Concordia Adult Bible Class

Divorces, as any one who has ever had to endure one knows, are painful. In Hosea, God divorces Israel because of her unfaithfulness. But Israel’s unfaithfulness does not ultimately overcome God’s faithfulness, for He woos His wayward wife back.

The world’s end will most certainly come. Christ has promised it. But how shall we live in the mean time? When the world ends, Christ will reveal to us what mattered most when we were still in the world: serving and loving others. For when we serve and love others, we ultimately serve and love Christ. On this Memorial Day Weekend, we reflect especially on how our troops have served others bravely – many, by giving their very lives.dr@

There are a lot of misconceptions out there about the end of the world. Teachings like the rapture, the millennium, and all sorts of gloom and doom connected to geopolitical events take what the Bible truly says about time’s end and twists it. In this message, we look at some of the common misconceptions about the world’s end and set the record straight.

For millennia now, when trouble strikes, some have been concerned that the end of the world is upon us. But Jesus clearly says that even when we “hear wars and rumors of wars...the end is still to come” (verse 6). As we celebrate Mother’s Day, we consider the challenges of motherhood – the challenges of raising children in this day and age – and the promise that Christ has everything under His control.

People have lots of questions about the end of the world. Sometimes, we get so caught up in the questions for which we don’t have answers that we forget about God’s promises which give us the answers we need the most. The Sadducees were terribly concerned about marriage after the end of the world. But in all of their questions about one woman’s marriage, they forgot about the Church’s marriage to the Lamb of God.

Everybody likes happy endings. There’s something about the hero conquering the villain or the guy getting the girl that warms our hearts like nothing else can. Jesus promises that the ending of this world’s story can be the happy ending of our stories. But with Jesus’ promise of a happy ending comes a warning: our endings will only be happy if we end with Him.

Most people have heard of a “deathbed conversion,” though many are skeptical of the genuineness of such so-called “religious awakenings.” But here is a thief who has a genuine end-of-life conversion. His story teaches us two things. First, we learn that the doors of heaven stand open to us until we take our final breath. Second, our salvation is not based on what we do, but on what Christ has done. For, even when we don’t have any time to make amends for our wickedness, Jesus can still receive us into His kingdom out of His grace through faith.

One of Jesus’ final conversations is with a man who in the crosshairs of an existential crisis. Pontius Pilate wants to know, “What is truth” (verse 38)? Interestingly, Jesus never answers Pilate’s question – not because He cannot, but because Pilate does not really want an answer. Pilate’s conversation with Jesus does not lead him to Jesus. Far too often, we have conversations with the Lord where, rather than seeking His answers, we are merely thinking out loud. What would it look like if we truly sought God’s answers to life’s biggest questions?

Jesus’ final lesson to His disciples is one of love: “By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you love one another” (verse 35). Being that this is Jesus’ final lesson – a last will and testament of sorts – do we listen to and obey Jesus’ call of love?

Most people have had premonitions before – an eerie feeling that forebodes something to come. Of course, many of premonitions never come to pass. Jesus, when he tells the Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard is serving up more than a premonition, He’s offering a prophecy. He knows He will be treated unjustly and killed. Though we cannot see into the future, there is a good chance we will all be treated unjustly at one time or another. Will we respond to injustice as Jesus responds?