Sermon Text: Matthew 3:1-12
Title: “Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is
at Hand.”
I. Repent, for the Kingdom of heaven
is at hand.
II. Repent, for the Kingdom of heaven
is at hand.
JOHN THE BAPTIZER CALLS US BEYOND THE FRIVOLITIES OF
THE SEASON TO TRUE PREPATION FOR THE COMING OF THE SAVIOR, STIRRING UP OUR
HEARTS TO RECEIVE THE ONE WHO BRINGS US THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN.
In the name of
the Father, and the Son + and the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
Grace,
mercy, and peace from God our Father, and from our LORD and Savior Jesus
Christ. Amen.
The sermon text for this, the second
Sunday in Advent, is taken from the Gospel lesson just read [Matthew 3.1-12]. I would read again a portion of these verses…
In those days John the Baptist came
preaching in the wilderness of Judea, 2“Repent, for the kingdom of heaven
is at hand.” 3
For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah when he said,
“The voice of one crying in the
wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord; make his paths straight.”
Dear Brothers
and Sisters in Christ,
I.
Today in our
text we have the forerunner of the Messiah, the one who was to come first to
herald the coming of the One promised of old.
Here we have the one prophesied by the prophet Isaiah. John the Baptist is…
“The voice
of one crying in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord; make his paths
straight.”
And the
first word we hear from this voice crying in the wilderness is repent. From what does he want us to repent? The sins of our lips. The sins of our hands. Truly, the sins of our evil, lusty hearts
We know the
sins we commit. We are aware of how
sinful we can be. We lie and cheat and
steal and say harmful, hurtful things to each other. But what are our the specific sins we deal
with today in this Advent season? Some
are the same and others are similar but have a different spin at this time of
year.
As we
prepare for CHRISTmas day we find ourselves worrying over the presents, the
tree, the meal, the cards. Do we have
enough for everyone? Will I get this
finished in time? Will the bank account
stretch far enough to do what I want to do?
Will I find the things I need and at the right prices? The litany of worries goes on and on.
Is this what
CHRISTmas is all about, shining lights and mistletoe and decorations, is this
what the season and the day is all about?
Or have we
forgotten – and maybe put better – ignored what the season is all about? We get so wrapped up in what CHRISTmas has
become in this country, that we neglect the true understanding, the true
meaning of this particular time of year.
John the Baptist shouts, “Repent!” and he is right. We need to repent. We need to turn from our course laid out
before us this CHRISTmas and ask for forgiveness.
II.
Why?
Because…
the Kingdom of
heaven is at hand.
What does
John mean here? He is preaching
repentance because the salvation of the world is walking among them. Here, John says, in this Man named Jesus is
the One whom I have been proclaiming.
Here in this Man is the One whom I was sent to go before and prepare for
His coming. Here in this Man is the
Savior of the world –the One promised all those years ago to our first parents
Adam and Eve. This is the One who saves,
this is the One who will do whatever it takes to heal the sinners of the
world. He will do so with His very
blood. John the Baptist shouts [John
1.29]…
Behold, the
Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.
The Bpatist
calls for us to repent, to turn away from our sins, and in Christ Jesus we have
the power to turn from our wicked ways and to return to the LORD.
As we peer
into the manger this Advent and CHRISTmas season we see the wonder of God’s
love for His people. We see in this tiny
Babe the Savior of the world. This is
the Kingdom of heaven and it is at hand.
And the
Kingdom is coming again to take all believers to heaven. This is God’s message. This has been entrusted to us and it needs to
be sent out to a dying, sin filled world.
Christ has come once already to die the death that the world cannot
begin to die. And, as He promised, He is
returning to bring His Lambs into the heavenly fold.
Sadly, there
is a day in the future – whether near or far I do not know – but make no
mistake the day is coming when it will be too late for many billions to do as
the Baptist says, “Repent!”
To whom will
you take this wonderful message of salvation to?
Repent, for
the Kingdom of heaven is at hand.
This is the
message of John the Baptist – and for us believers in Christ – this message of
repentance – we can endure – through the Cross of Christ. Yes, we are sinners, but we are sinners with
hope, hope in Christ Jesus our Savior.
Amen.
The peace of
the LORD which surpasses all human understanding will guard your hearts and
minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.
+ Soli Deo Gloria +
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