Rev. Dale Critchley 12/15/2018

Rev. Dale Critchley
12/15/2018

Children’s Sermon

Catechetical point: Who knows when Jesus is coming back? Anyone? Are you ready when He does?

Message: He made you ready by giving you faith (trust) that He has paid for your sin and given you eternal life.

Training for Treasure

Grace, mercy, and peace be to you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

Text: (Luke 12:32-40) “Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom. Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will not be exhausted, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. “Be dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning, like men waiting for their master to return from a wedding banquet, so that when he comes and knocks they can immediately open the door for him. It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes. I tell you the truth, he will dress himself to serve, will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them. It will be good for those servants whose master finds them ready, even if he comes in the second or third watch of the night. But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into. You also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.”

In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, Amen.

I.Introduction

A.I imagine most of you have been watching at least some of the Olympics this week

1.As I watch the athletes compete, I’m amazed at their ability

2.It’s very humbling to know how incapable I am compared to them

3.But they got that way through many hours of daily training

4.The key to winning is daily preparation

B.Eternal life is something like that

1.Our deeds don’t earn us salvation—it’s a free gift

2.But salvation comes through faith

3.And you receive faith through God’s Word and Sacraments

4.And if you neglect those means of God’s grace, your faith will get weaker, and you won’t get the prize

C.We see this over and over in our world

1.Divorce rates among those who weekly attend church together are a fraction of the average rate.

2.Those who are not regularly in the Word, not only through Sunday attendance, but additional Bible Study, both group and personal, generally cannot give a Biblical response to current events in our world.

3.And worst of all, when you talk with someone who doesn’t attend church often, and you talk with them about salvation, they usually say they don’t know whether they’ll get to heaven, or they trust in their own good works, showing a complete lack of faith.

II.Jesus says to you, "Don't be afraid, little flock, since your Father is pleased to give to you the kingdom.

A.So many of your mixed up priorities are the result of unnecessary fears

1.The more you have, the more you have to guard it

2.And like the rich man in last week’s lesson, you become obsessed with seemingly everything but God’s Kingdom

B.But Jesus says to seek first God’s Kingdom, and the rest will be added to you

1.Focus on your salvation and let God worry about the rest

2.Be in the Holy Scriptures—daily—and watch your worries decrease as you see God’s hand carrying you through life to eternal glory

III."Sell your goods and give to charity; make for yourselves purses that do not wear out, and unfailing treasure in heaven where thief doesn't come nor moth destroy.

A.What is the number one priority?

1.Jesus said, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.”

2.Remember that God’s definition of love is service and sacrifice, not just “feeling love,” which is really affection, not love

3.So loving God means putting Him first in all you do, seeking His will as you decide how to make daily decisions, how to vote in the upcoming election, and how to care for your friends and family

4.It means setting aside time for Him to hear His Message for you so you know what His plan is for you

5.Because His plan for you is eternal life that can never be taken away

B.But how much time do you spend on earthly things?

1.Think about the ways you spend your time

2.Will your actions and projects have any meaning in eternity?

3.Jesus said that the second highest priority is to love your neighbor as yourself—but do you do that, either? All the time?

IV."For where your treasure is, there also will be your heart.

A.It’s been said that you have 2 books that show what your values are: your date book and your checkbook

B.Take a look at what fills up your day—what are your priorities?

C.Take a look at how you spend your treasures—where is your heart?

V."Let your hips be girded and your lamps burning. "And be like men who wait for their master when he returns from the wedding that when he comes and knocks, they immediately open the door to him.

A.Having your hips girded means having your uniform on, ready to serve

B.It means being ready at a moment’s notice, watching for the Lord’s return

C.And it means being prepared for His return—are you ready to face Him, or does the thought of standing before God make you at least nervous?

VI."Blessed are those slaves who, when the Lord comes, He will find alert. Truly I say to you, that He will gird Himself and have them recline and minister to them.

A.Such is the nature of our God: He lives to serve you

B.Jesus showed His disciples this when He washed their feet on the night He was betrayed

C.God loves you in spite of your unwillingness to serve, in spite of your sinful priorities

D.And even though you don’t put God first, He put you first

E.He went to the cross in your place and died for your sin—that’s love: servanthood and sacrifice

VII."If in the second or if in the third watch He finds such, blessed are those.

A.The second and third watch are the late hours of the night

B.The idea here is to be ready at all times, even when it’s inconvenient

1.That means doing things you may not want to do for the sake of the Kingdom of God

2.What kinds of things have you said, “I know I should…but…”?

3.You’re sleeping on the job, and the reality is that Jesus may return today.

a)Yes, He said He’d be back soon, and that was almost 2000 years ago

b)So you just assume you have another few days, probably years

c)But how long do you think He’ll wait? Not forever.

d)Do you believe in the resurrection or not?

e)He said you won’t expect His coming, so if you’re not expecting Him today, He may well come

f)What unfinished business needs to be done before He returns?

VIII."But be sure of this, that if the head of the house had known what hour the thief were coming, he would not allow his house to be broken into.

A.So since you don’t know when Jesus is coming back, live like it’s today

B.Trust that Jesus really will keep His promise to return and take you home

C.Rest easy in His promise of eternal life

1.What are you worried about?

2.What is it that’s keeping you from that important time with God?

3.What is so important that you don’t have time to tell your children and godchildren about Jesus and teaching them the catechism?

4.What priorities are coming between you and God?

5.Get rid of them! The kingdom of God is the priority for all people, not just pastors!

IX."And you, be ready, since you will not expect the hour when the Son of Man comes."

A.In your Baptism, you have already been given the gift of eternal life

1.You were given faith then and made God’s child

2.And He will continue to feed your faith through the Word and Sacraments, including the sacrament of Holy Baptism

3.He will strengthen you and train you, enabling you to resist the deceptions of His enemies

B.You don’t know when He’s coming, but you can be sure He is

1.He rose from the dead to give you the same gift

2.You don’t have to get a good score—He already got a perfect one for you

3.Whether He comes back for you or you go to Him, you will receive a prize infinitely better than a gold medal: life forever with Jesus

4.By grace alone through faith alone in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Now the peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

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