Lectionary Reflection — Proper 28 (33) (Year B)
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| Thomas Kinkade |
As Jesus left the temple, one of his disciples said to him, “Teacher, look! What awesome stones and buildings!”
2Jesus responded, “Do you see these enormous buildings? Not even one stone will be left upon another. All will be demolished.”
3Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives across from the temple. Peter, James, John, and Andrew asked him privately, 4“Tell us, when will these things happen? What sign will show that all these things are about to come to an end?”
5Jesus said, “Watch out that no one deceives you. 6Many people will come in my name, saying, ‘I’m the one!’ They’ll deceive many people. 7When you hear of wars and reports of wars, don’t be alarmed. These things must happen, but this isn’t the end yet. 8Nations and kingdoms will fight against each other, and there will be earthquakes and famines in all sorts of places. These things are just the beginning of the sufferings associated with the end.”
Collect:
Blessed Lord, who caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning: Grant us so to hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them, that we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of the Life of the Ages, which you’ve given to all through the work of Jesus the Christ; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.
A long time ago (in a galaxy far, far away), when I started seriously studying the Bible, I learned that most scholars today believe the Gospel of Mark was written before the other Gospels.2 Furthermore, it’s acknowledged that the Gospels of Matthew and Luke use more than 40% of Mark’s Gospel for their own telling of the story of Jesus. Our Lesson today is one of the passages.
The parallel passages for our Lesson today is Matthew 24 and Luke 21. That is to say, if Mark was written first then Mark 13 is the foundation for Matthew 24 and Luke 21. Whatever else is said in those parallel passages should be seen as an expansion of what’s said here in Mark 13; not something new or different but a fleshing out of what Mark wrote.
The type of literature that’s used in Mark 13 is known as apocalyptics. This genre usually contains many cataclysmic images — the moon turning to blood, stars falling from heaven, etc. — and there’s some of that further along in the chapter. The term apocalyptic means “revelation” or “revealing.” The idea is that something hidden has been “uncovered” or “revealed.” The disciples asked Jesus to “reveal” when the Temple would be destroyed and what sign would show that it’s about to happen (vv. 3-4). Jesus’ answer, then, is apocalyptic — it reveals what is hidden to the disciples.
Apocalyptics is generally associated with eschatology.3 That’s another fancy word meaning the study of the “end times” or “final things.” In our Lesson today, we’re introduced to “the end” (vv. 4, 7, 8). The question we have to ask ourselves is, “To what ‘end’ is Jesus referring?” It may be hard for a lot of us to grasp (especially if one lives in the region of the U.S. that I live in) but “the end” that Jesus is talking about is not the end of the world. And, if Mark isn’t talking about the end of the world, and Matthew and Luke explain what Mark wrote, then Matthew 24 and Luke 21 aren’t about the end of the world either.
Jesus and the disciples had been hanging out in the Temple (11.11, 15, 27; 12.35, 41) where he had some harsh words for the religious leaders of the day and warned the disciples about them (12.9-12, 24-27, 38-40). He told them that the religious leaders “would be judged most harshly” (12.40; cf. vv. 1-12).
As they left the Temple, the disciples call attention to the beautiful buildings (13.1; cf. Luke 21.5). Jesus assures them that “not one stone” would be left; it was all going to be destroyed. Our context, then, is the Temple of Jesus’ day and not some supposed future Temple we hear so much about from some teachers today.
In the minds of those teachers and preachers, the nation of Israel will have to once more be Israel of the Bible, complete with a new Temple, priesthood, and sacrificial system. In their view, there has to be another Roman Empire that has to occupy the nation of Israel so that she can be wiped out again. In other words, some people today teach that this whole biblical story must be rebuilt just so that it can once more be decimated and, therefore, truly fulfill Mark 13 and its parallels. They just can’t believe that this passage has already been fulfilled in the first century. In fact, for some people, the destruction of the Temple by the Romans in 70 CE isn’t even an option. Because of this, the faith of millions of people is built on sand (Matthew 7.24-27).
It’s within this context of the Temple of Jesus’ day that the disciples ask when it will be destroyed and what sign (if any) would be given to let them know when “all these things are about to come to an end” (verse 4). The “end” they’re asking about, therefore, is the end of their whole world — the end of the Temple and the end of Israel as they know it. This is what the disciples want Jesus to reveal.
Notice that the first thing that Jesus tells them is to take care of themselves. They have to watch out for those who would come and deceive “many people” (vv. 5-6). They must keep their wits about them. When he tells them that “wars and reports of wars,” “nations and kingdoms … fight[ing] against each other,” and “earthquakes and famines in all sorts of places” are signs, they point not to “the end,” but “just the beginning of the sufferings associated with the end” (vv. 7-8). In other words, all of those things were signs for them about the then coming destruction of the Temple and the “end” of their world.
So, if today’s Lesson was all about them, is there nothing in it for us?
Yes, but not in the same way. Our takeaway is not about preparedness for the supposed “end of the world” or the supposed rise of “Antichrist” or other such nonsense. No. Our takeaway is about the trappings of our religious worlds and traditions. Let me explain.
One day I was having a conversation with a dear friend of mine. She was very dedicated to her faith tradition and its church buildings. I asked her, “What would you do if a law was passed that all churches must be destroyed?”
“I’d build another church,” she said without hesitation.
In other words, she couldn’t separate her walk with Christ from her religious tradition and church. While there is nothing wrong with those things, our faith shouldn’t be dependant upon them. In our Lesson today, the disciples were wondering how one can continue on in their faith if all that they knew about was destroyed. I think one of the things that Jesus demonstrated was how to live an authentic faith. Sure, he went to the Temple and gave offerings like others of his day, but there are also plenty of examples of his faith that ran counter to his tradition. I’m thinking most notably of his healings and companionship with those his tradition deemed “unholy” or “unclean” — lepers (Mark 1.40ff), the woman with the issue of blood (Mark 5.24b-34), eating with “sinners” (Mark 2.13-17), etc. In other words, it wasn’t Jesus’ tradition but his own experiential walk with God that sustained him.
So what about us? What would happen to our faith if every stone of our religious buildings were demolished? If there was an “end” to our established religions and they were all abolished? Would our faith be demolished and come to an end, too?
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In the Love of the Three in One,
Br. Jack+, LC
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1. Scripture quotations marked (CEB) are taken from The Common English Bible. Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible.
3. As I’m sure many of you are aware, I have a whole series dedicated to eschatology of the New Testament.
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