Devotions
Rev Gav
Apocalyptic
Luke 21.20–28
‘When you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation has come near. Then those in Judea must flee to the mountains, and those inside the city must leave it, and those out in the country must not enter it; for these are days of vengeance, as a fulfilment of all that is written. Woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing infants in those days! For there will be great distress on the earth and wrath against this people; they will fall by the edge of the sword and be taken away as captives among all nations; and Jerusalem will be trampled on by the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.
‘There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars, and on the earth distress among nations confused by the roaring of the sea and the waves. People will faint from fear and foreboding of what is coming upon the world, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then they will see “the Son of Man coming in a cloud” with power and great glory. Now when these things begin to take place, stand up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.’
Reflect
Jesus predicted the destruction of the temple in Judea, and using apocalyptic language, expressed just how awful this would be.
Within Judaism, there was a traditional — we might call it a biblical tradition — of using a special style of writing when talking about future cataclysmic events. This style is called ‘apocalyptic’ and it is defined by using symbolic, visionary metaphors to describe events. There is usually a cosmic struggle between good and evil, some kind of earthly terror, and such writings end with a divine intervention to vindicate the righteous.
This is the style of narrative that is recorded by Luke, as spoken by Jesus, in the second half of today’s reading. Because of this, although it conveys an underlying truth, we cannot take it literally. It is like me using the idiom, “It’s raining cats and dogs out there!” and you looking out the window to see if there are any Dalmatians or Siamese falling from the sky!
For us Christians living two-thousand years later, it is difficult to comprehend just how important the rebuilt and glorious Temple in Jerusalem was to the Jewish people. It represented God and was the focus of pilgrimage and worship — and by definition, was expected to stand forever. It was inconceivable that it could be destroyed or desecrated, and yet, this is exactly what Jesus predicted would happen.
Yet, there is a but, because Jesus also explained that God would no longer be ‘contained’ by buildings made by human beings but would live in the hearts of every believer.
Remember the story of Jesus with the woman he met at the well?
The woman said to him, “Sir, I see that you are a prophet. Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain, but you say that the place where people must worship is in Jerusalem.” Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. But the hour is coming and is now here when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such as these to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” The woman said to him, “I know that Messiah is coming” (who is called Christ). “When he comes, he will proclaim all things to us.” Jesus said to her, “I am he, the one who is speaking to you.” (John 4.19-26)
In other words, those to whom Jesus was speaking in today’s Bible passage would meet ‘the Son of Man coming in a cloud’ and they could hold up their heads because their redemption was at hand. Why? Because each person would be able to worship God in spirit and in truth, and the good news is that we can too.
Pray
Holy God
Thank you that
I can worship you
in spirit and in truth,
that your Holy Spirit
has filled me,
and that I am forgiven,
restored, and reconciled
to you.
This day and forever.
and then