Today we begin what we call a brand new church year. Today is the first Sunday in Advent. Advent lasts for the four weeks, before Christmas. The word "advent" is from a Latin word that means "to come, or coming." During Advent, we think about Christ coming. We think about Him coming in three different ways.

First of all, we think about Christ coming, as Judge. In our Gospel Lesson today, Jesus, in His own words, explained what the days would be like, before He comes to judge the living and the dead. He tells us that there will be wars, rumors of wars, floods, famine, earthquakes, and disasters. In the last days, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will be darkened. And then, the Bible tells us, the end will come. The trumpet will sound. The voice of the archangel will shout. And, Christ will appear in the clouds. The heavens will roll away like a scroll. The earth will melt with fervent heat. And all the world, living and dead, will stand before the Judge, to be judged for eternity.

The second coming of Christ.

Are you ready?

When I was in ninth grade, I had a friend, a very close friend, who I was very worried about. He was planning on going on a trip for a week. He had confided in me, before leaving on this trip, he had planned to do something sinful, with a young woman.

During the week that he went on that trip, there was a huge flood in Pittsburgh (I lived in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania). I witnessed water rushing down the street, and rivers just flowing into the basement of our church, until it filled up the basement of our church!

One evening, when we were driving home, I looked up in the sky. The moon appeared to be a blood red. Then, I remembered the words of Jesus, as He described the last days, "Floods, and the moon turning dark."

I began to wonder to myself, "Is this a sign that the end may come today or tomorrow?"

And then, I thought about my friend. I knew what he was doing. And I thought, "What if he is not ready, when Jesus comes back the second time?"

That is a frightening thought. But, my friend would not have been ready, nor would any of us be ready for Jesus' second coming, if it weren't for Jesus' first coming. The first time Jesus came, Jesus did not come to be our Judge. He came to be our Savior. Our scripture reading foretells that when it says, "In those days, and at that time, I will make a righteous Branch sprout from David's line; He will do what is just and right in the land."

By the time Jesus came, the line of David appeared to be gone. There were no kings sitting on the throne, anymore, from the line of David. And those who remained from the line of David appeared to be evil and wicked. And yet, a righteous sprout came forth, from that line of David. And, our Savior was born - a righteous sprout. He was wrapped in swaddling clothes. He was laid in a manger. He came to this earth, as Savior. Not to hurt us or harm us, but to help us and to save us.

Our scripture reading says,

"He would do what is just and right in the land."

And that is exactly what our Savior did. Our Savior, Jesus, actively went about living an absolutely holy, perfect, spotless life. Jesus never once, not once, ever sinned against any of the Ten Commandments. And, not only did Jesus not sin against the Ten Commandments, but He actively and intensely lived a life of keeping the Ten Commandments.

The Ten Commandments can be summarized this way, Love God and love your neighbor - love others. Jesus intensely loved others and kept those commandments. Jesus intensely went about His life, doing good and keeping those commandments.

Jesus actively went about helping those in need - His neighbors in need.

If there was somebody who was hungry, we know the miracles Jesus did to feed him or her.

If He saw someone crippled or blind, He healed him or her. Jesus raised the dead.

Jesus actively and intensely went about serving the spiritual needs of His neighbor.

If He saw a neighbor who was deeply troubled over sin, and struggling with guilt, Jesus announced to him or her words of forgiveness and said, "Be of good cheer. Your sins are forgiven."

If He saw a neighbor, who was going down the path to Hell, He intensely loved that neighbor. What did He say to the Pharisees? He said, "Woe to you, Pharisees, you hypocrites." By that, out of love, He was trying to call them back to repentance and faith.

He lived a life, a perfect life of love, for His neighbor.

He also lived a perfect life of love to God. We know that our Savior, Jesus, loved His Farther so much that He actively went out and intensely spoke the Word of God faithfully, no matter what the cost to Him. He loved His Father. We know our Savior, Jesus, actively and intensely kept those commandments, as He intensely knelt down many times in His life, in prayer and committed Himself to His Father in Heaven. We know that our Savior was so intent on loving God perfectly, according to the Ten Commandments, that He was willing to be obedient to His Father, no matter what the cost. And, if that meant He had to go to the cross, if His Father told Him to go and take your sin, your shame, your guilt, your hell, Jesus willingly did that. And on the cross, out of love for His Father, and us, He paid the full price for all of our sins. God has declared us to be forgiven and not guilty, for Christ's sake.

Nobody would be ready for Christ's second coming, were it not for His first coming.

However, there will be plenty of people on Judgment Day, who knew all about Jesus' second coming. And, they knew all about Jesus' first coming, and yet, will not be ready for Judgment Day. Jesus' coming the first time does us absolutely no good, unless (and this is the third coming of Christ that we look at), and that is unless He comes into our hearts by faith.

We have an Advent hymn that goes this way,

"Ah dearest Jesus,

Holy Child,

make thee a bed

soft undefiled

within my heart,

that it may be

a quiet chamber kept for thee."

Let me ask you this. Has Jesus come into your heart? Do you believe, because of His first coming, you are saved? Let's look at it this way. Let's say Jesus came back in judgment, right now. Imagine that you heard the trumpet sound, the voice of the archangel, the roof of this church blew off, and in the sky you saw the brilliant brightness of your Judge coming back to judge you, this very minute! What would you do? What would you do?

Would you get up, run out of this church, get into your car, and try to get as far away from here, as you possibly can, for fear that now you are going to stand before the Judge, the all-seeing eye, who knows everything you have done, knowing you don't have any righteousness with which to appear before Him?

Would you be disappointed, if you saw Him coming back again and say to yourself, "I had so many plans. And now, I am not going to be able to carry them all out. I am going to have to leave behind my nice home, my car, and all of my things?"

If that is your heart, you are not ready for Christ's second coming, because He has not come into your heart, and you do not cling to Him, as your Savior.

On the other hand, if Jesus were to come back this very minute, what does Jesus tell us of His believers? In our Gospel Lesson today He says, "When these things begin to take place (the second coming), stand up."

"Stand up!"

Would you stand up?

And then He says, "Lift up your heads (look up into the sky), because your redemption is drawing near."

Would you stand up and look up to the skies and say, "He has finally come to deliver me!"

Would you be able to reach into your pocket, take the keys to your house, and throw them away? Would you be able to reach into your pocket, take out your wallet, take your Social Security Card and your driver's license, and throw them away?

Would you say, "Finally! Finally!"

We live in a world that is so sinful. We can't even trust each other. We have to lock our houses. We have to have identification cards, because people don't trust who we are. We can't trust one another. What a sinful world.

Would you be able to say, "Now, I am not going to need to lock my house, anymore? I am not going to need to have somebody identify who I am, because they don't trust me, because my Savior has come back, and I am free!"

We will live in a world where there is no sin, where we can absolutely trust one another.

My redemption is drawing near!

Would you be able to reach into your wallet, take your money, throw it away from you, as far as you can, and look up into heaven and say, "My redemption is here!"

Think about this. We live in a world, where we have to pay people to take care of our needs. I have to give somebody money, before they will give me a piece of bread to eat. I have to give somebody money, before they will take care of me and give me clothes to wear on my back. But, we will be free from the need of that filthy lucre, because then we are going to live in a world where all of our needs will be fully provided for by God and by all those in Heaven. We will not need to pay somebody to be kind to us, anymore.

Our redemption is drawing near!

When that day comes, will you be able to look up into the sky, take off your glasses and throw them away? Take off your hearing aid and throw it? Reach into your purse, take out your medicine, and throw it? Will you be able to say, "Finally, finally! I have lived in a world that is so corrupted by sin that my body is falling apart, as a result of being in a sinful world. But, now my redemption is here! And my body, by Christ’s power, will be restored to be like His glorious body!"

My redemption is here!

And, who are the people who are going to be able to stand, looking up in to Heaven and say, "My redemption is here!" It is those into whom whose heart Christ has come. Our scripture reading says when Jesus comes He will be called

"The LORD, our Righteousness."

our Righteousness

Are you a person who recognizes, "I don't have any righteousness, before which I can stand before God on Judgment Day and say, 'God, look at what I have done. Look at how good my life has been. Look at all of the kind things I have done.'"

I don’t have anything to stand on. I am a sinner. But, the LORD, Jesus, is my Righteousness. He is my Righteousness. The One who came the first time is my Righteousness. That is what the Bible declares and promises to me, and to you. The Bible declares and promises that the holy, spotless life (that I described before), which Jesus lived, He lived in your place, as your substitute. And, God has declared it to be your holy life!

Jesus is my Righteousness.

He has declared that Jesus' death on the cross was for you, in your place, for your sin. And your sins are paid for. You are forgiven. And, you are declared not guilty, in God's eyes.

Jesus, my Righteousness!

Anyone in this life who says, "The LORD is my righteousness," is ready. Jesus has come into your heart. And, you are ready, on the Day of Judgment, to stand before Jesus, not with your righteousness, but with His, and say, "The LORD is my righteousness. Jesus, you lived a perfect life for me. You paid for my sins. I believe your promise."

Whoever believes

will be saved.

Now, the last thing we have to consider is this. If Jesus has come into your heart, and you believe in Him, as your Savior from sin, you are on the way to Heaven. Your heart has been changed. It has been changed. Knowing what your Savior did for you creates in you a heart of love that says, "I love my Savior. And, as long as I am here on this earth, I want to live for Him."

In our Epistle Lesson for today (right before a sentence on Judgment Day), St. Paul says, "May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else."

So, no matter who I am, no matter who I am, will you love me because you are a believer in Christ?

Will you love me, if I am that ninth grade friend I described? Will you love me so much, that knowing I am going to face judgment some day, will you talk to me? Will you call me back to repentance? Will you tell me about my Savior?

If I am someone who is burdened by the troubles and the trials of this world, to the point that my faith may be faltering, will you love me? Will you love me so much, for Christ’s sake, that you will come to me and share with me a Savior who has come and died for my sins, promises to take care of all of my needs, and promises one day to deliver me? Will you build me up in my faith? Will you love me so much, no matter who I am?

If I am a visitor here in church for the first time, will you come and welcome me, so that I can see in you there is something different? I will see your heart and your life have been changed. And then, I will want what you have, so that I am open and receptive to hearing that Gospel message of Christ.

Christ is coming, again!

You are ready, if He is in your heart, and you believe He came the first time, as your Savior.

God grant that to all of us, for Christ’s sake.

Amen.