November 2023 – Page 3 – What Does This Mean?

Last Things #9: The Ofrenda Zone

In Hispanic culture, there is sometimes a familial practice of setting up an ofrenda (offering altar) for the home visitation upon a loved one’s death. The individual ofrenda may remain up for as long as grieving persists. For example, an elderly person might leave the ofrenda of their child, preceding them in death, up for the remainder of the years of their natural life.

In more traditional homes, you might see a family ofrenda, which bears the photos of generations of deceased family members. This type of ofrenda typically doesn’t come down.

In other cases, the individual ofrenda or family ofrenda may only be set up for the celebration of Día de los Muertos (day of the dead), November first and second. The day of the dead festivities come from extant pagan ancestor worship practices of the Aztecs and other central American tribes. Upon their conversion to Christianity, the ancestor worship remained to varying degrees.

Make no mistake, the ofrenda is an altar of worship to the deceased. Placing a crucifix nearby, doesn’t make it anything else. The offerings in particular reveal this. There are various food and drink offerings set on the ofrenda for the dead. But, the “required” items are: water, bread, and coins. These confess a specific, non-Christian eschatology (understanding of things pertaining to the end times).

In the Aztec religious confession of the afterlife, the dead must undergo a journey to the land of the dead. The journey is long, through a barren land. So, the offerings are for the journey. Many pagan cultures throughout the world share similar views.

Christianity teaches differently. For us, upon our death our souls are immediately delivered to heaven to rest awaiting the resurrection of all flesh on the last day. On that day, the souls all believers will be reunited with their glorified bodies to dwell forever in the new Jerusalem with Jesus.

About now, you might say, “But, Pastor Kaspar, I’m an Anglo. We don’t do these things. What does this mater to us?”

Many of us have an Uncle Fritz with one of these. Uncle Fritz lost his wife 15 years ago. He put her ashes on the mantle at home, or on a sofa table in the hallway. Her picture is there too. He and the kids place little mementoes on the table or mantle periodically. This is basically also an ofrenda.

The only real difference is the occasional attempt by ofrenda users to sanctify the paganism with a crucifix or statuette of St. Mary’s sacred heart. The non-remembrance altar doesn’t even get religious recognition.

These altars to our deceased loved ones are a bad idea. They teach us to think about their death differently than the scriptures teach. It’s best to place our dead to rest, among their brothers and sisters in the faith, in a permanent spot. Let their bodies rest undisturbed until the day of resurrection.

Remember that though death separates us in this life, we are still joined together in the faith. Specifically, when we celebrate the foretaste of the feast to come in the Lord’s Supper, a spectacular reality descends to us. It that moment, singing “Holy, Holy, Holy,” with all the host of heaven, we commune with all the saints in heaven.

It’s not a little pagan altar to my mom that gets me close to her. It’s the Lord’s gathering the faithful around His altar, which brings us back together for a moment, a foretaste of the eternal feast awaiting us in His kingdom for the sake of Jesus’s death for us. That’s what brings us closer to our dearly departed loved ones.

Let us confess Jesus Christ, even in death.

Rev. Jason M. Kaspar
Sole Pastor
Mt. Calvary Lutheran Church & Preschool
La Grange, TX

and

Mission planting pastoral team:
Epiphany Lutheran Church
Bastrop, TX

Last Things #8: Pennies From Heaven?

Encore Post: “Pennies from heaven,” “a cardinal on my fence line,” and “someone looking down on me” are a few examples of seemingly innocuous things even faithful Christians will say regarding the dead. We’ll hear folks speak of the dead as if they are still interacting with us here on earth. I don’t believe for a second that most folks realize what they’re saying or intend to promote heresy in any way. But, it’s wrong and needs addressing.

The first concern here is that our loved ones at rest in Christ are sending love notes to us from their rest in Christ in heaven. As I’ve discussed before, our deceased loved ones are finally free from the taint of sin. Dwelling only in blessèdness and righteousness, they have a dim view of the world still corrupted by sin and our part in it.

“When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the witness they had borne. They cried out with a loud voice, “O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before you will judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” Then they were each given a white robe and told to rest a little longer, until the number of their fellow servants and their brothers should be complete, who were to be killed as they themselves had been.” (Revelation 6:9-11)

I thank the Lord that their awareness of us prob’ly hidden.

In Luke 16, we have the parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus. In torment in Hell, the nameless Rich Man is allowed to see Abraham and Lazarus. He speaks with Abraham. There is no interaction between he and Lazarus. The Rich Man sees nothing else of Heaven or Earth. And Abraham defines their positions thusly, “…between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, in order that those who would pass from here to you may not be able, and none may cross from there to us.” (Luke 16:26)

Now, the second concern here is an attribution of godlike powers to those who have been taken on to Glory in the heavens. In this case, Aunt Hildegard is “smiling down on me.” We’ll hear of her sending a rainbow, of cool breeze in the summer heat, a rain storm in a drought, sunshine to break up a monsoon, a pristine snow fall on a winter’s night, or some other weather anomaly.

We’ve made blessèd Aunt Hildegard into nothing more than a pagan weather goddess. By applying god-like power to her, we diminish the Lord of the heavens and the earth. And, we seek to pull her out of salvation in heaven with Jesus. Instead, we’d see her moved into a pagan pantheon and a lesser god status there too.

The real error: finding peace and comfort in this life not the promise of the resurrection. There’s no promise our loved ones will hear us now. But, we WILL see them again at the marriage feast of the Lamb in His kingdom. That’s a little sad, and a whole lot OK.

Real Christian comfort comes in knowing that our loved ones have received salvation bought for them by the death of Jesus. That’s the same salvation promised to us in our own baptism. It will be delivered in full on the day of our death. The day when we too inherit the crown of salvation bought by Jesus’s blood and righteousness.

In our grief, Let the Lord be the King of Salvation.

Rev. Jason M. Kaspar
Sole Pastor
Mt. Calvary Lutheran Church & Preschool
La Grange, TX
and
Mission planting pastoral team:
Epiphany Lutheran Church
Bastrop, TX

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Last Things 7f: The Gospel Preached to the Ends of the Earth

Encore Post: One of the most popular of the signs Jesus predicted would happen before the Second Advent is the success of the missionary mandate. “And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world ,” Jesus predicted. (Matthew 24:14) This sign appears to be, unlike the other signs, a unique condition, one that was not fulfilled in any way during the ministry of Jesus. Millennialist prophecy scholars observe that it wasn’t until the 19th Century that many areas of the world were visited by missionaries. While this is true, it is based upon an English translation of the prophecy. The passage is better translated: “And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole civilized world. (οἰκουμένῃ–oikoumene–Ecumene)”

The Greek language of the New Testament uses several words that are translated world in our English Bibles. οἰκουμένῃ was used by the Greeks and Romans for the lands of the Roman Empire. They thought in of humanity as made up of two classes of people, the civilized Graeco-Roman nations and the barbarians. κόσμος (kosmos–cosmos) was the word used by Greek philosophers to speak about the universe. Greek speaking Judaism used it to translate the Old Testament phrase “Heavens and the Earth” — all of creation and especially all peoples. This the the world used in John 3:16. The word γῆς (ges–the root for our word geography) was used for the physical world, translated earth or the land.

This prophecy, then, is like the others we’ve looked at. It refers to the gospel being preached to all peoples. It was fulfilled already when St. Paul reached Spain, known in his day as the ends of the earth. It continues to be fulfilled wherever Christians preach the good news of salvation wherever they live. As they fulfill Christ’s sending, baptizing and teaching, the Holy Spirit uses their witness to create faith, call the lost to faith and to build Christ’s church. When he completes this task and our mission in accomplished, Jesus will return to bring his bride home.

Rev. Robert E. Smith
Concordia Theological Seminary
Fort Wayne, Indiana

Last Things 7e: Persecution of the Church

Encore Post: Jesus repeatedly warned his disciples that they would be hated for his sake. Already in the Beatitudes, Jesus tells them they will be blessed when they are persecuted and slandered for his sake, for they have the kingdom of heaven and are like the prophets before them. (Matthew 5:10-12) He tells them to be a disciple means to take up their cross and follow him. (Matthew 16:24-26) The enemies of Jesus and his gospel would arrest you and throw you in prison, bring you before Kings and governors. Even parents, family members and friends will betray you to the authorities. Some will even be put to death. You need not to worry, however, because the Holy Spirit will give you the words to speak. Yet you will not perish. (Luke 21:12-19)

So, as a sign of the end, this prediction is nothing new for them or for us. That it is associated with the end of days also should be not a surprise. It is not as some millennialist writers believe, a specific prophecy of the persecution of the Jewish church after the rapture. Like the previous signs, they describe the times, which is infected by sin and its effects.

This prophecy began to be fulfilled in the days following the Ascension of Jesus and contiuing to the present. All but one of the Apostles died a martyr’s death. Throughout the early Church, persecution occured from time to time. The witness of these early witnesses to Jesus was so impressive that pagans — including persecutors came to faith. As Tertullian put it, “The blood of the martyrs is seed for the church.”

Throughout the ages, the church continued to be persecuted until today more Christians are persecuted and martyred than in all of history. Like their Lord, they lay down their life for Jesus. When Jesus returns in glory, they will come with him to greet those of us who are alive on that day. With them numbered may we be, here and in eternity.

Rev. Robert E. Smith
Concordia Theological Seminary
Fort Wayne, Indiana

Last Things 7d: Many Will Come in My Name

Encore Post: When Jesus’ disciples asked him for signs of the end of the age, the first sign he gave them came with a warning not to be deceived. (Luke 21:8) The Lord warns us that two things will happen. First, there will be people that claim to be the Christ. Second, others will tell you the end is near, but it is not. ( Luke 21:8, Matthew 24:5 , 11, 23-28) But Christ will not return secretly, as the Jehovah’s Witnesses teach, or by birth, as Sun Myung Moon claimed with he declared he was the second coming of Christ, or as a prophet who came after Christ, like Muhammad and Joseph Smith, or many others. Christ will return from the sky with all his angels and the saints who have gone before us to Heaven. Every eye will see him. In addition to these, in almost every generation, some false prophet or another would appear and announce they knew what even the Son of God did not know — the date of the Second Advent.

Like all of the Biblical signs of the end, these signs were fulfilled during the lifetime of the Apostles and every generation since. These describe our times, not specific events to be checked off. False Christs indicate how desperately the devil wants to take God’s children away from him. It tells us as do the other signs that the age is coming to an end and that Christ can really return at a time we do not know.

Instead of false Christs, their fake miracles and promises, we look for Christ where he really is. He is with us until the end of time already — in his word purely proclaimed, in baptism and especially in the Lord’s Supper. There he comes us to give us his body to eat with bread and his blood to drink with wine. There he offers what he earned for us on the cross — the forgiveness of sins, life and salvation. We look forward to the day when he returns from Heaven to bring an end to sin, death and the power of the devil. On that day, he will wipe every tear from our eyes and bring him to his new Heaven and new Earth forever.

Rev. Robert E. Smith
Concordia Theological Seminary
Fort Wayne, Indiana

Last Things 7c: Wars and Rumors of Wars

Encore Post: The second sign that Jesus gave to his disciples to show the world is coming to an end is that there will be wars and rumors of war. (Matthew 24:6-7, Luke 21:9)

The first time we read this prophecy it strikes us as kind of strange. After all, there is nothing unusual about wars and rumors of wars. In fact, this one is a constant problem for people seeking to discover the year of the coming of Christ. The way they cope with it is to admit that, yes, there have always been wars. But they will get more and more intense as we get closer to the end. They do have a point there, since Jesus describes these signs as labor pains. At first, labor pains come far apart. The closer you get to birth, however, the more frequently and more intensely they come.

The difficultly with this kind of sign, however, is that wars sometimes come one after another and other times years pass where few happen. So, most Romans at the time of Jesus did not experience war. The peace of Rome kept things quiet in most places. Yet, in thirty years, the Jewish people would see war in full measure as the Roman legions crushed a revolt in the Holy Land. In our day, the two worst wars of all time happened in the early and middle of the twentieth century. Nothing like them, thank God, has happened since. The wars we and other powers have wages were much smaller.

So, for the purpose of pinning down when the end will come, they do not help much. So why did Jesus give them? This sign is about helping us to see that all is not well in the world and that it will one day come to an end. He did not want us to do what Christians sometimes have done. When they suffer in war, they worry that everything will come to an end right way and they will suffer more. Or they may be convinced of this would be the war to end all wars. Instead, we should take them as a reminder that Christ will indeed come again and to encourage us to cling to him in faith as we look forward to the New Heavens and the New Earth, where war will cease and we will live in the peace of God that has no end.

Rev. Robert E. Smith
Concordia Theological Seminary
Fort Wayne, Indiana

Last Things 7b: Earthquakes and Famines and Pestilences

Encore Post: Before the world comes to an end, Jesus told his disciples, there would be earthquakes, famines and pestilences. Fearful things and strange signs in the heavens would appear. (Luke 21:11, Matthew 24:7) As with wars and rumors of wars, these signs aren’t of much help in predicting the Second Coming of Christ. After all, disaster is a part of the curse that Adam and Eve received for committing the first sin. St. Paul describes creation as subject to futility, groaning like a woman in childbirth. (Romans 8:20-22)

Pastor Hans Fiene observes that because of the fall, the creation is cursed, turned from harmony with us to being hostile towards us. The world is trying to kill us with extremes of heat and cold, disease, floods, forest fires, famine and other disasters. Human beings need to exercise dominion over it to survive.

These signs were present from the very day Jesus predicted them. Even as Jesus died on the cross, an earthquake struck the Holy Land and the sun went dark during midday. Famine struck during the dark days of the AD 60s and 70s. Throughout the millennia that followed, many natural disasters have destroyed many lives.

Many Christians have concluded that these events will become more and more frequent as we get closer to the Second Advent. Perhaps. The problem is we will never know for sure that such indicate the return of Christ in our generation. The key to understanding what these events tell us is to realize they describe the time from the Ascension to the Second Coming. They are not like the prophecy of the Virgin Birth, the town of Bethlehem or the precision of Psalm 22 describing the crucifixion. What these signs do is remind us that the world is cursed and will one day fail. It keeps us from getting too comfortable in our sin and warns us to repent and cling to Christ.

Last Things 7a: The Signs of the Times

Encord Post: As the winter approaches in many areas of the world, plants, animals begin to prepare for the change in the climate of their home. In the American midwest, the leaves on many trees change color and fall from their branches. The Canada Geese first fly in circles and then most head south for the season. The Juncos, small sparrow-like birds are the last to leave where I live and the first to arrive in Spring. When these things happen, you can expect winter weather and cold will not be far behind.

The date Christ’s return is unknown to us. Jesus taught that even he did not know when it will happen — only the Father in Heaven. (Matthew 24:36) Yet we do know Jesus’ return is near. He told his disciples that they know summer is near when the fig tree starts to grow leaves. They knew — and we know — that time is growing short because we see the signs of the times that the Lord gave them.

Yet the signs of the times are not specific events, nor are they like variables in some prophecy algebra problem — you know — insert the invention of television, the establishment of the modern nation of Israel, the identity of the anti-Christ and the use of bar codes and then you know the year of Christ’s return. These signs are like those that identify the season — they tell us the kind of times that we live in. These signs tell us the world is passing away.

Since Jesus told his disciples they would see these signs in their generation, what is taking so long? Over two thousand years does not seem like soon — at the very gates — to us. St. Peter explains this to us. The return of Christ is not measured on our human calendar. It is on God’s scale. For the Father, a thousand years passes like a day passes for us. (2 Peter 3:8-9)

We have a similar experience. When we are on a long trip with young children, they often ask: “are we there yet?” We say, “soon.” But while an hour or two is soon for us, it is very long for the children! He waits for the last person who will be saved to repent. And we should be glad for it — it includes us!

Yet still we remain alert. We do not know when that day will come and the great marriage feast of the lamb will begin. We want to be ready for that party!

Rev. Robert E. Smith
Concordia Theological Seminary
Fort Wayne, Indiana

Last Things #7: Between the End of Your Time and the End of Time

Encore Post: The question that most haunts our lives is the question of life after death. What will it be like? Will our spirits wander the earth, becoming the ghosts of popular imagination? Will they acquire a new body to work off negative karma? Merge with the whole universe or become a spiritual guide for others for awhile? Will they go to a dark underworld forever? Will they go to a place to purge off their remaining sins before being fit for heaven? Or will they cease to exist completely when our bodies die? The Scripture firmly tells us “no” to these things. None of these fates await us or our loved ones.

It may come as a complete surprise, but Scripture tells us very little about what happens to us when death rips our souls apart from our bodies. Most of the passages that speak about the end of things focus on the second coming of Jesus Christ, the resurrection of the bodies of all people, the glorious transformation of our bodies into our eternal, spiritual bodies, the last judgement and eternal life for the saints and eternal death for the damned. The few things it does tell us often vague, sometimes speaking of their intermediate state (the theologian’s term for the time between death and the resurrection) and other times of our glorious bodies. There is even some doubt whether these is an intermediate state at all from the perspective of the soul.

No matter which description fits a Christian at the moment of death, for a Christian, eternal life begins before death, when God adopts that person as his own son or daughter. Jesus said, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me, even if he dies, yet shall he live. And he who lives and believes in me should never die.” (John 11:25-26; see also John 3:26, 5:24) They commend their souls into the hands of God. (Acts 7:59, Luke 23:46) For those without faith, death brings with it eternal separation from God, a prison for spirits (1 Peter 3:19) until the Last Judgement, after which eternal punishment in Hell with Satan and his angels awaits.

So, what can we conclude about the life our loved ones, departed in Christian faith, enjoy now, while waiting for the resurrection of their bodies? They are with Christ in paradise (Philippians 1:23, Luke 23:43) The angels carry them to be with him and others who died in the faith. (Luke 16:19-31) There God will comfort them and dry every tear from their eyes. (Revelation 7:16-17, 21:4) They are at rest from their labors, as Christ rested in the tomb on Holy Saturday. The deeds they did with faith in Christ will follow them. (Revelation 14:13) They are free once and for all from the Old Adam or Old Eve that plagued them in this life and their sin purged from their souls. (2 Timothy 4:18) They will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their father (Matthew 13:43).

What is certain is that, as glorious as life is in the presence of Christ now, the best is yet to come. When their souls return with Christ at the second advent, he will raise their bodies from the grave, reunite them with their souls and transform them fit for eternity.

Rev. Robert E. Smith
Concordia Theological Seminary
Fort Wayne, Indiana

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Last Things #6: Why do Christians (Still) Die?

Encore: In Holy Baptism, Jesus unites Christians with his death and resurrection. Our sins are drowned in its waters, washed away forever. His death is our death and his resurrection guarantees our resurrection. In his wounds, we are healed. (Isaiah 53:5) Yet every Christian, will suffer and get sick. Except for the Christians alive when Christ returns, all people alike, rich and poor, evil and saintly, will die and their bodies decay. Jesus promised Martha, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?”” (John 11:25–26) So, why do all Christians — including Mary, Martha and Lazarus — still die?

The answer is very simple, but not very satisfying. The wages of sin is death. (Genesis 2:17, 3:17, Romans 6:23, Romans 8:10, James 1:15) God’s wrath punishes our rebellion with physical death (Psalm 90) Sin infects us through many means. We inherited original sin when we were conceived. Just as DNA is passed on to us, from parent to child, ultimately from our first father, Adam, so also is original sin passed on to us. (Romans 5:12) So, we continue to sin much daily. God’s sentence for this rebellion is that the soul that sins will die. (Ezekiel 18:4)

Our old Adam and old Eve, the sinful desire within us, called by Scripture the flesh, fills us with emotion and overcomes even our common sense. The world calls on us to fit in and thus abandon God’s will for us. Finally, the devil tempts us and tries to intimidate us into looking to our own interests. Baptism saves us but does not free us from the sinful flesh. The struggle between these forces on the one side and our new nature on the other lasts as long as we live. Only our death or the return of Christ ends this lifelong battle.

For those who suffer the death of loved ones, there is no tougher trial than the grief that follows. So, let there be no allusions: death is no friend. It is the last enemy to be defeated. (1 Corinthians 15:26) So, why does Scriptura tells us: “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints.” (Psalm 116:15)

Because Jesus died and rose again from the dead, the seal of the grave is broken forever. Now, for a Christian, death is the gateway to everlasting life. (John 5:24) Suffering comes to an end for them. Sin is removed from them. Their sorrows are turned to joy forever. (Isaiah 51:11, Isaiah 26:19) He wipes every tear from their eyes. (Isaiah 25:8, Revelation 7:17, 21:4) No one can snatch them from his hand. (John 10:27-30) They see God face to face (1 Corinthians 13:12) and live in the arms of their savior. They rest from their labors (Revelation 14:13).

So, Christians still die because they still sin. For them, however, death brings the blessings of eternal life. So we who miss them greatly grieve, but not as though without hope. (1 Thessalonians 4:13) The musings of Dr. Martin Luther at the death of his daughter says it well: “I am joyful in spirit but I am sad according to the flesh. The flesh doesn’t take kindly to this. The separation troubles me above measure. It’s strange to know that she is surely at peace and that she is well off there, very well off, and yet to grieve so much!” (AE 54: 432, no. 5498).

Rev. Robert E. Smith
Concordia Theological Seminary
Fort Wayne, Indiana

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