Revelation 3,7-13 0224
Ad te Levavi 2
Gregory III, Bishop of Rome (731-41) 90. Bishop ✠ 741. d. 28. November
10. December 2023
1. ℣ Daughter of Zion:
℟ Behold thy salvation cometh (Zechariah 9,9b).
О dearest Jesus, save us, and lead us into the joys of Your kingdom. Give us an attentive and obedient heart in this holy season, so that we may diligently and reverently hear, receive and keep Your holy word in our heart. Let us grow in faith and in Your knowledge and love during these holy days and show the fruits of faith in our life. Amen. (Starck 476; 50).
2. »And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: „The words of the Holy One, the True One, who has the key of David, who opens and no one will shut, who shuts and no one opens. I know your works. Behold, I have set before you an open door, which no one is able to shut. I know that you have but little power, and yet you have kept My word and have not denied My Name. Behold, I will make those of the synagogue of Satan who say that they are Jews and are not, but lie—behold, I will make them go and bow down before your feet, and they will learn that I have loved you. Because you have kept My Word about patient endurance, I will keep you from the hour of trial that is drawing near on the whole world, to try those who dwell on the earth. I am arriving soon. Hold fast what you have, so that no one may seize your crown. The one who conquers, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God. Never shall he go out of it, and I will write on him the Name of My God, and the name of the city of My God, the new Jerusalem, which descends from My God out of heaven, and My own new Name. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.“«
3. One of the themes of Advent is patient waiting. Yahweh promised Adam and Eve the Messiah; roughly 4000 years passed between that promise and its fulfillment with the advent of Jesus. Likewise, it has been roughly 2000 years since Jesus was born and we are still awaiting His second advent. One thing we find throughout the Scriptures is that God often takes an extremely long view of fulfilling His promise. Partly this is because He is outside our timeline: 6000 years for God is no different than six days. Also He is quite meticulous in preparing to fulfill His promise and does so once the circumstances and people are in place to enact His will. God certainly does not rush things when it comes to His promise.
4. So when Jesus tells the church in Philadelphia that He is arriving soon in regards to His return, we should understand that quite a bit of time will pass before it happens. So there is a paradox in Revelation 3: patiently enduring parallels I am arriving soon. Lutheranism revels in Scriptural paradoxes and embraces them. We find this, particularly in the relation between the present and future aspects of God’s reign. His kingdom has now been inaugurated by Jesus’ ministry, crucifixion and resurrection, but this kingdom is not yet fully manifested in its glory. We live in a state of tension and anticipation of experiencing both the suffering and blessings of this present age while waiting and hoping for the full arrival of God’s kingdom at the last day. This tension does not need to be resolved by us, for Christ will resolve it when He returns.
5. Jesus has the key of David who opens and shut the heavenly door. Cross reference Isaiah 22,22. This phrase key of David is also a Messianic title. We sing in the hymn O Come, O Come, Emmanuel:
O come, Thou Key of David, come.
And open wide our heavenly home;
Make safe the way that leads on high,
And close the path to misery (lsb 357,5).
6. We look back at Jesus’ advent and we long for His return. He is the Way, the Truth and the Life for all people. He alone is the entrance to eternal life. „He introduces Himself as the Holy One, the Truthful One. These are words that are repeatedly used in the Old Testament to describe none other than God Himself. Jesus tells us quite openly here: Yes, I am God Himself, in Me God Himself draws near to you“ (Martens 3). Christ is the one who brings the expectation of the Old Testament to realization (Gibbs 31). The decisive juncture in the history of God’s, dealing with Israel, and all the nations has arrived with the advent of Jesus (Gibbs 31). Jesus’ birth fulfills the prophecy of Isaiah 7 regarding Emmanuel (Gibbs 32).
7. Jesus has not left us alone. He spoke blessings to His church in Philadelphia. He speaks to us as one of His churches in Palisades Park. He is with us in His Word and Sacraments, and through these means of grace He speaks to us and blesses us. Hold onto His blessings! Study His Word. Hold on to the gift of salvation that Christ gave you in your Baptism (Martens 4). Receive His body and blood in the Lord’s Supper for the forgiveness of your sins.
8. »Hold fast to what you have!« Hold on to Christ, and do not throw away His gifts, that we remain with Him and remain faithful to Him (Martens 5). And then we can happily face the challenges that lie ahead of us in our community. »We have a little power.« This is a truthful and sobering declaration; we know that this is indeed true. „We may also sometimes ask whether our strength is sufficient for everything that may befall us in the present times (Martens 5). „But our future does not depend on our strength or our plans. It depends solely on the one who opens doors so that people can pass through them into eternal life“ (Martens 5). That one is Christ Jesus our Lord. Luther put it poetically when he wrote: „So when the devil throws your sins in your face and declares that you deserve death and hell, tell him this: “I admit that I deserve death and hell, what of it? For I know One who suffered and made satisfaction on my behalf. His name is Jesus Christ, Son of God, and where He is there I shall be also!“ (Martin Luther 86-87. Letters of Spiritual Counsel, trans. and ed. Theodore G. Tappert (Vancouver, British Columbia: Regent College, 2003).
9. Dear Christians, rejoice far and near,
Soon the Son of God will appear,
Who now enfleshed our Brother is,
The dear Lord Jesus Christ He is.
(Ihr lieben Christen, freut euch nun elkg 306,1 2021 Erasmus Alber 1546).
This is most certainly true.
10. The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4,7). Amen and Amen.
11. Let us pray. Accept, we beseech Thee, O Lord, our praises and supplications, and look graciously upon this household that we may abide this night in peace and safety under the shadow of Thy wings, and so assist us by Thy grace that we may be fitted for that kingdom where there shall be no more sin, nor sorrow, neither any more pain, but all shall be joy and peace in the Holy Ghost; to whom with Thee, O Father, and Thee, O blessed Jesus, be all glory, both now and evermore. Amen. (Advent II, Vespers Collect 2. The Daily Office. Copyright © 1965 Concordia Publishing House.)
To God alone be the Glory
Gode ealdore sy se cyneþrymm
✠
All Scriptural quotations are translations done by The Rev. Peter A. Bauernfeind using the Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia, 4. Edition © 1990 Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, Stuttgart, Septuaginta, Vol. I and II 2. Revised Edition © 2006 Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, Stuttgart and the Novum Testamentum Graece, Nestle-Aland 28. Revised Edition © 2012 Deutsch Bibelgesellschaft, Stuttgart.
Evangelisch-Lutherisches Kirchengesangbuch. Copyright © 2021 Selbständige Evangelisch-Lutherische Kirche, Hannover.
Gibbs, Jeffrey A. Jerusalem and Parousia: Jesus’ Eschatological Discourse in Matthew’s Gospel. Copyright © 2000 Jeffrey A. Gibbs.
Martens, Gottfried. A sermon preached on 8. December 2013 | Revelation 3,7-13 | Advent II. Copyright © 2013 St. Mary Church in Berlin-Zehlendorf (SELK). All rights reserved. The Rev. Peter A. Bauernfeind, Tr. © 2023.
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