Readings for Sunday November 14, 2010

Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time

“By your perseverance you will secure your lives.” (Luke 21:19)
“We’ll never be perfect disciples. We’re human and face tough temptations. Wear these clothes – you’ll fit in. Drink this – you’ll have friends. Cheat – you need the grade. Laugh at them – don’t be a loser.”

We’re going to trip up.

The early Christians faced tough choices too. Luke included this passage (21:19) to warn his community about people who claimed Jesus had returned and “the end is near.” This gospel also reminds folks that Christ stands with us through temptation, persecution, and even failure.
It’s tough out there. But remember, Jesus says we secure our lives through perseverance as Christians. That means we need to keep trying. Over time we’ll see progress in our Christian living, and we’ll worry less about perfection.
Sunday’s Gospel reading tells us that Jesus’ second coming is not just a one-day event. Rather, it is the culmination of a seemingly ageless battle between light and darkness. This battle has been raging since the devil was first driven out of heaven, and Satan’s goal is to keep on fighting until everything in creation has been overwhelmed.
What the devil hasn’t counted on, however, is the surpassing per-severance of God. He remains ever the same, and his patience will not expire with a cataclysmic snap engulfing the world in darkness. No, he is ever kind, compassionate, and gentle toward his people. He will never abandon the world to the devil. And neither will he let us succeed in totally destroying one another. He is waiting patiently, “not wishing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9).
When we ponder the Second Coming—as we do every year at this time—we have two choices. Either we can become frightened and over-whelmed, or we can recall the truths of the gospel. God is in control of everything. We are safe and secure in Christ. We know the One in whom we have believed—Jesus, who died out of love for us. He is able to guard us until he comes again. We can place our trust and hope in him.
Why are we fooled by appearances? Why are we lulled into complacency by the calm before the storm? (Remember September 10th?) Why are we tempted to give up when the world finally comes crashing down around our ears? Focused upon the end of the world, Jesus addressed these questions in Luke's gospel.
So in the midst of upheavals such as the ones Jesus described, hold on to hope. From beginning to end, he reassures us, “Do not be terrified” (Luke 21:9). “Not a hair on your head will be destroyed” (21:18). We don’t even have to worry about how to defend ourselves, for Jesus will give us the wisdom we need. In Christ, through faith and obedience, we will never be left alone. So lift up your heart to the Lord and entrust every-thing—all times, all seasons—into his loving care.

“Lord, I believe that you love and watch over me at all times. Strengthen my faith and my resolve to obey you, so that I may endure in patient hope until the day you come again.”




Reading 1 Malachi 3:19-20a

19 Lo, the day is coming, blazing like an oven, when all the proud and all evildoers will be stubble, and the day that is coming will set them on fire, leaving them neither root nor branch, says the LORD of hosts. 20a But for you who fear my name, there will arise the sun of justice with its healing rays.

Question: Have you ever called out to God for the bad times to end? What happened?
When will evil be taken from our eyes? When will our enemies taste justice? These questions are as old as humanity, yet as new as today's reports. This vexing can be summed up in one question. Lord, when will you come?

The prophet Malachi proclaimed his oracles when the world was undergoing change. In the fifth century B.C., the Persian Empire returned the Jews to their homeland from exile in Babylon. Yet, these benevolent rulers faced the rising menace from the Greeks to the west. At home, the excitement of the return had worn thin. Jewish leadership (especially in the Temple) had returned to its corrupt ways. The poor suffered at the hands of the rich. Lost in the stress of political instability and religious corruption was faith. In the face of this turmoil, God was forgotten.

The prophet wrote a simple message. God would return. In the coming day of judgement, the Lord would consume the evil like a flash fire of intense heat. But that same fire would sooth the faithful. [19-20a]

God's judgment is a two-edged sword. It condemns yet vindicates. His judgment will come, despite the seeming delay. But rest assured. It will come.

How do you look forward to the coming of the Lord?

Reading 2 2 Thessalonians 3:7-12

7 Brothers and sisters: You know how one must imitate us. For we did not act in a disorderly way among you, 8 nor did we eat food received free from anyone. On the contrary, in toil and drudgery, night and day we worked, so as not to burden any of you. 9 Not that we do not have the right. Rather, we wanted to present ourselves as a model for you, so that you might imitate us. 10 In fact, when we were with you, we instructed you that if anyone was unwilling to work, neither should that one eat. 11 We hear that some are conducting themselves among you in a disorderly way, by not keeping busy but minding the business of others. 12 Such people we instruct and urge in the Lord Jesus Christ to work quietly and to eat their own food.

Question: Do you pray for wisdom when you contribute your time, energy, and money in charitable work? How has that prayer helped you?

In 2 Thessalonians, the author did address the limits of Christian charity. Charity was meant to help those in need, not the lazy in want. Those who can work should, those who cannot work should receive help.
Sometimes it is difficult to distinguish between those in need and those in want. Obviously, decisions when and where to give charity require wisdom. Let us pray for this virtue when we place limits on Christian charity.

Gospel Luke 21:5-19

5 While some people were speaking about how the temple was adorned with costly stones and votive offerings, Jesus said, "6 All that you see here--the days will come when there will not be left a stone upon another stone that will not be thrown down."
7 Then they asked him, "Teacher, when will this happen? And what sign will there be when all these things are about to happen?" 8 He answered, "See that you not be deceived, for many will come in my name, saying,
'I am he,’ and 'The time has come.’ Do not follow them! 9 When you hear of wars and insurrections, do not be terrified; for such things must happen first, but it will not immediately be the end." 10 Then he said to them, "Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. 11 There will be powerful earthquakes, famines, and plagues from place to place; and awesome sights and mighty signs will come from the sky.
12 "Before all this happens, however, they will seize and persecute you, they will hand you over to the synagogues and to prisons, and they will have you led before kings and governors because of my name.
13 It will lead to your giving testimony. 14 Remember, you are not to prepare your defense beforehand, 15 for I myself shall give you a wisdom in speaking that all your adversaries will be powerless to resist or refute. 16 You will even be handed over by parents, brothers, relatives, and friends and they will put some of you to death.
17 You will be hated by all because of my name, 18 but not a hair on your head will be destroyed. 19 By your perseverance you will secure your lives."

Question: How impressed are we with appearances? After all, media, Hollywood, and much of computer software are built on appearance. Sometimes, we Americans are swayed and even hood-winked by appearances. There was calm before the storm. Then, there was a panic with a world that failed us. Are we lulled by calm? Are we surprised by panic?

The challenge Jesus put before us is clear vision. Can we see beyond the crises of life and nation? Can our faith help us to withstand the challenges of these uncertain times? With God's help, we can.
Pray this week for the strength to see clearly. Look at the world at large, or at your world. Try to see beyond the troubles and look for God's will. Trust your prayer will be answered.


Something to think about!!

Are these the end times? Is the end of the world getting close? It seems so many of the Biblical prophecies about the end of the world are coming true….. what do you think?
Have you ever tried to make a prediction? Here are some predictions from the past. All from people who were trusted individuals:

Thomas Watson, chairman of IBM, in 1943 said, "I think there is a world market for maybe five computers."

Popular Mechanics magazine in 1949 made this prediction: "Where a calculator on the ENIAC is equipped with 18,000 vacuum tubes and weighs 30 tons, computers in the future may have only 1,000 vacuum tubes and weigh only 1.5 tons."

There was an inventor by the name of Lee DeForest. He claimed that "While theoretically and technically television may be feasible, commercially and financially it is an impossibility."

The Decca Recording Co. made a big mistake when they made this prediction: "We don't like their sound, and guitar music is on the way out." That was their prediction in 1962 concerning a few lads form Liverpool. Their band was called the Beatles.

As the disciples walked out of the Temple in Jerusalem Jesus paused with his disciples, looked back at the Temple an predicted, "Do you see all these great buildings. Not one stone will be left on another." To the disciples this was bedrock. Nothing could bring down these walls. "Look, teacher! What massive stones! What magnificent buildings!" they said to Jesus.

The smallest stones in the structure weighed 2 to 3 tons. Many of them weighed 50 tons. The largest existing stone is 12 meters in length and 3 meters high, and it weighed hundreds of tons! The stones were so immense that neither mortar nor any other binding material was used between the stones. Their stability was attained by the great weight of the stones. The walls towered over Jerusalem, over 400 feet in one area. Inside the four walls was 45 acres of bedrock mountain shaved flat and during Jesus' day a quarter of a million people could fit comfortably within the structure. No sports structure in America today comes close.

You can then understand the disciples surprise. As they walked down the Kidron valley and up mount olive Peter, James and John wanted to hear more.

Jesus' prediction that a structure so immense would be leveled to the ground seemed implausible. But they pressed Jesus for more information. They wanted to know when. What would be the sign that this was about to take place. In their voice was fear. Fear of the unknown. Fear that their lives were about to change forever. Jesus had not made any predictions like this one. This was different. This, they could understand.

Forty years later Jesus' prediction came true. In 70 AD the Temple was destroyed by Rome. What are we to learn from this prediction and its fulfillment?