Have We Broken God's Heart! Luke 19:41-48

The 10th Sunday After Trinity                                     9-August-2026
Sermon Text: Luke 19:41-48
Sermon Theme: “Have We Broken God’s Heart?” I. Do You Know The Things That Make For Your Peace? (Vs.41-42) II. Do You Know The Time God Visits You? (Vs.43-44) III. Have You Cheapened His Grace? (Vs.45-46) IV. Do You Seek To Silence Him?(vs.47-48) by Rev. Nathan J. Rusert

I.N.R.I. God weeps! The Creator of all that has or ever will exist weeps. The Only Source of Total Truth weeps. What drives the omnipotent Creator to grieve? History records, Gen 6:5-6 Then the LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. (6) And the LORD was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart.  
     Less than two millennia before on the first Friday of all time, the Lord God had rejoiced. Rejoiced to call forth all living land creatures by speaking His Word. His intelligent design is still witnessed in the information He spoke into every cell of every living thing. On that first 24hour Friday of all time -the only One God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit said, Gen 1:26 , "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth." As a Potter He got His hands dirty, carefully forming Adam from the dusty clay, then He knelt down and kissed mankind alive - breathing into us the breath of life - His life giving Spirit. He rejoiced to create man. He knew that we needed to dwell in community and not alone. Causing Adam to fall into a deep sleep - He opened up his side, took bone and flesh from nearest Adam’s heart and created a woman. History records, Gen 1:27 So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. We do not choose our gender. Our Creator creates us male or female writing it upon our chromosomes from conception.
    The Triune God rejoiced to preform the first marriage. History records: Gen 1:28 Then God blessed them, and God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth." Marriage may be undefined by evil men in supreme courts, but it is only a lie. Marriage from the first Friday of all time is and remains the union of one man and one woman for life, to bear children from their own fleshly union as God blesses them, building a family, and subduing creation to benefit their children’s children.  
      It was only after the Lord God created mankind and married the first man and woman blessing them to bear children, that our Creator rejoice to proclaim that all in creation was now “very good.” Now mankind could commune with their Creator at the Tree of Life as they spoke to Him face to face and heard His life sustaining Holy Spirit filled Word. On the seventh day, the first Saturday of all time God rested, to set for us the example of resting in Him by hearing His Word and eating from the Tree of Life within His Church. All was very good!
     Then it wasn’t. Satan, a chief angel puffed up with pride, sought to displace his Creator. He rallied a third of the angels to follow his rebellion. They fought against our Creator and His faithful angels. Lost and were cast out of God’s heavenly presence to wander on the earth. Satan wasn’t content. Disguising himself as a serpent, he strode into Eden and whispered the Lie to our first parents! Reject the Creator! Become your own god! Make up right and wrong for yourself! Seek your own truths, forget God trust in your own reason and strength - you’ll evolve into higher life forms - god like beings - if you worship the creature - not the Creator.
     We live in the disaster of their decision. Sin tore us from our loving Creator. Sin shattered the first marriage. Sin broke God’s heart. He didn’t seek out our first parents in wrath, but came as the day was ending asking them, “Where are you?” “What have you done?” When all we could do was blame one another, God, and the devil for making us do it - He spoke His Promise. He would rescue us from Satan’s lie, sin’s deception, pride’s foolishness, and hell’s just fires - He would send His only begotten Son, born of a virgin mother alone. He alone would crush Satan’s head, suffering all the venom of our sin in His innocent body - He would die - He would rise forever breaking death of its sting.
      In this promise Adam rejoiced reconcile with his wife blessing her with the name: “The Mother of All Living” - ‘Eve”. Still their sin would burden their family. Their firstborn son grew up to murder his twin brother. Cain’s prideful worship of going through the motions without repentance was reject. Abel’s offering was given through repentant faith in the Promise of Jesus. Abel was murdered. Cain walked away from his family to lead his children further away from the truth of their Creator.
      About two millennia later we find God grieved, of the 11 to 14 billion human beings on the earth the True Church is whittled down to ten who still clung to God’s promise in Jesus by Holy Spirit Word sustained faith. God orders Noah to build the Ark to preserve life in His creation. God is grieved that He now must judge the wicked by a world wide flood. As the Holy Spirit testifies through Ezekiel, Eze 33:11 Say to them: 'As I live,' says the Lord GOD, 'I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn, turn from your evil ways! For why should you die, O house of Israel?'
       The Church of Eight. Noah and his family will survive the worldwide flood covering all landmasses for a year. God’s promise of Jesus will save us through water and His Word within the ark of His Church. Do you believe this? Or do we worship and serve the creature, rather than our Creator? Are our foolish hearts darkened in this last days with our world’s lie of naturalism - that all exists by accident - following the mythology of evolution? “Have We Broken God’s Heart?” I. Do You Know The Things That Make For Your Peace? (Vs.41-42) II. Do You Know The Time God Visits You? (Vs.43-44) III. Have You Cheapened His Grace? (Vs.45-46) IV. Do You Seek To Silence Him?(vs.47-48)
I. The fulness of time arrived. About two millennia ago. God’s promise of peace drew near to the place He blessed with His Holy Name! History records, (vs.41-42)The Eternally Only-Begotten Son took on our flesh in the womb of the Virgin Mary by the life creating power of the Holy Spirit. He came - the second Adam to undo what our first father had done by his rebellious sin. He came to bring us peace with our Creator. At His birth in Bethlehem the holy angel preached to lowly shepherds, Luk 2:10-14 ...., "Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. (11) For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. (12) And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger." (13) And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying: (14) "Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!" Heaven’s choir sang the hymn of peace between God and man through the flesh and blood of Jesus!
    For three years Jesus preached peace. He healed the sick. Freed the demon possessed. Raised the dead. Fed the hungry. Forgave the sinners. He alone bore their sin, infirmities, death, and hunger in His own body - it cost Him to bring them peace. Now He came to fulfill God’s promise by offering His own Holy precious blood and His innocent flesh as the sacrifice for our sin. He only is the Lamb of God. He alone takes away the sin of the world on the altar of the cross.
    Jerusalem did not know the things that made for its peace. Do you? Do you foolishly imagine that “things” make for peace? If you have a full bank account, a full stomach, a full house, a full life - then you can have peace? A foolish farmer thought the same, when God blessed him with a bumper crop - he was certain he could build bigger storage bins and have peace with many goods for retirement - Luk 12:20-21 But God said to him, 'Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?' (21) "So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God."
     Treasure the things that make for your peace - Jesus’ living flesh and blood. Sacrificed for all your sins, even those you hide from all others, they die in Him. Raised to life freeing you from those sins - no longer do they need to rule your life! Repent! Believe the Gospel poured over you in baptism! Rom 6:3-8 Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? (4) Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. (5) For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, (6) knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. (7) For he who has died has been freed from sin. (8) Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, - know Jesus’ flesh and blood clothes you daily and richly working forgiveness of all your sins, rescuing you from death and the devil, and giving you eternal salvation by Holy Spirit Word sustained faith in the Peacemaker.
II. On this day - August 9th - the Temple at Jerusalem was destroyed - twice. Once in 587B.C. by the Babylonians, and then in 70A.D. by the Roman legions under General Titus. The Roman army leveled Jerusalem to stop the Jewish rebellions. Jesus weeps for the path of destruction His people had chosen for themselves. (Vs.43-44)
     The Jewish historian Josephus records the fall of Jerusalem in 70 A.D.. Three competing parties within the city walls fought with one another. One burned the grain supply so the other couldn’t take control. Starvation came as Rome surrounded the city during Passover, when it’s population had swelled to over three million. Soon people ate their leather sandals, then resorted to cannibalism. Mothers ate their own children. Finally when the Roman army broke through Jerusalem’s wall they were appalled at the Jews butchery of one another.
     Carrying the cross, burdened with our sins to Calvary, Jesus told the weeping women of Jerusalem, Luk 23:28-31 ...., "Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for Me, but weep for yourselves and for your children. (29) For indeed the days are coming in which they will say, 'Blessed are the barren, wombs that never bore, and breasts which never nursed!' (30) Then they will begin 'TO SAY TO THE MOUNTAINS, "FALL ON US!" AND TO THE HILLS, "COVER US!" ' (31) For if they do these things in the green wood, what will be done in the dry?"
      Forty years after His death and resurrection the tree was dry - ready for the bonfire of God’s just judgment. Jesus wept. They didn’t know the time God visited them to save them from judgment. Do you? Do you treat baptism as one and done? Show up to be confirmed, maybe married, then one day buried - and imaging that as long as your name is on the books you are a shoo in to heaven? Repent! Return to where Jesus visits you every Sunday. He is here speaking you forgiven of all your sins. He is here feeding you His living flesh and blood at His Table. He longs to fill you with His cross won - empty tomb certified - forgiveness, life, and salvation. Don’t trample His blood underfoot - think His living flesh a common thing. Know that the Lord is in His Temple - in the local congregation to visit you now with His grace! Now is the day of salvation! Repent! Return! Call your family to return - now!
III. Monday morning of Holy Week the Lord enters His Temple in Jerusalem. (Vs45-46). At the beginning of His public ministry Jesus had cleansed the Temple. History records: Joh 2:18-22 So the Jews answered and said to Him, "What sign do You show to us, since You do these things?" (19) Jesus answered and said to them, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up." (20) Then the Jews said, "It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will You raise it up in three days?" (21) But He was speaking of the temple of His body. (22) Therefore, when He had risen from the dead, His disciples remembered that He had said this to them; and they believed the Scripture and the word which Jesus had said.
     The Jews cheapened God’s grace in His Promised Sacrifice of His Son. They went through the motions with no repentance - content to remain in their sin - thinking they had done God a favor - now they could steal from the Gentiles. Do you? Do you take God’s Word in our liturgy to heart? Or do you just mouth them - and run out to live like the unbelieving world? Have you made Emmanuel a den of thieves? Repent!
IV. The Lord enters His Temple speaking His Word to call us from death to new life in Him. A life of faith in Jesus and loving service to our neighbor. (Vs.47-48) Do you seek to silence Jesus? Drive away faithful pastors? Never open your Bible at home in daily devotions? Never talk with others about Jesus? Repent! Col 3:16-17 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. (17) And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.
       It is only through the Word of God preached by that God the Holy Spirit works and sustains us in saving faith in Jesus! Our Peacemaker! God who Visits Us! Our Brother Who frees us from all sin to new life! Our God who speaks to us in His Word! Let Him dry your tears! Amen.