Last Sunday after Pentecost 24.11.19 Security
The word Last conveys a certain sadness, the last
farewell etc. the end of things we have valued or known, such as school or
work.
Finality is not necessarily a bad thing if we can go to
something better instead.
As Christians we definitely believe there is a better place
than here; and we do not belong here. Our true home is in Heaven (Ph 3,20).
So we are not overly alarmed when we consider the prospect
of this world’s being wrapped up.
We are secure because we believe in something much more
substantial that this world.
[The world cannot satisfy us, either in terms of permanent
life, or in happiness. The earth itself might disappear, and even if it remains
happiness is elusive]
Our true home will last forever and we will have complete
happiness there.
We still want to change this world, however, as far as it
can be done.
We want to give it back to Our Lord as Lord and Saviour,
freed from sin and glorified by His grace.
It is sin that has made things go so crooked as they are; it
is repentance that will get things back to the right shape.
We are stewards of creation. Yes we should look after the
environment, but even more so the moral environment, seeking to live as Adam
and Eve were first directed, and as the Second Adam and Eve have shown us.
God provided the earth for us to live on, to learn how to
apply His will to situations that arise, to glorify Him through His creation.
We give thanks for all His gifts as we use them according to
His will.
God never wanted to send destruction on this earth. He does,
however, want to purify it, and sometimes (because of sin) that requires a
certain violence.
He sends chastisements so that people will turn back to Him.
He does not want to punish anymore than is necessary, and we
can reduce the need for punishment by hastening our own response of obedience.
The threats of destruction and punishment are conditional
upon our response.
If we put the things of this world before God that is what
brings the disasters. If we put God first there will be no disasters;
everything will run smoothly, as it does in Heaven.
Being reminded of the Last day, the End of our lives, should
help us re-affirm our true objectives.
It is simple: God has given us the earth to live on, and
each of us a certain role to play. He has allocated us certain talents and will
want to know from us how we have exercised those talents (Mt 25,14-30).
If we have served Him, we inherit eternal life; if we have
squandered our talents, eternal loss.
We are called to a wise balance of all the factors involved.
We prepare for our entry to the next life by working on all the details of this
one.
We do not just drift. Nor do we bury ourselves so completely
in this life as to forget the next.
The Church gives us this thought every year; one more time
around the clock - to see if we have learned anything.
In this last year, or in all our years taken together, what
have we become? Has all our activity brought us closer to God, or further away?
We need to re-establish in our minds, and for people
generally, that Christ is Lord, King, Judge, Saviour of the world. Somehow the
world manages to ignore Him.
The earthquakes, fires, floods, droughts etc are there to
remind us that we cannot afford to do that.
We gladly affirm His importance and ask for every grace and
mercy until He comes again.
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