holy Cross? Do you think about the souls of the people who sit beside you or near you, in church, week, after week, after week? Do you pray for them in your private life? Do you do everything you can for those souls? Do you see to it that you are holding their hands, taking them with you on the way to Heaven?

As we evaluate our lives, every one of us has to admit, "I have fallen short. Certainly, I am concerned about my own soul, but I have not always prayed for others. I have not always thought about their souls. I have not always been concerned about their eternal well being, as I should." We all have to admit that, because of our selfishness and our self-centeredness, we don’t deserve to have God love us, either. Which is why we so desperately rely on the mercy of God, our Savior.

It is such an awesome thought to know what Jesus did for me! The most undeserving person in the world, a person who has not loved the way he should, has not cared about other people the way he should, and does not deserve to be ready for Judgment Day when it comes, has God’s love. And, what has Jesus done for me? It is so awesome, to know the grace and mercy of Jesus, our Savior. At Christmas-time (especially) we think about how Jesus came down from Heaven and took on a servant’s form, for me! He had such compassion for my lost soul! And, Jesus did what I cannot do. He had a perfect, absolute compassion for everyone’s soul!

We read in scripture, for example, that He looked at the crowds and had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless like sheep without a shepherd. He had a deep, deep love for souls.

The Bible tells us that when Jesus stood over Jerusalem for the last time, He wept. The Hebrew or Greek word was "He sobbed, He was shaking with sobbing". He wept and said "Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you. How often I would have gathered you together like a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you would not." He had such a compassion for their souls, and a desperate desire for their salvation.

That same Jesus has a deep compassion for your soul, and my soul. Jesus has such a deep compassion for our souls, that though He is God Himself, He made the ultimate trade. He looked at our souls and saw that we were headed for condemnation for all eternity. He knew that there is no way, NO WAY that I can be saved, no way that you can be saved, no way that anybody could be saved, unless He made the ultimate trade. That ultimate trade, which cost Him dearly, more than we can imagine, was this: He willingly gave His perfect life of compassion to me, as a free gift and declared it to be mine. Because of that God, the Father, sees me as if I have been perfectly compassionate toward the souls of all people. In exchange, Jesus took all of my sin, my lack of compassion, every wrong thing that I have ever done, and He claimed it as His very own. Jesus claimed all the shame and guilt that went with those sins, and willingly, willingly as God, (even though He in no way deserved it), took all of the punishment that I deserve.

He was spit on.

He was mocked.

He was beaten.

He was nailed to a cross.

There I see how serious my sin is. If I ever think that my sin is little, there I see how Jesus had to suffer for my sin.

Ultimately,

Jesus suffered

the eternal damnation of

my soul,

in hell,

as He hung on the cross.

That is ultimate compassion for souls. Jesus was willing to suffer damnation, so that I would not have to. There on the cross, Jesus suffered the full punishment for my sin.

The Bible tells us that because of what Jesus did we are forgiven! God does not hold our sins against us, anymore! We are His children and His friends!

Anyone who believes

We will stand before the Judgment Seat of Christ, blameless, because Jesus’ blameless life has been given to us, as a free gift!

It is that same Jesus who has done that for me, that did it for the person next to me. He loved them just as dearly as He loved me. He came to this earth, for them. He suffered dearly, for them. He redeemed them, at a great price. He dearly wants them to be in Heaven. DEARLY!

Because my Savior paid such a great price for those souls, As Christians, because our Savior paid such a great price for those souls, and out of love for our Savior and what He has done for us (and all those around us), and out of love for their souls, we should grab hold of their hands and together encourage one another on our way to Heaven.

So how do we do that? Today’s scripture reading gives us these three things that we should do. Number one is what we call Intercessory Prayer. To intercede for somebody means that you speak to God for them on their behalf. Listen to what Paul says,

"Night and day we pray most earnestly that we may see you again and supply what is lacking your faith."

Here, Paul intercedes, Intercessory Prayer, for his fellow believers, in Thessalonica who were under great persecution. Paul, on their behalf, thinking about their souls, thinking about their eternity, prays to God that what is lacking in their faith, may be supplied. Nobody here is perfect in his or her faith. Whether it is your friends at Circle, whether it is the people you work with on the boards, committees, or PTO, or fellow parents at school, or your fellow students, whether it is the person beside you in the pew, nobody here is perfect in their faith. We should be on our knees for one another, interceding and

Intercessory Prayer – just think about how much stronger we could be as a congregation, if daily each one of us interceded for fellow believers here at Holy Cross.

Secondly Paul prays this:

"Now may our God and Father Himself, and our Lord Jesus clear the way for us to come to you."

Paul prays for their eternal well-being, and then he prays that God use him as an instrument to come to them and strengthen them in their faith. So we pray for our fellow believers and then we pray, "God, open the way for me. Use me as an instrument to strengthen my fellow believers in their faith, as we walk along together on the way to Heaven. Open a door for me. Give me an opportunity to talk to my fellow believers, whether I meet them at the grocery store, or they call me on the phone, or we are sitting together at a meeting. Give me an opportunity to share my faith, and encourage them, on their way to Heaven."

Intercessory Prayer, praying to God that He gives us opportunities to witness our faith to one another, and thirdly Paul says this:

"May He strengthen your hearts so that you will be blameless and holy in the presence of our God and Father, when our Lord Jesus comes with all of His holy ones."

There Paul’s prayer is that his fellow Christians would be strengthened and ready in their faith for the Day of Judgment, found believing in Jesus, as their Savior.

Now, how is it that your fellow Christians are strengthened in their faith? Faith is strengthened in one way.

The Holy Spirit works through the Word. The Holy Spirit works through the Word,

Strengthening of faith comes through the Word. How important it is for us to see to it that one another uses the Word of God. I think that most of you know Pastor Paul Petersen, and have heard what he says, every time it comes time for him to say good-bye. I have heard him say this to me, and I have heard him say it to lots of you, also. As he is about ready to leave and you say to him, "Good-bye Pastor Peterson", have you ever noticed he does not say, "Good-bye." You know what he says? With a big smile on his face he says, "I’ll see you in church". That is an awesome message. That is a reminder that he is encouraging you to gather together around the Word and Sacrament and be strengthened in your faith.

Let us encourage one another to use the Word of God. If you have a friend who is sick, certainly we pray for their physical well-being, but take them a Mediations booklet, where they can read the Word of God and be strengthened in their faith. Let us encourage one another to use the Word in our homes, when our friends come over to have devotions, encouraging each other to use the Word. If we know someone who is not in church let us encourage him or her to gather with us, around the Word of God, reaching out to him or her, out of a love for souls.

The clock is ticking down. The End is coming. It is a day we want to be ready for by faith, in Jesus as our Savior. It is a day that we want our fellow believers to be ready for, by faith. We are walking hand in hand, by God’s grace. Let us have compassion on one another and encourage one another, through the Word of God, to be strengthened and grow in our faith.

In His name,

Amen.

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