Season Finale
Sermon
Paradise Restored
Sermons From Revelation For Lent And Easter
I understand why people play the lottery. It's fun to daydream about the good things I could do with a big prize. I suppose it's only human to want to remove all obstacles and hardships and problems. Don't worry; be happy. But that's not the way it works. Some years ago there was a television special on lottery winners, interviewed a while after winning. The basic message was: Big money doesn't mean the end of problems; big money only means different problems. One fellow has no permanent address, moves every month, and gets his mail at a Post Office box after business hours, because of the people who are after him for his money.
Hardships and problems are just opportunities to help us understand better how the world is put together. I think that's one of the messages of the book of Revelation. In fact, it's hard to understand hardships and problems, and it's hard to understand Revelation.
I suppose the majority of Christians, if they read the Bible at all, have the most trouble with the Revelation to Saint John of the Apocalypse. If you are one of these, you are in good company. Here's an example you may remember.
There was a noted biblical scholar. A professor at a university. A pastor and a church leader. A man renowned in church history for his deep understanding of the Bible and the way he changed the church forever in the way we look at the message of scripture.
This man wrote introductions to each of the books of the Bible. Early in his life he wrote one page about the Revelation of John, saying it was so hard to understand that "it is the same as if we did not have the book at all. And there are many far better books available for us to keep." Implying that we might as well throw it out. That was early in his life before he knew what trouble was.
Later he revised his Bible introductions twice. Both times the notes about Revelation took up ten pages. The times had changed. Now he reviewed the book in detail, finding much in current events that seemed to be in fulfillment of the prophecy of John of Patmos. Now he said, "... we can profit by this book and make good use of it. First, for our comfort! We can rest assured that neither force nor lies, neither wisdom nor holiness, neither tribulation nor suffering shall suppress Christendom, but it will gain the victory and conquer at last." (Luther's Works, vol. 35, p. 409)
What made the difference? What was the change between one page of indifference and apathy to ten pages of enthusiasm and embrace? Hard times, opposition, persecution. He had been branded an outlaw, burned in effigy by mobs, chased by posses, kidnapped by friends for his own safety and exiled to live under an assumed name in disguise. But he put away his safe fortress of stone and his disguise to once again become the church leader he had been, and to find that the church of our Lord does stand victorious in the end in spite of all the world can throw against it.
He was Martin Luther. (Mosley, Emphasis, January-February, 1998, p. 16)
So if you are puzzled and troubled by Revelation, don't worry; be happy! I'd worry if you understood Revelation and were comforted by it, because that might mean you'd been through fire and persecution, hardship and trouble.
The younger Martin Luther didn't like the book of Revelation because it didn't speak of the Jesus he knew, a Jesus of Grace and Forgiveness. The older Luther knew the same Jesus, but he is a Jesus who has judgment and punishment for the wicked as well as grace and forgiveness. Jesus had not changed; Luther had changed. And this loving and forgiving man had seen many people reject love and grace and forgiveness, even church leaders and teachers of the gospel, earning only judgment and punishment for themselves.
The bottom line for Luther is: He knew Jesus. Both before and after, he knew Jesus. And he grew in that knowledge until he could see some of the side of Jesus that John of Patmos reveals in Revelation.
It's more than a coincidence that John begins his book with three titles of Jesus and ends with three I AM sayings. They bracket John's vision of the consummation of salvation history. They demonstrate John's conviction that Jesus is the centerpiece of everything that is or was or will be.
Let's look closely at these three new I AM sayings.
1. I AM coming soon. What this really means is that Jesus comes to us new every day. We have his promise in our baptism. We don't need to wait a thousand or two thousand years, and it doesn't matter what will happen at the end of time. For we have what Luther had, what John had, what the thief on the cross had. We have the assurance of Jesus that he is with us always in every age. It's like we've won the lottery.
"I am coming soon" means the same thing as we say in the Lord's Prayer, "Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done." God reigns supreme. The kingdom or reign of God is at hand, it is now, it is with us. We can feel its power when we relax our rebellion and surrender in faith and trust to the will of God.
2. Jesus also says, "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end." If I go to take a picture, I have to have a camera. Even then, I have to put film in the camera. Then I can take a picture. The film came first. The film was there when the picture was taken. The film produces a print. The film is the picture, first, last, and always. We can think of the camera as God, and the film as Jesus. If you want to stretch the analogy to its limit, the light that reflects off the object to make the picture possible can be the Holy Spirit. But the focus in Revelation is on the film.
I remember Terry Bradshaw once commenting that for some football players winning isn't everything, it's the only thing. Jesus calls himself the Alpha and the Omega. He's saying that he isn't everything, but in the life of faith, he's the only thing.
Luther makes this comment on last week's lesson from Revelation: "At last, in chapter 21, the final comfort is depicted. The holy city, fully prepared, shall be led as a bride to the eternal marriage feast. Christ alone is Lord, and all the godless are condemned and go with the devil into hell" (Luther's Works, Vol. 35, p. 409).
3. Jesus says, "I AM the root and offspring of David, the bright and morning star." We hear a lot about David at Christmas time: Isaiah prophesies the Messiah will come from the line of David the king, and Jesus is born in Bethlehem, the city of David. To the readers and hearers of John of Patmos, this would call to mind the warrior king who made Israel a power in world history, a conquering nation rather than the victim of a conqueror.
The morning star remains brighter longer and is the last to fade. In the heaven of Revelation, the Lord God provides the light as the Sun provides light for the earth.
John puts this saying of Jesus here to point out the assurance of Jesus that he comes from the line of King David and himself lasts to the end and is not subdued by any power other than God.
"I am coming soon; I am the Alpha and the Omega; I am the root and offspring of David, the bright and morning star."
Today's sermon is the end of this Easter series on Revelation. It's the season finale. But it's not a finale that just ends, with all the loose ends tied up and the questions answered and the hero gets the girl and they all live happily every after. It's more of a cliff-hanger, and just when you get the most worried, the screen flashes the words, "To Be Continued ..." and you know you have to wait until next season to find out what happens next.
But in John's vision, the end hasn't happened yet. Jesus is coming soon, but not yet. He tells us this so we can prepare for the next life in the sure and certain knowledge that God is in control. Whatever happens, we can praise God anyway!
I close with these words from Luther's Preface to Revelation: "In a word, our holiness is in heaven, where Christ is; and not in the world, before men's eyes; like goods in the marketplace. Therefore let there be offenses, divisions, heresies, and faults; let them do what they can! If only the word of the gospel remains pure among us, and we love and cherish it, we shall not doubt that Christ is with us, even when things are at their worst. As we see here in this book, that through and beyond all plagues, beasts, and evil angels Christ is nonetheless with his saints and wins the final victory" (Luther's Works, Vol. 35, p. 411).
Lord, help us to understand what we're supposed to understand, and even when we don't understand, to say no to everything that makes it more difficult to say yes to you.
Hardships and problems are just opportunities to help us understand better how the world is put together. I think that's one of the messages of the book of Revelation. In fact, it's hard to understand hardships and problems, and it's hard to understand Revelation.
I suppose the majority of Christians, if they read the Bible at all, have the most trouble with the Revelation to Saint John of the Apocalypse. If you are one of these, you are in good company. Here's an example you may remember.
There was a noted biblical scholar. A professor at a university. A pastor and a church leader. A man renowned in church history for his deep understanding of the Bible and the way he changed the church forever in the way we look at the message of scripture.
This man wrote introductions to each of the books of the Bible. Early in his life he wrote one page about the Revelation of John, saying it was so hard to understand that "it is the same as if we did not have the book at all. And there are many far better books available for us to keep." Implying that we might as well throw it out. That was early in his life before he knew what trouble was.
Later he revised his Bible introductions twice. Both times the notes about Revelation took up ten pages. The times had changed. Now he reviewed the book in detail, finding much in current events that seemed to be in fulfillment of the prophecy of John of Patmos. Now he said, "... we can profit by this book and make good use of it. First, for our comfort! We can rest assured that neither force nor lies, neither wisdom nor holiness, neither tribulation nor suffering shall suppress Christendom, but it will gain the victory and conquer at last." (Luther's Works, vol. 35, p. 409)
What made the difference? What was the change between one page of indifference and apathy to ten pages of enthusiasm and embrace? Hard times, opposition, persecution. He had been branded an outlaw, burned in effigy by mobs, chased by posses, kidnapped by friends for his own safety and exiled to live under an assumed name in disguise. But he put away his safe fortress of stone and his disguise to once again become the church leader he had been, and to find that the church of our Lord does stand victorious in the end in spite of all the world can throw against it.
He was Martin Luther. (Mosley, Emphasis, January-February, 1998, p. 16)
So if you are puzzled and troubled by Revelation, don't worry; be happy! I'd worry if you understood Revelation and were comforted by it, because that might mean you'd been through fire and persecution, hardship and trouble.
The younger Martin Luther didn't like the book of Revelation because it didn't speak of the Jesus he knew, a Jesus of Grace and Forgiveness. The older Luther knew the same Jesus, but he is a Jesus who has judgment and punishment for the wicked as well as grace and forgiveness. Jesus had not changed; Luther had changed. And this loving and forgiving man had seen many people reject love and grace and forgiveness, even church leaders and teachers of the gospel, earning only judgment and punishment for themselves.
The bottom line for Luther is: He knew Jesus. Both before and after, he knew Jesus. And he grew in that knowledge until he could see some of the side of Jesus that John of Patmos reveals in Revelation.
It's more than a coincidence that John begins his book with three titles of Jesus and ends with three I AM sayings. They bracket John's vision of the consummation of salvation history. They demonstrate John's conviction that Jesus is the centerpiece of everything that is or was or will be.
Let's look closely at these three new I AM sayings.
1. I AM coming soon. What this really means is that Jesus comes to us new every day. We have his promise in our baptism. We don't need to wait a thousand or two thousand years, and it doesn't matter what will happen at the end of time. For we have what Luther had, what John had, what the thief on the cross had. We have the assurance of Jesus that he is with us always in every age. It's like we've won the lottery.
"I am coming soon" means the same thing as we say in the Lord's Prayer, "Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done." God reigns supreme. The kingdom or reign of God is at hand, it is now, it is with us. We can feel its power when we relax our rebellion and surrender in faith and trust to the will of God.
2. Jesus also says, "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end." If I go to take a picture, I have to have a camera. Even then, I have to put film in the camera. Then I can take a picture. The film came first. The film was there when the picture was taken. The film produces a print. The film is the picture, first, last, and always. We can think of the camera as God, and the film as Jesus. If you want to stretch the analogy to its limit, the light that reflects off the object to make the picture possible can be the Holy Spirit. But the focus in Revelation is on the film.
I remember Terry Bradshaw once commenting that for some football players winning isn't everything, it's the only thing. Jesus calls himself the Alpha and the Omega. He's saying that he isn't everything, but in the life of faith, he's the only thing.
Luther makes this comment on last week's lesson from Revelation: "At last, in chapter 21, the final comfort is depicted. The holy city, fully prepared, shall be led as a bride to the eternal marriage feast. Christ alone is Lord, and all the godless are condemned and go with the devil into hell" (Luther's Works, Vol. 35, p. 409).
3. Jesus says, "I AM the root and offspring of David, the bright and morning star." We hear a lot about David at Christmas time: Isaiah prophesies the Messiah will come from the line of David the king, and Jesus is born in Bethlehem, the city of David. To the readers and hearers of John of Patmos, this would call to mind the warrior king who made Israel a power in world history, a conquering nation rather than the victim of a conqueror.
The morning star remains brighter longer and is the last to fade. In the heaven of Revelation, the Lord God provides the light as the Sun provides light for the earth.
John puts this saying of Jesus here to point out the assurance of Jesus that he comes from the line of King David and himself lasts to the end and is not subdued by any power other than God.
"I am coming soon; I am the Alpha and the Omega; I am the root and offspring of David, the bright and morning star."
Today's sermon is the end of this Easter series on Revelation. It's the season finale. But it's not a finale that just ends, with all the loose ends tied up and the questions answered and the hero gets the girl and they all live happily every after. It's more of a cliff-hanger, and just when you get the most worried, the screen flashes the words, "To Be Continued ..." and you know you have to wait until next season to find out what happens next.
But in John's vision, the end hasn't happened yet. Jesus is coming soon, but not yet. He tells us this so we can prepare for the next life in the sure and certain knowledge that God is in control. Whatever happens, we can praise God anyway!
I close with these words from Luther's Preface to Revelation: "In a word, our holiness is in heaven, where Christ is; and not in the world, before men's eyes; like goods in the marketplace. Therefore let there be offenses, divisions, heresies, and faults; let them do what they can! If only the word of the gospel remains pure among us, and we love and cherish it, we shall not doubt that Christ is with us, even when things are at their worst. As we see here in this book, that through and beyond all plagues, beasts, and evil angels Christ is nonetheless with his saints and wins the final victory" (Luther's Works, Vol. 35, p. 411).
Lord, help us to understand what we're supposed to understand, and even when we don't understand, to say no to everything that makes it more difficult to say yes to you.
