He Saw the City and Wept

In Nomine Iesu!

In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.

Sermon Text: St. Luke 19:41-48

“And when He drew nigh, He saw the city and wept over it, saying, ‘If thou hadst known in this day, even thou, the things which belong unto peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes. For the days shall come upon thee, when thine enemies shall cast up a bank about thee, and compass thee round, and keep thee in on every side, and shall dash thee to the ground, and thy children within thee; and they shall not leave in thee one stone upon another; because thou knewest not the time of thy visitation.’”

Prayer in Pulpit before Sermon:

Merciful God, Heavenly Father, we heartily beseech Thee, Thou wouldst so govern us by Thy Holy Spirit that we may not neglect the time of Thy gracious visitation, nor by impenitence fall into temporal and eternal punishment, but in this our day lay hold on the things that make for salvation and everlasting peace; through Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, ever One God, world without end. Amen.

Grace, mercy, and peace be to you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior + Jesus Christ. Amen.

My dear friends, one may wonder why we read such a disturbing and macabre reading as the History of the Destruction of the City of Jerusalem. What does the destruction of the city of Jerusalem have to do with us? What does the punishment of the Jews have to do with us? Why was this history included in historic, confessional Lutheran hymnals? What did our Lutheran fathers hope to accomplish by including this piece of history in their hymnals? The answer to those questions is simple. The fate of the Jews could also be our fate if we also persist in unbelief and rebellion against the Lord God.

Every year on the Tenth Sunday after Trinity Sunday this history of the destruction of the city of Jerusalem was read in confessional Lutheran churches. Its inclusion in a Lutheran hymnal marked the ones who used that hymnal as confessional, Lutheran churches. Its exclusion from modern hymnals is very telling about the state of modern Lutheranism. This reading is meant as a wake-up call. It is an annual reminder that not everything will go the way of good for those who reject the Lord God and continue to live in impenitence. This reading of the history of the destruction of the city of Jerusalem also points our attention to quickly approaching return of our Lord + Jesus. For on that day the unbelievers and those who refused to repent of their manifest sins will find even more horrible things happening to them. On the Last Day unbelievers will truly know what it is like to no longer have the grace and protection of the God which they refused to acknowledge.

Therefore, we hear this history of the destruction of the city of Jerusalem not just observing it as a piece of historical data, but as a warning to us and to all those who would forsake the worship of the Triune Lord God. The fate of the perfidious Jews could be our fate if we also remain in impenitence as they did. Their fate should cause us to have the same reaction that our Lord + Jesus does as He enters into the city of Jerusalem on Palm Sunday. He saw the city and wept over it. He knew what would befall this city because of their rejection of Him as the Christ and the Messiah, the Anointed One of the Lord God. Consider it: the Lord + Jesus is coming into Jerusalem, triumphantly, riding upon an ass and on a colt the foal of an ass like a king coming back victorious from the battle. The crowds are shouting His Name, and praising Him with all their might. They cut down palm and olive branches and strewed them in His way. They laid their garments before Him in praise and adoration. They sang out the song that King David wrote in the psalms, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is He that cometh in the Name of the Lord!” The crowds sing His praise and worship and adore Him, but our Lord + Jesus weeps over the city for He sees its destruction.

And the Greek word for weeping makes it clear. Our Lord is not just shedding a tear, like those old TV commercials with the Indian who shed a tear over all the garbage being produced. No, our Lord is “weeping,” that is, He is sobbing profusely. That is how much the destruction of Jerusalem pains Him. That is how much it pains Him to see the fate of the unbelievers, scoffers, and impenitent. For they have chosen their fate. They have rejected His mercies and compassions. There is nothing He can do for them, for they have refused Him.

We also should weep for the fate of those who live in unbelief and impenitence. Their fate will be the same as the perfidious Jews on the Last Day. This is why we continue to preach the Law of the Lord God, so that men might come to see that they are indeed poor, miserable sinners; that there is no way in which they can save themselves from their fate. When people see their sins, when they know that they are a wretched sinner, then they can say with St. Paul, “O wretched man that I am, who will deliver me from this body of death?” Only the works and merits of the Christ can deliver us from such torment of soul and body. For He bears in His flesh the marks of our punishment. He endured what we deserved so that we might go free; that we might be freed from the bondage of sin and death.

Mankind will only know their sins by the preaching of the Law, by hearing at least once a year the fate of the Jews and the destruction of the city of Jerusalem, for this is the fate of all those who reject the Lord God. On the Last Day that destruction will be an eternal destruction. There will be no escape from eternal death and agony. This is why the second part of the Gospel reading from the Evangelist St. Luke is included. Our Lord drives out those that sold in order to cleanse the temple, to restore it to its intended purpose. He drives them out so that people might see and repent of their sins. The connection is clear in the Gospel reading. Our Lord cries as He enters that the people did not know their visitation, that is, they rejected Him, and then immediately He is in the temple driving people out with a whip. He uses the whip of the Law to lead men into repentance.

Therefore, we also continue to preach the Law. We continue to cleanse the church of the sins which drag it down into the depths of Hell. Consider for a moment those churches which have given up on preaching the Law, who have become antinomian, only focusing on the “good” things. They have allowed all sorts of evil to creep up in their midst. And in very many cases that evil is praised and exalted. The crimes of men’s hearts are put on the stage and paraded around as good and virtuous. These “churches” lead men to their destruction, even as the scribes and Pharisees, and the chief priests, did to the people of Jerusalem.

The destruction of the city in 70 AD serves as a warning to us. To not listen to false doctrine. To not live in impenitence and unbelief. For the fate of the Jews will be our fate if we continue in our unbelief and impenitence.

The Gospel for today contains three parts. The Lord weeping over Jerusalem. The cleansing of the temple by the Lord + Jesus. And, the Lord preaching to the people, and the people intently listening to Him. There will always be those who reject the Lord + Jesus, those who refuse to acknowledge Him as Lord and Savior. Their fate will be one of destruction. But, there will also be those who continue to listen intently to the preaching of the Lord + Jesus, who hang upon His every word. For He has the words of eternal life.

Thanks be to the Lord + Jesus that He continues to show compassion toward us. Thanks be to Him that He continues to show compassion for the lost souls of this world. For He continues to send to us faithful ministers who will show us our sin by the preaching of the Law, and drive out from us with the harsh whip of the Law all evil intention within us. The faithful minister will continue to cleanse the temple of our hearts through the harsh preaching of the Law, so that we might be prepared to hang on every word of our Lord + Jesus. For salvation is found only in Him. In Him alone is life and salvation. In Him is deliverance from the eternal destruction in Hell. In Him is life everlasting in peace and joy in Heaven.

Therefore, my dear friends, let us hearken to the words that were read earlier containing the history of the destruction of the city of Jerusalem. For the fate of the Jews will be our fate if we continue in unbelief and impenitence. And this will not be a temporary, or earthly destruction, but an everlasting and eternal destruction of soul and body in Hell. These words are said for our benefit for they drive us out of finding salvation inside of ourselves, and drive us to the true and only source of salvation, our Lord + Jesus. He rides into Jerusalem on an ass and the colt the foal of an ass weeping over our destruction, while also knowing that He will suffer and die to win for us forgiveness, life, and salvation. He comes to redeem us. He comes to win for us a place in Heaven. Let us hang on His every Word, for in His Word He preaches into our ears that we have life and salvation in Him alone. In His Word, He preaches into our ears that we will live with Him forever in Heaven with all the saints and angels. He is our light and our salvation. Blessed is He Who cometh in the Name of the Lord! In the Name of our Lord + Jesus, the Christ. Amen.

Prayer in Pulpit after Sermon:

Almighty God, be pleased to accompany Thy Word with Thy Holy Spirit and grant that Thy Word would increase faith in us; bring into the Way of Truth all such as have erred; turn the hearts of the unrepentant; and for sake of Thy Name grant succor to all heavy hearts and those who are heavy-laden, that they may through the mercy of the Lord Jesus Christ be relieved and preserved so that they succumb not to the temptation of despair but rather that they gain the victory over the world, the flesh, and the devil; through the same Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with the Thee and the Holy Ghost, ever One God, world without end. Amen.

The Votum:

The peace of God, which passeth all understanding, keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Amen.

Soli Deo Gloria!