1 Corinthians 7:29-31 (Jonah 3:1-5, 10; Mark 1:14-20)
Pr. Kurt A. Van Fossan – In Nomine Christi Iesu
How would you finish the quote on the front of your bulletin? “Live as though…” Whatever you may be thinking, I doubt that you would complete that sentence quite the way Paul does in our text. After first pointing out that the appointed time “has been shortened” (and by that he appears to be speaking of Jesus’ return and the end of this fallen world. Jesus said in Matthew 24(:21-22), when speaking of the Last Day, “For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short (or shortened).”
God has mercifully shortened our time left in this sinful world, even though we still don’t know when that final day will come.) Therefore, “From now on, let those who have wives live as though they had none, and those who mourn [live] as though they were not mourning, and those who rejoice [live] as though they were not rejoicing, and those who buy [live] as though they had no goods, and those who deal with the world [live] as though they had no dealings with it. For the present form of this world is passing away.” Basically, the Lord (through Paul) here encourages us to live our lives as though we will be leaving this fallen world sooner rather than later, and going to our heavenly home.
This is good news! We can look at the end of our life in this world as being good news because, as Jesus said in our Gospel reading, “the time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand.” Jesus Himself is the fulfilment of time and the coming of God’s kingdom. Usually when we think of God’s kingdom coming we think of Judgement Day. And certainly that Judgement Day was fulfilled when Jesus came as our substitute, taking our sins upon Himself and suffering God’s judgement against sin—death—even death on the cross. And every time someone is baptized or given faith in this good news, that person has in a sense jumped ahead to Judgement Day since they have inherited Jesus’ death for their sins and also His resurrection to eternal life. The kingdom of God has come to them! The time is fulfilled.
One of the reasons this sinful world continues is so that God can work out our salvation and deliver it to us. He has worked it out through His Son, and He continues to deliver it to us. If you have received this gift of Jesus and His salvation, you have been set free from sin and made ready to go home.
It is with this understanding and faith in Jesus as our Saviour that we can “live as though” we will be leaving this sinful world sooner rather than later, and going to our heavenly home.
What does such a life of faith in this good news look like?
If you have a spouse, “live as though you had none.” In the context of what Paul was saying earlier, where he speaks of the added concerns in life for those who are married, he is certainly not saying that you shouldn’t fulfil your responsibilities toward your spouse. But he is saying don’t worry about those responsibilities, allowing them to consume you or take up all your time—becoming a type of god which we worship. Instead, trust in My promise to be with you to bless and protect you.
The same can be said for any other people or things in this life which bring us joy and/or sorrow. Don’t become preoccupied with these joys and sorrows so much so that they tempt you away from your worship—our time with Christ. The reason is obvious. The Lord, through His Word and the Sacrament of Holy Baptism not only turned our lives around, delivered us from eternal death, and gave us eternal life, but He also, through His Word and the Sacrament of Holy Communion, keeps us from turning back to the old ways of this world—of sin and death. And boy, do we need all the help we can get when it comes to keeping us in the way of repentance and faith. For even though it is obvious that “the present form of this world is passing away,” we are still drawn back to its sinful ways, like a dog to its vomit. That’s why part of the help God gives us in knowing that the of this world has been shortened.
Let me give you an illustration. Have you ever had an opportunity to move house or change jobs to something better? During your last days in that house or job, the things that use to upset you don’t bother you now—they are now big deal. On the other hand, some of those important things you kept putting off, thinking that you had plenty of time and would eventually get around to, suddenly become a lot more urgent.
That’s the way God wants us to live out our remaining days in this world—not letting the negative things upset you or the things of this world consume you, because you know they won’t last much longer. At the same time, all the petty arguments, worries and fears are no big deal. You’ll be moving on to bigger and better things soon, so you do your best to patch up those arguments; right those wrongs; share the good new of Jesus Christ with as many people as you can, not being concerned about how they will feel about you, but more about pleasing the Lord whom you will soon be seeing face to face!
How is all this possible? Because of what Jesus did for us through His life, death and resurrection—getting rid of our sins and paving for us the way to heaven. And because of what our Lord continues to do for us through His Word and Sacraments, creating and sustaining our faith in all His promises. Because our God given faith in God’s promise of forgiveness and eternal life in Christ, we can live our lives as though our time in this valley of the shadow of death will soon be over and our life in paradise will soon begin, never to end!
Let us pray: Thank you Lord for enabling us through the gift of faith to live our lives in the knowledge that we are passing though this world on our way to our heavenly home with you, and that during our last days in this fallen world you have made us ambassadors like Jonah who have been blessed beyond measure so that we can be a blessing to others. Thank you for enabling us to know how short and precious is this time of grace, during which You desire all to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth, so that we may use the remaining time we have in this world bringing Your love—Your kingdom to those around us.
In Jesus’ name.
Amen.
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