2025-11-13 Twenty-third Sunday after Pentecost

 Twenty-third Sunday after Pentecost

Malachi 4:1-2a

The prophet Malachi is said to have prophesied around 450–430 B.C., making him the last of the Old Testament prophets - until we come to the era of John the Baptist and Jesus himself. Malachi warns the religious and political elites who shortchange tithe's meant for God by preying on the least powerful, for the perverse reason of accruing wealth and power. They will perish in the fire of eternal damnation. There we also find that those whom God loves are the labourers, the widows, the orphans, the foreigners and outcasts - who will find fulfilment in the Lord.

Psalm 98

Today’s psalm is a prelude for 
1) Next Sunday's “Christ the King” Sunday that celebrates his eternal, messianic reign
2) Start of Advent in two weeks with expectant prepartion for the coming Messiah.
The key message is that our faith should be joyful and hopeful, trusting that on the last of Day of Judgement, the faithful will be duly rewarded

2 Thessalonians 3:6-13

Today's passage makes a specific argument about how Christians need to behave within their community and the dangers of improper or disordered work. They were false prophets misleading the faithful by falsely proposing that the second coming has already occurred so the dayof judgement was gone allowing them to live carefree lives

Luke 21:5-19

Only Mark's Gospel is said to have been written either just before or during the 70 AD destruction of the Second Temple by the Romans under Emperor Titus during the Jewish War. Luke's Gospel, therefore, was not so much a prediction about the destruction as a caution against insecure and false leaders.

The Second Temple was greatly expanded and beautified by Herod the Great. He employed the most talented artisans and used the finest materials for the project, including white marble that was up to sixty-seven feet long, twelve feet high, and twelve feet wide. Blue, scarlet, and purple Babylonian tapestries made of fine linen formed a veil at the entrance. He had installed gold and silver-plated gates and gold-plated doors throughout.

However, all this was primarily driven by insecurity, as he sought to project his power both to Rome and to those he governed. His insecurity was grounded in the reality of the pressures from below (his Jewish subjects viewed him as a usurper because, though his father was a Jewish convert, his mother was Nabataean from Petra). Herod also faced pressures from above - a capricious Roman Emperor and Senate who were impatient with the troublesome Jewish resistance to their rule. Worse still, Herod also keeps an eye on family relationships marked by perceived threat, betrayal, and violence.  
 

Jesus cautions us about putting too much stock into human endeavour and institutions, even if were supposedly dedicated to Yahweh  - only God's love and mercy are eternal. The Second temple was destroyed in 70 AD but the church survives.
 

True disciples will have to suffer persecution and possibly death. Still, Jesus will be there until the end of time, sending down the Holy Spirit to speak the truth that will shatter all false pretenses and accusations.
 

As a cautionary note, the apocalyptic references a pattern of warnings about calamities, followed by reassurance of God’s provision for the faithful. This text doesn’t point to any specific current events, but throughout history, false leaders have predicted the end of the world and the rapture for their own self-serving purposes. All of them are premature; only our creator God the Father knows.