The First Sunday in Lent

Sermon | Pastor Daniel Endresen

Psalm 91; Joel 2:28-32; Revelation 3:1-6; Luke 12:35-40

Psalm 91 (New Coverdale)

1      Whoever dwells under the defense of the Most High * 

         shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.

2      I will say unto the Lord, “You are my refuge and my stronghold, *

         my God in whom I will trust.”

3      For he shall deliver you from the snare of the hunter * 

         and from the deadly pestilence.

4      He shall defend you under his wings, and you shall be safe under his feathers; *

         his faithfulness and truth shall be your shield and buckler.

5      You shall not be afraid of any terror by night, *

         nor of the arrow that flies by day,

6      Of the pestilence that walks in darkness, * 

         nor of the sickness that destroys at noonday.

7      A thousand shall fall beside you, and ten thousand at your right hand, *

         but it shall not come near you.

8      Indeed, with your eyes you shall behold *

         and see the reward of the ungodly. 

9      Because you have said, “The Lord is my refuge,” * 

         and have made the Most High your stronghold, 

10    There shall no evil happen to you, *

         neither shall any plague come near your dwelling.

11    For he shall give his angels charge over you, * 

         to keep you in all your ways.

12    They shall bear you in their hands, *

         that you hurt not your foot against a stone.

13    You shall tread upon the lion and adder; *

         the young lion and the serpent you shall trample under your feet. 

14    “Because he has set his love upon me, therefore I will deliver him; *

         I will lift him up, because he has known my Name.

15    He shall call upon me, and I will hear him; *

         indeed, I am with him in trouble; I will deliver him and bring him honor.

16    With long life I will satisfy him, *

         and show him my salvation.”

Joel 2:28-32 (NKJV)

“And it shall come to pass afterward
That I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh;
Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
Your old men shall dream dreams,
Your young men shall see visions.
And also on My menservants and on My maidservants
I will pour out My Spirit in those days.

“And I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth:
Blood and fire and pillars of smoke.
The sun shall be turned into darkness,
And the moon into blood,
Before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord.
And it shall come to pass
That whoever calls on the name of the Lord
Shall be saved.
For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be deliverance,
As the Lord has said,
Among the remnant whom the Lord calls.

Luke 12:35-40 (NKJV)

“Let your waist be girded and your lamps burning; and you yourselves be like men who wait for their master, when he will return from the wedding, that when he comes and knocks they may open to him immediately. Blessed are those servants whom the master, when he comes, will find watching. Assuredly, I say to you that he will gird himself and have them sit down to eat, and will come and serve them. And if he should come in the second watch, or come in the third watch, and find them so, blessed are those servants. But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into. Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.”

Revelation 3:1-6 (NKJV)

“And to the angel of the church in Sardis write,

‘These things says He who has the seven Spirits of God and the seven stars: “I know your works, that you have a name that you are alive, but you are dead. Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die, for I have not found your works perfect before God. Remember therefore how you have received and heard; hold fast and repent. Therefore if you will not watch, I will come upon you as a thief, and you will not know what hour I will come upon you. You have a few nameseven in Sardis who have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with Me in white, for they are worthy. He who overcomes shall be clothed in white garments, and I will not blot out his name from the Book of Life; but I will confess his name before My Father and before His angels.

“He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” ’