The Gospel Left Behind

Friday of Pentecost 4

8 July 2022

The "Left Behind" books depict a world in which God retreats from His gracious promises in Jesus Christ into legalism, in which the law becomes the source of salvation. This is tantamount to denying that Christ had come incarnate of the Virgin Mary, crucified, died and buried to redeem us from sin, death, and hell. If we see the Second Coming of Christ only through the lens of the law, then that coming should terrify us and we too would say at that coming, "to the mountains, 'Fall on us,' and to the hills, 'Cover us!' (Lk 23:30). The One who comes to judge the living and the dead, is also the One who redeemed us from our sins and we will rejoice to see His day, lifting our heads to see our salvation on the great and glorious Day of the Lord. Maranatha! Come, Lord Jesus!

Martin Luther

"For us it is not at all permissible to return to the Christ who is to come, except insofar as we expect Him on the Last Day as our Redeemer, who is to liberate us from all evils. For if we did that, we would believe that Christ has not yet been revealed but is still to be revealed. Thus we would be denying Christ and all His blessings, denying the Holy Spirit, making God a liar, and testifying that He has not yet performed what He has promised—which is what the Jews do." 

Martin Luther, Lectures on Galatians, 3.7