Monday, November 2, 2020

Looking Ahead to November 8, 2020 -- Proper 27A, 23rd After Pentecost

 The Scripture Readings this week are:

  • 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11
  • Matthew 25:1-13

The Sermon title is Ready?

Early Thoughts: Like a thief in the night. Out of left field. A bolt out of the blue. Maybe like a jack-in-the-box. Transformation comes to us as a surprise. The Kingdom of God, the transformation of the world, comes to us as a surprise.

These last few week of the Liturgical Year lead us to consider the transformation of the world, the coming of the Reign of God, the end of the world as we know it (and I feel fine?). Then when the New Year begins on Advent 1 (November 29th this year) we continue to look for the transformation of the world, the coming of the King, the change that we pray for every week with the words "Thy kingdom come, they will be done..."

Talking about the end of the world in the same week as a Presidential election seems.....odd? ominous? foolish?

Talking about changes that transform our lives whether we are ready or not, whether we like them or not in the midst of a global, once in a century, pandemic seems... timely? overkill? foolish?

Fact is, many things in life come as a surprise. Maybe some of them shouldn't, but they do. After watching the news from Wuhan throughout January and February, and with the memory of the SARS epidemic of 2003 available to us, maybe we should have been more prepared for March. But it still surprised many (perhaps most) of us that we had to change so much so fast. It still surprise, frustrates, and vexes many that those changes are still making such an impact on our day-to-day life.

I think it is safe to say that we were not ready.

The passages this week tell us to be ready. Be ready because nobody knows the day or the time. We may know it is about to come but the exact time is a secret. It might be sooner than we expect. It might be later than we expect. So be ready.

Are we ready for the world to be transformed? Are we ready for the end of what we have known? What will happen if we are not ready?

--Gord

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