For Sunday, November
10, 2019 ~ 22nd Sunday after Pentecost, Year C, Readings:
Job 19:23-27a, Psalm 17:1-9, 2 Thessalonians 2:1-5, 13-17;
Luke 20:37-38
Luke 20:37-38
Job
said…For I know that my redeemer lives, and that at the last he will stand upon
the earth…I shall see God… [Job 19:25, 26b]
Hear
a just cause, O LORD; attend to my cry; give ear to my prayer from
lips free of deceit...My steps have held fast to your paths; my feet have
not slipped. I call upon you, for you will answer me, O God...Guard me as
the apple of your eye; hide me in the shadow of your wings.
[Psalm
17:1, 5-6a, 8]
...God
chose you as the first fruits for salvation through sanctification by the
Spirit...For this purpose he called you through our proclamation of the good
news, so that you may obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ...[2 Thessalonians
2:13b-14]
…but
those who are considered worthy…in the resurrection from the dead...cannot die
anymore, because they are like angels and are children of God, being children
of the resurrection...Now he is God not of the dead, but of the living; for to
him all of them are alive. [Luke 20:34a, 36, 28]
Seven Brothers for One Bride is not quite how the Broadway musical and
movie title went. [Seven Brides for Seven Brothers in case you're not up
on your 1950's musical theater/film history] The Sadducees didn't believe in life after death. That's why
they were "sad u cee." I know it's terrible, but it's a mnemonic that
helps me remember one difference between the Sadducees and the Pharisees. The
Sadducees, who were always interested in baiting Jesus with a trick question,
asked about the practice of a woman/widow with no children marrying the brother
of her deceased spouse in hopes of producing children (specifically sons) to
carry the family line. In this absurd and hypothetical case, the woman would be
widowed and childless seven times by seven brothers. The Sadducees wanted to
know - if there's this resurrection thing - whose wife would she be in the
after-life? For those requiring concrete answers to mystical ponderings it may
seem to be a reasonable question, but in truth it is irrelevant.
Jesus gives a simple answer to a
nonsensical question. He points out that the life in resurrection is not a
continuation of our earthly human existence. It is, instead, a radical
transformation, unimaginable in our human context; a completely different state
of being, a transfiguration. We will be who we are but different in ways beyond
our limited ability to comprehend in our current state. He tells them that those
who belong to this age marry...but...those...in the resurrection of the
dead do not marry. Indeed they cannot die anymore...God is not
of the dead, but of the living; for to him all of them are alive... To
put it simply, in our human sojourn many of us marry, some more than once or
twice. Yet remember, in western wedding ceremonies – religious or not – the marriage
is only until death us do part. After a spouse’s death we are no longer
married; neither is the spouse who has died. After human death we are alive differently
in a transition from the temporary state of humanness to the eternal life in
the salvation of Christ. Can we fully understand - sort of, maybe, not really.
But have no worries about it. LIVE in this life, work to be worthy of a
place in the next. Keep your footsteps on God’s path and hide, when needed,
under the shadow of God’s wings. Even Job knew that his Redeemer, and ours,
lives. The relevant questions, and so many more, will be answered in the sweet
by and by.
LET US, GOD’S PEOPLE,
PRAY
Leader: ~ O God
of Love and Grace, in You earthly death is a transition to Life Eternal for we
who are children of the resurrection. Keep us as the apple of Your eye and
shelter us under the shadow of Your wings throughout our human moment on this Earth.
O
Lord of Comfort and Good Hope
RESPONSE: Hear
our prayer
~ O God of Love and
Grace, may we, and those who lead us on this Earth, in this Nation, and in
this Community, arise each day with eyes fixed on justice, act without deceit,
and have heartfelt intent and purpose to govern only in the best interests of
Your planet and Your people. We pray especially for: add your own petitions
O
Lord of Comfort and Good Hope
Hear
our prayer
~ O God of Love and
Grace, incline Your ear to heed the cries of all whose spirits are low from
chronic illness, deadly addiction, or emotional turmoil, and lift the energy of
those who give them care. We now join our voices to pray aloud for those in
need…
O
Lord of Comfort and Good Hope
Hear
our prayer
~ O God of Love and
Grace, turn our grief to joy as we send our loved ones Home to never die again,
but be raised in eternal splendor and glory to new life in Christ. We pray
especially for…
O
Lord of Comfort and Good Hope
Hear
our prayer
~ O God of Love and Grace, we pause in this moment to offer You our
other heartfelt thanksgivings, intercessions, petitions, and memorials, aloud
or silently…
O
Lord of Comfort and Good Hope
Hear
our prayer
~ O God of Love and Grace, ease the path of all who are anointed
to call us to Your Word and Sacraments, inspiring us to serve in this world
together in Christ’s holy name. We pray especially for: add your own petitions
O
Lord of Comfort and Good Hope
Hear
our prayer
The Celebrant
adds: Creator Lord, Spirit of Hope, 101 years ago tomorrow, Your
people breathed in the promise for the future at the official end to World War
I. Yet we restive humans continue wars on battlefields and social media, wars
of racial, religious, gender oppression, and more. Hold our footsteps fast in
Christ, that we may not stumble on the worthy path toward our own resurrection to live again in Eternity with You. We ask through Christ, our Living Redeemer;
and the Holy Spirit, our Wisdom Guide; who together with You are One God, now
and forever. Amen.
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