Scriptural Basis

1 Peter 3:18-20: “For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit: by which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison; which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water.”

Colossians 2:15: “And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it.”

Epitome of the Formula of Concord
IX. The Descent of Christ Into Hell.
STATUS CONTROVERSIAE.
Chief Controversy concerning This Article.

1] It has also been disputed among some theologians who have subscribed to the Augsburg Confession concerning this article: When and in what manner the Lord Christ, according to our simple Christian faith, descended to hell: whether this was done before or after His death; also, whether it occurred according to the soul alone, or according to the divinity alone, or with body and soul, spiritually or bodily; also, whether this article belongs to the passion or to the glorious victory and triumph of Christ.

2] But since this article, as also the preceding, cannot be comprehended by the senses or by our reason, but must be grasped by faith alone, it is our unanimous opinion that there should be no disputation concerning it, but that it should be believed 3] and taught only in the simplest manner; according as Dr. Luther, of blessed memory, in his sermon at Torgau in the year 1533 has explained this article in an altogether Christian manner, separated from it all useless, unnecessary questions, and admonished all godly Christians to Christian simplicity of faith.

4] For it is sufficient that we know that Christ descended into hell, destroyed hell for all believers, and delivered them from the power of death and of the devil, from eternal condemnation and the jaws of hell. But how this occurred we should [not curiously investigate, but] reserve until the other world, where not only this point [mystery], but also still others will be revealed, which we here simply believe, and cannot comprehend with our blind reason.

The Solid Declaration of the Formula of Concord
IX. Christ’s Descent To Hell
1] And since even in the ancient Christian teachers of the Church, as well as in some among our teachers, dissimilar explanations of the article concerning the descent of Christ to hell are found, we abide in like manner by the simplicity of our Christian faith [comprised in the Creed], to which Dr. Luther in his sermon, which was delivered in the castle at Torgau in the year 1533, concerning the descent of Christ to hell, has pointed us, where we confess: I believe in the Lord Christ, God’s Son, our Lord, dead, buried, and descended into hell. For in this [Confession] the burial and descent of Christ to hell are distinguished as different articles; 2] and we simply believe that the entire person, God and man, after the burial descended into hell, conquered the devil, destroyed the power of hell, and took from the devil all his might. 3] We should not, however, trouble ourselves with high and acute thoughts as to how this occurred; for with our reason and our five senses this article can be comprehended as little as the preceding one, how Christ is placed at the right hand of the almighty power and majesty of God; but we are simply to believe it and adhere to the Word [in such mysteries of faith]. Thus we retain the substance [sound doctrine] and [true] consolation that neither hell nor the devil can take captive or injure us and all who believe in Christ.

“Remember, O LORD, thy tender mercies and thy lovingkindnesses; for they have been ever of old. Remember not the sins of my youth, nor my transgressions: according to thy mercy remember thou me for thy goodness’ sake, O LORD.” Psalm 25:6-7

Ad Te Levavi is the traditional name for the first Sunday in Advent. It is the Latin title for the introit of the day, from Psalm 25:1: “Unto thee, O LORD, do I lift up my soul.”

As we prepare for Christ’s second advent – His triumphal entry into this world as eternal King and Judge – we lift up our souls unto the LORD and pray that He would remember and look upon us in His mercy and not according to our sinfulness under His law.

We pray that the LORD God (Jehovah God) would remember His tender mercies and His lovingkindnesses which He promised from of old – to Adam and Eve in the Garden, to Abraham, to David and to all the Old Testament saints (cf. Gen. 3:15; 22:18; Ps. 51; Isa. 53; 55:1ff.).

If the LORD were to deal with us according to our sins, none of us could stand in His judgment. We would all be condemned to the everlasting torments of hell because of our sinful hearts and our sinful thoughts, desires, words and actions (cf. Psalm 130:3ff.; Matt. 15:19; Rom. 3:9ff.; Gal. 3:10).

As sinners, condemned by God’s holy law, we flee in faith to the grace and mercy of God for the sake of His Son, the Lamb of God who made atonement for the sins of the world (John. 1:29; 1 John 1:8 – 2:2; Rom. 3:19-26). We pray: “Remember not the sins of my youth, nor my transgressions: according to thy mercy remember thou me for thy goodness’ sake, O LORD.”

And, because Jesus Christ died for all our sins and rose again on the third day, those who look in faith to Christ and His cross for mercy are pardoned, forgiven, justified and accepted of God (cf. Rom. 3:21-26; Eph. 1:6-7; Gal. 3:13, 26-27); and they have a place in His everlasting kingdom (John 3:14-16; Mark 16:16; Rom. 5:1-10,17).

Jesus Christ is coming again! Though He entered into Jerusalem, the center of the Old Testament church, humbly and riding on a donkey nearly 2,000 years ago with some hailing Him as the promised Messiah and King and others rejecting Him, He now is coming as King of kings and Lord of lords and every knee shall bow (cf. Phil 2:9-11; Rev. 19:11-16). He will judge the living and the dead.

How do you wish to be remembered in that Day? According to your sins and many transgressions, or according to His mercy for the sake of His blood shed upon the cross for the sins of all?

“Unto thee, O LORD, do I lift up my soul.”

O LORD God, our gracious Savior, do not deal with us according to our sins as we justly deserve under Your holy law, but deal with us in Your mercy and lovingkindness for the sake of the holy life and innocent sufferings and death of Christ Jesus, Your dear Son and our Redeemer. In His name, we pray. Amen.

[Scripture quoted from the King James Version of the Bible.]

Advent begins on the fourth Sunday before Christmas — this coming Sunday — and is often associated with all the preparations for Christmas celebrations, but its real focus is on spiritual preparations for the advent or coming of Christ, not just His first coming as a babe born in Bethlehem but especially His return as the Judge of the living and the dead. Thus, Advent is a penitential season in the church year, a time when special attention is placed upon repentance and faith in Christ, the Savior and Judge of all the earth.

Purple is the traditional color for the season — a color of penitence but also the color of kingly robes like that which Herod placed upon Jesus before He was sentenced to death upon the cross. Some churches use blue — also a royal color — as a reminder that Christ will soon appear in the sky on clouds of glory to judge all mankind. Advent wreaths, too, use violet and rose colors.

The season and the colors are a reminder to us of the Biblical doctrine that Jesus is the LORD God Himself in the flesh, who came into this world to redeem us and who is coming again as King of kings and Lord of lords to judge this world and establish His everlasting kingdom in which only righteousness dwells.

Scripture readings traditionally read and expounded upon by ministers focus on Christ’s second coming, His judgment and being ready for His second advent by repenting of the sin in our lives and placing our faith in God’s mercy and forgiveness for the sake of Christ Jesus and His blood shed upon the cross to atone for the sins of all mankind. Biblical preaching in the season calls upon all to examine themselves, repent of the sin and evil in their lives and place their faith and hope solely in the redemption accomplished by Christ Jesus at His first advent into this world.

When we do examine ourselves on the basis of God’s law, we see our utter sinfulness. None of us loves God with all his heart, soul and mind; and none of us loves his neighbor as himself (cf. Matt. 22:37,39). It is as the Bible tells us: “There is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not” (Eccl. 7:20); and, “We are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away” (Isa. 64:6).

And, when one considers Christ’s imminent coming and our shortcomings and utter sinfulness, confessing our sins and looking to Christ Jesus and His cross in faith for mercy and forgiveness is the only fitting response. Christ died for our sins and rose again on the third day, according to the Scriptures (1 Cor. 15:3,4), and those who trust in His sacrifice on the cross for the sins of the world are pardoned and forgiven by the LORD God for Jesus’ sake. Instead of being condemned for their sins, God graciously pardons and forgives those who look in faith to the holy life and innocent sufferings and death of Christ Jesus for salvation.

Though many churches no longer sing the ancient hymns of the Advent season, I find it amazing to join in the praises of all believers of all times for the God who both created us and sent His only-begotten Son into this world a true man to redeem us and save us from the sinful mess we have made of our lives and of His creation. After all, the Bible describes the prayers and praises of the saints (believers in Christ) rising like incense before His throne (Revelation 5).

During Advent, we sing “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel” — a hymn of waiting for the advent of Emmanuel, the son of David and Son of God, God with us — which has been sung by believers for more than a thousand years. We sing “Savior of the Nations, Come” — speaking of God sending His Son into the world as the virgin-born Savior to redeem fallen mankind — attributed to Ambrose of Milan, who lived from 340-397 A.D.

We also sing Johann Horn’s hymn from the early 1500s, “Once He Came in Blessing.” The first and last of those verses read: “Once He came in blessing, all our sins redressing; came in likeness lowly, Son of God most holy; bore the cross to save us; hope and freedom gave us … Come, then, O Lord Jesus, from our sins release us. Keep our hearts believing, that we, grace receiving, ever may confess You till in heav’n we bless You.”

“Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom. And five of them were wise, and five were foolish….” Matthew 25:1-3 Read v. 1-13

Are you ready for Jesus Christ to return on the last Day? Jesus told this parable to admonish us to be watchful and ready at all times for His return.

Jesus here compares the kingdom of heaven to ten virgins who “took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom.” The wise virgins took extra oil for their lamps so that they would be ready even if the “bridegroom tarried.” The foolish took only the oil in their lamps and did not consider the possibility that their lamps would go out before the bridegroom arrived.

As a result, these foolish virgins were not prepared and ready when the bridegroom came; and they did not enter with the bridegroom into the marriage feast.

With this parable, Jesus warns us against being foolishly unprepared for His return on the Last Day. It is foolish for us who believe in Christ today to fall asleep and not be watching for His return. It is foolish not to have our faith continually nourished and kept burning through the regular use of the Word of God and the Sacraments (Baptism and the Lord’s Supper).

If we do not make such provision by continually using of the Word of God in our homes and hearing the Word and receiving the Lord’s Supper in our church, we may find our lamps empty and gone out at Jesus’ coming. Our faith in Christ will have waned and died because we did not continue to hear the warnings of God’s Law or the comforts of the Gospel and we no longer placed our hope and confidence in Christ Jesus and His atoning sacrifice for our eternal salvation!

Those who have no living, saving faith in Jesus Christ when He returns in Judgment will be shut out of heaven, for it will be too late to repent and rekindle faith at that time! But those who have wisely provided oil for their lamps – those who continue to nourish their faith by remembering their Baptism, reading and hearing the Word of God, and receiving the body and blood of Christ given and shed for the remission of sins that the Holy Ghost may, through these means, keep their faith burning and assure them of forgiveness for all their sins and of life everlasting for Jesus’ sake – will enter into heaven with Jesus and enjoy its blessings forever (cf. Revelation 19:7-9; 21:24).

With my lamp well trimmed and burning, swift to hear and slow to roam, watching for Thy glad returning to restore me to my home. Come, my Savior, Come, my Savior, O my Savior, quickly come. Amen. (The Lutheran Hymnal, Hymn #606, Verse 4)

[Scripture quoted from the King James Version of the Bible.]

“But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words.” 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

Jesus Christ is coming again to judge the living and the dead! We confess this in our creeds and we hear it in our Scripture readings. Jesus said, “As the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be” (Matthew 24:27; cf. Chapters 24 and 25 of Matthew’s Gospel). We are to be ready by repenting of our sinful ways and looking in faith to Christ and His atoning sacrifice on the cross.

The believers in Thessalonica “turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God; and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come” (1 Thessalonians 1:9-10). They had come to believe the Gospel and to trust in Christ Jesus for their salvation, and they were awaiting His glorious return to take them to be with Him forever in heaven.

But what of those who have died in the faith before the coming of Christ Jesus? If a believer dies before the return of Jesus, have they lost out? St. Paul tells us the answer in chapter 4, beginning at v. 13.

We do not have to sorrow when a fellow believer falls asleep, or dies, trusting in the Lord Jesus. We do not need to sorrow as others do, who have no hope. Why? Consider the inspired words of Paul’s letter: “If we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.”

This is no secret rapture or snatching away of believers as some suggest. The apostle says: “The Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God” (cf. Matthew 24:29ff.; 25:31ff.; Revelation 1:7; 1 Thessalonians 5:1ff.; 2 Thessalonians 1:6-10; Matthew 13:47ff.).

Jesus, who died for our sins and rose again (cf. 1 Corinthians 15:3ff.), will bring with Him the souls of all the saints who have gone before us, the souls of all who have trusted in His name. This, of course, means that when believers die, their souls are taken to be with the Lord Jesus in heaven. Consider poor Lazarus, whose soul was carried by angels into the “bosom of Abraham” (Luke 16:19ff.), or the thief on the cross whose soul was that day taken to paradise (Luke 23:43). Consider the Apostle Paul’s words in Philippians 1:21ff. He desired to depart and be with Christ, which is far better.

When Jesus returns, all who have died in the faith will be raised up. It won’t matter whether the body is preserved through embalming, decayed to dust or turned to ashes, all the dead will rise and stand before the LORD God. The Bible says: “And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works” (Revelation 20:12-13).

How will we be judged? According to our works. The Bible says: “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad” (2 Corinthians 5:10; cf. Matthew 25:31ff.). But our works do not measure up! According to God’s Word, we’ve all sinned and come short of what God requires of us to enter into His glory (cf. Romans 3:23; Ecclesiastes 7:20).

So, how is it that we sinners can be acceptable and righteous in God’s eyes? We read on in the chapter (2 Corinthians 5:19-21): “God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation. Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ’s stead, be ye reconciled to God. For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” It is through faith in the atoning sacrifice of Jesus! It is by fleeing to the holy life and innocent sufferings and death of Christ Jesus in our stead. It is by washing our robes and making them white in the blood of the Lamb (Revelation 7:14). “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus…” (Romans 8:1; cf. v. 34). Or, as Jesus said, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life” (John 5:24).

Believers who are living in this world when Jesus returns will not go before those who have died. The Word of God says: “that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent [precede] them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air.”

It is as Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 15:51-54: “Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.”

And, “so shall we ever be with the Lord”! When Christ returns, the dead are raised up and we are changed, we will be forever with the Lord. Jesus said, “In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also” ( John 14:2-3).

It is described this way in Revelation 21:3-4: “And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.” It is then that we will serve our God “in everlasting righteousness, innocence, and blessedness” (Luther’s Small Catechism, Second Article; cf. Third Article and Luke 1:75).

So, why do we have hope when a fellow believer dies? And, why can we face our own deaths in hope and confidence? It is because of Jesus Christ, who died for our sins and rose again! By His death He made full atonement for all our sins – indeed, for the sins of all (cf. 1 John 2:1-2) – and by His resurrection, we have the assurance that His sacrifice for sins was acceptable to God and that all who place their faith in Him are also justified and forgiven and acceptable to God (cf. Romans 4:23 – 5:2; Ephesians 1:6-7). And we have the assurance that, as Christ was raised from the dead on the third day, so we also will be raised from the dead to spend eternity with our God and Savior!

We have the confidence of Job, who confessed: “I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: and though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God: whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another; though my reins be consumed within me” (Job 19:25-27).

O gracious Savior, grant us faith in You and Your cross that we might have a certain hope of forgiveness, life and eternal salvation. Amen.

[Scripture quoted from the King James Version of the Bible.]