Introduction: Brenda and I bought our son David a trumpet when he was in fourth grade and he just took to it instantly. He practiced in the basement every day and it was awful. Little by little we noticed that he was getting good and he got better every year. By the time he was at Kettle Moraine Lutheran, he played first trumpet in ensembles and brass groups all over state. He gained a scholarship from DePaul University in Chicago and graduated with honors. He played every day. David died in 2018 and he’s in heaven now. We laugh sometimes—and sometimes we cry a little—when we wonder if David will be the trumpeter who plays the final trumpet call on the last day. Of course, it’s just a joke.
But the final trumpet call isn’t a joke at all. On the same day Jesus spoke the words of today’s Gospel, he said, Then they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory. And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds. Just a few minutes ago you heard St. Paul tell the Thessalonians, The Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God. The prophet Joel heard that final trumpet in the Old Testament and St. John heard the trumpet call in his Revelation. At a certain moment in time—and we don’t know when—the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised, and every human being who ever lived on this planet will stand before the throne of God.
That’s where we are in the Gospel for the Last Sunday of the Church Year: When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered before him. This will be the grand finale of what we know as planet earth. This will mark the absolute end of God’s interaction with the human race as we know it. This will conclude all the words Jesus spoke and all works Jesus did to save the world from the ravages of sin and death. From that point on everything we know will change. I don’t know who’s going to play that trumpet—I doubt it will be David—but someone will play that trumpet and
The Trumpet Will Sound the Last Note of the Mercy of God
Jesus makes it very clear what’s going to happen when the trumpet sounds and he gathers all nations before his glorious throne: He will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. I doubt God has anything against goats or the left, but the point is obvious. As Jesus gathers the people of world before his throne, he will divide the believers and the unbelievers. He will have one thing to say to believers and something else to say to unbelievers.
Listen up because this is what you’re going to hear. Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. When Jesus speaks to you and me, he will be speaking to people who are blessed by his Father. Well, we’ve known that for a long time. We’re pretty blessed right now. We wake up in the morning and we go to bed at night knowing that God is in control. We’re sure of that, even when times are tough. We’re going to say that again on Thanksgiving. There’s more. We wake up in the morning and we go to bed at night knowing that God forgives our sins. We might go to bed with deep regret over something we did, but we don’t have to dream about guilt. And we don’t have to wake up with fear. There’s more. Come and take your inheritance, Jesus will say. An inheritance from God isn’t like being the beneficiary on your mother’s life insurance policy; it’s not like inheriting the family farm. When we were born we weren’t in the God family; people like us couldn’t be related to a perfect God. We’re far from perfect. And we certainly weren’t in the will. But Jesus changed all that. He came down to earth and covered up our imperfections. He undid what kept us out of God’s family. Because of Jesus, God adopted us. He became our Father and we became his children. Now we are in the will and the will says that we get I all! Long before you and I were ever born, God picked me out and he picked you out. Now we are his heirs to receive the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. We’ve been in the kingdom ever since we were baptized, but down here the kingdom is always compromised. Jesus is always at our side, but sometimes we walk with temptation instead. Jesus always speaks to us in his Word, but sometimes we don’t listen. Jesus always forgives our sins, but sometimes we don’t think we need it. Jesus always offers us his peace, but sometimes we doubt. Those sometimes? The sometimes happen because of our sins. But in this new kingdom sin will be gone and so will the sometimes. Our walk with God will be perfect, the voice of God will be constant, forgiveness from God will be unnecessary, and peace with God will never end. When that trumpet sounds on the last day it will sound the last note of the mercy of God. God’s mercy will have run its course. There will be no more need for mercy because God’s mercy will have completed its work.
Is it mercy? Is it really? Do you hear what Jesus is going to say? For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ We’ll be shocked to hear that. We’ll hear billions of Christians all looking at Jesus incredulously, all saying at once: When Jesus? When we did do this? We never did this. And then Jesus will answer: Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’ Jesus probably won’t see many big things in our lives. He won’t see the millions we gave to missions or the pilgrimages we made to sacred sites or wounds we endured because of persecution. He’ll see little things, things we hardly remember. Playing with our children, helping a neighbor rake his leaves, making a meal for a sick friend, sitting at the bed of a dying parent. Staying awake in a sermon, saying our prayers at night, filling our envelopes with our best gifts. Paying our taxes, obeying our laws, respecting our government. We never got paid for any of this, we never got famous, and we certainly never did these things to get right with God. There’s nothing so special in any of this, but these things are special because they come from our faith in Jesus. St. Paul wrote: For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. These are the works that Jesus will see on the Last Day. Were our works and efforts perfect? I guess not. But under these works of love lies confidence in the love and work of Christ. Faith is what Jesus will see on the Last Day. Faith he created and nourished and empowered. When that trumpet sounds on the last day it will sound the last note of the mercy of God for God’s mercy will have completed its work in us.
Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. We knew that was coming. The proposal we knew we would hear: For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, etc., etc. The conclusion we expected: Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’ But they did, at least many of them. They played with their children, they went to church, they paid their taxes. But what they did they did without faith in Jesus. They had a place in their hearts for their kids but not for the cross. They went to church but not to hear for the gospel. They paid their taxes but they didn’t trust their Savior. Under their works of love will lie no confidence in the love and work of Christ. Their unbelief is what Jesus will see on the Last Day. He offered his mercy, but they refused. When the trumpet sounds on the Last Day it will sound the last note of the mercy of God for them because the time of God’s mercy will have ended. Then they will go away to eternal punishment.
Listen for the trumpet call brothers and sisters. Whether you’re in a deep sleep or wide awake, whether you’re in a grave or an urn, you’ll hear the trumpet call of God. It will be mighty and majestic, much louder than David could play. Until you hear the trumpet, listen to the voice of Jesus. We have heard his voice this past year from Advent to end times. We have heard it at Christmas, in Lent, at Easter, and through the Pentecost season. Next Sunday we will begin to hear it again. Jesus calls us to turn away from sin and put our confidence in him. He invites us to trust his forgiveness and live without guilt. He gives us peace with God through the gospel in his Word and Sacrament. He urges us to kindness, compassion, and care. And he implores us to watch for the day when the trumpet will sound and with all the righteous we will begin our eternal life with him. Amen.
