ABIDING AND ASSURING THE PRESENCE
The abiding and assuring presence of God is all we need to endure the precarious moments of our lives. Hence, today’s readings assure us that our God will be with us throughout our lives.
God promises us the continuous presence of the Holy Spirit, who will guide, protect, and strengthen us despite the uncertainties of the end times.
FULLNESS OF SALVATION
The end of time is a moment of celebrating the fullness of salvation in God. It is not a reckoning time of death, judgment and punishment. Our Christian reality is one that whether we are dead or alive, we are in the Lord.
The Second Coming shouldn’t scare us, despite the scary rumours about events in heaven and on earth.
The projection could be that the end is at hand. The warning that things are going to be difficult economically, politically, emotionally or health-wise. There are many fake and panicking news of the end times with uncertainties of the year to come.
CHRIST’S COMING
The statement that “Christ will return in glory to judge the living and the dead” creates uncertainty about the end times. Each year at this time, the Church asks us to consider our “four last things”—death, Judgment, Heaven and Hell, or the end, judgment, reward, and punishment.
Therefore, as the Church’s liturgical year calendar draws to its close, every end always invokes feelings of apprehension and anticipation.
OUR THEME
The end of the Church’s Liturgical Calendar encourages us to reflect on and evaluate our Christian lives. It is a moment to renew hope and confidence in the Lord of time, history, and space.
On this second-to-last Sunday of the Church year, the readings offer hope and reassurance amid uncertainties and fears. They give us the feeling of confidence that our God will be with us all the days of our lives.
In other words, there is always a mixed feeling about the ending. These feelings come with all go-well or all turn-bad or all so-so. Many people live in fear, with insecurity or uncertainty about their fate.
The Catholic faith encourages reflection on the four last things of life: death, judgment, and heaven or hell.
SUMMARY OF TODAY’S SCRIPTURAL TEXTS
This Sunday’s readings focus on the themes of the end times, being prepared, faithfulness to God, and salvation. Dan.12:1-3; Heb.10:11-14,18; Mk.13:24-32.
FIRST READING: DANIEL 12:1-13
The first reading today is from the Book of Daniel 12:1-3 is all about the final vision. It is a judgment call that reminds us of rewards and punishment. As well as the divine assistance from heavenly hosts in trial times of life.
The imagery of Daniel is similar to the apocalyptic vision of John in the Book of Revelation. It is a salvific vision of our redemption by God through a prefigured person of Christ. The King, Lord and Savior of all, history, space, and time: past, present and future.
The end time is a moment of the intervention of God and his agents in our human predicaments. The vision emphasizes hope over despair, victory over defeat, peace over conflict, and righteousness over inconsistency.
Many biblical scholars believe that the prophecies of Daniel (167 BC) were meant to comfort and inspire hope in the Jewish people. A nation oppressed by the tyranny of a ruthless pagan king. It advises us to live wisely and justly in the present time, instead of worrying about the unknown future.
No doubt, the vision of Prophet Daniel is about fearful, terrible and horrifying images of the end of time. It is also about the hope of the resurrection of the dead in God. The Lord of history, space, and time connects salvation with the past, present, and future, not destruction.
PSALM 16
Today’s psalm reminds us that the Lord will be our inheritance during uncertain and chaotic times, providing comfort and hope.
This song is a faith affirmation in Christ Jesus, our Lord and Savior. “You are my inheritance, O Lord!”
The phrases from the psalm like my chosen portion, my cup or my destiny invite us to find faith and trust in God. We are assured by the psalmist that there is fullness of joy in the Lord. Likewise, there is salvation in the presence of the Lord.
Hence, our hearts, souls and bodies should find their rest and security in God.
SECOND READING: HEBREWS 10:11-14, 18
The second reading from Hebrews 10:11-14, 18 invites us to remember the perfect sacrifice of Jesus Christ. The eternal high priest of our faith that brought us peace, harmony and reconciliation with God.
This is because Christ offered a single sacrifice for sins that is valid for all time. The passion for the death and resurrection of Christ has many significances and implications in our Christian life.
It could not be repeated. There is something unrepeatable about any noble work that is perfect.
It need not be repeated since it is a demonstration of the perfect love of God to us. In Jesus’ life of service and death of love, we see the full display of the heart of God.
It is the exaltation of Jesus over death, shame and failure. The victory of God over Satan, sins, evil and guilt.
There is a wholeness about the life of Jesus that perhaps we ought to give more thought to. His life is incomplete without his death, and his death is not complete without his resurrection. Equally, we can affirm that his resurrection is incomplete without his return to glory.
It is the same Jesus who lived and died and rose again and is now at the right hand of God.
This triumphant victory of Christ over the enemies of God invites a Christian life free of sins and guilt.
THE GOSPEL: MARK 13:24-32
Mark 13:24-32 discusses the terrible events of the end times, calls for judgment, emphasizes the importance of being aware of end time signs, and highlights the certainty of the end, while also noting the uncertainty of the exact timing.
The gospel warns us that Christ’s second coming will be unexpected, so we must be prepared.
THE CONCEPTION OF THE END TIME (OLD TESTAMENT)
The day of the Lord was to be preceded by a time of wars, conflicts and hardships. The many books of the Old Testament declared that before the end of time, there will come. There will be all kinds of difficulties. Hence, when Jesus spoke of wars and rumours of wars. He was using pictures that were part and parcel of Jewish dreams of the future.
The day of the Lord was to be preceded by the darkening of the sun and moon. The Old Testament itself is full of that (Am.8:9, Joel.2:10, Joel.3:15, Eze. 32:7-8, Is.13:10, Is.34:4). Again, the popular literature in the days of Jesus is full of it, too.
It was a regular part of the imagery that the Jews were to be gathered back to Palestine. That is from the four corners of the earth. The Old Testament itself is full of that idea (Isa.27:13; Isa.35:8-10; Mic.7:12; Zech.10:6-11). Once more, popular literature loves the idea of the restoration of Israel and its glory.
THE SECOND COMING OF THE LORD (NEW TESTAMENT)
It is important to note that when we read the pictorial words of Jesus about the Second Coming. We must remember that he is giving us neither a map of eternity nor a timetable for the future. Instead, Christ is simply using the language or pictures that many Jews knew and used for centuries before him.
However, it is fundamental to know that all the things Jesus prophesied were fact happening. That is before, during, and after his days. He prophesied wars, earthquakes, famine, ecological and strange signs.
In this passage, the one thing that we must retain is the fact that Jesus did foretell that he would come again. We can overlook the imagery. Though this chapter of Mark is a difficult one, in the end, it has a permanent truth to tell us about the end time.
Only someone with a close relationship with God can understand the secrets of history. Jesus saw the fate of Jerusalem, although others were blind to it.
In other words, a real statesman or leader must be a man of God. To guide his country, he must be himself God-guided. Only the man who knows God can enter into something of his plan.
DOCTRINE OF THE SECOND COMING
It tells us two things about the doctrine of the Second Coming of Christ. First, it tells us that it contains a fact or truth. That is, if we forget could lead to our peril.
It indicates that the imagery reflects the moment of God. And that to speculate on it is useless when Jesus himself was content not to know. The one thing of which we can be sure is that history is going to be realized. Somewhere, in the plan of the salvation of God. There is a consummation to come in Christ Jesus through the action of the Holy Spirit.
It tells us that of all things, to forget God and to become immersed in the earth is the most foolish thing we can do. The wise man is he who never forgets that he must be ready when the summons comes. If he lives in that memory, in the end, he will triumph over all odds. There will be blissfulness, peace, harmony and eternal joy for him.
THE GREATEST CONTROVERSY
The theme of end times or the last days or Jesus’s coming is a touchy and sensitive one today. One of the most controversial topics in Christianity has always been the end times or the second coming of Jesus.
Christianity has been misinterpreted and manipulated in various ways under the guise of different doctrines and teachings.
The biblical warnings of the end times are not to scare us but to encourage us to live faithfully. We are invited to focus on God, who is the Lord of history, time, and space.
OUR LESSONS
The readings invite us to focus our attention on the threefold coming of Jesus:
1) His first coming according to the flesh, as Redeemer.
2) His second coming, either at our death or the end of time and the world, will bring our salvation to completion.
His presence in our lives grows as we embrace genuine Christian living by loving God, sharing our blessings, and serving others with agape love.
FUNDAMENTAL QUESTIONS
What is your take on the end time? Is this the moment of truth? Disturbing visuals and an unsettling demeanour? Or a moment of redemption?
Do you live with the hope of salvation or with the fear of damnation?
OUR PRAYER
Lord Jesus Christ, your teachings on death, judgment, heaven, and hell are not intended to scare your followers or us. Rather they are meant to prepare us for the changes and challenges we will face in life and at the end of times. Help us not to live in fear or panic state but to trust in your blessed presence with us now and always. Amen
