The Twenty-Fifth Sunday after Trinity, 2021
Pastor Gregory L. Jackson
Thanksgiving Eve Service, 7 PM Central Standard Time
The Confession of Sins
The Absolution
The Introit p. 16
Have mercy upon me, O Lord, for I am in trouble: deliver me from the hand of mine enemies and from them that persecute me.
Let me not be ashamed, O Lord:
for I have called upon Thee.
Psalm. In Thee, O Lord, do I put my trust:
let me never be ashamed.
The Gloria Patri
The Kyrie p. 17
The Gloria in Excelsis
The Salutation and Collect p. 19
Almighty God, we beseech Thee, show Thy mercy unto Thy humble servants, that we who put no trust in our own merits may not be dealt with after the severity of Thy judgment, but according to Thy mercy; through Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord, who liveth, etc.
The Epistle and Gradual
Thine enemies roar in the midst of Thy congregations: they set up their ensigns for signs.
V. Remember Thy congregation which Thou hast purchased of old: the rod of Thine inheritance, which Thou hast redeemed. Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
V. There is a river the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God:
God is in the midst of her, she shall not be moved. Hallelujah!
The Gospel
Glory be to Thee, O Lord!
Praise be to Thee, O Christ!
The Nicene Creed p. 22
The Preface p. 24
The Sanctus p. 26
The Lord's Prayer p. 27
The Words of Institution
The Agnus Dei p. 28
The Nunc Dimittis p. 29
The Benediction p. 31
The Hymn #649 Jesus Savior Pilot Me
Announcements and Prayers
- Thanksgiving Eve is Wednesday at 7PM Central Standard.
- Pray for those being forced to take the vaccine or be fired.
- Randy Anderson will have surgery for his lung lesion.
- Pastor Jim Shrader - medical treatment.
- Travis and Lauren are downloading the previous Ustream/IBM services to YouTube.
- Next Sunday is Advent 1. Mid-week services will be Wednesdays, 7 PM.
- The Lutheran Christina books have been delivered, but there were some mix-ups. If you did not get yours or need more copies, send an angry email to greg.jackson.edlp@gmail.com. Subsequent orders are much faster.
KJV 1 Thessalonians 4:13 But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. 14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. 15 For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent [precede] them which are asleep. 16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: 17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. 18 Wherefore comfort one another with these words.
KJV Matthew 24:15 When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:) 16 Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains: 17 Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house: 18 Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes. 19 And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days! 20 But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day: 21 For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. 22 And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened. 23 Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not. 24 For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect. 25 Behold, I have told you before. 26 Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth: behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not. 27 For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. 28 For wheresoever the carcase is, there will the eagles be gathered together.
Peace in the End-times
Introduction
There are many warning passages in the Old and New Testaments about the end-times, and they remain mysterious. They do not tell us exact times but they reveal details which should make Christians take the warnings seriously and also find comfort in God's protection.
KJV Matthew 24:15 When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:) 16 Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains:
We certainly see signs of the end, not only in the displays of rioting and government oppression, but also in society and in the Christian Church.
I left the Lutheran Church in America before the merger, but I could read to the congregation the denials of every point in the Creeds, right from the standard doctrinal book in the LCA seminaries, the Braaten-Jenson Christian Dogmatics, two volumes. Braaten is still alive, at the age of 92. ( I bought the book, quoted it, and mailed it back for a refund.)
Some said to me, "Don't talk about those things," because they were clearly indifferent. Later I was told that the radicalism of ELCA was tearing the congregation apart, just as I warned them.
One of the surest signs of the end, which can last centuries - or be delayed by a new Reformation - is apostasy. That Greek word means former believers have fallen away from faith in Jesus Christ. That will be so bad that Jesus Himself said, "When the Son of Many returns, will He find faith?" The implied answer is - "Very little faith will remain."
Luke 18: 8 I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?
2 Thessalonians 2 Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him,
2 That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand.
3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away [apostasy] first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
4 Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.
Hebrews 3:12 Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing (apostasy, verb form) from the living God.
John Hindraker, a blogger with Powerline, noted that his ELCA denomination has shrunk from 5+ million to 3 million, and he "might have to leave some day". Bishop Liz Eaton was outraged by the Rittenhouse verdict and sent a pastor letter.
America has reached a point, like Europe, where faith in Jesus Christ and trust in the Scriptures matter very little among those who are still members of the mainline churches.
17 Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house: 18 Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes.
This reveals that the end will come so quickly that there will be no time to pack their bags, whether on the roof or in the fields. In kindness, the price of the Gospel's rejection is broadcast so everyone knows.
We have seen many effects of this in America, where good once prevailed and now the lawbreakers and traitors are the heroes. That cannot continue. America has enough of the good left that this evil reign of apostasy can be thrown off, but that will take time and effort.
The Apostolic church grew in the face of active persecution and the status of Christianity being - the only God Rome rejected. All others were tolerated and worshiped. In spite of that, and having the most prolific Apostle jailed and executed, Christianity spread across the known world and beyond.
19 And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days! 20 But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day: 21 For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.
Jesus had compassion on those who would be in a fragile state when this happened. This predicted tribulation will be unlike any other. Whenever we see a smaller version of that final time of chaos, we should remember the warnings.
Artificially or accidentally, a few disturbances can cause everything to be out of balance and the normal flow of goods and services stopped. Part of British Columbia, Canada, has just experienced that from flooding, all roads and railroads broken and in need of major repairs. They have become an island. World-wide we have many combinations of the same disasters, some "natural" and some man-made.
22 And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened.
This reveals that those days will be so terrible that no one would survive at all, but the days will be shortened for the elect, the believers.
23 Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not. 24 For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.
One thing we often find when a secretive group is broken up for its criminal behavior - the leader is a Messianic figure who cannot be questioned by anyone. One was "John of God" who was promoted by Oprah. Another one has just surfaced. Sometimes I follow the short history of these cults, which seem to start with a lot of money and end in shambles, violence, and prison. Bishop's Hill near my hometown, Moline, was one of those. The bishop claimed to have no sin at all, whether in thought or deed, and people obeyed all his whims.
I have noticed that all the mini-bishops in the Lutheran sects, no matter what their titles, are very much in love with power and getting even. They make themselves the ultimate authority because they barely know the Bible.
The fakes can be so realistic that they almost fool the sincere believers to.
25 Behold, I have told you before. 26 Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth: behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not. 27 For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. 28 For wheresoever the carcase is, there will the eagles be gathered together.
The return of the Son of God will be so brilliant and overwhelming that no one will doubt what is happening. But in contrast, the eagles (which devour carrion) are gathered where the eating is good - planed giving counselors, who rob widows and orphans in the name of the Church. If they are "counselors" and "ordained" for the job, why do they need an insurance license? It is because they will be selling irrevocable annuity trusts to the elderly, removing that money from the estate to give to the synod.
So faithful Christians need to learn and be steady about the main points of the Faith - and be ready to give a reason for the hope that is within them. The purpose of the Christian Church should be worship and education according to the genuine Scriptures, the ultimate guide in all matters doctrinal and practical. The most important activities are not institutional (buildings, money, etc) but spiritual. That means the choice of a Bible, a well informed choice, will make all the difference.
