In yesterday and today’s Gospel account from Luke 17:20-37, Jesus responds to the Pharisees questions about “when the kingdom of God would come” (Lk 17:20). We read how during the time of Noah and during the time of Lot many were eating and drinking, marrying and being given in marriage, buying, selling, planting, building. In effect, none had any clue about the impending calamity of the flood or the destruction of the city. They were so absorbed in their own pursuits and desires they neglected their relationship with God, and more importantly missed the invitation of God for their salvation. The only ones who survived were a small faithful remnant who were aware and listened.
Another focal point was on those who were attached to material and finite things. When the final hour came, people on the rooftop or in the field were directed not to go back and get their possessions. Much as we would guide someone today not to go into their home that was on fire, the priority was placed on the safety of the person and their family not their possessions. As Jesus pointed out succinctly, “Remember the wife of Lot” (Lk 17:32). Lot left and encouraged her to leave Sodom, she did physically but could not resist looking back, she was too tied to what she was leaving behind, and so she lost herself to her attachments, instead of keeping her face wet forward, being open to the promise of freedom ahead.
Matthew adds the words of Jesus in his gospel stating that only the Father knows the time or the hour as to when the end will come (cf. Mt 24:36). The point that Jesus was making is that spending time speculating when the end will come is a pointless pursuit. What is important is to be aware of the kingdom of God which is at hand now. The priority is developing a relationship with God now. If we are only going to prepare at the final hour that time may be too late, remember the Parable of the Ten Virgins from Sunday. The wise virgins were those who were prepared to enter the wedding feast when the bridegroom came because they had enough oil to light their lamps. Those foolish virgins that did not prepare, had to go to purchase oil, and upon their return the door was shut, and the horrible words they heard were, “‘Amen, I say to you, I do not know you.’ Therefore, stay awake, for you know neither the day nor the hour” (Mt 25:1-13).
A possible way to bring Jesus’ point a little closer to home is an example from my experience in the classroom. I might be sharing who God is, how we can build a relationship with him, an insight from Scripture that we just read together, a particular discipline of prayer like the Examen, how it is possible to be chaste as teens and adults, even with the recent flurry of examples to the contrary on the news! A hand will arise, my anticipation arises with it that the student will be seeking to go deeper into the discussion but then asks, “Is this going to be on the test?” The best case scenario is the student is being diligent to be sure they have the important material.
Often though the question parallels that of the Pharisees asking, “When will the kingdom of God come?” Both address not the intrinsic value of growing as a person, developing a relationship with God and one another, but each of the queries are more concerned with a minimalist approach to get by so they can get back to their own self satisfying pursuit. What Jesus shared with the Pharisees and what I share with my students is that the kingdom of God is right at hand! All we need to do is reach right out and grasp his hand and walk with him.
For the Pharisees, this meant letting go of what was becoming a dead letter and participating with the living reality of God in their midst. With my students this means praying the course instead of completing the course. So many of us are caught up in the day to day affairs of existing, we are so busy, that we are no longer really living. Jesus is inviting us to wake up, to breathe, to slow down, to be aware that he walks among us, and we are called, as was Lot’s wife, to keep our focus on God. Instead of becoming attached to material and finite things may we keep our focus on the things that are above.
Lord Jesus help us to recognize that we are caught up in the business of life and we are attached to too many things. Help our minds and hearts to be open, such that we, in the words of Pope Francis, “understand what faith means when we open ourselves to the immense love of God that changes us inwardly and enables us to see our lives with new eyes” (Walking, 12). Eyes that see the kingdom of God in our midst.
Photo: Hiking in California December 2015, with JoAnn, Jack, and Christy
Walking With Pope Francis: Thirty Days with the Encyclical The Light of Faith. New London, CT., Twenty Third Publications, 2013.
Link for today’s Gospel readings:
Spiritual Stepping Stones 