Sermons
"So, faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the Word of Christ." (Rom 10:17). While it's preferable to hear the sermon in person, those who could not attend, or would like to review the sermon again, can do so here.
Sunday, November 30, 2025
JESU JUVA THE SECOND-LAST SUNDAY OF THE CHURCH YEAR / TRINITY 26 Text: St. Matthew 24:15-28 IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER, AND OF THE SON, AND OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. AMEN. There are many misconceptions about Christianity in the world today, and because we live in the world, there are as well, nearly as many misconceptions among we who call ourselves Christian; not the least of which is our perception of just who our LORD truly is. I do not mean “who” as in who it is we are to fear, love, and trust, above all things; I pray we all know that JESUS is our LORD and GOD who died on the Cross to save us. Rather, by “who” I mean the character or persona of the One we call “LORD”—our concept or perception of just who JESUS is and what He is like and how we are to approach Him. In C. S. Lewis’ book, “The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe”, one of the children, the little girl, Lucy, inquires of Mr. and Mrs. Beaver about the character of Aslan the king. If you are unfamiliar with the story, Aslan is the symbolic messianic character in the series of stories and just happens to be a lion. Lucy asks, “Is he quite safe?” Mrs. Beaver answers, “…if there’s anyone who can appear before Aslan without their knees knocking, they’re either braver than most or else just silly.” To which Mr. Beaver adds, “Who said anything about safe? Course he isn’t safe. But he’s good. He’s the King, I tell you.” There is nothing “safe” about being in the presence of ALMIGHTY GOD, just ask Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron the high priest and nephews of Moses, or Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, who in His righteous judgment the LORD caused the earth to swallow alive along with their families, or Uzzah, against whom GOD’s wrath burned for his act of disobedience in merely reaching out to steady the Ark of the Covenant which seemed about to fall as the oxen which we pulling the cart on which it was carried stumbled; Uzzah’s punishment was death. No, there is nothing “safe” about our LORD, but He is good. Not “good” like a bowl of ice cream or your favorite food, and not simply nice, as if He is a nice guy, but good as in pure, holy, just, righteous. He is, after all, the King and King of kings. He is GOD, I tell you. Let me be a little more clear about the word “safe.” Certainly GOD calls us to come to Him for safety. He promises to provide us with all that we need to support this body and life. He loved the world in such a way that He sent His only begotten SON into the world to save the world and us; that whosoever would believe in Him should not perish but have eternal life. He is our ever present Help in times of trouble, and would have us approach Him in confidence and boldness as dear children approach their dear father. He is gracious and merciful to all who will believe in Him. For us, He defeated sin, Satan, and the grave through His innocent suffering and death, and His triumphant resurrection on Easter morning. All of that is true, and from this aspect GOD is “safe.” Indeed, He is more than safe. But I caution you, one must never forget: over and above all things, He is the King; He is GOD and always will be GOD! So, it is, that to be in the presence of GOD demands reverence and not the contempt of familiarity. Therefore, He is not our drinking buddy. He is not our teammate. He does not play soccer, football, or baseball with us. He does not wink at us and pat us on the head turning a blind eye to our sins with a thumbs up and a big toothy grin—especially the sin of unbelief. No, GOD is just—completely and totally righteous and just. Oh, and one more thing, when He returns on the Last and Final Day He will be your Judge. Therefore, make no mistake, while the first Advent of our LORD was for the purpose of salvation, His second Advent shall be for the purpose of separating the sheep from the goats. It shall be as Judge, not SAVIOR, because the time of mercy for the unrepentant shall have come to an end. Therefore, hear and believe the words of the HOLY SPIRIT as we read them in the Book of Hebrews, “For we know Him who said, ‘Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,’ says the LORD. And again, ‘The LORD will judge His people.’ It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living GOD.” Thus, with this understanding we have just confessed, “And He shall come again with glory to judge both the living and the dead”, the recitation of our faith in the words of the Nicene Creed. And in like manner, the entire true Church on Earth believes and confesses this truth of our LORD JESUS, who is the CHRIST, the Second Person of the HOLY TRINITY. We confess that JESUS is GOD, and so also, do we confess the coming Day of Judgment. So, be warned! JESUS CHRIST is returning, and Judgment Day is coming. Whether you truly believe what you confess or not, there is no hiding from it, there will be no stopping it; and when that Day comes, there will be no escaping it. There will be no rapture, no unbelievers left behind for a second chance to save themselves, no excuses nor rain-checks will be accepted. Let our LORD’s words stand as a warning, for no man knows the hour or day when GOD’s judgment will be upon us; not Hollywood producers and movie makers; not Nostradamus; not any pagan priest in Mayan temples; no politician in the halls of Congress, no scientist, nor Christian heretic—no man knows the hour or the day! For the Day of CHRIST’s return “will come like a thief in the night.” The Day of Judgment is coming, and on that great and final Day ten thousand times ten thousand, people beyond number, will stand before the Judge, and there, before the Judgment Seat of GOD, every knee will bow and every tongue confess that JESUS CHRIST is LORD. All will stand before the throne of the SON OF MAN and hear His verdict. And when they do, there will be only two alternatives to what one will hear; either one will hear JESUS say, “Come, you blessed of My FATHER, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.” or “Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels.” There is no middle ground, no alternate ending. On the Day of Judgment, our LORD will separate the sheep from the goats. On that Day there will be no social or racial distinctions, no preference by class or wealth, no neutral people. Thus, every person in the world will inevitably find him or herself in either one or the other of the two assemblies—either sheep or goat—without escape, in the former; with no desire to escape, in the latter. This separating will be the first act of the Judgment to come—it will be the fixing of an impassable gulf between Heaven and Hell. The sheep, whom the King calls the blessed of His FATHER, are those that followed the Great Shepherd, JESUS, and willingly heard His voice. They are the believers whom GOD has promised will inherit His Kingdom as kings and priests. The goats, on the other hand, are those who refused to bend to His gentle rule, who refused the grace of GOD in His Gospel. They are the unbelievers, the hypocrites among the Christians, and the entire godless world. Being cursed, not by GOD the FATHER, but rather by their own deeds, their inheritance is “the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels.” Therefore, repent! Throw yourself at the feet of the only One who can save you. Lie prostrate before Him at the foot of His Cross, and there be washed in the flood of His Holy and precious Blood as it rushes forth from His pierced side. Come to the only place of safety; the place where your LORD was lifted up for the purpose of drawing all nations unto Himself. Look up into the face of GOD and see there the limitlessness of His love for you, and receive His peace which passes beyond all human understanding. Our sins and the Law of GOD tell us that we are goats by nature. We have not done what GOD’s Law demands of us, and whatever we have done will never be, and can never be, good enough. Still, Baptism and the Gospel tell us that we are sheep of the Good Shepherd’s flock. We are marked with the Sign of the Cross, the seal of Him who died for the sins of the world in our place. Goats, you see, cannot make themselves into sheep. To become a sheep, the goat must die. The goat must be drowned in the waters of Baptism and be raised to new life as a sheep. In the baptismal water, the goat is buried in the death of JESUS, the very Lamb of GOD who takes away the sin of the world, and is resurrected a sheep in the life of the Lamb who lives. Therefore, once you were a goat, but now you are safe; you are judged by CHRIST to be a sheep of the GOOD SHEPHERD who guards and protects His flock. He guards you with His Cross and protects you with His sacrificed Body and Blood. He does not judge you by what you do, but by what He has done in you and for you. Therefore, He does not judge you by what you have done or by what you may have left undone, but by what you are in JESUS CHRIST. Therefore, when GOD looks at you He does not see a goat; instead, JESUS sees you as an unblemished lamb. He does not see what you once were, He sees you as you now are in Him—a forgiven child of GOD. Therefore dear friends know this, you do not inherit the Kingdom of GOD by good works. Your so-called good works could never earn your salvation. The Kingdom of GOD is already yours by faith. So “come you blessed of My FATHER, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.” Come! Come, here, to the altar, before the throne of the Judge. Bend your knee in reverent worship. Receive Him on your tongue and receive from Him absolution in His True Body and True Blood given and shed for you. Confess with your tongue that JESUS CHRIST is your LORD and GOD, and hear Him say, “... come you blessed of My FATHER, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.” “For I forgive you all your sins.” IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER, AND OF THE SON, AND OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. AMEN. SOLI DEO GLORIA Rev. Raymond D. Parent II Our Savior Evangelical Lutheran Church Crestview, Florida 11/16/25 AD
Sunday, November 23, 2025
JESU JUVA TRINITY 27 / THE SUNDAY OF FULFILLMENT Text: Text: St. Matthew 25:1-13 IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER, AND OF THE SON, AND OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. AMEN. If you wish to know what the Kingdom or Reign of Heaven will be like, listen to the words of JESUS, for He begins His parable with the words, “Τότε ὁμοιωθήσεται ἡ βασιλεία τῶν οὐρανῶν” or in English, “The Kingdom of Heaven will be like....” Thus, the parable of the Ten Virgins is a bit of a misnomer. It really is not about the ten virgins at all. Rather, it is about what we can expect the Kingdom of Heaven and the reign of GOD to be, as well as the consequences of being unprepared for its coming. We are being alerted to the coming reign of GOD at the consummation of the age when CHRIST will return on the clouds of the heavens to be our Judge. That, beloved Bride of CHRIST, is the point of our LORD’s parable; JESUS will return! He has not left us as orphans. He will return, and though He has been delayed for these many long years for the sake of the ingathering of His elect, we must remain vigilant and ever watchful because we “know neither the day nor the hour in which the SON OF MAN is coming.” In order that we remain ever watchful our LORD places before us this parable. We have before us ten virgins. Five, our LORD calls “wise”, and five He calls “foolish”. The word in Greek used to describe the foolish virgins is actually stronger than just “foolish.” It is more weighty and implies that the foolish virgins were not simply foolish or imprudent, but morons. In anticipation of a bridal procession all ten virgins have gone out to meet a certain bridegroom, but there is this important contrast between them; five have brought extra oil for their lamps while the remaining five neglected to do so. The bridegroom, is seemingly late in arriving and the virgins fall fast asleep only to be awakened by a cry in the middle of the night, “Behold, the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.” Here is where the contrast between the virgins becomes painfully apparent. The five wise virgins brought special vessels holding extra oil for their lamps. The foolish virgins failed in this respect. I like to describe their foolishness in contemporary terms. Thus, one might compare their lamps to flashlights. In fact their lamps would have served the same purpose as a modern flashlight allowing them to light their way through the darkened streets and to meet the bridegroom as the bridegroom approached. We could also compare the extra oil brought by the wise virgins to batteries. The wise virgins knew that they might be in for a long wait and thinking it prudent they brought along extra batteries just in case. This proved to be a wise decision. The foolish virgins, however, brought only the batteries already in their flashlights. Now, anyone who has ever seen a horror movie, or changed a flat tire on a cold rainy or snowy night, knows what happens to flashlight batteries just when they are needed most—they die. Perhaps that is why St. Matthew, in recording what JESUS said, uses the word “moron” in describing the foolish virgins; they knew they should bring along extra batteries but decided against it—a moronic decision. So again, the virgins who neglected to bring extra oil are not simply imprudent, nor thoughtless or unwise. They knew better and so are far worse. They are morons! Now, do not blame me for saying so, for these are not my words. They are the words of St. Matthew, and ultimately, they are Words of our LORD which the HOLY SPIRIT has caused to be recorded by Matthew. They are strong words because the consequences of not listening to our LORD are indeed disastrous. Either we hear the Word of the LORD, and thus are saved, or we can ignore it to our peril and thus, find the gates of Heaven locked tightly against us. There is no in-between, no limbo, no purgatory. There will be no second chances. Either one will have the oil of faith at our LORD’s reappearing, or one will be left gaping at the gates of Heaven like a moron wondering what happened and how it is that they could possibly be locked so tightly against one. Now, let us return to my words with which I began this sermon; the parable of the Ten Virgins is a misnomer. It is not about the ten virgins at all. Rather, it is about what we can expect the Kingdom of Heaven and the reign of GOD to be, as well as the consequences of being unprepared for its coming. We are being alerted by JESUS to the coming reign of GOD at the consummation of the age when CHRIST will return on the clouds of the heavens to be our Judge. JESUS said, “Then the Kingdom of Heaven will be like….” JESUS is speaking not about the kingdoms of this world, nor is He speaking directly about His Church; He is talking about His return and the Day of judgment. His, is a warning to you and to the person sitting next to you; indeed, it is a warning CHRIST speaks to each and every one of us. It is to His Bride, the Church, that JESUS says, “Remember, then, what you received and heard. Keep it, and repent. If you will not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come against you.” JESUS often uses the number “ten” in His parables even as we see it throughout Holy Scripture. Ten is the Biblical number signifying completeness; therefore, we have the Ten Commandments, the ten talents of the faithful servant, ten silver coins of the old woman who never stopped searching for her lost coin, the ten servants, ten lepers, ten minas, and ten cities in the parable of the minas. Here we have ten virgins. The ten virgins signify the visible Christian Church on earth in its completeness—all those who have believed the Gospel promise, from Moses and the prophets, to the birth, crucifixion, and resurrection, and on through the ascension of CHRIST to the eschaton, that is, to the end of time and His promised return. They represent all who have claimed, or ever will claim, to be believers. The ten virgins include you and me. Yet, the pursuit of the Kingdom of Heaven is not a natural pursuit for corrupt human hearts and souls. That is, such pursuit is not natural for any of us in our natural corrupt state, for we all fall far short of the glory of GOD, and therefore, it is a sad fact that not everyone who says, “Lord, Lord,” shall enter the Kingdom of Heaven. There will be the foolish virgins, those who have the appearance of godliness, but deny its power. They will be the virgins who, being double-minded, have burned their lamps with no thought of the future, carelessly exhausting their supply of oil. These are they who claimed the title “Christian,” but their piety never extends beyond the door of the church they attend. In Baptism, their lamps were made full, but when their Betrothed returns, their lamps will be found long empty. They never hungered for the Word of GOD. They never longed for the Bridegroom’s return. Committing adultery with the world, they gave up the teachings of JESUS in exchange for the doctrines of men. We must be on guard against such apostacy, that is, we must guard against falling away from the faith once given to the saints. For the hour is at hand and the Day of Judgment may be closer than any of us realize, and even if judgment does not come before we have long been laid to rest, still, our last hour will come upon us unawares, and when it comes there will be no second chances. Therefore, “Repent for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!” Do not think that you will be able to purchase oil after the trumpet sounds the arrival of the Bridegroom. We are to be made ready before it is too late! “Therefore… [do] not sleep, as others do, but… watch and be sober.” Brothers and sisters, we “are not in darkness, so that this Day should overtake [us] as a thief.” We are aware of its coming, and it would be moronic to meet it unprepared. This awareness is purely of the HOLY SPIRIT and is freely given from the heart of God as a gift. Such a gift cannot be purchased through works or merit. GOD’s grace is not for sale or barter. How then do we receive it? Through faith, begun in each of us by the HOLY SPIRIT through Baptism, and nourished and strengthened in us by the HOLY SPIRIT with the Word of CHRIST’s Gospel and His Holy Body and Blood in His Supper. This faith, CHRIST Himself will bring to completion on the Last Day. Until that Day these are the gifts GOD provides to sustain us. With these gifts we receive oil enough for the strength that will be needed to make it through another week with joy. It is through these means alone that GOD comes to us. This is how GOD protects us from ourselves and our dangerous imaginings so that we do not waste our oil but conserve it, watching and waiting for the return of His SON. Through these means alone we receive oil for our lamps and food for our souls. Even now, the Bridegroom provides us with forgiveness, life and salvation. While we wait, we trust in Him and His promises. We keep our focus forever on the Cross of Calvary and His empty tomb. This is what we do while we are awake. This is what we do while we wait. This is how the virgin Bride of CHRIST is prepared. Brothers and Sisters, to be wise is to see one’s life in the light of eternity. That is why GOD teaches us to pray in Psalm 90, “So teach us to number our days, That we may gain a heart of wisdom.” A heart of wisdom is that heart which knows that JESUS CHRIST is the Bridegroom who was crucified for us and raised again to give us life. Wisdom is to know that He alone is the LORD who gives meaning and purpose to our days because His Blood has redeemed us and His resurrection has opened the door to Heaven. Wisdom knows that if we gain everything this world has to offer and yet do not have faith in CHRIST we have absolutely nothing. Wisdom knows that our LORD JESUS will return at an hour that no one knows and only those who have faith in Him will have access to His wedding hall. To be a fool, to be a moron, on the other hand, is to live a life so pre-occupied with the projects and aspirations, the wants and the needs, of this passing world, that one has no time for JESUS, who is the Bridegroom and Husband to His Bride the Church. To be a fool, to be a moron, is to live as though GOD did not matter and as if you mattered most. To be a fool is to live as though there were only today and nothing else. Fools and morons live as though there is no Judgment Day coming. To be a fool, to be a moron, is to forget your Baptism, ignore the LORD’s preaching and the LORD’s Supper, or to just go through the motions. Fools and morons neglect to take every opportunity to be in the presence of GOD in His Church. To be a moron is to ignore the need for the oil of faith, to think or conclude that oil, and therefore, true faith, really does not matter all that much. But the oil does matter. As we have seen, oil is finally that which separated the wise from the foolish virgins. The oil in the parable points to something that is always being consumed and must always be replenished. That is the way it is with faith. Faith is not something that is static. Faith is living, and like a flame it must be fueled or it will grow dim and finally die. Faith does not feed on itself; it is fueled by the Words of our LORD poured into our ears, and His Body and Blood given us to eat and drink. In His Word, and with His Body and Blood, our LORD JESUS CHRIST is giving to us the gifts through which He keeps the flame of faith burning until that Day when He will return to usher us into the wedding hall in the Kingdom of Heaven. Beloved, JESUS says “Watch therefore, for you neither know the day nor the hour in which the SON OF MAN is coming.” We do not know what lies between today and the Day of His coming. We do not know what we might be called upon to suffer for the sake of His Name. We do not know what crosses we may have to carry. Will He return tomorrow or many centuries from now? We do not know and it does not really matter. Yet, this we do know, our LORD JESUS CHRIST, crucified and risen from the dead is here with us, even this very morning, freely giving us the oil of faith which brings forgiveness, life, and salvation in His Word and Sacraments so that we will be prepared to receive Him when the call goes out “Behold, the Bridegroom is coming; go out to meet Him!”. While we wait, we trust in GOD and His promises. We keep our focus forever on the Cross of Calvary and JESUS’ empty tomb. This is what we do while we are awake. This is what we do while we wait. This is how the wise virgin, the Bride of CHRIST is prepared. So, come now to the chancel rail. “Behold, the Bridegroom is coming….” Come to the chancel rail and greet Him! Here, we exchange our wedding vows with JESUS. We say, “I believe…” and our Bridegroom responds, “Dearly Beloved, I forgive you all your sins.” IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER, AND OF THE SON, AND OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. AMEN. SOLI DEO GLORIA Rev. Raymond D. Parent II Our Savior Evangelical Lutheran Church Crestview, Florida 11/23/25 AD
Sunday, November 16, 2025
JESU JUVA THE SECOND-LAST SUNDAY OF THE CHURCH YEAR / TRINITY 26 Text: St. Matthew 24:15-28 IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER, AND OF THE SON, AND OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. AMEN. There are many misconceptions about Christianity in the world today, and because we live in the world, there are as well, nearly as many misconceptions among we who call ourselves Christian; not the least of which is our perception of just who our LORD truly is. I do not mean “who” as in who it is we are to fear, love, and trust, above all things; I pray we all know that JESUS is our LORD and GOD who died on the Cross to save us. Rather, by “who” I mean the character or persona of the One we call “LORD”—our concept or perception of just who JESUS is and what He is like and how we are to approach Him. In C. S. Lewis’ book, “The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe”, one of the children, the little girl, Lucy, inquires of Mr. and Mrs. Beaver about the character of Aslan the king. If you are unfamiliar with the story, Aslan is the symbolic messianic character in the series of stories and just happens to be a lion. Lucy asks, “Is he quite safe?” Mrs. Beaver answers, “…if there’s anyone who can appear before Aslan without their knees knocking, they’re either braver than most or else just silly.” To which Mr. Beaver adds, “Who said anything about safe? Course he isn’t safe. But he’s good. He’s the King, I tell you.” There is nothing “safe” about being in the presence of ALMIGHTY GOD, just ask Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron the high priest and nephews of Moses, or Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, who in His righteous judgment the LORD caused the earth to swallow alive along with their families, or Uzzah, against whom GOD’s wrath burned for his act of disobedience in merely reaching out to steady the Ark of the Covenant which seemed about to fall as the oxen which we pulling the cart on which it was carried stumbled; Uzzah’s punishment was death. No, there is nothing “safe” about our LORD, but He is good. Not “good” like a bowl of ice cream or your favorite food, and not simply nice, as if He is a nice guy, but good as in pure, holy, just, righteous. He is, after all, the King and King of kings. He is GOD, I tell you. Let me be a little more clear about the word “safe.” Certainly GOD calls us to come to Him for safety. He promises to provide us with all that we need to support this body and life. He loved the world in such a way that He sent His only begotten SON into the world to save the world and us; that whosoever would believe in Him should not perish but have eternal life. He is our ever present Help in times of trouble, and would have us approach Him in confidence and boldness as dear children approach their dear father. He is gracious and merciful to all who will believe in Him. For us, He defeated sin, Satan, and the grave through His innocent suffering and death, and His triumphant resurrection on Easter morning. All of that is true, and from this aspect GOD is “safe.” Indeed, He is more than safe. But I caution you, one must never forget: over and above all things, He is the King; He is GOD and always will be GOD! So, it is, that to be in the presence of GOD demands reverence and not the contempt of familiarity. Therefore, He is not our drinking buddy. He is not our teammate. He does not play soccer, football, or baseball with us. He does not wink at us and pat us on the head turning a blind eye to our sins with a thumbs up and a big toothy grin—especially the sin of unbelief. No, GOD is just—completely and totally righteous and just. Oh, and one more thing, when He returns on the Last and Final Day He will be your Judge. Therefore, make no mistake, while the first Advent of our LORD was for the purpose of salvation, His second Advent shall be for the purpose of separating the sheep from the goats. It shall be as Judge, not SAVIOR, because the time of mercy for the unrepentant shall have come to an end. Therefore, hear and believe the words of the HOLY SPIRIT as we read them in the Book of Hebrews, “For we know Him who said, ‘Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,’ says the LORD. And again, ‘The LORD will judge His people.’ It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living GOD.” Thus, with this understanding we have just confessed, “And He shall come again with glory to judge both the living and the dead”, the recitation of our faith in the words of the Nicene Creed. And in like manner, the entire true Church on Earth believes and confesses this truth of our LORD JESUS, who is the CHRIST, the Second Person of the HOLY TRINITY. We confess that JESUS is GOD, and so also, do we confess the coming Day of Judgment. So, be warned! JESUS CHRIST is returning, and Judgment Day is coming. Whether you truly believe what you confess or not, there is no hiding from it, there will be no stopping it; and when that Day comes, there will be no escaping it. There will be no rapture, no unbelievers left behind for a second chance to save themselves, no excuses nor rain-checks will be accepted. Let our LORD’s words stand as a warning, for no man knows the hour or day when GOD’s judgment will be upon us; not Hollywood producers and movie makers; not Nostradamus; not any pagan priest in Mayan temples; no politician in the halls of Congress, no scientist, nor Christian heretic—no man knows the hour or the day! For the Day of CHRIST’s return “will come like a thief in the night.” The Day of Judgment is coming, and on that great and final Day ten thousand times ten thousand, people beyond number, will stand before the Judge, and there, before the Judgment Seat of GOD, every knee will bow and every tongue confess that JESUS CHRIST is LORD. All will stand before the throne of the SON OF MAN and hear His verdict. And when they do, there will be only two alternatives to what one will hear; either one will hear JESUS say, “Come, you blessed of My FATHER, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.” or “Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels.” There is no middle ground, no alternate ending. On the Day of Judgment, our LORD will separate the sheep from the goats. On that Day there will be no social or racial distinctions, no preference by class or wealth, no neutral people. Thus, every person in the world will inevitably find him or herself in either one or the other of the two assemblies—either sheep or goat—without escape, in the former; with no desire to escape, in the latter. This separating will be the first act of the Judgment to come—it will be the fixing of an impassable gulf between Heaven and Hell. The sheep, whom the King calls the blessed of His FATHER, are those that followed the Great Shepherd, JESUS, and willingly heard His voice. They are the believers whom GOD has promised will inherit His Kingdom as kings and priests. The goats, on the other hand, are those who refused to bend to His gentle rule, who refused the grace of GOD in His Gospel. They are the unbelievers, the hypocrites among the Christians, and the entire godless world. Being cursed, not by GOD the FATHER, but rather by their own deeds, their inheritance is “the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels.” Therefore, repent! Throw yourself at the feet of the only One who can save you. Lie prostrate before Him at the foot of His Cross, and there be washed in the flood of His Holy and precious Blood as it rushes forth from His pierced side. Come to the only place of safety; the place where your LORD was lifted up for the purpose of drawing all nations unto Himself. Look up into the face of GOD and see there the limitlessness of His love for you, and receive His peace which passes beyond all human understanding. Our sins and the Law of GOD tell us that we are goats by nature. We have not done what GOD’s Law demands of us, and whatever we have done will never be, and can never be, good enough. Still, Baptism and the Gospel tell us that we are sheep of the Good Shepherd’s flock. We are marked with the Sign of the Cross, the seal of Him who died for the sins of the world in our place. Goats, you see, cannot make themselves into sheep. To become a sheep, the goat must die. The goat must be drowned in the waters of Baptism and be raised to new life as a sheep. In the baptismal water, the goat is buried in the death of JESUS, the very Lamb of GOD who takes away the sin of the world, and is resurrected a sheep in the life of the Lamb who lives. Therefore, once you were a goat, but now you are safe; you are judged by CHRIST to be a sheep of the GOOD SHEPHERD who guards and protects His flock. He guards you with His Cross and protects you with His sacrificed Body and Blood. He does not judge you by what you do, but by what He has done in you and for you. Therefore, He does not judge you by what you have done or by what you may have left undone, but by what you are in JESUS CHRIST. Therefore, when GOD looks at you He does not see a goat; instead, JESUS sees you as an unblemished lamb. He does not see what you once were, He sees you as you now are in Him—a forgiven child of GOD. Therefore dear friends know this, you do not inherit the Kingdom of GOD by good works. Your so-called good works could never earn your salvation. The Kingdom of GOD is already yours by faith. So “come you blessed of My FATHER, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.” Come! Come, here, to the altar, before the throne of the Judge. Bend your knee in reverent worship. Receive Him on your tongue and receive from Him absolution in His True Body and True Blood given and shed for you. Confess with your tongue that JESUS CHRIST is your LORD and GOD, and hear Him say, “... come you blessed of My FATHER, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.” “For I forgive you all your sins.” IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER, AND OF THE SON, AND OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. AMEN. SOLI DEO GLORIA Rev. Raymond D. Parent II Our Savior Evangelical Lutheran Church Crestview, Florida 11/16/25 AD
Sunday, November 09, 2025
JESU JUVA THE THIRD-LAST SUNDAY OF THE CHURCH YEAR / TRINITY 25 Text: St. Matthew 24:15-28 IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER, AND OF THE SON, AND OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. AMEN. When the elect of GOD read or hear the Gospel text we have before us this morning, there may be a tendency to despair, for if misunderstood, the events our LORD portrays of the days just prior to His return are nothing short of terrifying. But take heart, these are not words meant to make you tremble in fear at the anticipated return of our LORD. Instead, JESUS’ Word, indeed, His entire life, is not meant to kill, but to make alive. For our LORD did not come “into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.” Therefore, it is with divine mercy that our LORD warns His people of the coming Day of Judgment. That we should be prepared for His promised return at the end of time, our LORD, with His infinite compassion, warns all who will hear Him about false christs, false prophets, and false teachers; about those who preach and teach false doctrines and point to false gods—about anti-christs, who preach and teach not the way of life, but the way of death. Our LORD warns us that we should become wise unto salvation and accept no teaching contrary to His Word; that we should accept nothing contrary to CHRIST and the faith once delivered to His saints through His blessed apostles. Our LORD warns us, that we not lose our salvation at the “show of great signs and wonders” the anti-christs will perform “to deceive, if possible, even the elect.” Our LORD warns us in order that we are made prepared for His coming, and with joy and anticipation, look forward to the Day of His return. But what will these anti-christs look like of whom we have been warned, and how shall we know them; how can they be recognized? How shall we be prepared for our LORD’s return? The answer to that question may seem obvious to believers, but what is obvious is not always the path people prefer to walk. The obvious answer then, is to know GOD’s Word—to compare and judge all things against the Word of GOD as He spells them out in the doctrines of Holy Scripture. For GOD’s Word and GOD’s Word alone, is the sole source, the sole rule and norm, for faith and practice. GOD’s unadulterated Word is the pure fountain and source of GOD’s truth. Thus, it should be easy for one to identify a false christ and his false teaching. One should simply do as GOD’s Word directs and test all things, comparing them to God’s Word, while casting away the lie and holding fast to what is good. It should be easy, that is, but for our ignorance of the Word of GOD, our lack of study of the Word of GOD, our poor confession of the Word of GOD, and our apparent inability or desire to teach our children any better than we ourselves have been taught. 1 Sadly, we Christians often find it easier to believe TV experts and so-called scientists or self-proclaimed theologians. We find it easier to remember what radio and TV evangelists have to say than what we hear and learn from our pastor. We enjoy reading self-help books written by false teachers rather than reading the Word of GOD. We trust what we read in blogs or hear and see in vlogs more than we trust the Church. We ask our pastors questions and then ignore or contradict their answers. It is a sad fact that we enjoy telling our pastor what we believe when we have not bothered to crack open our Bibles for years and our catechism has not seen the light of day since we were confirmed. In such a case I was once told, “Pastor, I may not have read the Bible, but I know what I believe.” Sadly, we have already made up our minds even before we speak the questions. And then? Well, then we are offended when our pastor points out error or names false teachers by name as a warning to you, rather than thanking him for showing you the truth. Yet, is that not a pastor’s responsibility? Even when we have read our Bibles, we often follow our hearts rather than the Word of GOD, choosing to judge GOD and His Word by what we deem to be fair, by what we deem to be just, by what we deem to be meet, right, and salutary. But do you not know that GOD’s ways are not our ways but are far above our understanding? It is a sad state of affairs that even we Lutherans, who have the purest form of Biblical truth, are, as a whole, biblically illiterate, doctrinally ignorant, and theologically indifferent. Is it any wonder then, that our people move so easily from church to church, denomination to denomination, worship style to worship style, without much thought at all given to the truth or untruth of what a given denomination, a given congregation, or pastor, believes, teaches, or confesses? My point? How do we judge doctrine and practice, how do we judge what we hear from our pulpits, in our classrooms, in Bible classes, Sunday School, and even seminaries, how do we recognize the “abomination of desolation” if we do not even know what it is we are to believe and confess? How are we to discern false teachers and false prophets with their heresy and half- truths from what is meet, right, and salutary—how do we discern what is the truth, from what is a lie? How do we discern the “…faith once for all delivered to the saints” from a gospel that is no gospel at all? How would we even know the “abomination of desolation” if we saw him? Is it any wonder then, that our synod continues to hemorrhage our youth who are leaving our congregations in droves when we neglect to give them solid food and firmly ground them in the Truth? Is it any wonder then, that only sixty-two percent of our fellow citizens now call themselves Christian, never mind Lutheran, and worse, only forty-six percent of young adults now make the same confession. Therefore, be warned, the days are here and the “abomination of desolation” whether you know it or not, whether you believe it or not, is already standing in many of the so-called “holy places” in our land. There he preaches a christ we do not know and a gospel alien to GOD and His Church. Even now the abomination, who is Satan, preaches his lies and points to his 2 anti-christ. He has already appointed his false prophets who spew a new gospel which, again, is no gospel at all. For the devil is a liar and the father of it. He points GOD’s people to new ways of salvation in his attempt to deceive, if possible, even GOD’s elect. He attempts to dazzle them with signs and wonders that he might achieve his one goal, his one great desire, and that goal and desire my friends, is your destruction. Repent, for you are a co-conspirator with the devil. Repent, for the sad thing is that, by nature, you are spiritually dead and unable to discern any difference between GOD and the devil. In fact, if not for the intervention of the HOLY SPIRIT, we would much prefer the things of Satan. His words seem sweet, and they appeal to our vanity and pride. Frighteningly, in this we have fulfilled the prophecy of St. Paul wherein he writes: “But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of GOD, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power… always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth.” And again: “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables.” By nature mankind is ever hearing, but never perceiving, ever learning, but never coming to the knowledge of the truth. Thus, more often than not, the JESUS sought by our erring hearts and minds is not the JESUS of Holy Scripture because as a whole, we “know neither the Scriptures nor the power of GOD. ” But what might change your ways? What would it take to make you stop doubting and believe? Do you desire to see signs and wonders? Would seeing signs and wonders strengthen your faith? Many people saw JESUS perform many signs and wonders and still refused to believe in Him and instead, crucified Him. Would it be any different for you? Do you not know that you are already witness to the greatest of signs and wonders right here in our chancel and on our altar where we find CHRIST’s true Body and true Blood in bread and wine? Have you so soon forgotten that what we witness right here at our Baptismal Font is the mightiest of wonders? What greater wonder is there than what sinners experience in the washing of rebirth and renewal by the HOLY SPIRIT in the waters of Holy Baptism? Is the Baptismal Font not the place where the dead are raised to life? Is there a greater gift, a greater wonder, than the forgiveness of sins given to you in JESUS’ Name? You see, signs and wonders mean nothing if they do not point you to the One who hung on Calvary’s Cross for you. Signs and wonders are worthless if they do not point you to the very Word of GOD that delivers the benefits of JESUS’ death and resurrection to you. When it comes to your salvation, these, and only these, are the signs that hold any meaning, because these are the true signs of the end of days and the imminent return of our GOD. 3 These signs point to the truth of our condition. We were once lost and condemned creatures. But we have been delivered and freed from sin, death, and the devil, not by our works, but by the works of JESUS who paid the price for our freedom with His own precious Blood and with His innocent suffering and death. Therefore, “wherever the carcass is, there the eagles will be gathered together.” Wherever the Word of GOD is preached in its purity and the Sacraments are administered according to the Gospel, there the true Church of GOD, the very Body of CHRIST, is found gathered around these wonders and signs—not to dine on carrion, but to feast on the very Bread of Life. See what love has the FATHER, for where these Wonders are found one also finds forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation. Therefore, “if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the CHRIST!’ or ‘There!’” and they do not preach CHRIST and Him crucified, if they do not have Word and Sacrament, “do not believe it.” For such a place is nothing more than a desert or an empty room open to the “abomination of desolation. ” Flee, then, to GOD’s Holy Mountain. Flee to Calvary. Flee to where the Lamb of GOD gave up His life for you. Behold, there, JESUS, and look up into the face of GOD and see there His love for you. From His sacrificial death you receive life. We are a Church that lives in the now and the not yet. We live now in this season of GOD’s grace looking forward to JESUS’ promised return when all things will be completed. Until that day, this is where we are to gather—around His Word of forgiveness and around His Body and Blood, given and shed for us poor sinners to eat and drink that we might receive the forgiveness His death bought for us even as we proclaim His death for us until He returns. We gather around His altar to be strengthened against all that assails us in this life— sickness, pain, sorrow, and death. We gather around the Baptismal font where JESUS brings a clean thing out of an unclean—where He brings life out of death. Here, in this very place, we gather around the Word of God where our LORD keeps us in the confidence and hope of a Christian that we need not fear the coming of Judgment Day, but may actually pray for it as we do in the prayer our LORD taught us when we pray “Thy Kingdom come. ” Look forward, then, to the great and glorious Day of our LORD’s return, not with fear and trepidation, but with joy and anticipation. Look for lightning as it flashes from the east to the west. Listen for the sound of the trumpet announcing JESUS’ return; a sound you will hear even if you have been sleeping peacefully in your grave for a millennium or more. For this is the sound of the coming of the SON OF MAN who is returning to call you to your eternal home, body and soul. Listen for His call and hear Him say, “Fear not child, I forgive you all your sins.” IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER, AND OF THE SON, AND OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. AMEN. SOLI DEO GLORIA Rev. Raymond D. Parent II 4 Our Savior Evangelical Lutheran Church Crestview, Florida 11/9/25 AD
Sunday, November 02, 2025
JESU JUVA THE FEAST OF ALL SAINTS (OBSERVED) Text: Matthew 5:1-12; Revelation 7:2-17 IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER, AND OF THE SON AND OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. AMEN. Today we celebrate the Feast of All Saints. We gather this day to worship our GOD, receive His bounteous gifts and promises, and remember our sainted friends and loved ones—those who have shed this vale of tears and have gone on to the Church Triumphant. Today we remember our dead. The fact that they are dead is, for us, a call to repentance. Death, you see, is the consequence of sin. It is something, from which we cannot escape. So, where they, the is our dead, have gone, all of us will one day follow. But, as Christians, that does not fill us with fear. For repentance is not simply sorrow and contrition, but also a firm and confident hope in the Grace of GOD found in CHRIST JESUS. We die to ourselves; we are emptied, and filled with the HOLY SPIRIT, being made alive through the forgiveness of CHRIST. So this call to repentance, this remembrance of “our” dead, fills us with a sober joy. For it is the mystery of the Gospel that in dying we are born, in weakness we are strong, and our closest bond is with those who are no longer here. In remembering our dead, we all have memories of different individuals. We each have dead that none of the others of us at Our Savior even know about: those who were shut-ins, friends, and dear family members. There are empty spaces in our lives for children who never made it out of the womb, for children who never made it to adulthood, for friends and loved ones from way back, and even friends and loved ones whose bodies were left on foreign shores. Nonetheless, they are “our” dead. They are “our” dead because we are brothers and sisters in CHRIST. Because “our” dead are not those who suffer torture in Hell, but “our” dead are the faithful departed, and I am not speaking euphemistically. They departed full of faith, free from death. They have been removed from us for a time. They have fallen asleep in JESUS, and gone to their people, to “our” people. But they are not gone forever. Some of our dead are in our future; some we, as of yet, have not even met. Nonetheless, they are still ours, and we theirs, for we are united in the death and resurrection of the SON of God, reconciled to the FATHER in that bond of the SPIRIT. One faith, one hope, one Baptism in CHRIST our LORD. We suffer pain and mourn because we have been left behind. We had to say good-bye. We have been left to carry on without our loved ones. We do not yet have full and perfect communion with them. We still have sin. We still cave in from time to time to our darker desires. We still suffer the ravages of this fallen world. Sometimes, it seems, the grief was too great even for JESUS, who was without sin. Either that or He caught the dead burying the living. For from time to time He broke into funeral processions and stopped death cold. He delayed the crossing over of the son of the widow from Nain, of Lazarus, and of Jairus’ daughter. Yet, He buried His kinsman, St. John the Baptist, and tradition says also His stepfather, St. Joseph, and who knows who else. Even so, the widow’s son, Lazarus, and Jairus’ daughter eventually died again. In His sorrow, JESUS suffered as we do. Yet, the really significant thing—the thing you most need to understand; those of whom we speak are not just “our” dead, they are His dead, and His dead, though they died, are not dead. They live, for our GOD is not a god of the dead, but of the living. All because He who is Life submitted to death and death could not hold Him. Death did its worst. It struck its blows. It exhausted all the stinging wrath at its disposal. But JESUS did not stay dead, and now death is done. It is gone. It has lost its sting. It is finished. “O Death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?” It is spent! It is no more. CHRIST JESUS absorbed it all, making full atonement for our sins, paying the total penalty and cost of our freedom from death and the grave. Then, having paid the price of our salvation with His own life, He took up His life again. He rose. Death lay dead. It is conquered. Life lives. And so do all those who believe in Him—on this side of death or on the other: forever one people, one hope, one Body, in CHRIST JESUS our LORD. This is the beating heart of our Christian faith and hope! Our LORD JESUS CHRIST, who died and rose again, who ascended to the right hand of His FATHER and ours, is coming back. He will return for us. He did not abandon us as orphans. That faith, that sure and certain hope, is the only thing that makes saying goodbye to our loved ones, that makes the pain, the chaos, and the grief of this sad little existence endurable. The dying, the poor, the meek, the mourning, the hungry, and the thirsty shall not always be that way. Better days are coming, and in CHRIST, they shall all be blessed. You see, those who have died in CHRIST are not dead. Their bodies lay resting in the grave, there to await the return of JESUS and the resurrection promised on the last great Day when our bodies and souls shall be reunited. Yet, even now, their souls live. They attend GOD, worshiping Him before His throne. There they know the perfect bliss of joy in His presence. Soon it shall be also for us. Soon all of the elect will have been sealed in the life-giving waters of Holy Baptism; waters flowing from the throne of GOD, Most High, and the Lamb. For that which was laid into the earth as mortal, as corruptible, will be raised immortal and incorruptible, in glory. Behold, I tell you a mystery! The bodies of the saints will rise and be made perfect. They will be rejoined with their souls in Heaven. Indeed, all the dead will rise and all will bend their knees. Every tongue will confess that JESUS CHRIST is LORD. Because our LORD JESUS CHRIST, who died and rose again, is coming back; He has not, and will not, abandoned us to the grave. Even now, this beating heart of our hope, is seen partially fulfilled in the saints who have gone before us. For they have been transferred from the Church Militant, the Church still fighting, slogging it out, marching on, suffering constant Satanic attacks and the chaos of this world. They have been transferred to the Church Triumphant, the Church at rest, the Church glorified. They already enjoy their reward. While we miss them and mourn our loss, they do not miss us. For their peace, their joy, their rest, is perfect and they see clearly, while “we see [only] through a glass, darkly,” our vision yet dim. Still, as far from us as they are, they are ever near. They are in the great cloud of witnesses which surround us. They join us in Holy Communion as we dine here at the LORD’s altar. For indeed, it is at the LORD’s altar that we join with angels and archangels and the whole company of Heaven, including all those buried from Our Savior Evangelical Lutheran Church since its establishment here in Crestview, including all our friends and relatives who confessed JESUS as LORD and died with that hope and faith in their hearts. We sing with them “Glory be to GOD on high” and the vault of Heaven rings with sublime praise as our voices join theirs in the “Gloria in Excelsis”. Then again, the Divine throne room of our GOD resonates with joy as we join them in singing “Holy, Holy, Holy,” of the “Sanctus”. You see, it is here, at GOD’s altar, where Heaven and earth are joined together and made one as angels ascend and descend upon Jacob’s Ladder—our LORD JESUS CHRIST. The angels ascend and descend upon JESUS in the Bread of His Supper to attend us. Heaven and earth have been bridged, joined together, and here in our chancel, and many thousands more like it, Heaven comes down and touches the earth. This Ladder, this Divine Bridge, comes in JESUS’ Body and Blood to serve us with His own Life. The same GOD who was present on the mercy seat in the Holy of Holies of the Temple; who led the people through the wilderness; who knocked down the walls in Jericho; who was transfigured before Peter, James, and John so that a glimmer of His glory showed through His humanity; He who raised up a mighty prophet in Wittenberg preaching the everlasting Gospel and calling the Church back to the Truth of His Word; He, the very same GOD, is placed on your tongue and you are joined to Him, and through Him to all of those who have gone in faith before you. That which was shed upon the Cross, that which washes the robes of the martyrs white as new fallen snow, also passes through your lips, coursing through your veins, even as it does the martyrs and saints. This Blood, the Blood of CHRIST, washes your soul as sparkling clean and pure as their robes. This is a Holy Communion. In it you are joined to Heaven, to that divine history, and to GOD’s One Holy Church. By this Communion CHRIST unites you to Himself and to His Body, both in Heaven and on Earth. By it, in it, He makes of us His Body, the Church. By it, in it, we have fellowship with those who have gone before us, who have fallen asleep in the faith and have awakened in Heaven. So drink Life’s Blood. Eat this Gift of Life in the Living Bread from Heaven and live. This Living Bread of Grace satisfies those who are “poor in spirit…those who mourn…the merciful…the pure in heart…the peacemakers…those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake…the reviled and persecuted.” This Living Bread from Heaven is the only food which can satisfy “those who hunger and thirst for righteousness.” In this meal GOD bestows Life to the dying. You died with Him in Baptism to become His so that you too shall live and He shall raise you up. That is why we remember and honor “our” dead this day. Because they are not dead. They live. So too, shall you soon live as do they. JESUS will raise you up—you shall see His face, and His Name shall be on your foreheads. You will no longer live in darkness for there shall be no night there: You will need no lamp nor light of the sun, for the LORD GOD gives you light. And you shall reign forever and ever. You will live and hear from the very lips of GOD, “Be at peace My child, for I forgive you all your sins.” IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER, AND OF THE SON AND OF THE HOLY SPIRIT, AMEN. SOLI DEO GLORIA Rev. Raymond D. Parent II Our Savior Evangelical Lutheran Church Crestview, Florida 11/2/25 AD