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| Whether you feel fine about the end of the world or not, Jesus encourages us that we are to endure even through the end. |
November 17, 2019—The Twenty-Third Sunday after Pentecost—Proper 23 (Gospel Reflection Track)
Whenever I hear a Gospel lesson about the end times, like the one we heard just now, the lyrics of an “old” song come to mind:
“It’s the end of the world as we know it!
It’s the end of the world as we know it!
It’s the end of the world as we know it.
And I feel fine…”
While these R.E.M. lyrics indicate how a famous rock group from Athens, Georgia feels relaxed about the dreadful portents of the mid-eighties, what about you? How do you feel about the end of the world as we know it? What do you think the disciples of Jesus thought about the end of the world? While we do not get any reaction in today’s Gospel story, I can imagine looks of terror from Peter, James, John, and others as Jesus told of false prophets, earthquakes, uprisings, persecution, and death!
Some call this passage the “Little Apocalypse,” and for good reason, right?! It sounds very much like the end times! And, when we read passages like this one with its deadly pestilences (to borrow some of the old King James’ language), we may wonder why we are reading this at all?
This week in the Men’s Bible Study on Wednesday morning someone asked just that, “Why is this passage one that the lectionary includes?” It’s a good question, and I didn’t have a good answer at the time. Today though, I want to answer that question by exploring this passage from three points of view: 1. the disciples', 2. Luke’s community's, and 3. our own. I want you to leave knowing what these words meant to these different groups and why this passage matters to us.
So first, what was Jesus saying to his disciples? To properly respond to this, we need a bit of context—especially what happened right before this story. After finally entering Jerusalem (remember Jesus had been making this journey for quite some time), Jesus with his disciples began observing what was happening at the Temple. Many rich people were giving out of their abundance, that is out of their excess. However, in the midst of all the commotion at the Temple, there came a widow who had next to nothing. And yet, she put in two of the only coins she had. She was willing to give not out of excess, nor what was left over, but out of her necessity she gave to God’s work in this world. That story blends seamlessly into today’s Gospel story when “some” (maybe disciples or perhaps others present) commented on the glory of the Temple.
It was as though what Jesus had just said about the widow’s giving went in one ear and out the other. For some said look how beautiful the stones were and what magnificent gifts had been given to the Temple. Jesus observing that a softer tactic had failed, used this moment to challenge his followers.
Now remember this group had been on a journey with Jesus as he healed people, taught the masses, and transformed lives. Through this Jesus’ path had always been meandering towards Jerusalem with betrayal, suffering, and eventually death functioning as the mile markers along the way. This journey would require Jesus’ life and he would freely give it, much like the widow freely gave all of herself over to God. When the disciples could not recognize the final destination of this journey, Jesus challenged them to see that the upcoming challenges (wars, famine, persecution) would serve as their own mile markers on the path of discipleship. What did today’s Gospel mean to Jesus’ disciples? This message was a challenge for the disciples to keep going and to keep the faith, for Christ would be enduring with them through the end.
Fast-forward about fifty-five years to the year 85 and many of these predictions from Jesus had come to pass. The Romans had destroyed the Temple in the year 70. As it fell, many teachers of the day preached wrongly that they were Jesus or falsely predicted his immediate return. In the larger context, Rome experienced upheaval as four Emperors ascended to rule the realm in quick succession right at the time Jerusalem was besieged. Some historians even described a constellation that resembled a sword and the coming of a comet right about the time that the Temple was overtaken.¹ All of these events would have influenced how Luke’s audience heard this story.
For those in the early Church living in the years soon after Jesus’ Ascension would have believed that Christ was coming back soon. He would quickly return to put all things right. However as the years went on, those hoping in God’s return must have felt a bit weary when it did not immediately happen. Like God’s People having to wander around for forty years in the wilderness, or like the ancient Isrealites hoping in the Messiah’s first coming, those in the early Church must have at some point grown tired of waiting. So, the meaning of Jesus’ message as told through the gospel writer Luke was to persevere.
Specifically Luke gave his community instructions on how to continue to share the Good News of Christ Jesus even during the most challenging and tumultuous days. When officials arrested Jesus’ followers they were to see it as an opportunity to share the story of Jesus. This was to happen not through prepared speeches, but by living in the present, trusting God to give wisdom and a word. They were to speak the truth even to those who set out to persecute them. Through Luke’s words, Jesus called these latter disciples to keep going, even if or when their family, friends, or the authorities turned against them. It was through these trials and having the patience to see them out that they would gain their souls.
To those who heard this Gospel around the year 85, this would have been the ultimate pep talk. As Christ’s message spread, those who were already undergoing suffering for their beliefs were surely yearning for inspiration to keep going. And, this may very well have been the meaning behind these words and why they were so important at the end of the First Century—inspiration! But, what about us? What do these words mean now? Why are we still reading this story almost two millennia later?
Whether you are R.E.M. singing about earthquakes, the Cold War, and the cruelty of life, or someone who observes dreadful portents in religion, in politics, in the environment, in the economy, or in everyday life, what Jesus said in this Gospel story isn’t going away. What I mean is that most of us at some point worry about “the end!” Religious extremists still shout in bullhorns that “The time is near!”. Wars, insurrections, national uprisings, and political unrest have become a part of our everyday lives. Earthquakes, hurricanes, tornadoes, fires, floods, famines, and plagues happen so regularly that news outlets cannot even cover all of them. With all of these terrifying signs as regular parts of our lives, we may wonder then what is Jesus trying to tell us?
Like with his own disciples and those who heard Luke’s words originally, Jesus challenges us who hear this Gospel now. Jesus says to us what he said to his first disciples. Keep going. Keep patience. When all of the world appears upside-down and falling apart around you keep the faith. Trust God. Don’t worry about a prepared statement or the perfect plan. Even if those closest to you turn against you because of the way you love like Jesus, keep on going. Keep on loving.
“By your endurance you will gain your souls.” These last words of this lesson do not quite get from the Greek to the English properly. Jesus did not exactly claim that endurance brings us into our souls. Rather he said that persevering in our souls—patiently and faithfully staying in relationship with Christ—gives us the endurance to make it to and through the end.
These are not empty words, nor did Jesus offer up an empty challenge. His statement is like what Barbara Brown Taylor once wrote about courage. To paraphrase her, we do not simply get courage. It’s not a transferable skill. Someone cannot simply will us to have bravery. Rather we must live through someone that makes us afraid to learn courage.² Likewise we learn faith, an enduring trust in God, not ahead of the challenges of our lives but in the challenges of our lives.
So patiently keep on trusting God! Do not grow weary of trusting God and doing what is right. Instead keep on loving God and loving your neighbor. And, as we continue on this journey with Jesus and fellow followers on the way, we will more fully awaken to the ultimate truth—God has loved our souls from the start and will love us in them through the end.
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1 Vernon K. Robbins "Luke 21:5-19" in Feasting on the Word, eds. David L. Bartlett and Barbara Brown Taylor (Louisville, KY: Westminter John Knox Press, 2010) 309-313.
2 Barbara Brown Taylor, Learning to Walk in the Dark, (San Francisco: Harper One, 2014).
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