Birth Pains of the New Creation

Welcome to the teaching ministry of Kungsvinger Lutheran Church.

Kungsvinger is a beacon for the gospel of Jesus Christ and is located on the plains of northwestern Minnesota.

We proclaim Christ and Him crucified for our sins and salvation by grace through faith alone.

And now here's a message.

From Pastor Chris Roseberg.

The Holy Gospel according to St. Mark chapter 13 verses 1 through 13.

As Jesus was leaving the temple one of his disciples said to him, look teacher what massive stones, what

magnificent buildings.

Do you see all these great buildings?

Jesus replied, not one stone here will be left on another.

Everyone will be thrown down.

And as Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple Peter, James, and John, and Andrew asked him

privately, tell us when will these things happen and what would be the sign that they are about to be fulfilled?

Jesus said to them, watch out that no one deceives you.

Many will come in my name claiming I am he and will deceive many.

When you hear of wars and rumors of wars don't be alarmed.

Such things must happen but the end is still to come.

Nation will rise against nation.

Kingdom against kingdom.

There will be earthquakes in various places and famines.

These are the beginning of birth pains.

You must be on your guard.

You will be handed over to the local councils and flogged in the synagogues.

On account of me you will stand before governors and kings as witnesses to them and the gospel must first be

preached to all nations.

Whenever you are arrested and brought to trial do not worry beforehand about what to say.

Just say what is given you at the time for it is not you speaking but the Holy Spirit.

Brother will betray brother to death.

Father his child.

Children will rebel against their parents and have them put to death.

All men will hate you because of me but he who stands firm to the end will be saved.

In the name of Jesus the one who endures to the end

will be saved.

Now a little bit of a side note before we dive into our text and that is is that you'll

notice that we're gonna spend two weeks on the end of the world.

It's the end of the world as we know it and I feel quite fine thank you but there is a lot

of speculation and in fact there's a morbid fascination with the end times and as much as we all

chuckle at the man with the bullhorn who wears a sandwich board saying that the end is near deep down inside we all know that

that guy's right and the thought of it actually sends shivers down our spines and one doesn't have to watch the evening news

for long before realizing that these birth pangs that Jesus was talking about that they seem to be upon us.

In fact a good way to think about it is the Titanic has already struck the iceberg and we know the ship is sinking

it's only a matter of time before the lazy list of the ship will give way to a steep list while the bow begins

to disappear beneath the sea and the stern races to catch up and the chaos that will ensue between those two times is going to

be well rough.

You can think of it this way we're all doomed and we already know it and Friday night the world felt

one of those strong birth pangs as ISIS terrorists murdered hundreds in Paris in cold blood.

So we know there's something deeply wrong with the world but I want to point something out and that is is that if you understand biblical

eschatology correctly it should be comforting not frightening and unfortunately there's a

lot of people today who make a buck you know out there preaching and teaching on the

eschaton and one of the reasons why they make so much money is because they do a lot of fear -mongering they really do.

They don't preach Christ and him crucified and the comforting words that are taught regarding the end of

the world and as a result of it there's a lot of people who have well a lot of fear and anxiety

about these things and you'll notice here that Jesus is comforting us he's telling us ahead of time what to

expect.

So for us it's kind of like no big deal you're thinking no big deal the world's coming to end.

Yeah I know we'll talk about that.

So let's return to our text.

We're in the Gospel of Mark chapter 1 and with your permission I will be reading from my translation.

It says this while Jesus is proceeding out of the temple one of his disciples say to

him teacher look what magnificent stones and what great buildings.

Yeah that's kind of the thing everything in this world just seems so marvelous.

I mean look at our Washington Monument look at the White House look at all the

things that we've made.

Aren't they just magnificent.

They're amazing.

And Jesus here is gonna say something that's unthinkable and that is is that the very temple of God with its magnificent

stones and amazing buildings is not going to endure.

In fact you can kind of put this text kind of into two categories what endures and what doesn't.

Right.

So Jesus said to him all right you see these great buildings not one stone will be no by

no means left here which will by any means not be torn down.

All this is coming down.

None of this is permanent.

The temple isn't going to endure as Jesus was is what he's saying.

And by the way this kind of talk in Jesus's time and where he was it could get you arrested could get you killed

to preach and speak against the temple as a blasphemous thing.

The destruction of the temple there in the minds of the Jews at the time could only mean one thing the end of

the world.

There's no temple there's no forgiveness of sins.

It has to be the end of the world then.

Verse 3.

So while he was sitting on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple Peter and James and John and Andrew

now we got the inner core the fishermen.

Right.

And we're gonna have to have a chat with Jesus.

It's like all right.

So they came to him privately.

This is not for everyone to hear.

Tell us when will these things happen what will be the sign when all these things are about to be

accomplished.

We want to put together an algorithm some kind of a code that we can crack so we can figure we can have the inside skinny and know when when you're gonna

come.

And so rather than give them a specific date and a specific time Jesus didn't say

I'm coming back in October of 2015 on the fourth blood moon.

Yeah that kind of came and went without any events.

Didn't it.

Right.

He didn't say anything like that.

Instead he kind of gives us a pattern of things to look for.

He says be watching out that no one may deceive you first

thing out of his mouth.

You want to know why.

Because in 2nd Thessalonians the Holy Spirit prophesies to the Apostle Paul

that in the times of the end immediately before Jesus returned there would be a great apostasy a

rebellion against God within the visible church.

And as a result of it first thing you got to know about the end times is you better know your

Bible you better have that catechism memorized.

You better understand what's going on in those creeds and our confessions.

Because that's sound doctrine.

The end times is marked with all kinds of crazy false doctrines.

So first thing don't let anyone deceive you.

He says this many will come on the basis of my name.

Oh there you go.

You see it would be really nice if the false teachers in the church would well they

would say I come in the name of Lucifer.

It would just make it a lot easier for us to spot them.

Right.

But no deceivers.

They are always coming to us in the name of Jesus.

And they will say I am the one.

And Jesus says this they will deceive many.

The time of the ends we've marked with all kinds of deceptions and a whole lot of people who call themselves

Christians being deceived and listening to the deceivers.

In other words you can kind of think of it this way.

If you believe the truth if you actually know your Bible and you stand firm on the Word of God you say well this is what the Word says.

And that guy's saying something different.

There's gonna be a whole lot of people who've been deceived and saying what's wrong with you.

Right.

This is what Jesus is describing.

Then comes the fun part.

You'll hear of wars and rumors of wars.

Now this part Jesus said don't be alarmed.

Yeah this kind of stuff must take place.

Remember the 20th century.

Any of you remember that.

Hopefully everyone was here for that.

That was the bloodiest history in all century.

In all of human history hundreds of millions of people killed in wars conflicts.

You had the rise of the Nazi Party at World War one.

You have the rise of Bolshevik communism and all the different wars in Asia and Southeast Asia as a result of

that.

Right.

And remember all that that was not a good century.

This one looks like it's warm enough to try to outdo the 20th century.

That's what I fear.

But Jesus says all that stuff don't be alarmed about that.

They must take place.

The end is not yet so the end is not marked by some world conflict.

Here's he says for nation will rise against nation kingdom against kingdom.

And oh by the way there's gonna be earthquakes in various places.

There will be famine.

These things are well get this the beginning of what birth pains.

Now all of you women who've gone through this ordeal.

Right.

Yeah Jesus's description of the end times.

He's describing the turmoil as birth pangs.

Here's a good way to think about it.

This present creation is pregnant.

It's pregnant with the new creation.

It's pregnant with the kingdom of God.

In fact the kingdom is already present.

It's here right.

Now you just kind of can't really see it.

But also it's not here in kind of the same way when a woman is pregnant her baby is present

but not yet.

Right.

So the earth the creation is pregnant.

So when my wife was pregnant with our children each time we both could not wait until that day when we could see the

faces of our babies.

We could not wait to hold them.

We could not wait to touch them and to hear their voices in their first cries.

Right.

But at the same time we dreaded that whole ordeal of labor and worse.

Having heard and read horror stories we feared that something terrible would happen during labor.

There's always that risk.

You always hear of the story of the woman who doesn't make it through.

Right.

So Jesus here is telling us that the end of the world will be as bad

and worse than any labor that any woman has experienced.

And though the world is pregnant with the kingdom of God the world's not going to survive

the labor.

The world's gonna die experience.

Keep that in mind.

So Jesus says.

But you be watching yourselves.

And here comes the fun part.

You're ready.

They are gonna hand you over to councils.

You're gonna be beaten in synagogues.

You know every time I read that sentence you're gonna be beaten in synagogues.

I think what kind of church is that.

You know you're gonna be beaten in a synagogue.

Wonderful.

I mean where's our flogging pole in here.

Yeah those of you who aren't tithing you know.

No I'm joking.

I've really enjoyed all.

Right.

I mean seriously in the name of God we're gonna beat you in church.

Yeah.

I don't get that.

So you're gonna be beaten in synagogues.

And you're gonna be stood before governors and kings for my sake for a testimony to them.

And the good news must first be proclaimed to all nations.

In other words the kingdom of God.

Remember that creation is pregnant with the kingdom.

It's here but not yet.

Right.

Well Jesus is telling us that the kingdom of God must come to term it must fully develop and will only

be given birth to once it develops for the full nine months.

The kingdom will not be born prematurely.

And there's some reasons for this.

Okay.

So it says good news must be first proclaimed to all nations.

We read in the back of the book.

In the book of Revelation chapter 5 verses 8 through 10 says this.

And when he had taken the scroll the four living creatures and the 24 elders fell down before the Lamb each

holding a harp and golden bowls full of incense which are the prayers of the saints.

And they sang a new song.

Listen to the lyrics of this song.

Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals.

For you were slain and by your blood you ransom people for God from every tribe

and language and people and nation.

And you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God and they shall reign on the earth.

Or Revelation chapter 7 verses 9 through 12.

After this I look and behold a great multitude that no one could number from every nation from

all tribes and peoples and languages standing before the throne and before the Lamb

clothed in white robes with palm branches in their hands and crying out in a loud voice

salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne and to the Lamb.

And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures and they fell on their faces

before the throne.

They worship God saying amen blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God

forever and ever.

Amen.

So the earth is pregnant.

The creation is pregnant with the new creation.

It's here but not yet.

The creation is not going to survive the labor folks.

And we're going to go to full term.

That means people from every nation is going to hear the saving message of the forgiveness of sins won by

Christ and his crucifixion for us on the cross.

That's the term.

So in the meantime so whenever they lead you while handing you

over don't be anxious beforehand as to what you should speak.

In other words you notice here that Jesus is kind of anticipating.

Hey you know being a Christian is kind of a dicey business.

Proclaiming me in the midst of such darkness among a whole world of sinners could get you in a lot of trouble.

And when that happens and you go on trial don't even worry about what it is that you're going to say.

Don't sit down and work at this out with your attorney what your defense is going to be in that moment the Holy

Spirit will speak through you so that you can testify to Christ even if at the end of the trial they don't lop your head

off right.

Which is not a bad thing.

It really isn't.

But it's not you who are speaking.

It is the Holy Spirit.

And then describing the end of days brother will hand over brother to death father his child.

Children will rise up in rebellion against parents and they will put them to death.

Whole families whole families will be at con in conflict with each other as a result of

Christ.

A complete collapse of the fourth commandment is how the last days will be.

Sounds treacherous does it not.

But these are all the birth pangs.

All of you women who've been in labor can testify quite the ordeal right.

So it's gonna get stronger stronger and stronger and stronger and more intense.

And then Jesus says this.

And you will be being hated.

Present tense.

You are going to be hated by all because of my name there we go.

So we'll never really be friends with the world.

Not because we don't love them but because they hate us because of Jesus.

In other words don't take it personally when people in your own family or your neighbors

mock and curse you and hate you because of you you proclaim Christ.

It's you don't take these things personally because we're just servants.

We're just the messengers.

We're ambassadors of the king of kings.

And it's not you that they actually hate.

It's Jesus they hate right.

And so that you don't lose heart in all of this let me remind you what Hebrews 11

says that great Hall of Faith passage.

I'll read two portions of it and notice here the great things that the people who had faith did

and also their hope.

They all kept their eye past the labor pains to the kingdom that is coming

by faith Abraham.

This is verse 8 chapter 11.

By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance.

And he went out not knowing where he was going.

By faith he went to live in the land of promise as in a foreign land living in tents with Isaac and Jacob

heirs with him of the same promise.

For he was looking forward to the city that has foundations whose designer and builder

is God.

Abraham did the things he did looking forward to the city whose builder is

God.

And we are as well by faith.

Sarah herself received power to conceive even when she was past the age since she considered him faithful who had

promised.

Therefore from one man and him as good as dead were born descendants as many as the stars of heaven and as many as

the innumerable grains of sand by the seashore.

These all died in faith not having received the things promised.

Just catch that they died in faith not having received the things promised but having seen them and greeted them from afar

and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth.

And so are we.

For people who speak thus make it clear that they are seeking a homeland.

If they had been thinking of that land from which they had gone out they would have had opportunity to return.

But as it is they desire a better country that is a heavenly one.

Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God for he has prepared for them a city.

You see our homeland is not Norway I'm German anyway.

But our homeland is the heavenly kingdom right which will

come to earth and then moving forward.

Verse 32.

Listen to this.

And what more shall I say.

For time would fail me to tell of Gideon Barak Samson Jephthah and David and Samuel and the prophets who

through faith they conquered kingdoms enforced justice obtained promises.

Stopped the mouths of lions quenched the power of fire escaped the edge of the sword.

They were made strong out of weakness became mighty in war put foreign armies to flight.

Women received back their dead by resurrection.

Pause.

There you sitting there going.

Well I haven't stopped the mouths of any lions.

You know I haven't seen any resurrections.

Right.

Okay.

But now watch this next part.

They were stoned they were sawn in two.

They were killed with the sword.

They went about in skins of sheep and goats destitute afflicted and mistreated of whom the world was not

worthy wandering about in deserts and mountains and dens and caves of the earth.

In other words the persecutions and afflictions that we face as Christians as a result of proclaiming and trusting and

confessing Christ and the forgiveness of our sins.

That affliction is every bit as mighty as stopping the mouth of a lion or raising somebody from

the dead.

It's in the same list you see.

And all of this is done not by our greatness but done by faith because we trust

in the promises of God in the kingdom in the city that is to come.

All of these though commended through their faith they did not receive what was promised since God had provided

something better for us so that apart from us they should not be made perfect.

You see when Jesus returns in glory to judge the living and the dead all of the people in their graves are

raised from the grave.

That would be you and me if we're dead at that time.

Right.

And so so is Abraham so is Moses so is Isaac so is

King David.

They're all raised from the grave on the same day in the new kingdom in the new earth.

When the new creation arrives after the labor and the birth pains we're all gonna have the same birthday as

Moses David and the prophets because God has chosen that they

are not going to be perfected apart from us.

God wants us to be perfected with them too.

On the same day coming back then to our gospel text.

Then Jesus says this.

But the one having endured to the end this one will be saved.

We all hear this and go.

I better get busy enduring kind of the wrong way to think about it.

These are not words of a threat these are words of a promise.

In other words Jesus is saying this.

Take heart.

The one who endures to the end will be saved their salvation at the end of this road.

The sufferings of this present time whatever they might be do not compare with the glory that will be revealed

on the day of Jesus is coming.

Okay.

Think of it this way.

On a Friday afternoon the Sun failed the moon was turned to blood.

And just outside the gates of Jerusalem there was Jesus nailed to a cross suffering in the

darkness of God's wrath bleeding dying while suspended between heaven and earth.

Jesus endured to the end and he endured for you.

Remember that there he was hanging on the cross and he

cries out it is finished.

Let me read again from the Gospel of Mark chapter 15.

When the sixth hour had come there was darkness of the whole land until the ninth hour.

And at the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice Eloi Eloi lama sabachthani which means my God

my God why have you forsaken me.

And some of the bystanders hearing it said behold he's calling Elijah.

Someone ran and filled a sponge with sour wine put it on a reed and gave it to him to drink saying wait let's see

whether Elijah will come and take him down.

And Jesus uttered a loud cry.

John tells us what that loud cry was to tell us die.

It is finished.

And then he breathed his last.

And then the curtain of the temple was torn into from top to bottom.

Think of it this way.

What was going on at Jesus's crucifixion.

It was the end of the world.

All of the signs at the end of the world were there present.

The darkening of the Sun the moon turning to blood.

The destruction of the temple.

Jesus's death on the cross was a mini end of the world.

And so because you brothers and sisters are in Christ remember when

you were baptized you were baptized into Christ's death and into his resurrection.

You are tucked into him.

He's already gone through the end of the world for you.

He has endured to the end for you.

If you are in him and you believe then you will endure to the end because

he has already endured.

And so think of it this way.

The destruction of the temple is the end of the world.

Typologically when well the temple was destroyed it truly was the end of the world.

And then it all then points to the real eschaton to the end of days.

Jesus is the first fruits of the new creation.

Scripture says so the end of the world and the new creation have already come.

This is why the kingdom is present.

And yet not yet just like a pregnant woman can say my baby's here.

But not yet.

You've already gone through the end of the world.

Because you are in Christ you are forgiven.

Your sins are washed away.

You've already endured because Christ has endured for you.

In fact your life is now hidden in Christ.

So the temple the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom.

The temple and the world were destroyed in Christ's death.

And then we come back.

We'll end with these words from Hebrews 10 from our epistle text talking about

all that old temple that that used to be there every priest stands daily at his service offering

repeatedly the same sacrifice which can never take away sins.

But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins

he sat down at the right hand of God waiting from that time until his enemy should be made a footstool for his

feet.

For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified.

And that's you.

His death has perfected you.

And the Holy Spirit also bears witness to us after the saying this is the covenant that I will make with them

after those days.

Declare this the Lord.

I will put my law on their hearts and write them in their minds.

And then he adds I will remember their sins and their lawless deeds.

No more.

Your sins are lost now in the sea of God's forgetfulness in a

watery grave where God never goes fishing ever.

So enduring to the end is not trying hard to make yourself worthy so that you can survive.

Enduring to the end is simply believing and receiving these amazing promises.

That you are already perfected.

That you are forgiven.

That God no longer remembers any of your lawless deeds.

And where there is forgiveness of these there's no longer any offering for sin.

Therefore brothers since we have confidence

that's the word that we're looking for confidence.

You have the ability to say I have confidence.

I'm forgiven.

I have confidence I'm saved.

I have confidence that I will endure to the end.

Because Christ has endured.

That's big difference from that other word that we all like to kick around.

Doubt.

Well I doubt.

I look at my life.

I look at my life and I go.

I don't measure up.

Well I endure to the end.

Ah stop looking at yourself.

You're the problem.

Jesus is the solution.

Believe.

Have confidence.

He's done this all for you.

Trust him.

He doesn't want to let you go.

Therefore we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus by the new and living way that he

opened for us through the curtain that is through his flesh.

And since we have a great priest over the house of God let us draw near with a true heart

in full assurance of faith.

Oh that's right.

You can approach God in full assurance and in great confidence.

You are forgiven.

You are beloved.

You are redeemed.

He has you in full assurance with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience

and with our bodies washed with pure water.

Talking about baptism.

So then let us hold fast to the confession of our hope without wavering.

And why can we not waver.

Here's the last words.

For he who promised is faithful.

The reason why we can approach with hope and confidence is because well not because

you are so great but because the one who made the promise Jesus he is faithful.

He went all the way to the end and endured for you.

Trust.

Believe.

Have confidence.

You are in him.

He's got you.

And so you don't need to fear the end of days even if it requires you to be hated by others despised by your own children

or be headed by Isis.

None of that means anything.

Because all of that is nothing compared to the surpassing worth and greatness of our crucified and risen

Savior in the name of Jesus.

Amen.

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