Sermon Audio

“When you see the ‘abomination of desolation,’ spoken of by Daniel the prophet,” Jesus says, “run for the hills.”

I suppose that it’s fitting that in the One-Year lectionary, this lesson appears around Election Day on these shores. Jesus is very much making a political statement. When you see the abomination of desolation, run for the hills!

Now, many have spun Jesus’ and Daniel’s words to fit the modern political situation. It’s nothing new to today, however, especially given the fact that our current president’s name can be malformed into a word that is homophonic to abomination. Throughout time, as one unpopular leader rises to power after another, men left and right have proclaimed these leaders to be Daniel’s abomination of desolation. Jesus, however, was not referring to our politics, at least, not so overtly.

Jesus was making a political statement, however. He pointed back to the prophecy Daniel made of the desecration of the temple under the Seleucids (think one of the divisions of Alexander the Great’s empire), as recorded in the apocryphal book of 1 Maccabees. And in doing so, He pointed forward to a new desolation and desecration to come. Burnell F. Eckardt, Jr. wrote,

Daniel’s prophetic words had made it clear: From the time that the daily sacrifice is taken away, and the abomination of desolation is set up, there shall be one thousand two hundred and ninety days. [Daniel 12:11] Now this is 3½ years; and if in fulfillment we multiply these years by ten, we arrive at 35 years, which, from Jesus’ crucifixion (in fulfillment of the daily sacrifice) at about AD35, brings us to AD70. And behold, in that year Rome’s armies surrounded Jerusalem, which is why He gave this warning: Let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, etc.

Say what you want of the math, we are brought to the destruction of Jerusalem in AD70. Now, when we last heard Jesus predict the destruction of Jerusalem three months ago, I recounted for you the destruction as recorded by the historian Josephus. Not one stone was left upon another, everyone was killed, young and old, and the temple was destroyed. In place of temple worship and sacrifice, the Romans left their cult of Caesars and pantheon of false gods.

Here is the political statement Jesus made: “Run for your lives, and run from false religion.” You see, one’s religion and one’s politics were tightly intertwined in ancient days. Your religion informed your politics and your politics informed your religion. If you were a Roman, your religion was Roman (generally speaking); there was no differentiation between the politics of being Roman and the religion of being Roman.

Today, we really can’t say the same. A tenet of modern American sociology is a disconnect of religion from politics. The two do not inform each other in the modern mindset. It all stems from the interpretation of “Separation of Church and State” to mean that the church (that is religion) must stay out of the state (politics), in all forms, words, images, and thoughts. So, it is true that there is no (official) American religious ideology; we are free, on these shores, to worship however we choose, to follow whatever religion we like, a right guaranteed by the Constitution, but we dare not take that worship and how we are formed by our religion into the political sphere; such thinking is frowned upon at best and legislated against at worst. You can believe whatever you like, so long as you don’t do it in the public square. You don’t need to turn to your religion to govern effectively and righteously.

Though, every once in a while, a public figure emerges to whom is given messianic qualities. Here is a man proclaimed to be the savior of the republic or democracy. Here is a man that God has ordained to rescue our land from its vices and to right the ship. So, while we like to hold to the idea of separation of church from state, it just doesn’t always happen as ideally as those “separatists” would like.

However, this isn’t what Jesus warned against in today’s Gospel. And we can’t exactly extend His words and warning to speak against such an idea. Hear His words from later in today’s text:

Then if anyone says to you, “Look, here is the Christ!” or “There!” do not believe it. For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. See, I have told you beforehand. Therefore if they say to you, “Look, He is in the desert!” do not go out; or “Look, He is in the inner rooms!” do not believe it. For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. For wherever the carcass is, there the eagles will be gathered together.

During the exodus, as we heard earlier today, the people sought to form for themselves their own god because Moses and YHWH delayed in delivering them; so they fashioned a golden idol as their god. (cf. Exodus 32:1-6) When the Seleucids desecrated the temple in 167BC, they did so by building a pagan altar on top of the altar for burnt offerings, and there sacrificed pigs, an unclean animal. (cf. 1 Maccabees 1:54-59) When Rome swooped in and destroyed Jerusalem, they replaced worship of YHWH and of His Christ with a false religion. Perhaps in this day and age, the modern religion is to look to our political leaders to be a type of some sort of christ, that salvation is gained through right government (whatever that means). Jesus’ warning is not to fall for false christs and messiahs, not to follow or run after those who would place themselves or anything else in Jesus’ place as your Savior. That is the meaning of Jesus’ political statement. There is only one Savior, and He is Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who took the sins of the world into His own flesh and died for them on the cross of Calvary, the once-for-all fulfillment of the daily sacrifice.

Satan is crafty in setting up false christs for men to follow. They look and sound like the real deal. They will quote from the Scriptures as if they are their words and explain them in ways that make sense to itching ears. It’s not the first time Satan has done this, for using the Word of God against God is the basis of the first lie the Deceiver ever told to man. “You will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” (Genesis 3:4b-5) Today, Satan’s lies are still convincing, some even twisting God’s Word to suit his purposes:

• “God didn’t really mean it when He says that Jesus’ blood cleanses you from all sins.”
• “When Jesus said, ‘This is my body,’ He really meant represents.”
• “The love of money is not a root of all kinds of evil; on the contrary, God wants you to be prosperous and wealthy today.”
• “Baptism doesn’t really save; Peter was out of his mind when He wrote that.”
• “God doesn’t condemn you for practicing homosexuality or polyamory because He wants you to love everyone in whatever way works best for you.”
• “If you just love Jesus, that’s good enough; what you say and believe about Him doesn’t matter.”
• “If it works for you, do it!”

People flock to these minions of Satan who deceive using or twisting or negating God’s Word because it creates for them a god in their own image. These false preachers and prophets, false christs and messiahs, preach a god who purports to do for and give to their people exactly what they want: a pat on the back for their pet sins and encouragement in them. “Go ahead and do it because God loves you just the way you are. He would never convert you, kill you, or raise you to a new life because this is the way He made you.” So these all run to the desert or inner rooms right to their damnation.

What’s most frightening is that Jesus even says that it may be possible for the elect to be deceived. He tells you this, dear Baptized, in order to warn you. Do not be deceived by the miracles being performed in the desert or the pep talks being given in the inner rooms. Jesus isn’t really there. How do you know where Jesus is? You go to where He says He is. He is in His Word, and His Word tells you where else He is to be had. He comes to you where two or three are gathered in His name to kill you with His Law and bring you to newness of life with the sweet Gospel of the forgiveness of sins in His blood. He comes to you in the waters of Holy Baptism where your robes were washed clean in His blood—though they were as scarlet, yet now they are as white as snow. He comes to you on the altar where He gives you His body as bread and bread as His body and His blood as wine and wine as His blood, feeding you with His life for your forgiveness and salvation.

And He comes to you on the last day to gather you to Himself as a hen gathers her brood. His coming again will be like the lightning which flashes and is noticed. The trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised, and you will know that the Son of God has returned in the clouds as the young church saw Him ascend. There will be no doubt nor mistake!

Until that day, however, the false christs will come fast and hard. They will take advantage of a believer’s faith, and many who do not know the truth or who don’t really trust God will be fooled. Many churches will be emptied and follow after these false messiahs, and so what you are left with is a carcass because the eagles—that is, the vultures—have come and devoured them.

And among them could be some of the elect. I imagine these are the ones who confess a faith in Jesus as the Savior, trust in His merits, but do not really know what they believe. They are baptized—and understand that their baptisms are valid—but they do not know the faith and are easily led astray. Perhaps we could compare these to the soil by side of the road and the rocky soil when the farmer sows his seed in Jesus’ parable. As Jesus explains,

When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it, then the wicked one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is he who received seed by the wayside. But he who received the seed on stony places, this is he who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while. For when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles. (Matthew 13:3b-5, 19-21)

These are people who are easily convinced by a saying that sounds like Scripture, but is in reality not, and the false christs, false teachers, and false prophets are filled with such Scripture-like sayings.

Knowing that this could happen to the elect—to you, dear hearers—should be cause enough to be in God’s Word as much as possible. Read it, learn it, inwardly digest it. Hear what the Church says about it. Believe it and confess it. Therefore, you will be prepared always to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is within you. (cf. 1 Peter 3:15) Therefore, you will be prepared to test the spirits and know if they are of God, “because many false prophets have gone out into the world.” (1 John 4:1) And let me be abundantly clear, dear hearers, this is not something you do to yourself but something that is done to you by the Word of God and the very reason why He reveals Himself to you in His Word.

But, most importantly, by His Word, God reveals Himself to you in the person of His Son, who took on human flesh and blood to be your Savior. This is the just God who hates sin, but would not see the sinner die, so Jesus sacrificed Himself for you—the real Jesus, the only-begotten Son of God. Into His death you are baptized—there, you drowned and died to yourself with Christ. And from those waters rose a new man, upon whom the Father lavishes His every grace and blessing, even as Jesus Christ rose from the dead and ascended into heaven and now sits at the right hand of the throne of God as your advocate to prepare a place for you. Therefore, on the last day, when Jesus, the real Christ, your Savior and Messiah, comes in the clouds like lightning, you will be raised to life everlasting in His eternal presence. This is your hope, on which your God-given faith rests, because you are forgiven for all of your sins.