Revelation 22: 12-17, 20
Seventh Sunday of Easter - 8 May 2016
Rev. John Derme
On the night before Jesus died, he already knew what was going to happen to him the following day. He knew that he would suffer at the hands of the Jewish leaders and Pontius Pilate. He knew that he would be crucified, that he would die, and that he would be buried. Jesus also knew what was going to happen to him in three days, that he would descend triumphantly into hell, that he would rise from the grave and appear to his disciples. Jesus knew what would happen to him 40 days after Easter, that he would ascend into heaven and take his place at the right hand of God the Father almighty. Of course, Jesus already knew that one day in the future he will come back to judge the living and the dead.
Even though Jesus already knew what was going to happen, on that night before he died Jesus prayed for himself, that he would go to the cross and do the will of God the Father. In addition, Jesus prayed for his disciples, that after he died and after he ascended into heaven, they would remain united to each other and to God through his Word. Finally, Jesus prayed for all those who would believe in him through the message of the disciples. That includes you and me! In our Gospel of the Day from John 17 he prayed that you and I would be united to each other and to him. And he prayed that we would finally join him in heaven.
With his prayer, Jesus was praying that his disciples would be ready for the time when he ascended into heaven. With that same prayer he was praying that we would be ready for him to come back to earth. He is coming back to take us to be where he is. How can we be ready for that? In our Second Lesson from Revelation 22, Jesus gets us ready. We prepare today as we celebrate Easter with saints and angels, because Jesus is coming back soon.
Last week, in Revelation 21, Jesus showed us what it will be like for us after he returns on the last day and takes us to glory. Today Jesus tells us in his own words that this will happen soon! "Behold, I am coming soon!" he says. He tells us that he is coming to hand out rewards. "I will give to everyone according to what he has done."
Some people interpret Jesus' words to mean that they will be rewarded with eternal life because they earn their place in heaven with their good works. That is not Jesus' point at all. In fact, as we read on, the only way you might get the idea of works-righteousness from Jesus' words is if you aren't paying attention. It is important that we understand what these words mean, because Jesus spoke this way during his ministry, and we ourselves will speak similar words in two weeks, when we confess the Athanasian Creed.
Jesus says that he will pay according to the work each person has done. But the work each person does is in accordance with what that person believes. A person who believes what is right does what is right. A person who believes what is wrong does what is wrong. Even though the works that an unbeliever does may look good on the outside, only a Christian can do the works that God considers good, because only works that are done out of faith in Jesus are truly good. Christians still sin, of course. But their sins are forgiven through faith in Jesus, so when God looks at Christians, he only sees the good works they have done. Therefore when Jesus says that he will repay according to what a person has done, whether good or evil, that means the same thing as when the Bible says that he will judge people on the basis of whether or not they trust that he is their Savior.
You and I would have a hard time judging people on this basis. Sometimes we can tell good works apart from bad works. Then again, sometimes unbelievers' bad works look good to us, and sometimes we don't notice the good works of believers. One thing that none of us are able to do is to see whether faith is in the heart of another person. Jesus doesn't have any trouble with that, though. He gives us his qualifications to be the judge. He says, "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End." Jesus has always existed as true God from all eternity, and he will always exist as true God and true man forever. Since he is the author of the law, who also lived under the law, he is uniquely qualified to judge all people.
Jesus judges that some people will be rewarded with eternal life. Yet it is clear that they do not earn eternal life, because he says, "Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city." By nature, we are all filthy with sin. Dirty clothes are a biblical picture of the sin that stains our souls. The only way we can enter the holy city, the triumphant church of all believers in heaven, is for our filthy sins to be washed away. Our sins are forgiven in the water of Baptism. And there Jesus gives us the white robes of the holiness that he earned when he lived in our place. Have you ever done anything wrong in your life? Of course you have. Then you haven't earned eternal life. Have you always been perfect? Of course you haven't. Then you haven't earned a place in heaven. It has to be a gift from God. The only way to receive it is through faith in Jesus.
When Jesus says that some people will have the right to eat from the tree of life, that also shows us that eternal life is not something that anybody can earn. The original tree of life was in the Garden of Eden, and its fruit was available for Adam and Eve to eat, so that they would live forever. But Adam and Eve chose to sin and lost the right to eat from that tree, since God did not want them to live forever as sinful people in a sinful world. You and I and all people have inherited their sinful nature. You and I and all people have sinned in our actions. Therefore none of us could possibly deserve the right to eat from the tree of life. That some people will have that right must mean that it is a free gift from God that comes through faith in Jesus. He earned that right for us by remaining free from any sin and by dying for our sins.
Just as Jesus judges some to be rewarded with eternal life, he also judges others to be rewarded with eternal punishment. Jesus speaks of those who will suffer in hell when he says, "Outside are the dogs, those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood."
It may sound a little disturbing to some of you that evil people are compared to dogs. Some of you are dog lovers, who have dogs living inside your homes. But don't think of Fido or Spot or whatever your cute and clean puppy at home is named. Think of what dogs were like in Bible times. They were dirty animals that roamed the streets and ate garbage. They may have carried diseases that made them dangerous to people. If you were alive at that time, you would not have invited a dog into your home. You would have been safer if all the dogs were kept outside the city walls. That is what Jesus wants you to picture when he says, "Outside are the dogs." He is not talking about animals. He is talking about people who practice sin.
His list of sins that keep people out of heaven is not exhaustive. There are many other sins that he could mention. But he describes enough sins to cover everyone. "Those who practice magic arts" doesn't mean anybody who can pull a rabbit out of a hat. Rather, it is talking about those who are involved with the occult and and those who think they can control the spirit world and God himself. "The sexually immoral" includes everyone who has ever committed any sexual sin in their actions and thoughts. "Murderers" includes anyone who has ever hurt, harmed, or even hated another person. "Idolaters" includes anyone who is involved with any false religion or who even makes an idol out of something like money or possessions. "Everyone who loves and practices falsehood" is another way of saying, "anyone who lies."
Have you ever committed any of those sins on Jesus' list? Of course you have. Everyone who has ever lived has committed several of those sins, and many more. Jesus convicts us all. Does that mean we are all dogs, that we will all be shut outside of the holy city, cast out of heaven? We all have to admit that this is the reward from God we have earned.
Yet Jesus lived for you to earn the white robe of holiness for you. And Jesus died for you, to suffer what you deserved because of your sin. And Jesus washes away your sins in the waters of Baptism. Jesus earned eternal life for us and gives us a place in heaven, so that we will not get what we deserve.
Jesus wants you to hear his law, so that you will see your sins. Jesus wants you to hear the gospel, so that you will trust him for forgiveness. He says, “I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star.” He wants us to hear and believe that he is our light and our life. Through faith in him we are saved. He wants all people to hear this message of law and gospel, so that all will see his light and have the life that he won for them.
Since this testimony is not only for us, but also for all people, "The Spirit and the bride say, 'Come!' And let him who hears say, 'Come!' Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life." The Holy Spirit works through the bride of Christ, the Christian church, to invite those who have not heard to come and hear. All who have heard and believed this message want more people to come and believe it for themselves. The water of life is the Word of Jesus, the message of forgiveness and eternal life. It is a free gift. It is not something you can earn. When the Holy Spirit gives it to you through his church, it will satisfy your thirst and make you alive forever.
Finally, Jesus reminds us that there is a sense of urgency to what he is telling us this morning. "Yes, I am coming soon," he says. Therefore we urgently listen to his law and gospel. And we urgently invite the rest of the world to "come" and hear the Word of Jesus. Of course, it doesn't always seem to us like his coming is soon. From our perspective, it may seem like he is taking a long time. Actually, he is giving us a chance to do our work, and giving more people the opportunity to come to faith in him. Because Jesus is getting us ready for his second coming to earth, we can respond to him in faith, "Amen. Come, Lord Jesus." Come and bring us and those who have believed the message with us to the holy city, the new Jerusalem, the triumphant Christian church in heaven forever.
You've noticed that we're still celebrating Easter here in church. But today is our final Sunday to celebrate Easter with saints and angels. Next week we will celebrate Pentecost, and we won't have any more sermons based on the book of Revelation for a while. Yet it is good for us to get used to celebrating Easter with saints and angels now, because we will celebrate Jesus' resurrection from the dead with them forever in heaven. How do we celebrate Easter with saints and angels now? We listen to Jesus' words and trust in his promises. We invite others to come, hear, and believe. Today and every day for the rest of our lives we celebrate Easter with saints and angels, because Jesus is coming back soon.