Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world

 "When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory.  All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats.   And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left.  Then the King will say to those on His right hand, 'Come, you blessed of  My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:  for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.'   Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink?  When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You?  Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?'  And the King will answer and say to them, 'Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to me.'

"Then He will also say to those on the left hand, 'Depart from Me, you cursed, into everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels:  for I was hungry and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink; I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.'  Then they also will answer Him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?'  Then He will answer them, saying, 'Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.'  And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."

- Matthew 25:31-46

In our recent readings, Jesus has been telling the disciples about the end times, and the time of His return.  In yesterday's reading, He gave the following parable:  "For the kingdom of heaven is like a man traveling to a far country, who called his own servants and delivered his goods to them.  And to one he gave five talents, to another two,  and to another one, to each according to his own ability; and immediately he went on a journey.  Then he who received the five talents went and traded with them, and made another five talents.  And likewise he who had received two gained two more also.  But he who had received one went and dug in the ground, and his lord's money.  After a long time the lord of those servants came and settled accounts with them.  So he who had received five talents came and brought five other talents, saying, 'Lord, you delivered to me five talents; look, I have gained five more talents besides them.'  His lord said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things.  Enter into the joy of your lord.'  He also who had received two talents came and said, 'Lord, you delivered to me two talents; look, I have gained two more talents besides them.'  His lord said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things.  Enter into the joy of your lord.'  Then he who had received the one talent came and said, 'Lord, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you have not sown, and gathering where you have not scattered seed.  And I was afraid, and went and hid your talent on the ground.  Look, there you have what is yours.'  But his lord answered and said to him, 'You wicked and lazy servant, you knew that I reap where I have not sown, and gather where I have not scattered seed.  So you ought to have deposited my money with the bankers, and at my coming I would have received back my own with interest.  So take the talent from him, and give it to him who has ten talents.  For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away.  And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness.  There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'"

 "When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory.  All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats.   And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left.  Then the King will say to those on His right hand, 'Come, you blessed of  My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:  for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.'   Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink?  When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You?  Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?'  And the King will answer and say to them, 'Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to me.'"  This is what my study bible calls the majestic climax of Jesus' discourse, which is not simply a parable, but rather a prophecy of the universal judgment that will indeed come.  Since Jesus' Cross is now near to Him, He raises the hearer to the sight of the glory of the Son of Man on His judgment seat and the whole world before Him.  He is clearly preparing His disciples for the Cross, and also all the rest of us for the time in which we live, in which we await His return.  The true standard of Christ's judgment is uncalculated mercy toward others.  Works that are produced by faith are the true emphasis here.  Saving faith always produces righteous works, my study bible tells us.  What we do reflects our true inner state.  The least refers to all the poor and the needy, in any sense of those words.  The needs that are described here include both physical and spiritual needs.  So, the hungry or thirsty aren't only those who need physical nourishment, but rather include all those who hunger and thirst for the hope of the gospel.  Sheep are used by Christ to illustrate the righteous, as sheep follow His voice and are gentle and productive.  But goats indicate the unrighteous, not because any creature is inferior to another, but because they do not follow the shepherd and they also walk along cliffs, representative of sin.  To inherit is a term used only with regard to sons and daughters, rather than strangers or servants.  The righteous, we are to understand, become children of God by adoption (Galatians 4:4-7).  Seeing Christ in others is the fulfillment of the great commandment to love your neighbor as yourself  (22:39).

"Then He will also say to those on the left hand, 'Depart from Me, you cursed, into everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels:  for I was hungry and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink; I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.'  Then they also will answer Him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?'  Then He will answer them, saying, 'Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.'  And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."  My study bible comments that the fire that was prepared for the devil shows that God did not create hell for human beings; rather, people choose this torment by their own coldness of heart.

One really couldn't think of a more eloquent parable than this, illustrating the importance of the practice of mercy, compassion, and love.  It is a perfect illustration of the golden rule, and -- as my study bible says -- the great commandment that Jesus cites to love one's neighbor as oneself.  Jesus has very frequently emphasized the importance of caring for the "little ones," here equivalent to "the least of these My brethren."  He is speaking directly to those who will become the leaders and founding pillars and bishops of His Church, so we must take into consideration His emphasis on this type of leadership among those who will be in authority.  But the teaching in the parable applies to each one of us, no matter what our situation, as we will each find circumstances in which there is an opportunity to exercise our own leadership and authority.  If you have a child, that is an opportunity.  If there is someone who is in some way one of the "least of these My brethren" who could use your help or care, then that is also an opportunity for the proper use of authority or position in a type of hierarchy.  In any situation or circumstance, someone who is powerful has the capacity to exercise the authority He proclaims in the parable for others who simply do not possess the strength, or the currency, or the capacity for doing for themselves what each of us would wish for if we were in such a position.  All of these are concepts of opportunity for the exercise of Christ's kind of leadership, helping the "least of these My brethren," whether that be someone with an illness, a deficiency of any kind, an inability to function in one dimension or another, or any other type of incapacity in any situation.  Let us consider how often we come across another who cannot fulfill every capacity or function for themselves, whether they are debilitated by their own frailties or susceptibilities or ailments of any kind, or subject to forms of prejudice or social stigma and hierarchies.  Frailty can be as simple as age and infirmity, or the helplessness of a child.  Let us consider the infinite ways God presents us with an opportunity to exercise the type of leadership and authority Christ proclaims as His own here.  He has already taught the disciples, on more than one occasion, that "whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant.  And whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave—just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many" (20:26-28, 23:11; see also James 1:27).  Each of us is presented with opportunities to "step up" and be the kind of authority that Jesus proclaims belongs to His household, His Church, His Kingdom, and the mansions therein.  Let us keep in mind that Jesus is not talking about pity when He speaks of caring for others.  He speaks of caring for "My brethren." 

For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away

 "For the kingdom of heaven is like a man traveling to a far country, who called his own servants and delivered his goods to them.  And to one he gave five talents, to another two,  and to another one, to each according to his own ability; and immediately he went on a journey.  Then he who received the five talents went and traded with them, and made another five talents.  And likewise he who had received two gained two more also.  But he who had received one went and dug in the ground, and his his lord's money.  After a long time the lord of those servants came and settled accounts with them.  So he who had received five talents came and bought five other talents, saying, 'Lord, you delivered to me five talents; look, I have gained five more talents besides them.'  His lord said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things.  Enter into the joy of your lord.'  He also who had received two talents came and said, 'Lord, you delivered to me two talents; look, I have gained two more talents besides them.'  His lord said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things.  enter into the joy of your lord.'  Then he who had received the one talent came and said, 'Lord, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you have not sown, and gathering where you have not scattered seed.  And I was afraid, and went and hid your talent on the ground.  Look, there you have what is yours.'  But his lord answered and said to him, 'You wicked and lazy servant, you knew that I reap where I have not sown, and gather where I have not scattered seed.  So you ought to have deposited my money with the bankers, and at my coming I would have received back my own with interest.  So take the talent from him, and give it to him who has ten talents.  For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away.  And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness.  There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'"

- Matthew 25:14-30

In yesterday's reading, Jesus gave a parable about His Second Coming:  "Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom.  Now five of them were wise, and five were foolish.  Those who were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them, but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.  But while the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept.  And at midnight a cry was heard:  'Behold, the bridegroom is coming; go out to meet him!'  Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps.  And the foolish said to the wise, 'Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.'  But the wise answered, saying, 'No, lest there should not be enough for us and you; but go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.'  And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding; and the door was shut.  Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, 'Lord, Lord, open to us!'  But he answered and said, 'Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.'  Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming."

 "For the kingdom of heaven is like a man traveling to a far country, who called his own servants and delivered his goods to them.  And to one he gave five talents, to another two,  and to another one, to each according to his own ability; and immediately he went on a journey.  Then he who received the five talents went and traded with them, and made another five talents.  And likewise he who had received two gained two more also.  But he who had received one went and dug in the ground, and his his lord's money.  After a long time the lord of those servants came and settled accounts with them.  So he who had received five talents came and bought five other talents, saying, 'Lord, you delivered to me five talents; look, I have gained five more talents besides them.'  His lord said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things.  Enter into the joy of your lord.'  He also who had received two talents came and said, 'Lord, you delivered to me two talents; look, I have gained two more talents besides them.'  His lord said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things.  enter into the joy of your lord.'  Then he who had received the one talent came and said, 'Lord, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you have not sown, and gathering where you have not scattered seed.  And I was afraid, and went and hid your talent on the ground.  Look, there you have what is yours.'  But his lord answered and said to him, 'You wicked and lazy servant, you knew that I reap where I have not sown, and gather where I have not scattered seed.  So you ought to have deposited my money with the bankers, and at my coming I would have received back my own with interest.  So take the talent from him, and give it to him who has ten talents.  For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away.  And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness.  There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'"  My study bible tells us that this parable illustrates the use of gifts which are given by God.  We are all endowed with some capacities and gifts of various measure and type.   A talent, in the ancient world, was a great sum of money; it was a weight measure of gold or silver.  One talent of gold, by one modern measurement, would be equivalent to about $1.25 million.  One talent of silver, in modern equivalence, is estimated as being worth $7.5 billion in today's U.S. currency.  But here in the parable, it represents the goodness which God has bestowed on each person.  The amount each receives is based on that person's abilities (Romans 12:4-7).  God does not show partiality in the ultimate reward, because all are invited to share in the same joy.  By the same token, the wicked and lazy servant could therefore not evade responsibility for ignoring his talent.  Idleness in this deep sense of neglect is as much a rejection of God as outright wickedness, as my study bible puts it.    Burying the talent in the ground is an illustration of using one's God-given gifts for earthly pursuits.  The bankers are other faithful people to whom the man could have turned to help him to use his talents wisely, those who expertise is in the "investment" that God has made in us.  Since help was available to him in the Church, the man hasn't an excuse.

How do we use our talents?  In the parable, it seems like the Master has invested His own gifts in His servants.  He trusts them to be profitable with the investment, to use His investments in them with prudence and wisdom, delivering a return and multiplying the gift.  And this is where we are.  Our lives are not at all static.  They are meant to have direction, one way and another.  They are meant for some sort of action, a choice.  We don't live in the world to merely exist.  We are here and equipped with talents, investments in ourselves by our Creator.  We're given wisdom, commandments, direction.  We are meant to take action.   We don't sit in one place.  We will always be confronted with choices that ask us which direction we choose to go.  How does God call you?  So much depends on what it is we think about, what we dwell upon, how we nurture ourselves upon His word, and most especially in prayer -- that is, in communication with the Master while He is away and before He returns.  Let this guidance be the principle by which we live; it will reap a harvest of returns in the sense in which the Master desires them. 

Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom

 "Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom.  Now five of them were wise, and five were foolish.  Those who were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them, but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.  But while the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept.  And at midnight a cry was heard:  'Behold, the bridegroom is coming; go out to meet him!'  Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps.  And the foolish said to the wise, 'Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.'  But the wise answered, saying, 'No, lest there should not be enough for us and you; but go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.'  And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding; and the door was shut.  Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, 'Lord, Lord, open to us!'  But he answered and said, 'Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.'  Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming."

- Matthew 25:1-13

In our recent readings, Jesus is in Jerusalem.  It is what we know as Holy Week, the final week of Jesus' earthly lifetime, and Passover Week.   In the past few readings, Jesus has been prophesying the destruction of the temple to come, the wars in Jerusalem, and also speaking of end times and His Second Coming.  In yesterday's reading, He gave a parable of the times in which we live, and how we are to live as His servants:  "Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his master made ruler over his household, to give them food in due season?  Blessed is that servant whom his master, when he comes, will find so doing.  Assuredly, I say to you that he will make him ruler over all his goods.  But if that evil servant says in his heart, 'My master is delaying his coming,' and begins to beat his fellow servants, and to eat and drink with the drunkards, the master that servant will come on a day when he is not looking for him and at an hour that he is not aware of, and will cut him in two and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites.  There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth."

 "Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom.  Now five of them were wise, and five were foolish.  Those who were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them, but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.  But while the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept.  And at midnight a cry was heard:  'Behold, the bridegroom is coming; go out to meet him!'  Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps.  And the foolish said to the wise, 'Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.'  But the wise answered, saying, 'No, lest there should not be enough for us and you; but go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.'  And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding; and the door was shut.  Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, 'Lord, Lord, open to us!'  But he answered and said, 'Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.'  Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming."  My study bible tells us that this parable illustrates the need for being spiritually prepared while the bridegroom -- Christ -- is delayed in His return.   The Kingdom is frequently portrayed as a marriage between Christ and His Church (22:1-14).  The marriage is to be consummated at the end of the age, when the Bridegroom returns to escort His Bride -- the Church -- into the eternal wedding banquet.  My study bible explains that this parable is mainly about the virtue of the practice of mercy.  In Greek, the words for oil and mercy have the same root and sound the same.  The wise virgins are those who practice charity and mercy, while the foolish are those who squander God's gifts.   The fact that all the virgins slumbered and slept indicates death:  in this world the virtuous will die alongside the wicked.  The cry at midnight is the announcement of the Second Coming, when both wicked and righteous arise for judgment.  My study bible adds that the inability of the righteous to share their oil is not due to a lack of generosity.   But it rather illustrates (1) the impossibility of entering heaven without one's own faith and virtue, and (2) the impossibility of changing one's state of virtue after death (see Luke 16:26). 

The ancient lamps mentioned in today's parable were oil lamps.  A small vessel held a "pool" of oil, in which floated a wick.  The lamp would burn until the oil ran out.  These are the lamps of the virgins in the parable, who would go out to meet the bridegroom.  Clearly the Bridegroom is Christ.  In the Greek, the sound of the word for oil is identical to mercy, and so the fuel for our own burning light is the oil of mercy.  Adding another meaning, oil was used as the base for healing balms in the ancient world (see the parable of the Good Samaritan), and so the idea of mercy is intertwined with the use of "oil" in Jesus' parables.   There is another Greek word to study in terms of today's parable, and that is the word for grace.  It is charis/χαρις, from which we derive the word charisma.  The original meaning for charisma in Greek is a gift of grace.  That is, the various God-given gifts each of us has for use, either selfishly or service-oriented -- whether we allow the dictates of mercy to guide us, or we squander those gifts, is really what today's parable is all about.  It's as if Christ is saying that we are each given the opportunity to build that pool of grace and mercy in our own lives through our own considerations and priorities, through the way in which we each live our own life.  This is the fuel that truly burns the lamp with a bright flame, so that we may go out to meet our Bridegroom.  All of Jesus' teachings for preparation of the life to come at His Second Coming regard the practice of mercy as the true key to that life.  The faithful and wise servant cares for the other servants and all in the master's household in order to "give them food in due season" (see yesterday's reading, above).  In today's parable, it is that pool or well, our own supply of mercy and grace, that allows us to "let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven" (Matthew 5:16).   This is the place where we connect our God-given gifts with the ways in which we choose to live -- and that we know that faithfulness is in how we live, not simply what we think or believe.  Can we live within His model of mercy and grace, using our own time and talents for His work and purpose?  How is the pool of grace made deeper and wider by your choices and works?  How is the fuel for the fire of Christ's light made bright through your choices?  This is how we are prepared and awake for His return.  It's how we are to meet Him.

Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his master made ruler over his household, to give them food in due season?

 "Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his master made ruler over his household, to give them food in due season?  Blessed is that servant whom his master, when he comes, will find so doing.  Assuredly, I say to you that he will make him ruler over all his goods.  But if that evil servant says in his heart, 'My master is delaying his coming,' and begins to beat his fellow servants, and to eat and drink with the drunkards, the master that servant will come on a day when he is not looking for him and at an hour that he is not aware of, and will cut him in two and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites.  There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth." 

- Matthew 24:45-51

In our current readings, Jesus is in Jerusalem, and it is what we know as Holy Week, the final week of Jesus' earthly life.  In yesterday's reading, He continued His prophesy of the destruction of the temple and war in Jerusalem, but also of the end times and His return.  After giving His warnings and prophecy of what is to come, He taught them, "Now learn this parable from the fig tree:  When its branch has already become tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near.  So you also, when you see all these things, know that it is near -- at the doors!  Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place.  Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away.  But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only.  But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.  For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.  Then two men will be in the field:  one will be taken and the other left.  Two women will be grinding at the mill:  one will be taken and the other left.  Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming.  But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into.  Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect."

 "Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his master made ruler over his household, to give them food in due season?  Blessed is that servant whom his master, when he comes, will find so doing.  Assuredly, I say to you that he will make him ruler over all his   goods.  But if that evil servant says in his heart, 'My master is delaying his coming,' and begins to beat his fellow servants, and to eat and drink with the drunkards, the master that servant will come on a day when he is not looking for him and at an hour that he is not aware of, and will cut him in two and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites.  There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth."  Jesus gives us a parable to explain the circumstances of the time period we are in, while we await His return or Second Coming.  We're to be the good servants who, in the absence of the Master, remember and follow His commands, taking care of His household and all of those in it.  It's interesting to see that, as Jesus is speaking to His disciples, He explains the circumstances in terms of leadership:  those who would be great in His home, and become ruler over all his goods.   Those who fail to follow His commands which require that we care for one another in the ways that He has taught are those who will be cast out when the Master returns.

It's very interesting that Jesus' parable is given in terms of appropriate leadership and responsibilities among those who are His servants.  It is designed to teach us what we are to be about, and to explain our own positions as His followers.  Are we going to be loyal and faithful?  In this context, faithfulness is not about belief, but the willingness to follow His commandments.  That is, our capacity to have faith in Him and thereby His teachings and His commands for our behavior as those who love Him and are loyal to Him.  In Jesus' parable, we are given the image He wants us to have of faithfulness.  Are His commands sacred to us?  He is the head of the household, and as His true servants, we do as He teaches, as He wants His household to be run.  It is all about how deep our loyalty and trust goes, and how devoted we can be in His service.  We are to care for one another, and not to treat one another badly.  His specific example here is of the faithful and wise servant . . . made ruler over the household, to give them food in due season.   What does it mean to give food to the household?  With what do we nourish one another, in His word?  Jesus' example of the evil servant is the one who tells himself, "My master is delaying in his coming," and begins to beat his fellow servants, and to eat and drink with the drunkards.  Those who defy His commands are negligent, abusive, and destructive, entirely forgetful of what makes for a good life and a good rule in His household.  So where are we on that scale?  The good news is that when we come to ourselves (like the Prodigal Son), we recall what we are to be about, we can resume our efforts in His service, repenting of our failures.

Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect

 "Now learn this parable from the fig tree:  When its branch has already become tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near.  So you also, when you see all these things, know that it is near -- at the doors!  Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place.  Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away.

"But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only.  But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.  For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.  Then two men will be in the field:  one will be taken and the other left.  Two women will be grinding at the mill:  one will be taken and the other left.  Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming.  But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into.  Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect."

- Matthew 24:32-44

In our current readings, Jesus is in Jerusalem.  It is Holy Week, the last week of Jesus' earthly life.  In recent readings, Jesus has begun explaining to the disciples His prophecy of the destruction of the temple, the war to come in Jerusalem, and the end times.  In yesterday's reading, Jesus taught them, "Therefore when you see the 'abomination of desolation,' spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place" (whoever reads, let him understand), "then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.  Let him who is on the housetop not go down to take anything out of his house.  And let him who is in the field not go back to get his clothes.  But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days!  And pray that your light may not be in winter or on the Sabbath.  For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be.  And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect's sake those days will be shortened.  Then if anyone says to you, 'Look, here is the Christ!' or 'There!' do not believe it.  For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.  see, I have told you beforehand.  Therefore if they say to you, 'Look, He is in the desert!' do not go out; or 'Look, He is in the inner rooms!' do not believe it.  For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.  For wherever the carcass is, there the eagles will be gathered together.  Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken.  Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.  And he will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other." 

 "Now learn this parable from the fig tree:  When its branch has already become tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near.  So you also, when you see all these things, know that it is near -- at the doors!  Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place.  Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away."  Jesus gives us an incentive for doing as He teaches before His return:  that we remain alert and awake for the times.  He also makes a solemn promise that His prophesy is good and true.  My study bible tells us that this generation refers to all believers at all times, the generation of the Church, and not merely to those alive at the time of Christ.   The generation of Christ's first disciples did heed His word, and the Church was able to escape the devastation in Jerusalem.

"But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only."  My study bible cites St. John Chrysostom's commentary here.  St. Chrysostom says that Christ tells of the angels being unaware of the exact day of His return "so that men should not seek to learn what angels do not know."   Christ's followers are forbidden not only from learning the day, but even inquiring about it.    My study bible adds that according to Mark 13:32, and in Chrysostom's Matthew text, Jesus declares also that the Son does not know the day of His own return.  Chrysostom teaches that this isn't to be understood literally, but rather is a figure of speech meaning that Christ, although He revealed all the signs that will accompany His return, won't reveal the exact day to anyone, and that believers should not be so brazen as to inquire it of Him.

"But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only.  But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.  For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.  Then two men will be in the field:  one will be taken and the other left.  Two women will be grinding at the mill:  one will be taken and the other left."  Jesus' second coming will involve a sudden revelation of judgment.  One will be taken to heaven and the other left for eternal condemnation.  The separation of the saints from the wicked will occur at the coming of the Son of Man, and is concurrent with that event.

"Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming.  But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into.  Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect."  My study bible notes that Christ's purpose in this discourse isn't to make people experts in end time prophecy.  Instead, His purpose it to teach that we all watch and be ready, continuing in virtue and obeying His commandments.  This warning is illustrated in the parable that will follow in tomorrow's reading.

Jesus' warnings to His followers emphasize our watchfulness and preparedness for His Return, His Second Coming.  What is striking is His promise that "the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect."  It's a kind of tantalizing statement that teaches us just how important it is that we take on our own responsibility for watchfulness.   What do we expect that watchfulness entails?  Certainly it involves being responsible for following His teachings and His commandments.  After all, He's the Master who's simply gone away for awhile, leaving His servants in charge of His household, to watch after all His affairs and especially all of His people.  The commandments He has given us are to be good to one another, summed up in the one new commandment He tells His disciples at the Last Supper:  "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another"  (John 13:34).   He has taught these disciples that those who would be great among them must be servants of all, and that the first among them must be slave of all (see this reading).  He has taught them to care for the littlest ones among them, as doing so is an act identical to serving Him (10:40-42, 18:5,10).   Watchfulness and preparedness includes following all of these commands, as His good and trustworthy servants who will always keep in mind that He will return at an hour we don't expect.  How do you meet these commands?  How do you remember to treat the littlest and humblest among us as if we were receiving Him?  Do we find ways to serve?  Service, in the right context, can be an act of grace that imitates His sacrifice, in ways that help to redeem the world.  It is a powerful and profound teaching to us just what we are capable of doing as His servants.  But we have to live the life to believe and learn; we experience the power of His grace and surely find the worthiness of all of His commands.  

Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory

 "Therefore when you see the 'abomination of desolation,' spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place" (whoever reads, let him understand), "then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.  Let him who is on the housetop not go down to take anything out of his house.  And let him who is in the field not go back to get his clothes.  But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days!  And pray that your light may not be in winter or on the Sabbath.  For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be.  And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect's sake those days will be shortened.  Then if anyone says to you, 'Look, here is the Christ!' or 'There!' do not believe it.  For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.  see, I have told you beforehand.  Therefore if they say to you, 'Look, He is in the desert!' do not go out; or 'Look, He is in the inner rooms!' do not believe it.  For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.  For wherever the carcass is, there the eagles will be gathered together.

"Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken.  Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.  And he will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other." 

- Matthew 24:15-31

In our recent readings, Jesus has been in Jerusalem.  It is the final week of His human life, known to us as Holy Week.  He has cleansed the temple, and disputed with the leadership as well.  On Saturday, we read that Jesus went out and departed from the temple, and His disciples came up to show Him the buildings of the temple.  And Jesus said to them, "Do you not see all these things?  Assuredly, I say to you, not one stone shall be left here upon another, that shall not be thrown down."  Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, "Tell us, when will these things be?  And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?"  And Jesus answered and said to them:  "Take heed that no one deceives you.  For many will come in My name, saying, 'I am the Christ,' and will deceive many.  And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars.  See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.  For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.  And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places.  All these are the beginning of sorrows.  Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name's sake.  And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another.  Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many.  And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold.  But he who endures to the end shall be saved.  And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come."

 "Therefore when you see the 'abomination of desolation,' spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place" (whoever reads, let him understand) . . .."  My study bible tells us that Daniel's prophecy of the abomination of desolation (Daniel 9:21-27, 11:31, 12:11) was fulfilled in AD 70, when the Roman general Titus entered the Most Holy Place and had a statue of himself erected in the temple before having the temple destroyed.    The fact that Jesus uses the phrase when you see indicates that many of the disciples would still be alive at that time.   The words whoever reads, let him understand are commonly understood to be inserted by Matthew into Christ's address as an encouragement to his early Christian flock, who may have witnessed this event. 

". . . then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.  Let him who is on the housetop not go down to take anything out of his house.  And let him who is in the field not go back to get his clothes.  But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days!  And pray that your light may not be in winter or on the Sabbath."   Either the severity of the winter weather or respect for the Sabbath would prevent many faithful from fleeing quickly in a time of desperation.  One patristic spiritual interpretation sees the Sabbath as symbolizing idleness with regard to virtue, my study bible says, and winter as indicating fruitlessness with regard to charity.  Therefore, the person who departs this life in such a spiritual state will suffer judgment. 

"For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be.  And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect's sake those days will be shortened.  Then if anyone says to you, 'Look, here is the Christ!' or 'There!' do not believe it.  For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.  see, I have told you beforehand.  Therefore if they say to you, 'Look, He is in the desert!' do not go out; or 'Look, He is in the inner rooms!' do not believe it.  For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.  For wherever the carcass is, there the eagles will be gathered together."    Jesus describes the manner in which He will return.  This is an event that will be unmistakable to the entire world.  If there is any question or doubt at all,  that in itself is evidence that He has not returned.  Christ says His return will shine from the east.   For ancient Christians, and even today in Orthodox Churches, the faithful whenever possible worship facing eastward in symbolic hope and anticipation of His second and glorious coming. 

"Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken.  Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.  And he will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other."   According to patristic interpretation, the sun will not be destroyed, but rather darkened in relation to the glory of Christ.  In other words, the sun will appear to be dark by comparison to Christ who returns in the fullness of His splendor. 

 Jesus continues to address His followers, prophesying what is to come.  This is anything but what we would call a rosy picture.  There will be tribulation, wars, false christs, all kinds of disasters (both man-made and natural), and fears abounding, betrayals, and love grown cold.  Through all of this we are told that "he who endures to the end shall be saved" (see yesterday's reading, above).    We are told that great signs will happen, the darkening of the sun -- or perhaps it will simply seem dark by comparison to Christ's glory -- and signs in the heavens.  Its very powers will be shaken.  This is a picture of a tremendous change, a kind of transition that involves the whole of the universe.  Then the Son of Man will return with power and great glory, His elect gathered together.  There is no way we can imagine any of this.  But what we can marvel at is the promise that is here.  There is nothing that is flattering to us, nothing cajoling, nothing that tells us that we have a great material benefit nor a promise of bounty we don't have now.  Instead, we're challenged to be strong in our faith, to withstand tremendous difficulties and challenges.  We are used to advertising, to being coerced into believing something, being given easy promises.   But Jesus does none of that.  Instead, He invites us into something worth fighting for, a struggle in which He is the leader, for which He will go to the Cross,  and in which we may participate with Him.  We are taught the value of service and endurance, something quite different from the popular picture of what appeals in sales, an easy life with even easier access to wealth.  So how are we to step into this challenge?  How are modern minds to think about it?  Perhaps what we have to conclude is the tremendous faith that Christ Himself places in His followers to truly follow where He leads.  He calls on us to meet life with great courage, with faith, with endurance, and with the strength that comes from grace -- to meet the joy and peace that come unexpectedly and through His divine power.  This is the promise we're given, and we go forward understanding the power we are capable of sharing in, the struggle we're equipped to be a part of, the mystery into which He initiates us with His astounding words. 

He who endures to the end shall be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come

 Then Jesus went out and departed from the temple, and His disciples came up to show Him the buildings of the temple.  And Jesus said to them, "Do you not see all these things?  Assuredly, I say to you, not one stone shall be left here upon another, that shall not be thrown down."

Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, "Tell us, when will these things be?  And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?"  And Jesus answered and said to them:  "Take heed that no one deceives you.  For many will come in My name, saying, 'I am the Christ,' and will deceive many.  And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars.  See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.  For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.  And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places.  All these are the beginning of sorrows.

"Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name's sake.  And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another.  Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many.  And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold.  But he who endures to the end shall be saved.  And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come."

- Matthew 24:1-14

 We are currently in the midst of reading Jesus' final sermon, delivered in the temple in Jerusalem during what we call Holy Week, the final week of Jesus' life in which He is in Jerusalem for the Passover Feast.  In yesterday's reading, He continued, "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you are like whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men's bones and all uncleanness.  Even so you also outwardly appear righteous to men, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.  Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  Because you build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous, and say, 'If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets.'  Therefore you are witnesses against yourselves that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets.  Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers' guilt.  Serpents, brood of vipers!  How can you escape the condemnation of hell?  Therefore, indeed, I send you prophets, wise men, and scribes:  some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will scourge in your synagogues and persecute from city to city, that on you may come all the righteous blood shed on the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah, son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar.  Assuredly, I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation.  O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her!  How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing!  See!  Your house is left to you desolate; for I say to you, you shall see Me no more till you say, 'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!'"

 Then Jesus went out and departed from the temple, and His disciples came up to show Him the buildings of the temple.  And Jesus said to them, "Do you not see all these things?  Assuredly, I say to you, not one stone shall be left here upon another, that shall not be thrown down."   Jesus' prophecy of the destruction of the temple was fulfilled in AD 70, when the temple was destroyed by the Romans.   Only one retaining wall of the splendid temple remained, known today as the Western Wall or the Wailing Wall.   The temple at Jerusalem at the time of Christ was the crowning achievement of Herod the Great, also known as Herod the Builder.  It was considered one of the wonders of the world in its time for its extraordinary beauty and scope of architecture, expansive design, and artistic detail.   This prophecy would have been unimaginable and shocking to those who heard it at the time.

Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, "Tell us, when will these things be?  And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?"  My study bible tells us that the Scriptures describe the end times in a variety of ways, so that no precise chronology can be determined (see Daniel 7-12; Mark 13; Luke 21; 1 Corinthians 15:51-55; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17; 2 Thessalonians 2:1-10; and the Book of Revelation).  Christ's emphasis for His followers is on watchfulness and the practice of virtue rather than on constructing timetables of events that have not yet happened.  Matthew describes the end times as encompassing (1) the initial sorrows (in verses 4-14, included in today's reading), (2) the great tribulation (vv. 15-28), and (3) the coming of the Son of Man (vv. 29-31).  The period of the great tribulation includes the entire Christian era and is not limited to the final years before Christ's return. 

 And Jesus answered and said to them:  "Take heed that no one deceives you.  For many will come in My name, saying, 'I am the Christ,' and will deceive many."   Jesus' warnings against deception are given the greatest emphasis.  Of particular importance, my study bible tells us, is the warning against following a false Christ, which Jesus stresses again in verses 11, 23-27.

"And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars.  See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.  For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.  And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places.  All these are the beginning of sorrows."  The wars that Jesus mentions here refer first and foremost to the Roman destruction of Jerusalem.  But they also include subsequent wars.  They are not a sign of the imminent end, but rather the opposite -- that the end is not yet (see 1 Thessalonians 5:1-3). 

"Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name's sake.  And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another.  Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many.  And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold.  But he who endures to the end shall be saved.  And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come."   My study bible notes that all these calamities and opposition cannot stop the spread of the gospel.  Indeed, persecutions against the Church often increase the number of souls who are being converted.  St. John Chrysostom marvels that while the Romans subdued countless Jews in a political uprising, they could not prevail over twelve Jews unarmed with anything except the gospel of Jesus Christ.

We have already been given a very interesting picture of what it is to have strength, to have authority and greatness, and to be first among those who are Christ's followers.  So far in Matthew's Gospel, Jesus has taught on a number of occasions that it is humility that is the key to true accomplishment and the power of faith -- that is those who are servants to others who are great among the disciples, and that the one who would be first among them must be the slave to all.  In today's reading, we get a kind of extension of these teachings.  What makes a good disciple, a good servant?  A good disciple is one who endures to the end.  Jesus prepares His followers for difficulties.   He tells them, "See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet."  We mustn't forget that this is a command from Christ.  Even the things He names, all of which are dreaded by human beings, are only the beginning of sorrows.   In Greek, this word for sorrows can also mean the pain of giving birth.  The difficulties for those who will follow Him become more acute in the verses that follow, and personal.  He says to them, "Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name's sake.  And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another.  Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many.  And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold."  All these things He says will be aimed particularly at this community of His followers.  His command, in addition to the authority and greatness of service and humility, is endurance.  "He who endures to the end shall be saved.  And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come."  Greatness, authority, and strength come from humility, service to all, and a capacity for endurance.  These are His teachings, what He asks from His followers.    This includes the capacity for discernment, alertness to false prophets, false teachings, those who would lead astray in the midst of tribulation.  All of this is still with us; we live in the age which He describes.  Let us endeavor to be His good servants, and keep the true end in mind.


 

How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing!

 "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you are like whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men's bones and all uncleanness.  Even so you also outwardly appear righteous to men, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.

"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  Because you build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous, and say, 'If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets.'  Therefore you are witnesses against yourselves that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets.  Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers' guilt.  Serpents, brood of vipers!  How can you escape the condemnation of hell?  Therefore, indeed, I send you prophets, wise men, and scribes:  some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will scourge in your synagogues and persecute from city to city, that on you may come all the righteous blood shed on the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah, son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar.  Assuredly, I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation.

"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her!  How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing!  See!  Your house is left to you desolate; for I say to you, you shall see Me no more till you say, 'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!'"

- Matthew 23:27-39

In our current readings, Jesus is in Jerusalem.  It is Holy Week, the final week of Jesus' earthly life, and the last Passover He would attend.  Yesterday, we continued reading His final sermon:  "But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you shut up the kingdom of heaven against men; for you neither go in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in.  Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you devour widows' houses, and for a pretense make long prayers.  Therefore you will receive greater condemnation.  Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you travel land and sea to win one proselyte, and when he is won, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves.  Woe to you, blind guides, who say, 'Whoever swears by the temple, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple, he is obliged to perform it.'  Fools and blind!  For which is greater, the gold or the temple that sanctifies the gold?  And, 'Whoever swears by the altar, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gift that is on it, he is obliged to perform it.'  Fools and blind!  For which is greater, the gift or the altar that sanctifies the gift?  Therefore he who swears by the altar,  swears by it and by all things on it.  He who swears by the temple, swears by it and by Him who dwells in it.  And he who swears by heaven, swears by the throne of God and by Him who sits on it.  Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law:  justice and mercy and faith.  These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone.  Blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!  Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of extortion and self-indulgence.  Blind Pharisee, first cleanse the inside of the cup and dish, that the outside of them may be clean also."

 "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you are like whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men's bones and all uncleanness.  Even so you also outwardly appear righteous to men, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness."  In yesterday's reading, Jesus said to them, " For you cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of extortion and self-indulgence.  Blind Pharisee, first cleanse the inside of the cup and dish, that the outside of them may be clean also."  But here, He goes even further in the description of what kind of hypocrisy He sees in them.  The filth inside isn't a matter of dirty dishes and utensils, but tombs filled with decay and death and uncleanness.  It is a warning to all of us about a hypocritical life, and how seriously we should take this flaw, a kind of fallen state in which we become blind to our own spiritual death.

"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  Because you build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous, and say, 'If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets.'  Therefore you are witnesses against yourselves that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets.  Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers' guilt.  Serpents, brood of vipers!  How can you escape the condemnation of hell?  Therefore, indeed, I send you prophets, wise men, and scribes:  some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will scourge in your synagogues and persecute from city to city, that on you may come all the righteous blood shed on the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah, son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar.  Assuredly, I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation."  Jesus' condemnation of the leadership continues to build.  Not only are they responsible for the extremes death and uncleanness within themselves, but they take on the guilt of all before them who have passed on this way of being untrue to the love of God, the hypocrisy that murdered the prophets while posing as the righteous.  All of this in which they freely chose to participate will come upon this generation.  It is not completely clear which Zechariah Jesus refers to here, but some teach that He refers to the father of St. John the Baptist, whom patristic tradition says was murdered in the temple.   Others teach that it was the prophet Zechariah at the time of Joash the king (2 Chronicles 24:20-22). 

"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her!  How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing!  See!  Your house is left to you desolate; for I say to you, you shall see Me no more till you say, 'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!'"  My study bible says that God's deepest desire is the reconciliation of His people, but most do not want Him.  The desolate house, it says, refers both to the temple and to the nation itself.  "House" can be used to mean "family" or "tribe" (see Psalms 115:12, 135:19).  Both the temple and the nation will be without God's presence once Christ has departed.

The maternal image that Jesus gives here of Himself is an astonishing one in a number of ways.  Or, rather, perhaps we could say that it is one which we must sit up and notice.  It is a picture of Christ, the Lord, having watched over Jerusalem like a mother hen throughout time, throughout the history of God's people.  It is important that we have this understanding of the maternal and feminine characterization of Christ's love, care, grace, and tender mercy, because it tells us something about what it means to be fully human as one who is created in the image of Christ, and who must learn to be Christ-like.    The fullness of our Lord includes this maternal image, one of comfort and care and protection  and eternal mercy.  He characterizes Himself as One with the care of a deeply devoted and loving mother, but whose love, concern, and care is not reciprocated by her children. In this extremely moving lamentation over Jerusalem, Jesus teaches us about who He is as Lord of a universe, the One to whom we are to turn, and who longs for us to do so.  But the most devoted care and protection cannot function through rejection, and repeated rejection.  Jesus teaches us that even in His majestic identity as Creator and Lord of the universe, He is maternal and loving, with the tenderness of a mother hen for her chicks.  He inspires us to know what a balanced life really is, with its capacity for love and devotion -- and for the heartbreak of rejection and failure of one's beloved children.  Let us consider all that He teaches us, about Himself, and about what we ourselves are to imitate.  The depth of care and protection that He teaches are His here belong to all who find Him, and are capable of reciprocating even the smallest sense of that love.

Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!

 "But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you shut up the kingdom of heaven against men; for you neither go in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in.  Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you devour widows' houses, and for a pretense make long prayers.  Therefore you will receive greater condemnation.  Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you travel land and sea to win one proselyte, and when he is won, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves.

"Woe to you, blind guides, who say, 'Whoever swears by the temple, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple, he is obliged to perform it.'  Fools and blind!  For which is greater, the gold or the temple that sanctifies the gold?  And, 'Whoever swears by the altar, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gift that is on it, he is obliged to perform it.'  Fools and blind!  For which is greater, the gift or the altar that sanctifies the gift?  Therefore he who swears by the altar,  swears by it and by all things on it.  He who swears by the temple, swears by it and by Him who dwells in it.  And he who swears by heaven, swears by the throne of God and by Him who sits on it.

"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law:  justice and mercy and faith.  These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone.  Blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!

"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of extortion and self-indulgence.  Blind Pharisee, first cleanse the inside of the cup and dish, that the outside of them may be clean also."

- Matthew 23:13-26

In our current readings in Matthew's Gospel, Jesus is in Jerusalem.  It is what we know as Holy Week, the final week of Jesus' earthly life, and Passover Week for the Jews.  Jesus has made His Triumphal Entry, He has cleansed the temple, and has debated with the leadership in various challenges as to His authority and teachings (see the readings from Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Monday, and Tuesday.  Yesterday we began reading what is known as Jesus' Final Sermon.  He spoke to the multitudes and to His disciples, saying:  "The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat.  Therefore whatever they tell you to observe, that observe and do, but do not do according to their works; for they say, and do not do.  For they bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers.  But all their works they do to be seen by men.  They make their phylacteries broad and enlarge the borders of their garments.  They love the best places at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues, greetings in the marketplaces, and to be called by men, 'Rabbi, Rabbi.'  But you, do not be called 'Rabbi'; for One is your Teacher, the Christ, and you are all brethren.  Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven.  And do not be called teachers; for One is your Teacher, the Christ.  But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant.  And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."

 "But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you shut up the kingdom of heaven against men; for you neither go in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in.  Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you devour widows' houses, and for a pretense make long prayers.  Therefore you will receive greater condemnation.  Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you travel land and sea to win one proselyte, and when he is won, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves."  My study bible says that because the example of a leader can be so influential, leaders who do not love God will hinder others from finding God as well.  Therefore, leaders are held to a higher standard (James 3:1).

 "Woe to you, blind guides, who say, 'Whoever swears by the temple, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple, he is obliged to perform it.'  Fools and blind!  For which is greater, the gold or the temple that sanctifies the gold?  And, 'Whoever swears by the altar, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gift that is on it, he is obliged to perform it.'  Fools and blind!  For which is greater, the gift or the altar that sanctifies the gift?  Therefore he who swears by the altar,  swears by it and by all things on it.  He who swears by the temple, swears by it and by Him who dwells in it.  And he who swears by heaven, swears by the throne of God and by Him who sits on it."  Jesus' emphasis here is consistent with all of His teachings on the focus of the Law and the Prophets.  In Tuesday's reading,  Jesus was asked by the Pharisees what was the greatest commandment.  He gave two, but He said the first and great commandment was "You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind."  Once more, His consistent emphasis is on God first.  It is God dwelling in the temple that sanctifies the gold.  It is God dwelling on the altar who sanctifies the gift.  In all things, Jesus teaches the devotion to God as the first and great commandment.

"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law:  justice and mercy and faith.  These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone.  Blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!"   Jesus refers here to a practice whereby the Pharisees would attach strainers to the mouths of decanters in order to avoid accidentally consuming a substance that was ritually unclean.   My study bible tells us that all of the warnings that are given here, and which follow in this final sermon of Jesus, apply to Christians.  They are particularly emphasized for Orthodox Christians and others for whom the ancient practices of the Church have been maintained, such as tithing, sacred vessels, holy rites, and patristic tradition handed down through time  ("These you ought to have done," Jesus says in verse 23).  These practices, it says, can be expressions of deep faith, lead a person to deeper commitment to God, and safeguard our life in Christ, or they can be observed without ever taking them to heart and lead to condemnation.

"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of extortion and self-indulgence.  Blind Pharisee, first cleanse the inside of the cup and dish, that the outside of them may be clean also."  To cleanse the outside of the cup and dish is to make a nice appearance.  But Jesus teaches us that true purity is from the inside out, with hearts toward God as the One whose judgment counts, and to whom we are always called.

What does it mean to do "holy acts" for show?  For a pretense, as Christ puts it?  All of the actions He ascribes to hypocrites have something to do with the emphasis on making an appearance before others.  In yesterday's reading, Jesus says of the hypocrites, "But all their works they do to be seen by men."  And this is the key for us.  It seems to be the exact opposite of Jesus' teaching that it's really God's eyes we should be concerned for, and God's judgment rather than the "judgment of men."  Jesus seems to emphasize this over and over again in His varied teachings.  Even the teaching on authority and greatness among His own apostles reflects this understanding.   In yesterday's reading, Jesus has taught them, "But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant.  And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."  Service and humility require of us to put behind ourselves consideration for the importance of how we look in the eyes of others.  To "love the best places at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues, greetings in the marketplaces, and to be called by men, 'Rabbi, Rabbi'" reflects a consideration for one's status in the eyes of others as a prime motivator in life, and it is part and parcel of what makes a hypocrite.  Once again, we recall that the word hypocrite in Greek was actually the word for "actor."  It literally means "below the mask," as the ancient actors all wore masks to delineate their characters.  To truly consider a life where God comes first is to experience the humility of service.  If it is God we are going to please, then all the opinions that others may form of us, our position in worldly eyes, our place in some sort of scheme of competition, is really going to come second.  Sacrifice is so often a sacrifice of that place in the eyes of others.  Christ on the Cross, humiliated, scorned, suffering, and ridiculed is the greatest example we have to teach us by example just what is truly of importance and what is not.  Jesus' saving and sacrificial work was not so we admire Him, but in order to save a universe.  Can we put His priorities first?    It is for the failure to do so that Jesus condemns these religious leaders as hypocrites -- even as He tells His apostles to respect that they sit in Moses' seat.  They teach the word of God, but they are not to be imitated.  This is the standard He sets, and it remains, indeed, a high bar for us all to measure up to.  But the key is that we put the love of God as our first and great commandment, then all else follows.

He who is greatest among you shall be your servant. And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted

 Then Jesus spoke to the multitudes and to His disciples, saying:  "The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat.  Therefore whatever they tell you to observe, that observe and do, but do not do according to their works; for they say, and do not do.  For they bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers.  But all their works they do to be seen by men.  They make their phylacteries broad and enlarge the borders of their garments.  They love the best places at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues, greetings in the marketplaces, and to be called by men, 'Rabbi, Rabbi.'  But you, do not be called 'Rabbi'; for One is your Teacher, the Christ, and you are all brethren.  Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven.  And do not be called teachers; for One is your Teacher, the Christ.  But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant.  And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."

- Matthew 23:1-12

In our current readings, Jesus is in Jerusalem.  It is what we know as Holy Week, the week of the last Passover of Jesus' life.  Yesterday we read that when the Pharisees heard that He had silenced the Sadducees as they disputed in the temple, they gathered together.  Then one of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, and saying, "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?"  Jesus said to him, "'You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.'  This is the first and great commandment.  And the second is like it:  'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'  On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets."  While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them, saying, "What do you think about the Christ?  Whose Son is He?"  They said to Him, "The Son of David."  He said to them, "How then does David in the Spirit call Him 'Lord,' saying:  'The LORD said to my Lord, "Sit at My right hand, till I make Your enemies Your footstool"'?  If David then calls Him 'Lord,' how is He his Son?"  And no one was able to answer Him a word, nor from that day on did anyone dare question Him anymore.
  

 Then Jesus spoke to the multitudes and to His disciples, saying:  "The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat.  Therefore whatever they tell you to observe, that observe and do, but do not do according to their works; for they say, and do not do."  The whole of chapter 23 gives us Jesus' final public sermon, which is in essence a grand critique of the ways of the scribes and Pharisees.  My study bible elaborates on the themes included as:  (1)  The Jewish leaders have God-given authority and teach God's Law, but they are personally ungodly and cold-hearted.  As such, their teaching itself is to be honored, but they are not to be imitated.  (2)  God is our true Father and Teacher.  A teacher or father on earth is one who will lead people to God.  The scribes and Pharisees do the opposite, placing themselves in God's position.  (3)  Finally, in Jesus' eight-fold indictment of the scribes and Pharisees, Jesus charges them with inverting God's values, and with being mean-spirited, judgmental, greedy, ambitious, absorbed in externals, and blindly self-righteous.  While these charges were directed against the Jewish leaders of the day, every single word applies equally today to those in the Church who behave in this way.    In the verses noted here, Jesus begins with the understanding that to sit in Moses' seat means to hold the succession of office down from Moses himself. In the synagogue, the teacher spoke while seated as a sign of this authority.  St. John Chrysostom notes on this passage that the scribes were depraved in thought and heart, but Jesus still upholds the dignity of their office, because they speak not their own words but God's.  And, once again, we can reflect on the Church here.  The clergy are to be shown respect as they hold the apostolic office, but they too are sinners.  Moreover, the sins of the clergy do not relieve the people from their own responsibilities before God. 

"For they bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers.  But all their works they do to be seen by men.  They make their phylacteries broad and enlarge the borders of their garments."  Phylacteries are small leather pouches which contain passages of Scripture.  They are worn on the arm or the forehead.  The idea is to always keep God's Law in mind (see Exodus 13:9).  However, as is potential with all expressions of devotion, they could be used for outward expression alone, "to be seen by men."  Jesus here condemns the Pharisees use of them as a show of false piety, making them increasingly larger and more noticeable.

"They love the best places at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues, greetings in the marketplaces, and to be called by men, 'Rabbi, Rabbi.'  But you, do not be called 'Rabbi'; for One is your Teacher, the Christ, and you are all brethren.  Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven.  And do not be called teachers; for One is your Teacher, the Christ."  My study bible says that Christ's warning against calling hypocrites father and teacher is not an absolute prohibition against using these terms, as some teach.  These terms are applied to men many times in the New Testament, all of which usages are inspired by God.  Teacher is used in John 3:10, Ats 13:1, 1 Corinthians 12:28, Ephesians 4:11, and 2 Timothy 1:11.  Father is used in Luke 16:24, 1 Corinthians 4:15, and Colossians 3:21.  From the very early days of the Church, my study bible notes, bishops and presbyters have been called "father" not because they take the place of God, but because in their fatherly care for their flocks, they lead people to God, and they exercise fatherly authority within the community.  But Jesus' emphasis here is clear; we are all under one authority, and that authority is God's.

"But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant.  And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."  One more time, Jesus gives us the highest standard of leadership and authority, and that standard is service.  It is apparently not enough to merely mention this once, but His repeated expression of the same teaching tells us that it cannot be emphasized enough.

Jesus emphasizes service in His Church and among His flock as the real key to "Godlike" authority.  No one could put it more clearly nor strongly than He does in the words that we know:  "But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant.  And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."  There is no greater power, perhaps, than that of service.  In Jesus' sacrifice on the Cross, His service is to an entire universe.  His saving service renders Him risen Lord, defeating the power of death and evil for all of us.  This is a great and powerful mystery, but what we can understand of it is right here in this teaching.  Service is God-like.  Humility is God-like.  He humbles Himself to save all of creation and everything in it.  So we are to do likewise.  It is my opinion that our worldly perspective on service is skewed.  We cannot easily grasp the greatness in service and in humility, but it is there where we defeat evil.  It is there where the greatest battles are fought, in this almost poetic place of service and help.  In this notion is grace and mercy.  Do we do good to others, even those who have hurt us?  Are we capable of letting grace work through us?  What can we help to heal in a world that is so broken and so often needs healing?  It is the perspective of the purely worldly that cannot see grace, nor the tremendous exaltation it can bring to those who practice such service.  When we think of sacrifice, we can't necessarily see the implications within sacrifice of transcendence, of elation through the experience of a God-like joy and love that is the character of grace at work through us.  We always seem to leave out the picture of the tremendous freedom that grace brings in action through our own capacity for service, and the message that is there for us of just how capable we are of rendering something to someone else, of resolving old hurts and conflicts, and most of all, of being God-like in our practice of our faith, and in the grace of the Spirit's always surprising work present in us and to us.  To be joyful truly is to understand the great grace in service. It is something we all must experience to know the true height and depth of the faith and grace we've been taught by our true Teacher.

If David then calls Him "Lord," how is He his Son?

 But when the Pharisees heard that He had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together.  Then one of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, and saying, "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?"  Jesus said to him, "'You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.'  This is the first and great commandment.  And the second is like it:  'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'  On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets."

While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them, saying, "What do you think about the Christ?  Whose Son is He?"  They said to Him, "The Son of David."  He said to them, "How then does David in the Spirit call Him 'Lord,' saying:t

'The LORD said to my Lord,
"Sit at My right hand,
Till I make Your enemies Your footstool"'?

If David then calls Him 'Lord,' how is He his Son?"  And no one was able to answer Him a word, nor from that day on did anyone dare question Him anymore.

- Matthew 22:34-46

In our current readings, it is the week of the final Passover of Jesus' life, the week that we commemorate as Holy Week.  Yesterday we read that the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to Jesus and asked Him, saying:  "Teacher, Moses said that if a man dies, having no children, his brother shall marry his wife and raise up offspring for his brother.  Now there were with us seven brothers.  The first died after he had married, and having no offspring, left his wife to his brother.  Likewise the second also, and the third, even to the seventh.  Last of all the woman died also.  Therefore, in the resurrection, whose wife of the seven will she be?  For they all had her."  Jesus answered and said to them, "You are mistaken, not knowing the Scriptures nor the power of God.  For in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels of God in heaven.  But concerning the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what was spoken to you by God, saying, 'I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob'?  God is not the God of the dead, but of the living."  And when the multitudes heard this, they were astonished at His teaching.

 But when the Pharisees heard that He had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together.  Then one of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, and saying, "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?"  Jesus said to him, "'You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.'  This is the first and great commandment.  And the second is like it:  'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'  On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets."  This question is no doubt an essential one for the Pharisees.  They had found 613 commandments in the Scriptures, and would debate about which one was central.  As usual, Jesus answers the question, not using the foundation set forth by His questioners, but His own basis for a correct answer.  He gives two commandments, not simply one.  The first is Deuteronomy 6:5, the second from Leviticus 19:18.  Together, in Jesus' teaching, they constitute the grand summary of the Law.  My study bible adds that although the lawyer has come with malice to test the Lord, we know from St. Mark's account that this man is converted by Christ's answer (Mark 12:28-34).   My study bible further elaborates that the second commandment here must be understood as written:  You shall love your neighbor as yourself, or even more clearly, "as being yourself."   Often, it says, this is misinterpreted as saying, "You shall love your neighbor as you love yourself," but this destroys the force of the statement.  How much we love ourselves isn't the standard by which Christ calls us to love others.  Instead, we are called to love our neighbor as being of the same nature as we ourselves are; that is, as being created in God's image and likeness  just as we are.  The patristic teaching is that we find our true self in loving our neighbor. 

While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them, saying, "What do you think about the Christ?  Whose Son is He?"  They said to Him, "The Son of David."  He said to them, "How then does David in the Spirit call Him 'Lord,' saying:  'The LORD said to my Lord, "Sit at My right hand, till I make Your enemies Your footstool"'?  If David then calls Him 'Lord,' how is He his Son?"  And no one was able to answer Him a word, nor from that day on did anyone dare question Him anymore.  My study bible says that Jesus asks this question to lead the Pharisees to the only logical conclusion:  that He is God incarnate.  They believed the Messiah to be a mere man, and therefore they reply that the Messiah would be a Son of David.  David, as the king of Israel, could never and would never address another as "Lord" except God.  But in Psalm 110:1 (quoted here by Jesus), David refers to the Messiah as "Lord."  Therefore, the Messiah must be God.  The only possible conclusion, my study bible tells us, is that the Messiah is a descendant of David only according to the flesh, yet is also truly divine, sharing His Lordship with God the Father and the Holy Spirit.  The Pharisees do not answer because they realize the implications and are afraid to confess Jesus to be the Son of God. 

On some level, we have to give the Pharisees credit.  Although Jesus points out the hypocrisy of many of the leadership, and also condemns some of their practices (virtually the whole of chapter 23 will consist of Jesus' scathing criticism of the scribes and Pharisees), there are Pharisees who believe in Him, and also who become His disciples (see John 3:1-20).  Here in today's reading, we see they are totally unable to answer Jesus' rational explanation of the Scriptures.  They cannot defy His word.  They recognize the power of His argument and what He is saying.  It is precisely for this understanding that Jesus will condemn them as hypocrites in the next chapter of Matthew, starting in tomorrow's reading.  Despite their understanding, they will seek to destroy and to condemn Him.   Their search for the greatest commandment of all is an interesting one, because it leads to Jesus' teaching.   If we take a closer look at Leviticus 19:18 (the second commandment Jesus names), we read, "You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the children of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord."  It's quite interesting that the first invocation is against vengeance, because this mirrors Jesus' teachings as well, in the Sermon on the Mount.  Jesus elaborates on His explication of the Law when He says, "You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also.  If anyone wants to sue you and take away your tunic, let him have your cloak also.  And whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two.  Give to him who asks you, and from him who wants to borrow from you do not turn away."  This is in keeping with the second commandment in today's reading, as its first words give us a proscription against vengeance.  Altogether, the factors in today's reading give us a picture of the Man who is truly the great Teacher of the Law.  He silences the Pharisees with His clear understanding of Scripture, He sums up all the Law and the Prophets with the two greatest commandments.  We see the consistency of His teaching.  His understanding of the Law is not merely in its words and teachings, but rather in its depth, its intent, and origins, for He is the true Lawgiver.  He is the author of the Law, the Logos.  He is the One whom David calls "my Lord."