Look around and know “the best is yet to come” so “straighten up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.” It most certainly is for Jesus has come, he comes now, and he is coming again for you people of Zion. Come, Lord Jesus! Even so, come quickly.

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Jesus prepares you to meet him for he has come and redeemed you. He comes now to forgive you through his means of grace, and he comes again to take you to himself even as he will create a new heavens and new earth for you and all his saints to dwell.”

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Especially in this holiday season, when sentimentalities and thankfulness abound but always alongside a vagueness concerning to whom exactly it belongs, it is your duty to be explicit and specific for your praise towards Jesus. To him belongs all the glory. To him belongs all the praise. His is the name above every name. His is the love and mercy to heal and to save.

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This Church Year is ending. Jesus says, “Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.” As the people of God made wise in Christ you cry out knowing Advent is on the horizon, “Come, Lord Jesus, come quickly!”

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There are many ways God shows his love for the unlovable. Yet, this is an important way: he loves by being patient. O, this love of God which suffers the pain and grief of seeing so much evil done! He does not exact vengeance immediately (although he has every right). He waits; and waits; and waits.

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Rejoice dear saints of God and take courage to face the days right now as ones who have eternal life. Not even death can take life away from you. That’s a bold statement to make but that’s the truth of who you are in Christ.

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Death has been defeated and as God’s saints this salvation, this eternal life, is yours. Fix your eyes on Jesus this day and cling to him.

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What is the end of this violence? Is the kingdom of God overpowered? Does the scowling of the devil amount to anything? No, of course not! The almighty fortress of God’s kingdom remains through the Word of God purely taught. The Valiant One was not stopped by his death on the cross. No, he rose from the dead, conquered death, and gave power to the Gospel he handed off to the apostles….That one man Martin Luther was not quieted. Through the grace of God more and more saw the truth of the Scriptures: man is justified by faith alone on account of Christ’s merit. Though the pope and the emperor were all eager to devour Luther and the reformers, the Word of God could not be stopped.

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You are God’s people. Rejoice, “All is ready.” Feast now and feast forever.

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When you go through times of trial and testing, rejoice. In all things fix your eyes on Jesus for he and he alone is the one who has redeemed you and gives you reason to always rejoice and in all circumstances.

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When you open your Bible and read from any place, you will find God commanding you to love him either by the “You shall…” statements or by examples of how God’s people have lived. But that is not everything God has to say in His Word. There is also his love for us in Christ Jesus. That is the other great topic of the Bible. Jesus wanted to remind the lawyer of this other great topic, so he asked his own question. He noticed them focusing on the “love God with all your heart, soul, and mind” to the detriment of “the LORD your God.” How do we know this? They fail to see that the LORD their God stands right before them, that they could touch their God if they reached out and grabbed Jesus. Without acknowledging that Jesus is their God, they miss the whole point of loving God.

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Jesus is your Lord who humbled himself so that you are exalted and baptized into his exalted name which is above every name.

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It is for our sakes that Jesus has done this miracle. He certainly knows that we are afraid of death. To that He says, do not be afraid and let not your heart be troubled. Though death is terrible, what can it harm you? It may terrify you. But learn to avoid judging by your feelings and following your fears: look to Jesus and remember what He can do and what He desires to do. He can raise you from death as easily as you awaken a person out of sleep. And, He will do it cheerfully and with pleasure.

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Everything you do has meaning. Everything you do in this life is preparing for the next. That is why we are not careless about what goes on in each other’s lives. There are only two options with everything you do: you sow to your flesh or you sow to the Spirit. You either serve sin or you serve God. You prepare for punishment, or you prepare for reward. There will come a time for reaping. Those who spent their whole lives seeking their own evil, selfish desires won’t have anything to harvest! They will come out empty handed. Yet, you who have the Spirit of God, who tries to walk by the Spirit, you are sowing for the future.

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But the Word of God matters for you. When you confessed those sins, God heard your confession, and He sent me to say to you this morning. “By the command of my Lord Jesus Christ, I forgive you all of your sins in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.” And poof, they were gone. You bag was empty because of Jesus and His life, death, and resurrection. Your sins are forgiven, because you were given the Word of life.

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Since you are justified by the blood of Jesus, you are made to be good; you know there is no self-imposed requirement. You have the freedom to show mercy. You can be like that Good Samaritan. You can disregard what others might think of you, the dangers of spending your own money, the time and effort it might take, because all that you need has been covered by the blood of Jesus. This freedom then is much different than a cold, exacting harshness of the one who tries to make himself good. This freedom to love actually does the work, while the one trying to do the work fails.

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So, you come here because Jesus is the healer. You come here asking for the Lord’s mercy. And just like Jesus had mercy on the man in Mark 7, He has mercy on you. He says, “I forgive you. You have been baptized into me and you are healed.” And this forgiveness that Jesus offers you today is the assurance of a full healing that will come.

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We are dealing here with what man thinks of himself. What mindset he has will affect how he acts. The man who thinks he is really important will choose that “reserved” seat at the reception. The man who thinks he is worthy enough to be invited, but maybe not important enough will sit near the doors. Either assumption might be correct. But it is not up to the invited one to make that decision, it is the decision of the host. This is the important tie in with our lives before God. It is not our decision on how we should be favored by God. It doesn’t matter what I think, it matters what God thinks. Just as it is safer to take the lower seat at the reception, so it is safer to think of myself lower and let God tell me to “move on up.”

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And dear Christians, you are able to enter the narrow door, because you are in Christ! This is a common way that Christians are talked about in the New Testament. God’s Word doesn’t so much describe us as being close to Jesus, but rather in Jesus. In Christ. You are in Christ by virtue of your baptism. For when you were washed with that water, you were united with Christ. Baptized into Him in His death and resurrection so that you could die to sin and rise to walk in new life with Christ.

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Second, Jesus also calls us to confess Him and bear with the divisions that result in the world, so that His genuine teaching may be recognized. To do this means Christians cannot leave matters of doctrine up to their pastors. We all must listen with a discerning ear, and confess accordingly. “Let the prophets with dreams tell their dreams”; we must cling to those who have the Lord’s Word and speak it faithfully. For this reason, the greatest and simplest word in the Church is not assigned to the pastor, but to the congregation: “Amen.” “Amen” is the word of faith which agrees and confesses, “Yes! This is most certainly true!”

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How do earthly treasures compare to heavenly ones? They compare quite poorly. Our Lord Jesus describes earthly treasures as thief-ridden and moth-perishable. Even if they were to last, how could you ever enjoy them all? You will die and you can’t even guarantee your loved ones will use them wisely. Heavenly treasures instead are money bags which will never run out. Who would not like that right now? A credit card which you never pay back. Where can I find that? It is already yours. When you hear the words, “I forgive you all your sins…” or “Take, eat this is the true body your Lord…”, you should think to yourself: “Aha! How precious to me are my Savior’s words. I am securely in heaven right now and nothing can shake me. I don’t know what I would do without these words. I would give up everything to hear those words from the pastor.”

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“If you focus on the world, you will see no end of trouble. If you focus on yourself, you will see no end of sinfulness. But if you focus on Christ you will see grace, peace & every blessing.”

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“You see, your prayers aren’t effective or powerful because you said or thought just the right words. Your prayers are powerful and effective, dear Christians, because you pray to a Gracious God, who invites you to pray and promises to hear you.”

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“So, what do we say to all of this? What does it mean that Jesus calls Peter to preach the Good News? It means this—Jesus calls preachers to proclaim His death and resurrection for the forgiveness of sins and the salvation of the world. Jesus sends Pastors in His Name to bring the Good News of Him to you right now in your ears. Jesus sends Pastors in His Name to forgive your sins, to baptize you, to put His body and blood into your mouth.

Jesus is never content to be silent. He wants to be preached to you. He wants His promises to be heard by you. He wants to be believed in by you. He wants His Name and kindness to echo in your ears and in your hearts because He loves you.”

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“Faith, hope, and love: the Christian life in a few words. Each and every day remember who you are in Christ Jesus; you are one who was bought back from the reign of darkness into the reign of light. Remember where you are heading; you are confident that God will give you the inheritance of all the saints. Remember how your life will look: walking in a pleasing manner to the Lord.”

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“You see, the peace of the 72 was tied to Christ. It was tied to the one who makes peace with God for us through His obedience in life, His humiliation in death, and His victory in resurrection. As God’s Word declares, “We have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:1).”

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“When God gives you His Word, that’s something different. He actually delivers. And He always delivers. His word is true, and powerful, and dependable. He shows this in the creation. And He proves it again through Jesus His Son.”

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“The dark spiritual realm of the devil and his demons could cause us to fear. But with Christ, that dimension is defeated and we need not be afraid. As you are in Christ’s Word and Christ’s Word is in you, the dark powers flee from you.”

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“A God according to the flesh rewards righteousness and strength and heredity and breeding according to the flesh. But that is not the God of Israel. Never was. Never will be. Instead, the God of Israel does for you what’s entirely out of your control. He saves you.”

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“God’s Word talks about the Spirit as a deposit, as a guarantee, on the promises that the Lord has made. Promises like: the promise of the resurrection; the promise of a relationship completely restored with God our Father; the promise of a Grand Reunion in heaven with all of God’s people. This is all yours because of Christ. And you can be certain of this because you have the Holy Spirit.”

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