"Who Can Endure?"

Malachi 3:1-4; Philippians 1:3-11; Luke 3:1-6

Every once in a while we come across persons who don't go to church or don't get involved in the life of the Body of Christ simply because they don't believe they are good enough. Or, such persons have even been known to criticize those who do go to church, saying, "That person is a real hypocrite going to church! How such a person who does all those nasty things could go to church is beyond me!"

And there are, of course, variations of this attitude. I had one guy in a church I served who wouldn't participate in the passing of the peace because he simply didn't want to shake hands with all those hypocrites who walked around saying, "The peace of Christ be with you!" He didn't think they really meant it, he'd never gotten along with some of them during the week, so he certainly didn't want to let them "off the hook" by either shaking their hand, or by sharing Christ's peace with them. And, so, like clockwork, when it came to the time of the passing of the peace, this man would get up out of his pew and visit the men's restroom for a couple of minutes. That's right! Just so he wouldn't have to shake the hand of a hypocrite or two, he would leave the sanctuary during the passing of the peace.

And, certainly, this was a man who wasn't at peace, either with himself, or with his neighbors. When the day came that I asked him why he didn't like the passing of the peace, he could hardly even talk about it. And when he finally did talk about it, he began to name names and list all the bad things some of the members of the church had done over the years. And I remember that one of his comments was, "I don't know why they even come to the church, except maybe for show because they think its good for their business."

But, you know, there's a big difference between being a sinner and being a hypocrite. And this is a distinction that we should never forget. Hypocrites are persons who use Christianity for their own gain and care little about the teachings of the faith, while sinners are persons who know they have sinned and want the strength that Christ offers through the Church in order to live more faithfully in the future. Hypocrites are persons whose sin doesn't bother them at all. But sinners are those who may be very well aware of their spiritual helplessness and may have found that Christ through the Church offers the solution to their problem.

So, indeed, because all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, as the Bible says, all of us stand in need of God's grace. All of us are sinners. Not one of us can claim perfection or completely holy thoughts and actions. So, should we stay home instead of attending church? Of course not! For the devil, himself, would love it (the devil, himself, would applaud from the fiery bowels of hell) if the reality of our sinfulness kept any one of us from going to church. In fact, I would even rather see hypocrites in church than have them stay home, for at least they would have heard the word of God and would have had the chance to hear him speaking in their lives, calling even them to repentance, like God calls all of us.

Indeed, I think it is terribly unfair and even a sign of ignorance when persons presume that God's people are those who think they're perfect in every way. Our Old Testament lesson for this morning makes these thoughts very clear. In Malachi's vision of the coming Messiah, he sees the Lord coming to earth to reign. But then there is the haunting question: "But who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears?" In other words, Malachi knew that no human being on earth could stand before the Lord with impunity. No one is perfect! And we are wrong when we look for it, or the lack of it, in those around us, and especially in church on Sunday morning. For the only perfection possible in this life or in the next is not a perfection that is our own doing. Nor is it something that you can get from me as I preach. Nor is it something that you may obtain from the not-too-perfect movements of this worship service. Rather, perfection is the work of Christ, himself.

So, the question that was raised by Malachi is appropriate for us: "Who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears?" Only those who have been washed in the blood of the lamb. Only those who continually admit their shortcomings and allow Christ to enter. These are the ones who will endure. These are the ones who will be able to stand when he appears.

And it wouldn't be arrogant or presumptuous for us to ask if we may be included among those who will endure, if we will be within the ranks of those who will be able to stand when he appears. For the righteousness of Christ is available to all of us when we put our faith in Him.

I was amazed once when someone told me that they didn't want me to call them a Christian because they weren't perfect. Evidently this person had forgotten that a Christian is one who simply tries to follow Jesus, and knows that he or she is loved and accepted by our loving Father. Perfection will come to those who put on Christ. Indeed, I am a Christian, not because I am perfect, but because I know that only Christ can make me so.

So, Malachi's question is fitting for us to consider. Which of us sitting here, today, can, by our own works, endure the day of the coming of the Lord? Which of us can say that on the day of judgment we may, of our own merit, stand guiltless before the throne of God? But, of course, the answer is obvious. None of us, except Christ, himself. And that's why we need him. For it is by our kinship with him that we are saved. And it is only through him that, as our gospel lesson proclaims, "every valley shall be filled in, every mountain and hill made low, the crooked roads shall become straight, the rough ways smooth, and all mankind will see God's salvation.'" Amen.