Grace Lutheran
Sunday 2025 Nov 30 Setting Advent
      • Bible Trivia
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      • Isaiah 2:1–5ESV

      • Romans 13:11–14ESV

      • Matthew 24:36–44ESV

      • Psalm 122ESV

      • Psalm 122ESV

      • John 20:1–18ESV

      • Isaiah 2:1–5ESV

      • John 20:1–18ESV

      • Romans 13:11–14ESV

      • John 20:1–18ESV

      • Matthew 24:36–44ESV

  • A Faithful Wake Up Call

    Let me take you back to my first day of basic training in the Army.
    People think they’ve had rough mornings—oversleeping, dead alarm clock, spilled coffee. Cute. But nothing prepares you for Day One of basic.
    It’s one of the scariest, most disorienting wake-up calls a person can experience. New place, new people, and you’re already rethinking your life choices before sunrise.
    And then it happens.
    No gentle alarm. No soft music. Just metal garbage cans slamming like thunder and drill sergeants exploding into the room like they were shot out of a cannon—yelling every command ever written and a few they made up on the spot.
    And my poor bunkmate—well, he chose to sleep in the full freedom of God’s creation. Let’s just say the drill sergeants, especially the female ones, corrected that habit in record time. The man never slept undressed again. Ever.
    Chaos doesn’t describe it. It was a jarring reminder that we weren’t home anymore. Whatever “normal” was… it was gone.
    But that wake-up call had a purpose: It made us realize this was real. This was serious. This was going to change us. And we had better be awake for it.
    That’s what Advent does.
    Not with drill sergeants, thank the Lord—but with the words of Jesus Himself. Before we get carols and candlelight, Advent begins with a spiritual garbage-can-bang of Matthew 24:
    “Stay awake. You do not know the day or the hour.”
    Because spiritual sleep is far more dangerous than dozing off in basic training.
    Advent pulls us out of our comfort and says:
    “Pay attention. This is real. This will shape you. This will change you. And you need to be awake for it.”

    A World That Runs On Routine

    Most of us wake up the same way every day:
    Alarm clock. Coffee. Kids out the door. Work. Errands. A couple hurried meals. A little scrolling. Fall into bed. Repeat.
    None of that is sinful. None of it is wrong. But the danger is subtle: Routine becomes reality. The predictable becomes permanent. The ordinary becomes ultimate.
    We can schedule our entire week— meals, practices, meetings, appointments— and somehow forget the only thing in life that is actually guaranteed:
    Jesus is coming.
    Jesus tells us, “You know what? That’s exactly what happened in the days of Noah.”
    People weren’t building altars to Baal. They weren’t running around plotting world domination. They were doing normal, everyday life.
    Eating. Drinking. Working the land. Weddings. Families. Friendships. Not sinful things—just life.
    And that’s the point.
    The great spiritual danger isn’t dramatic rebellion. It’s drowsiness. It’s drifting. It’s spiritual autopilot so long and so often that the sudden arrival of Christ catches the world flat-footed.
    Just like basic training— the alarm goes off whether you’re ready or not.

    The Days of Noah

    Jesus doesn’t say the people in Noah’s day were especially wicked, rebellious, or wild—though they were. He describes them with four ordinary verbs:
    Eating, drinking, marrying, giving in marriage.
    In other words: life as usual.
    The problem wasn’t activity. It was apathy. They lived as if God didn’t matter and judgment wasn’t real.
    And this has always sort of frightened me in a way, for Jesus says this is exactly how it will be when He returns.
    Not chaos. Not panic. Just normal everyday life.
    People will be grocery shopping, watching football, taking vacations, arguing over petty things—completely unaware that eternity is about to break in.
    Now here’s the Law, without sugarcoating it:
    Routine numbs the soul.
    Our schedules can disciple us more effectively than Christ—if we aren’t paying attention.
    We get into the rhythm of life’s demands and slowly drift into spiritual sleep:
    Scripture becomes optional.
    Prayer becomes rushed.
    Worship service becomes a “maybe.”
    Faith becomes something we feel instead of something we practice.
    All while the world quietly whispers, “You’re fine. Nothing urgent here.”
    But there was urgency in Noah’s day. And there is urgency now.
    Noah didn’t blend in—he built an ark. His entire life was a sermon, even though nobody listened except his own family.
    And that’s discipleship: to live differently because we believe differently.

    The Great Divide

    Jesus moves from Noah’s world to a much more ordinary scene— two people working in a field, two women grinding grain. Nothing dramatic, nothing religious—just everyday life. Side by side. Same job. Same rhythm.
    To anyone watching, their lives look identical. But Jesus reveals a moment so sudden it steals your breath: “One will be taken and one left.”
    He’s not describing a Hollywood-style secret rapture—no believers disappearing while unbelievers are left behind. Scripture rules that out.
    What Jesus teaches is sobering and clear: Judgment will be sudden, final, and personal. No group projects. No curves. No “I was close enough” excuses.
    Being around the church isn’t the same as belonging to Christ. Cultural Christianity—the “I believe when it’s convenient” kind—won’t survive the Last Day.
    The world will be divided—not by politics or morality—but by one line: Belonging to Christ or not.
    This division isn’t random or mechanical. It’s done by Christ Himself— the same One who bore the nails, carried the cross, and wept over Jerusalem. The Judge will be the Savior. And that changes everything.
    Here is the Gospel—personal and powerful: The One who divides humanity is the same One who has united Himself to you.
    You aren’t told, “Get ready or else.” You’re told, “You are mine—stay awake in that promise.”
    Jesus has brought you into His ark. Where Noah had wood covered in pitch, you have a cross covered in blood—shed for you. Where Noah had a boat, you have baptism, lifting you above judgment. Where Noah had a temporary refuge, you have an eternal refuge from God’s wrath—because His wrath was poured out on Jesus for you.
    So when Jesus warns, “Be ready,” He’s not trying to scare you into heaven. He’s reminding you who you already are: His. Safe. Redeemed. Awake.
    The One who sounds the alarm is the same One who shelters you under His cross. The Judge who separates the world is the Savior who will never let go of you.

    “Therefore, Stay Awake” — The Call to Discipleship

    When Jesus says, “Stay awake,” He’s not calling you to panic. He’s not saying, “Live in constant fear of the end.” He’s not demanding that you spend your nights staring out the window, clutching the doorknob, waiting nervously for the sky to crack open.
    No, watchfulness is not anxiety—it’s the purpose.
    It’s the purposeful life of someone who actually believes the Lord is returning. Someone who lives not for the passing moment but for eternity. Someone who understands that every day is an opportunity to walk in faith and grace.
    So what does this spiritual wakefulness look like? How do we live awake in a world that so easily drifts off to sleep?
    Discipleship is the answer. And discipleship moves from head knowledge, to a heart knowledge, and into everyday living:
    Hearing Christ’s Word regularly Not just drive-by listening or skim-reading, but soaking in Scripture deeply. Letting God’s promises and commands sink into your heart and shape your thoughts.
    Anchoring your life in worship Because it’s here—at the altar—that Christ feeds you with His true Body and Blood. Faith grows weak when we skip this feast. Sleepy Christians don’t survive without this daily bread.
    Real prayer Not just “Lord, fix this or that,” but honest, ongoing conversation with a living Lord who hears, cares, and acts.
    Christian community Nobody stays spiritually awake alone. We watch with one another, pray for one another, hold one another accountable.
    Obedience shaped by Christ Letting the Word form your decisions, your priorities, your habits—not out of duty, but out of love for the Savior who first loved you.
    Serving your neighbor Not to earn favor or applause, but because the Lord you serve gave everything for you first. Serving is waking up to see others as Christ sees them.
    And holding it all together is this gospel comfort:
    Christ keeps you awake.
    He is the Good Shepherd who neither slumbers nor sleeps. He is the Savior who stayed awake in the Garden of Gethsemane, praying while His disciples dozed off. He is the One who wakes you every time He forgives your sins, lifts you up, and sends you back into the world refreshed and renewed.
    Discipleship is not your strength. It is His grace forming your daily life.

    Being Awake This Week

    So how do you live this out, especially when the world’s routines keep pulling you back to sleep?
    Start small. Faithfulness often looks like simple, daily acts empowered by the Spirit:
    Read Matthew 24–25 devotionally this week. Let Jesus’ words shape your understanding of what’s coming.
    Put Scripture before screens in the morning. Let God’s Word be the first thing you hear—not the news, not social media, but His voice.
    Pray with your family around the table. Make time for real conversation with your Savior and with one another.
    Ask someone, “How can I pray for you this week?” Open your eyes to others who need Christ’s love through you.
    Invite someone back to worship who has drifted away. Sometimes the wake-up call comes through a faithful friend.
    Set aside just ten minutes today to thank Christ for His salvation. Gratitude sharpens the soul and keeps you alert.
    These small acts, done in faith and empowered by the Spirit, make a huge difference. They keep you awake while the world sleeps. They keep you ready for the day the Lord returns.

    Faithful in a World Asleep

    Remember Noah.
    He wasn’t a hero because he was fearless or extraordinary. He was a hero because he was faithful. (Full of Faith) He trusted God’s promise. He lived awake while the world slept. And God saved him.
    The world may be asleep, lost in routines and distractions. But Christ is awake. The world may drift on, unaware, but Christ is coming.
    Advent begins not with a whisper but with a wake-up call— shaking us gently but firmly:
    Lift up your heads. Open your eyes. Strengthen your faith. Stay in His Word. Stay in His grace. Stay awake.
    Because the Lord who is coming is the very same Lord who already came—for you. He came to save you. He came to keep you awake. He came to bring you home.
    Come, Lord Jesus.
    Amen.
    Closing Prayer
    Lord Jesus, You are the Good Shepherd who never sleeps or slumbers. In the midst of our busy lives and sleepy hearts, wake us by Your grace to live ready and alert. Keep us faithful in Your Word, strong in Your promises, and bold in our witness to the coming kingdom. Help us to trust that You hold us safely in Your hands— today, tomorrow, and forever. Come quickly, Lord Jesus. Amen.
  • Joy To The World

      • Romans 13:11ESV

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