A glimpse of the Church Triumphant’s Glory

Posted on March 15, 2023 by Rev. Paul Rydecki
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Sermon for Midweek of Oculi

Revelation 4:1-11

Now that we’ve heard what the Spirit says to the seven churches in Revelation, we move on to the rest of the Book of Revelation.

The Book of Revelation can be divided into seven sets of visions that the Apostle John saw. The first set of visions was the vision of the seven letters to the seven churches. Chapter 4 begins the next section, and it sets the scene, not only for the second set of visions, but really for the rest of the book. We’re going to keep coming back over and over again to this majestic scene of the throne room in heaven, which includes three notable features: the throne, the twenty-four elders, and the four living creatures. As we’ll see, this throne room in heaven represents the eternal glory of the Church Triumphant in the presence of God—a glory and peace which remains unchanged no matter what’s going on down here in the world.

After these things I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven. And the first voice which I heard was like a trumpet speaking with me, saying, “Come up here, and I will show you things which must take place after this.”

John sees a door standing open in heaven. Then he’s invited to come up and look through the door, to see a glimpse of the hidden reality of the heavenly realm, what things are like on the other side of that invisible door. Now, heaven doesn’t literally have a door like your house has a door. But everything John sees throughout the Revelation is a symbol or a picture of some unseen reality. This is one of the easier symbols in the book. You can only see into what’s going on in the heavenly realm if God opens that door to you and invites you to look, as He once invited the prophet Isaiah to look in that famous vision of Isaiah 6, which has a few things in common with this vision.

Immediately I was in the Spirit. It’s capital S Spirit in the New King James, but I think lower case makes much more sense. In other words, John wasn’t transported bodily into heaven, but in his spirit, he was given the chance to see what God wanted Him to see in that spiritual realm. And behold, a throne set in heaven, and One who was seated on the throne.

This throne is a symbol of the authority and power of God as He governs the affairs of the world for the good of His Church. Behind the scenes of the harsh persecutions and other hardships that the Church was facing at the time of John—and at our present time—God rules. God reigns supreme as King over all. His throne isn’t threatened by anyone. His rule isn’t in danger.

Now the One seated on the throne can be God the Father. But it can just as well be the Son of Man. Either would fit with the context, and also with Daniel’s vision in chapter 7 of his book. Regardless, it’s God sitting on the throne. And He who sat there was like a jasper and a sardius stone in appearance; and there was a rainbow around the throne, in appearance like an emerald. A jasper is a precious stone that comes in many colors, from reddish to bluish to greenish. A sardius is a reddish stone. People have tried to attach significance to those colors, but honestly, any attempt to attach significance to them is going to be pure speculation. Still, green is associated with life and growing things. Red is associated with blood. If the two colors are intended to tell us something about Christ, then the greenish jasper could represent the eternal life of Christ, even though He once shed His red blood on the cross. The “rainbow” that encircled the throne wasn’t the many-colored rainbow we’re familiar with, because this one looked like an emerald, which is always emerald green in color. In Scripture, the rainbow came up after the flood had destroyed the earth as a sign of God’s covenant not to destroy the earth again by a flood. This one, green like an emerald, could be showing us the eternal life that awaits believers after this world is destroyed.

The throne, and the One seated on it, are the first major feature of the heavenly throne room. Now we come to the second major feature: Around the throne were twenty-four thrones, and on the thrones I saw twenty-four elders sitting, clothed in white robes; and they had crowns of gold on their heads.

God doesn’t sit on His throne off in a corner somewhere, isolated and alone. His throne is surrounded by twenty-four other thrones, with elders sitting on them. Twelve and its multiples in Scripture is always associated with the Church. The twelve tribes of Israel, which comprised the entire Old Testament Church, were descended from the twelve sons of Jacob. And of course there were twelve apostles hand-picked by Jesus to become the foundation of His New Testament Church through their preaching. Jesus once said to the Twelve, Assuredly I say to you, that in the regeneration, when the Son of Man sits on the throne of His glory, you who have followed Me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. In the next chapter, the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures all praise Jesus because You have redeemed us to God by Your blood out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, and have made us kings and priests to our God; and we shall reign on the earth.

So it seems clear that the twenty-four elders represent all the believers from the Old Testament and the New Testament combined, with robes made white by the blood of the Lamb so that they’re perfectly righteous and holy in God’s sight, and with crowns of gold on their heads, because they will reign with Christ, even as Paul says of all believers in 2 Timothy: If we endure, we shall reign with Him.

Then back to the throne: And from the throne proceeded lightnings, thunderings, and voices. That’s a picture of power and might, intended to frighten the enemies of the One who sits on the throne, while it holds no fear at all for any of those sitting around it.

Seven lamps of fire were burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God. The Holy Spirit, with His perfect and varied gifts is always right there with the Father and the Son, always giving light to the minds of men, and always warming the hearts of believers with the fire of His love, so that we learn to love as God loves.

Before the throne there was a sea of glass, like crystal. I think the most Scripturally sound interpretation of this sea is that it represents the “sea” of Baptism. There was a “sea”—a very large basin of water—as a major part of the furnishings in the Old Testament temple, which is said, in the book of Hebrews, to be a sort of representation of the temple of God in heaven. That sea in the temple was for the ceremonial washing of priests. The believers in heaven first entered into God’s presence through the washing of Holy Baptism, where all the baptized were made into a royal priesthood. But those waters pictured in heaven are completely calm and undisturbed, because the believers there, who are all kings and priests, have no more need of being cleansed. There is no need for continual washings of the saints in heaven, as with the Old Testament priests, because all sin has been removed from them there.

Finally, we have the third major feature of the throne room in heaven: And in the midst of the throne, and around the throne, were four living creatures full of eyes in front and in back. The first living creature was like a lion, the second living creature like a calf, the third living creature had a face like a man, and the fourth living creature was like a flying eagle. The four living creatures, each having six wings, were full of eyes around and within. And they do not rest day or night, saying: “Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, Who was and is and is to come!”

Four living creatures, or living “things,” literally. The strong tradition of the Church is to interpret these four as representing all the teachers or ministers of the Church, who have drawn their teaching from the four Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John), which tell the story of the life of Christ, who was like a lion in His kingship, like a calf in His sacrifice, like a man with His wisdom and understanding, and like a flying eagle with His ascension into heaven. At the same time, the teachers themselves can be represented by those images. They are to be like a lion defending its cubs, like a calf as it labors, like a man in his wisdom and compassion, and like a flying eagle, preaching a doctrine that doesn’t come from the earth, but from heaven.

The words of the four living creatures are so reminiscent of the words of the Seraphim, the angels in Isaiah 6: Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty! But it’s clear from chapter 5 that these four living creatures are people and not angels, because they sing, together with the 24 elders, that they were redeemed to God by the blood of the Lamb. But it makes perfect sense that believing men and the holy angels would praise God with the same words, because we’re all His creatures, and more than that, we all acknowledge Him as our good, gracious, and holy God.

Whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to Him who sits on the throne, who lives forever and ever, the twenty-four elders fall down before Him who sits on the throne and worship Him who lives forever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying: “You are worthy, O Lord, To receive glory and honor and power; For You created all things, And by Your will they exist and were created.”

That fits with our interpretation of the four living creatures as the teachers of the Church, since they lead the way in praising God, and the 24 elders, that is, all believers, gladly follow their lead. Together, they worship the One who sits on the throne, who lives forever and ever, and they cast their crowns before Him, acknowledging that He is the one who made them kings. He is the King of kings who is worthy to receive all glory, honor, and power as the Creator of all things, just as, in the next chapter, the same ones will praise God as their Redeemer.

Remember this scene of the throne room in heaven. Picture it as well as you can from the words John recorded for us. Understand that the Lord God reigns, even though His reign is hidden from us. And rejoice in the fact that, on the other side of that invisible door, the Church Triumphant is right there, praising our God just as we will one day praise Him before His throne, in perfect triumph, peace, and glory! Amen.

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Each Day in the Word, Wednesday, March 15th

Posted on March 15, 2023 by Tom and Karen Klumb

Luke 20:1-18

20 Now it happened on one of those days, as He taught the people in the temple and preached the gospel, that the chief priests and the scribes, together with the elders, confronted Him 2 and spoke to Him, saying, “Tell us, by what authority are You doing these things? Or who is he who gave You this authority?”

3 But He answered and said to them, “I also will ask you one thing, and answer Me: 4 The baptism of John—was it from heaven or from men?”

5 And they reasoned among themselves, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ He will say, ‘Why then did you not believe him?’ 6 But if we say, ‘From men,’ all the people will stone us, for they are persuaded that John was a prophet.” 7 So they answered that they did not know where it was from.

8 And Jesus said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.”

9 Then He began to tell the people this parable: “A certain man planted a vineyard, leased it to vinedressers, and went into a far country for a long time. 10 Now at vintage-time he sent a servant to the vinedressers, that they might give him some of the fruit of the vineyard. But the vinedressers beat him and sent him away empty-handed. 11 Again he sent another servant; and they beat him also, treated him shamefully, and sent him away empty-handed. 12 And again he sent a third; and they wounded him also and cast him out.

13 “Then the owner of the vineyard said, ‘What shall I do? I will send my beloved son. Probably they will respect him when they see him.’ 14 But when the vinedressers saw him, they reasoned among themselves, saying, ‘This is the heir. Come, let us kill him, that the inheritance may be ours.’ 15 So they cast him out of the vineyard and killed him. Therefore what will the owner of the vineyard do to them? 16 He will come and destroy those vinedressers and give the vineyard to others.”

And when they heard it they said, “Certainly not!”

17 Then He looked at them and said, “What then is this that is written:

‘The stone which the builders rejected
Has become the chief cornerstone’?

18 Whoever falls on that stone will be broken; but on whomever it falls, it will grind him to powder.”

The chief priests, scribes, and elders in this scene are truly skilled politicians. In trying to assess how to answer Jesus’ question about John’s baptism, they found themselves faced with a no-win situation. If they agreed that John’s baptism was from God, they would stand accused of not believing him. If they agreed that John’s baptism was from men, they would face the wrath of the people, for they were persuaded, rightly so, that John was a prophet. So, in order to save face by not admitting the truth about John’s baptism, they said they knew not where it was from. They wanted none of the consequences of their convictions; they became fence-sitters and mugwumps.

How many times in your own life have you shied away from the truth about a certain situation for fear either of embarrassment or some sort of retribution?  And have any of those times been when you were too scared to confess the one true faith about Christ?

If so, then repent, confess your sins, and seek God’s mercy and forgiveness freely offered to you through Christ’s suffering, death, and resurrection. According to Ps 103:10-12, “He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor punished us according to our iniquities. For as the heavens are high above the earth, so great is His mercy toward those who fear Him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us.” By faith alone receive Christ’s forgiveness and be strengthened by Word and Sacrament to confess Christ boldly to all who might hear.

Let us pray: O God, whose glory it is always to have mercy, be gracious to all who have gone astray from Your ways and bring them again with penitent hearts and steadfast faith to embrace and hold fast the unchangeable truth of Your Word; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now  and forever. Amen.

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Each Day in the Word, Tuesday, March 14th

Posted on March 14, 2023 by Tom and Karen Klumb

Luke 19:11-27

11 Now as they heard these things, He spoke another parable, because He was near Jerusalem and because they thought the kingdom of God would appear immediately. 12 Therefore He said: “A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom and to return. 13 So he called ten of his servants, delivered to them ten minas, and said to them, ‘Do business till I come.’ 14 But his citizens hated him, and sent a delegation after him, saying, ‘We will not have this man to reign over us.’

15 “And so it was that when he returned, having received the kingdom, he then commanded these servants, to whom he had given the money, to be called to him, that he might know how much every man had gained by trading. 16 Then came the first, saying, ‘Master, your mina has earned ten minas.’ 17 And he said to him, ‘Well done, good servant; because you were faithful in a very little, have authority over ten cities.’ 18 And the second came, saying, ‘Master, your mina has earned five minas.’ 19 Likewise he said to him, ‘You also be over five cities.’

20 “Then another came, saying, ‘Master, here is your mina, which I have kept put away in a handkerchief. 21 For I feared you, because you are an austere man. You collect what you did not deposit, and reap what you did not sow.’ 22 And he said to him, ‘Out of your own mouth I will judge you, you wicked servant. You knew that I was an austere man, collecting what I did not deposit and reaping what I did not sow. 23 Why then did you not put my money in the bank, that at my coming I might have collected it with interest?’

24 “And he said to those who stood by, ‘Take the mina from him, and give it to him who has ten minas.’ 25 (But they said to him, ‘Master, he has ten minas.’) 26 ‘For I say to you, that to everyone who has will be given; and from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him. 27 But bring here those enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign over them, and slay them before me.’ ”

In this text, the faithless servant who did nothing with his master’s mina allotted to him did not trust his master.  The servant suspiciously presumed that his master would return his distrust and therefore give him only something of little or no value. At the very least this is a violation of the Eighth Commandment by not putting the best construction on everything and assuming the worst instead of the best.  More unfortunately, the servant, by his callous attitude, lost whatever good he might have gained if he had only known what benefits his master’s gifts could deliver.

It was simple unbelief on the part of the servant that caused him to lose the good he had coming to him.  All he had to do was not turn down the gift and responsibility from his master, and he would have received all the benefit.

It is simple unbelief on our part also that causes us to lose the good we have coming to us, the spiritual and eternal blessings and benefits that God Himself delivers through His Word and sacraments. If we do not trust the Giver of these gifts, we cannot appreciate what God does for us through Word and Sacrament. Ultimately it is our sin which turns us against God.

But when the Holy Spirit brings us to repentance, then we turn to Christ who has not turned His back on us.  Indeed, He is the one who “gave His back to the smiters” (Is 50:6) in His cruel suffering and death which He willingly and perfectly endured for us and in our place.

Thanks and praise be to God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit who has called us to the one true faith and keeps us in it.

Let us pray: O God, whose glory it is always to have mercy, be gracious to all who have gone astray from Your ways and bring them again with penitent hearts and steadfast faith to embrace and hold fast the unchangeable truth of Your Word; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now  and forever. Amen.

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Each Day in the Word, Monday, March 13th 

Posted on March 13, 2023 by Tom and Karen Klumb

Luke 18:15-30

15 Then they also brought infants to Him that He might touch them; but when the disciples saw it, they rebuked them. 16 But Jesus called them to Him and said, “Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of God. 17 Assuredly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter it.”

18 Now a certain ruler asked Him, saying, “Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?”

19 So Jesus said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God. 20 You know the commandments: ‘Do not commit adultery,’ ‘Do not murder,’ ‘Do not steal,’ ‘Do not bear false witness,’ ‘Honor your father and your mother.’ ”

21 And he said, “All these things I have kept from my youth.”

22 So when Jesus heard these things, He said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.”

23 But when he heard this, he became very sorrowful, for he was very rich.

24 And when Jesus saw that he became very sorrowful, He said, “How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God! 25 For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”

26 And those who heard it said, “Who then can be saved?”

27 But He said, “The things which are impossible with men are possible with God.”

28 Then Peter said, “See, we have left all and followed You.”

29 So He said to them, “Assuredly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or parents or brothers or wife or children, for the sake of the kingdom of God, 30 who shall not receive many times more in this present time, and in the age to come eternal life.”

In the first part of today’s reading Jesus teaches us that it is those who ultimately have a child-like faith who are part of His kingdom and reign – not that you have to be or become a child, but simply to believe by faith in Christ’s work of atonement on the cross for you and all mankind.

The certain young ruler did not have child-like faith. He asked the wrong question of Jesus: “What shall I do to inherit eternal life?” He did not understand what it meant to inherit something. An heir is someone who, only by virtue of someone else’s favor or family connection, receives what the other person wishes to give. The inheritance doesn’t depend on anything the heir does; it depends strictly on the giver.

The rich young ruler trusted in his many possessions and his good behavior. He boasted that he had kept the commandments from his youth.  But when Jesus challenged him to give up his possessions in which he had trusted, he “became very sorrowful.” He was unable to let go of his idols of good works and self-sufficiency. Sadly, he couldn’t understand his own desperate need for what Christ offered.

The devil, the world, and our own sinful nature always try to get us to focus on ourselves. These things turn us inward, and then we become navel-gazers: “Look at me!  Look what I can do!  I have life all figured out!”

But Christ bids us to look away from ourselves and onto Him and His work which has paid for our sins. We must never hold up our good works or our possessions as our ticket to heaven and eternal life.  By God-given faith we look to Christ who has done the work of suffering, dying, and rising – all for us and in our place. By His grace alone we are received into His family and have full rights as heirs of His kingdom.

Let us pray: O God, whose glory it is always to have mercy, be gracious to all who have gone astray from Your ways and bring them again with penitent hearts and steadfast faith to embrace and hold fast the unchangeable truth of Your Word; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now  and forever. Amen.

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Stay by the One who is stronger than the devil

Posted on March 12, 2023 by Rev. Paul Rydecki
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Sermon for Oculi – Lent 3

Ephesians 5:1-9  +  Luke 11:14-28

We’re presented in the Gospel with the reality of demons, for the third week in a row. First it was the prince of demons himself, tempting the Lord Jesus in the wilderness. Then it was a demon who was tormenting the daughter of the Syro-Phoenician woman. In today’s Gospel it’s an evil spirit that has entered into a man and has been preventing him from speaking, until the Lord Jesus comes along and drives the demon out. The devil is like a strong man, holding his prisoners captive. But Jesus is a stronger Man—the only One strong enough to conquer the devil and to release the devil’s captives. Those who are physically afflicted by demons are obviously under the devil’s power. But you don’t have to be demon-possessed to be the devil’s captive.

We hear in the Gospel an urgent warning to all unbelievers, who still remain in the “strong man’s” kingdom and whose souls still remain under the influence of the devil (whether or not their bodies are possessed). We hear great comfort for believers, who are safe from the devil as long as we take refuge with the Stronger Man. But at the same time we hear a warning to believers, that you should not take for granted the redemption that Christ has given you from the devil’s kingdom, lest you sweep the Holy Spirit out of your hearts and allow the devil to return with a vengeance. So stay close to Christ and His word. Only then will you be able to stand against the devil.

Jesus shows His power over the devil at the beginning of our Gospel as He drives out the demon from the man who was mute (Matthew adds that he was blind as well). Jesus released that poor man from the torment he was suffering at the hands of the devil. As Matthew tells us, these miracles, especially His power over the demons, were causing people to wonder, “Could this Jesus be the Son of David? Could He be the Christ?” Of course, they were right. But the Pharisees’ hearts were hard, and they couldn’t allow the people to put their faith in Jesus. So they had to come up with a blasphemous accusation to brand Him with. Don’t believe this Jesus! He casts out demons by Beelzebub, the prince of demons. They sound much like the fact-checkers of today who aren’t actually interested in the facts at all, but in maintaining the narrative of deception that the strong men of the world are trying desperately to keep in place. That tactic isn’t new. As long as there has been a devil, he has been conspiring to suppress the truth so that he can keep people captive in his kingdom of darkness.

Others tested Jesus, seeking from Him a sign from heaven. It’s like showing people a video of certain events, a video that clearly contradicts what the strong men of the world have been saying. And then, after showing the video, you’re accused by those same strong men, “Show us some proof of what you’re saying!” As if the video didn’t even exist. So it was with many of Jesus’ miracles. He would show people a sign from heaven, and then in the very next moment, those same people would demand to see a sign from heaven! That’s how strong a grip the devil has on people’s darkened minds.

So, for the sake of the believers and those who would believe, Jesus chose to answer the accusations. First, He points out how foolish the accusation was that He was driving out demons by the devil’s power. Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to ruin, and a house divided against a house falls. If Satan has turned against himself, if the demons are fighting with one another, then Satan’s kingdom will fall apart, and you have nothing to fear from him. Ah, but his kingdom is not falling apart. It is strong, and his demon allies are perfectly united in their hatred toward God and in their purpose to keep men trapped in their dark kingdom, blind to the truth of the Gospel (and blind to truth in general!), mute in their ability to confess the true God or to speak a word of praise. Or, if someone is plucked out of the devil’s kingdom by the Holy Spirit, through the Word of Christ and Holy Baptism, then the demons make it their united goal to entice those who have entered God’s kingdom to abandon God’s Word again.

Secondly, Jesus answers those who were looking for a sign from heaven. He challenges them, If I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out? So they will be your judges. But if I cast out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. Matthew tells us that when Jesus cast out demons, the people marveled and said, “This has never been seen in Israel!” The Jews had no power over the demons, for as much as they apparently tried to cast them out. But now Christ is here, driving them out one after another by “the finger of God,” or as Matthew says, “by the Spirit of God.” (It’s the same thing.) You want a sign from heaven that Jesus comes from God? Look at His power over the demons, power that no doctor on earth has ever had or ever will! And beware, because if only Jesus has the power to drive out demons, then all who turn away from him will surely be lost to the demons’ control.

We should not envision the devil as being stupid or weak. Far from it. Jesus describes him as a “strong man,” well-armed, who guards his palace, whose possessions are secure. No man on earth can stand up to the devil or defeat him, or escape from his well-guarded palace, or rescue those who are held prisoner there, which is all people when they’re born into the world. This is Jesus’ third argument against His accusers. What Jesus is doing on earth is not helping the devil to gain a kingdom. The devil already has a kingdom! And he doesn’t need any help holding onto it. There is no one who can defeat him, except for the Lord Jesus. He is the one and only Person who is stronger than the devil. He is the Son of God. And He is the sinless Son of Man, unable to be accused by the devil of anything, and so unable to be overcome. He came to earth to redeem sinful men from the devil’s kingdom, to give His own life on the cross in the sinner’s place and so to tie up the devil so that he can no longer accuse or hold captive any who trust in Christ Jesus, the Stronger Man who came to destroy the devil’s work. So again, those who trust in Christ are delivered out of the kingdom of darkness and placed in the kingdom of Christ, while those who reject Christ remain trapped in the devil’s house, whether they’re actually possessed or not.

Now a warning: Whoever is not with Me is against Me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters. To be with Christ is to trust in Him for help against our great enemies: sin, death, and the devil. To gather with Christ is to work with Him to gather people into His kingdom. Make no mistake, there is no middle ground when it comes to Jesus. There is no half-hearted Christianity. There is either genuine faith and justification by faith. Or there is unbelief and condemnation. See how urgent it is to heed Christ’s call to come to Him for rest and for mercy! Those who are not intentionally with Jesus are, intentionally or unintentionally, against Him, and, therefore, are on the devil’s side.

Jesus then issues a final warning. He describes what only someone who can see into the spirit-realm can know: what a demon does when it’s cast out. It wanders around for a while, and then goes back to check on his former home, the heart of the person whom he previously inhabited. And if he finds it swept and put in order, he brings along seven other spirits more wicked than himself, so that the last state of that man is worse than the first. In other words, if the demon finds that your heart has a vacancy sign hanging on it, without the Holy Spirit dwelling there, he will move back in. This isn’t just a warning to those who have been possessed by a demon and then exorcized. It’s also a warning to those who hear the Gospel and who received Holy Baptism, which first released them from the devil’s power and brought with it the Holy Spirit. But then they grow tired of hearing it. They return to sin, like a dog returns to its vomit, and they walk away from the Church and from the ministry of the Word. In doing that, they expose themselves again to the power of the devil. They drive out the Holy Spirit Himself from their hearts, and so the demons are able to take over again.

You see, God isn’t playing around here. The Christian faith is a matter of life and death, much more so than any earthly disease, or natural disaster, or national crisis. You’re either trapped in darkness, held captive by the strong man, or you’re set free by the stronger Man, Christ Jesus, who died for your sins, who brings you to faith by His Word and Spirit, and who then keeps you safe in the true faith by His Word, Sacraments, and Spirit—assuming you continue to use His Word and Sacraments and pay attention to His Spirit!

We see at the end of the Gospel an example of what often happens, though, as people lose focus on Jesus’ word and start to focus on the wrong things. A woman from the crowd makes a pious-sounding statement: Blessed is the womb that bore You and the breasts at which You nursed! How foolish! Christ wasn’t speaking to the crowds that day so that they could dwell on the blessedness of Jesus’ mother. Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and keep it! (or “guard it”). Christ taught the people so that they themselves could hear His Word and be blessed. In the same way, right now, Christ is teaching you, so that you may hear His word, believe it, and then go on to guard it, and be blessed forever. It does you no good against the devil to dwell on the Virgin Mary, for as blessed as she was. What does you good is to believe that that strong Lord Jesus came to redeem you from the devil’s kingdom by His holy, precious blood, and to bring you into His kingdom through Holy Baptism, and to keep you in His Kingdom, through His Word and Sacraments. He wants for you to be blessed, and as you hear and keep His Word as the treasure of your heart, you will be.

There is much darkness in the world, and your enemy, the devil, is prowling around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. He is strong, and his influence is everywhere. But Jesus is stronger, and His blood has set you free from all the power of the devil, and by His Word He will keep you free and safe. So keep hearing His Word. Keep guarding His Word. And keep walking as children of the light, even as the world around you descends further and further into darkness. The darkness may make your life miserable for a time, but it can’t actually harm you if you walk in the light of Christ. And one day soon, He will come again and dispel all the darkness and cast the devil out once and for all. Amen.

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