Preparing for Worship - November 16, 2025

As the end of the church year is coming soon, our readings tell us more of God’s plan for us and for our world. The Psalm is Psalm 98 and speaks of singing a new song of the Lord Himself working out salvation for the house of Israel and revealing His righteousness and steadfast love and faithfulness and salvation also in the sight of the nations all over the earth. A time of judgment is coming, but there can be a joyful noise and songs, all over the earth, instead, as people trust the Lord and His plan of salvation in Christ.

The Old Testament lesson, Malachi 4:1-6, is also a prophecy of what is to come. A fire of judgment is coming, when all arrogant and evildoers will be stubble, with neither root nor branch. For those who fear and trust the Name of the Lord, though, and His Word through Moses (and others), the Sun of Righteousness will come with healing, and the wicked will be like ashes under the feet of God’s people. (See Romans 16:20.) Someone like Elijah will come and turn the hearts of many back to the Lord and to fellow believers, before a decree of utter destruction comes. (See Luke 1:13-17, where John the Baptist is clearly identified as the prophet who would come in the Spirit and power of Elijah to do this preparatory work for the coming Savior, our Lord Jesus. See also Luke 1:67-79, and look at Matthew 3, where John preaches of the judgment to come and yet also tells of Jesus as the Son of God and the Savior. See how Jesus also identifies John the Baptist as “the Elijah who is to come,” in Matthew 11:2-15.)

The Gospel lesson is Luke 21:5-28 (29-35), where Jesus predicts a time of judgment, during which the temple in Jerusalem and Jerusalem itself will be destroyed. He gives His people who trust in Him and His saving Name a way to recognize and flee from Jerusalem when that terrible time comes (as it did in 70AD). None of this is the actual end, though. Faithful believers in Jesus will keep on sharing the Good News of salvation through Him, even though there will be great opposition at times. There will be the rise and fall of nations and kingdoms, and numerous natural disasters, but the Good News will continue to be spread wherever possible, as it still is today. This is “the times of the Gentiles,” when many more non-Jews will come to faith, though God still wants all people to come to faith in Christ, and the witness to Jewish people of God’s love in Christ Jesus needs to continue, too. Near the end, if we are still alive at that time, there will be “signs” in the skies and “the powers of the heavens will be shaken” and “distress” on earth. We don’t know what all that means or will be, but we are called to be ready, by faith in Christ and His Word. This is not to be a time of great fear, but we are called to trust the Lord, day by day, and straighten up and hold our heads high, because the time of the final redemption from this troubled world is near. “The Son of Man, our Lord Jesus, is coming in a cloud with power and great glory.” Then, “Heaven and earth, the physical universe as we know it, will pass away, but the Words of Jesus will not pass away," and there will be new heavens and a new earth, whatever that fully means (2 Peter 3:13 and 1 John 3:2-3), in which righteousness dwells and all is in perfection and all believers will continue to be with the Triune God and the angels forever in perfect peace and joy.

In the Epistle lesson, 2 Thessalonians 3:(1-5) 6-13, Paul reminds us again of what we are to be doing, until the return of Christ on the last day. We are to pray “that the Word of the Lord would speed ahead and be honored” among many more people, and that the Lord would “direct our hearts to His love and to the steadfastness of Christ,” to keep us going in good and difficult times. Paul also warns about people in the church living in idleness and has that famous saying, “If anyone is not willing to work (who could work), let him not eat.” Paul even advises trying to keep away from such people for a time, in the hope that they will wake up and repent. All who can should “work quietly and earn their own living” and not become weary in doing good. Paul uses himself as an example to the church. He had the right to expect to be paid for his work for the believers in Thessalonica. (See 1 Corinthians 9:9-12,18 and 1 Timothy 5:18, for example.) Instead Paul worked night and day as a tentmaker, to show that the Gospel is a free gift of God (1 Corinthians 9:16-18)  and that he was not preaching and teaching for his own profit (1 Thessalonians 2:9) and so that he could be an example for others to follow (2 Thessalonians 3:7,9). Above all, Paul prays that the Lord of peace would give the believers peace at all times in every way, for He promises to be with us always, to the end of the age. (See the words of Jesus also in Matthew 28:20 and His Word of promise that the Triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, would be with us, in John 14:25-27.) There is our hope, in Christ, always.