The text this morning is from the Gospel according to Mark, the thirteenth chapter:
And as he came out of the temple, one of his disciples said to him, “Look, Teacher, what wonderful stones and what wonderful buildings!” And Jesus said to him, “Do you see these great buildings? There will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.” And as he sat on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter and James and John and Andrew asked him privately, “Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign when all these things are about to be accomplished?” And Jesus began to say to them, “See that no one leads you astray. Many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am he!’ and they will lead many astray. And when you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed. This must take place, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places; there will be famines. These are but the beginning of the birth pains. “But be on your guard. For they will deliver you over to councils, and you will be beaten in synagogues, and you will stand before governors and kings for my sake, to bear witness before them. And the gospel must first be proclaimed to all nations. And when they bring you to trial and deliver you over, do not be anxious beforehand what you are to say, but say whatever is given you in that hour, for it is not you who speak, but the Holy Spirit. And brother will deliver brother over to death, and the father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death. And you will be hated by all for my name’s sake. But the one who endures to the end will be saved.Thus far the text.
My dear friends in Christ,
When we trust in the things of this world, we put our trust in those things that will fail. It doesn’t matter what it is, whether it’s a person, a building, a nation, it will fail. The disciples didn’t understand this. They were walking out of the Temple in Jerusalem one day and they saw its majesty and thought that was it. Now, you have to have a little sympathy for them. The experience of walking out of a Temple like that had to be amazing. You just saw a spectacle, whereby your sins were atoned for through the blood of an animal. And it had been a crazy week for them, there was Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem, there were incredible moments when Jesus was going up against the Sadducees and the Pharisees, it had to be incredible. And the Temple itself was amazing.
Now, you have to remember, this Temple was built by Herod, not all that long ago, and it was huge and it was beautiful, but it still wasn’t up to snuff compared to Solomon’s Temple, which had been destroyed. So, you’re standing in this beautiful building and imagining an even better one, and it’s overwhelming. You can’t help but admire it. Have you ever been to the Capitol over in Madison? You walk into the rotunda and you’re just overwhelmed by the experience; you’re so small, surrounded by so much beauty, so much grandeur. The size and scope of it are just too much. Imagine then throwing in the religious aspect of it all, and you begin to believe how it is that the disciples could have missed the mark when it came to the Temple.
But Jesus is quick to remind them, even though the effort to build the Temple was great, and getting those huge stones on top of one another was literally a feat of engineering (one which we still haven’t totally figured out even today), He prophesied that not one would be left on top of another. And He was right; not forty years later, the entire Temple complex was razed to the ground by the Romans, destroyed, top to bottom, and to this day, only one small wall remains standing in Jerusalem.
Jesus made sure to help the disciples understand that getting lost in the grandeur of something that wasn’t even going to last is dumb. And it wasn’t even totally just about the building, but what went on in that building. Even that would stop, for without a Temple, there Could be no sacrifices. And not even that, after His death, which, as He’s teaching them, would come in just a few short days, no death of any animal would ever again be necessary or be able to cover over sin. Rather than put their trust in the works of man, Jesus showed them where to put their trust: in God Himself.
Only God endures until the end, for only He is faithful, only He is holy, only He is eternal. Nothing in this world will stand. People will try to pull you away from the Truth of God in Christ, teaching in His name. Not even religion will stand. Peace among the nations will fall away. War and rumors of wars will persist. Not even the earth itself will stand up to the end, for the earth quakes against its foundation, shaken to its core. Not even the food in due season will last, for famines shall come upon the earth. The only thing that will last unto the end is God Himself. And those whom He has saved.
If you are in Christ, you shall be saved, for you will endure unto the very end of all things. Yes, the world may come against you. Yes, you may be forced to kowtow to the world’s demands or risk being marginalized, forgotten, abused, taken advantage of. You may be put on trial. You may have your family turn against you. You may be betrayed by everyone you know and love. In this world you will have troubles, but, if you are in Christ, all those troubles have been nailed to the cross with the promise of His redemption.
He who endures to the end will be saved. This isn’t just some nice thought, or some random chance. Enduring to the end requires action, it requires something of you. To endure to the end in Christ is to be in Christ, to seek Him, to find Him where He’s promised to be. And then, and only then, will be given that which you need to endure. It’s like a runner during a marathon. No runner can go through a marathon, 26.2 miles all on their own. They must seek out what they need at the specific stations during the race. They’ll find water or electrolytes at hydration stations all through the race. No runner, though, takes a break to go into McDonald’s and demand they hydrate him. He gets it where it’s promised to be. And because of that, he can run 26.2 miles and finish the whole race and get that medal and live, unlike the first man to run that far to bring news of the battle with Athens and died.
So it is for the Church. We need to get Jesus where He’s promised to be that we might endure. If we go off track, we won’t find Jesus there, but only scorn. If we try to run the race without Him, we will die in our sins. We need Him all along the way, and He’s promised to be there. He’s promised to feed us, to strengthen us, to guide us, to preserve us, to support us, to find us faithful. He’s set us in the race. He’s given us the gift of faith which receives the salvation won for us. And now we live, we run the race of life in Him.
We find Him in Word and Sacrament. We find Him showing us what to do, telling us what to believe, giving us food to eat and to drink, strengthening us, constantly forgiving our sins and setting us right with Him once again. We find in Him the endurance to run the race of life. And we find ourselves, then, enduring unto the end, the end of time, the end of our lives, whichever comes first.
Jesus makes sure the disciples know, and He’s asking us to see, as well, that we must put our trust in that which shall endure. And that’s Him. And if our trust is there in Him, then we are in Him, protected, secured, and, because of that, we shall endure, our names will be found written in the Book of Life. Let us then hold fast to our confession of hope, that He who lived, died, resurrected, and ascended for you, shall find you faithful for He is faithful, that He shall raise you to life everlasting, that you shall endure through this world and its trials. He who promised is faithful. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Now may the peace of God which passes all human understanding guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, our Lord! Amen.
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