Youth Evening/Presentation on Oulu RY 28.11.2020 18.07

In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen. We will begin this youth evening of Saturday evening with prayer and thanksgiving.

Holy God, dear heavenly Father, we thank you for this unique gift of life which you have given to each person you have created. We thank you for your good guidance in our lives in the faces of our nations.

And above all, we thank you for the holy gift of faith and for your kingdom. And we thank you for having protected us well in partaking of the great gift of faith by faith in Jesus Christ, our Lord, who will come one day into this world when time ends to carry out his righteous and just judgment to all men. We thank you that already today we can securely gaze at the destination of our faith, rejoicing and carrying peace and righteousness through the Holy Spirit in your kingdom.

We pray that as we begin to study this introduction and your word and the time of this created world and the end of this time and the second coming of Christ, that with childlike faith, we could securely wait for that day and say, Amen.

Truly, come, dear Lord Jesus, to come and get each of your children from all the nations in the world, from your kingdom into eternal joy, into the glory of heaven. And we ask that the introduction which we will soon hear would be building up the faith of each of us and would give us confidence and trust in your holy word on which we base our faith and on the Lord Jesus Christ.

And we yet pray in the words taught by your Son. Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever and ever. Amen.

We have gathered this evening to hear this topic, the second coming of Christ, with that prayer of faith that this introduction would support our life of faith and that we would be able to know our Redeemer in the kingdom and in the love of God and that we would receive strength from the gospel for our everyday endeavor.

I have compiled this topic, the second coming of Christ, based on the gospel text of Judgment Sunday, which is the gospel of the last Sunday of the church year. It is in Matthew 25 from verse 31 to 46.

The world that God has created has a beginning and an end. God has created the world with his word. He also maintains the world he has created with his word.

The world, like all creation, has its own time. When the time ordained by God is fulfilled, the time of the created world will end, and the world will come to an end. There is a time for everything and a season for every activity under the heavens. Ecclesiastes 3:1.

The apostle Peter writes, by the same word, the present heavens and earth are preserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly.

The world God has created and this transitory time will end with the coming of Christ, second coming of Christ. The end of the created world will take place at the second coming of Christ.

When Jesus ascended into heaven after his resurrection, the disciples remained staring at the heavens. Two angels appeared to them at that time. "Men of Galilee," they said, "why do you stand here looking at the sky?"

"This same Jesus who has been taken from you into heaven will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven."

The second coming of Christ is known by God alone. The second coming of Christ and the end of the world are known only by our Creator, Almighty God. Jesus says, "But about that day or hour, no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father."

The second coming of Christ and the resurrection of the dead.

Two great events, the second coming of Christ and the resurrection of the dead, are inextricably linked. At the end of the present world, Christ will appear in glory. He will raise all the dead. The bodies of the righteous will then become like the glorified body of Christ. The old catechism, Christian doctrine, paragraph one zero eight.

Jesus says of the resurrection of the dead in John five, "Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice and come out. Those who have done what is good will rise to live, and those who have done what is evil will rise to be condemned." The apostle Paul writes of the resurrection of the body in First Corinthians 15, "So will it be with the resurrection of the dead. The body that is sown is perishable. It is raised imperishable.

It is sown in weakness. It is raised in power. It is sown a natural body. It is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body."

All mankind will be present at the last judgment. The Christian doctrine says of the last judgment, "On the last day, all the people will be gathered before the judgment seat of Christ. The righteous will enter into life, into eternal life, but the wicked will perish," which means they will be eternally separated from God. No one will be left out of the last judgment. From Adam to the last man in human history, we will all be before the judgment seat of Christ.

The sea of men before the throne of Christ will be innumerable. The last judgment emphasizes each person's responsibility for his or her unique life before God. It is not unimportant how a person lives his short temporal life. God has created every person as an eternal being in his own image. By the innocent life, death, and resurrection of his Son, Jesus Christ, He has prepared for us salvation, atonement for our sins.

God wants all people to be saved by believing in Jesus and to have eternal life. The day of the Lord will come like a thief. The apostle Peter writes, "But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar. The elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything done in it will be laid bare."

The apostle asks what believers should be like who wait for and hasten the coming of the Lord's day. He gives precious counsel of the word of God to all of us believers. "So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless, and at peace with him." The most important thing for us is to watch in faith, to keep faith and a good conscience, and the mutual love of God's children. After all, we each want to personally pray to the heavenly Father for a humble and obedient mind to his holy word and the voice of the Holy Spirit in the kingdom of God.

Two groups before Christ's judgment seat. Jesus says in the gospel text of Judgment Sunday about the last judgment, "When the Son of Man comes in his glory and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father.

Take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry, and you gave me something to eat. I was thirsty, and you gave me something to drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me in. I needed clothes, and you clothed me.

I was sick, and you looked after me. I was in prison, and you came to visit me.' Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?"

The king will reply, truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me. Then he will say to those on his left, depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.

For I was hungry, and you gave me nothing to eat. I was thirsty, and you gave me nothing to drink. I was a stranger, and you did not invite me in.

I needed clothes, and you did not clothe me. I was sick and in prison, and you did not look after me. They will also answer, Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison and did not help you?

He will reply, truly, I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me. Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life. This is Matthew 25 verse 31 to 46.

This is the judgment Sunday gospel text. Jesus will separate people in the last judgment just as a shepherd separates sheep from goats. He will place the sheep to his right and the goats to his left. Jesus will call those on his right who are blessed by the Father to be with him. They will have been protected in faith by the power of the gospel to the end, blessed by the Father.

They will inherit the kingdom that has been ready for them since the creation of the world. It is a matter of a joyful congregation in heaven. Jesus then mentions the fruits of faith, which in their various forms have been directed at the least of his brothers and sisters. It is not a question of merits by which the blessed of the Father inherit eternal life. It is a matter of fruits engendered by faith as a service to Jesus, these brothers and sisters.

According to the Savior, those good works that have flowed from faith, those fruits, have been directed at him when the believers have served Jesus' least brothers and sisters. We must emphasize that eternal life is inherited by faith alone, by the grace of God alone, by the merit of Christ alone. When a believer here can own the blessing of the gospel by faith and walk in the light of God's word, he will once inherit the kingdom in heaven prepared for the blessed of the Father.

It is also inseparable that living faith includes the words of Jesus, good works toward his least as fruits of faith. Jesus will exhort the group to his left to leave him.

Depart from me, you who are cursed into the eternal fire, prepared for the devil and his angels. Why do those on Jesus' left receive such a shocking exhortation? Jesus says they had not served his least in his time in this time.

The wretched people on the left had not humbled themselves to repentance for their sins in the time of grace and visitation to receive, by the grace of God, the work of atonement of Christ and the forgiveness of sins, the gift of saving faith. They had not accepted the call of the gospel of the kingdom of God offered to them by the believers who had received the Holy Ghost.

Almighty, holy, and righteous God does not want the death and perdition of any unbeliever. God says through the prophet in Ezekiel 18 verse 23, do I take any pleasure in the death of the wicked, declares the sovereign Lord. Rather, am I not pleased when they turn from their ways and live? God has such goodwill toward fallen man.

Signs of the time before Christ's second coming.

The disciples asked Jesus, tell us when this will happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age? This is Matthew 24 verse three.

Jesus answered, watch out that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name claiming, I am the Messiah, and will deceive many. Then you will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed.

Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Third, nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom. Fourth, there will be famines and earthquakes in various places. Fifth, all these things are the beginning of birth pains. Sixth, Jesus says, then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me.

Seven, at that time, many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other. Eight, many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. Nine, because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold.

The signs of the time revealed by Jesus, which we heard, have been given to us children of God. We want to follow them while watching in faith. We don't need to fear because our heavenly Father will take care of us. He will strengthen us in his kingdom, and Jesus has promised to be with us every day until the end of the world. It is secure for us to follow the signs of the time.

They testify that the words of Jesus are coming true. Above all, we ask to hear and read God's holy word and be anchored through faith to the signs of the way in God's word. When we believe in this way, we will be protected on the journey of God's people led by our good shepherd, the Lord Jesus. After the signs of the time, Jesus encouraged his disciples and us, the children of God at this age. He says, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.

With these words, Jesus encourages you and me. Don't throw your faith away. It has a great reward. By faith, you will win eternal life. The apostle John encourages us in the same way as our Savior.

In John 5, for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world? Only the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God. The time of this world is tied to the end of the preaching of the gospel.

When Jesus concludes his talk about the signs before his second coming and the end of the world, he delivers a very touching message. "And the gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come." Jesus says in Matthew 24 verse 14, the love of the righteous, just, and holy God applies to all mankind. According to God's plans, the gospel of the kingdom of God will be proclaimed to all the world, to all nations. When the last person chosen by God has believed the gospel of Christ proclaimed through the Holy Spirit, the end of this vanishing world will come.

For the believer, the day of the second coming of Christ is a joyous awaited day. By faith, you dear young people and we all can wait for the day of the second coming of Christ with secure minds and joyous hope. When we have our sins forgiven and the peace of God in our hearts, we can await the coming of that day with peaceful minds. Dear young people, we can make plans for the future. We can study, get a degree, and a profession.

Make plans for the future. Get a degree and a profession. Give your gifts to the beloved homeland and to the kingdom of God. Let us live and act as Luther showed an example. "If I knew the end of the world would come tomorrow, I would still plant an apple tree today."

Jesus' secure only lasting instruction for happily meeting his coming is to watch in faith. Our Redeemer says, "Therefore, keep watch because you do not know the day or the hour." Matthew 25:13. We are protected as watchers in faith when we put away all sins and burdens that always cling to us. The apostle exhorts, "Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles."

Hebrew 12 verse one. For the people of this world, death is taboo. Death is not spoken about. A person in unbelief does not want to deal with death and what follows death. For the unbeliever, death is taboo, sacred, forbidden, a secret thing that is not readily discussed.

Likewise, for unbelievers, the second coming of Christ and the end of the world are concepts that they do not want to talk about. A person who has forsaken God and his word may write in the obituary notice of a dear one that he or she has entered a great unknown. However, every person is an eternal being created by God who longs for unity with the living God. We pray to God to allow the time of visitation to continue for our nation, that God would awaken carefree people to know their sins, to seek the kingdom of God, and to hear personal forgiveness of sins. The apostle encourages in the book letter to the Hebrews, tells us to encourage one another more the closer we say the day of the Lord to be.

According to the letter to the Hebrews, the church or congregation is a community gathered for worship that awaits the Lord's return. Wrote this in the book Look at the Author and Finisher of Faith, page one eleven. The message of the book is dominated by the last time. The apostle himself encourages the congregation and at the same time exhorts the recipients of his letters to encourage one another in the pressures, dangers of sin, and temptations of the end times. He emphasizes cherishing the unity of the congregation of believers.

The apostle does not specify the reasons that led to the apostasy. We can say based on the word of God that sin separates a person from God and other people. The congregation. Sin also causes a person to begin to avoid hearing the word and unity with the congregation. The Christian doctrine of the old catechism teaches us to care for our life of faith according to God's word.

To remain and be strengthened in faith, the Christian should diligently use the word of God and the Lord's holy communion, prayer, and the unity of Christians. Christian doctrine, paragraph 77. When the seat of a child of God is often empty where God's people listen to the word at services and at worship, the inevitable consequence is that person's life of faith will slowly fade and die. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus declares that blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, and he promises that they will be filled. Jesus' parable of the true vine clearly teaches us that every believer needs a close connection to the vine, Jesus, to serve, to survive as a living branch in the vine.

Jesus says, I am the vine. You are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit. Apart from me, you can do nothing. If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers.

Such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire, and burned. John fifteen: five-six. The Christians in the Hebrew congregation also lived in a time when believers were persecuted. Especially then, Christians needed a close connection with the congregation of God. They needed to encourage each other and come to hear the word.

Hearing the gospel was and still is the power of God for us, for the salvation of every believer. And the gospel also gives us the power to confess our personal faith in the midst of an unbelieving world. The biblia translation exhorts believers to counsel, the old church Bible to exhort, and the present church bible to encourage one another the closer you see the day of the Lord to be. Hebrew ten twenty five. We ask God for strength to counsel, exhort, and encourage one another in faith influenced by the love of God by the love of Christ so that at home, in our families, amongst believers, together, we may reach the goal of our faith, eternal life.

The time we live in is, according to the Bible, the last time. According to Jesus' teaching, the time of his coming is comparable to the days of Noah, Matthew twenty-four thirty-seven to forty-four. Then and now, ungodly life, the rejection of God's word, rules the unbelieving world and its life. The world is close to us, children of God. We have flesh and blood which are prone to sin.

Therefore, let us flock together closely, dear believers, children, youths, and elders. May the holy word of God, the Lord Jesus, and his congregation, God's kingdom of grace, be especially dear to us. Jesus urges us all to watch in faith. Let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles.

Dear children, young and old, all of you listeners here and on the Internet, believe all sins forgiven in the name and precious atonement blood of Jesus.