Real Life
Commentary
These scriptures remind us that a life worth living must be worthwhile. Meaning and purpose is found in what we do. Part of the new world envisioned in these scriptures includes the ways what we do gives us a sense of self-worth and value. This is true for us as Christians and as the church. We are saved by our faith in Jesus, not by our works, but our work in Christ is its own reward.
Isaiah 65:17-25
In the first chapter of Huckleberry Finn, Miss Watson and the Widder Douglas paint a picture of heaven that Huck dismisses for the drivel it is — who would want to spend eternity wearing ridiculous robes and playing instruments like the harp that they’d never touched in their lives? Isaiah envisions a much homier climax to history, not one in which people sit idle plucking harps, but one in which family and industry are fulfilled!
This third section of Isaiah invites people to envision what God’s real intentions for humanity were and are. What did not occur in the past will eventually come to fruition. Note that the new heavens and new earth include worth and meaning. Life will be long, but it is not merely the length that matters — work will not be in vain. The person that builds a house will live in that house. The people that plant the crops will harvest them. The peace that people will share is depicted in terms of safety and security of infant and animals living together without fear.
Note that this takes place on familiar ground, in the world we already know. Much like the thousand years depicted in Revelation before the recreation of the universe, the prophet tells us that in God’s time we will come to live the way God intended for us to all along.
2 Thessalonians 3:6-13
The early Christians had to leave behind their extended families when they converted, because households worked on a common craft. They gave thanks to the family god for the success of their venture. Christians could no longer take part in that worship of other gods, so Christians created new households, and made new products, and gave thanks to Jesus instead of other gods.
Paul is writing to the Thessalonians because not everyone is pulling their weight. Paul had a trade, that of tentmaker, that we know he practiced during the time he spent in Corinth. Perhaps it was either through that trade he helped share in the support of the Christian communities he stayed with, or perhaps he took part in their existing trade.
As a church we may not produce belts or vases or sandals to support each other physically, but we may have particular ministries in which everyone can lend a hand. Some may be directly involved, others in indirect support or financial encouragement. People are at different ages or stages of life. But it’s important, whether it’s through prayer or sweat or a bit of both, that we work together as the family of God in ministry. This is what real living, real life in Christ, is all about.
Now this does not mean that we are not to support those in need. Paul is in dire straits health wise (probably temporarily blinded through an eye-ailment) when he lives among the Celts (Galats). He told the Galatians that he wasn’t a pretty sight at first when he felt into their care, and how they would have given their own eyes to him if they could have. And when imprisoned, Paul thanks those who supported him, fed him and took care of his needs. This scripture is not an anti-welfare screed. Benevolence funds to support our members in times of need, and ministries to the homeless, disabled, emotionally or physically scarred, and other populations, are signs of strength, not weakness.
Luke 21:5-19
Isaiah showed us what the world was meant to be, and how in God’s time we will experience things. Paul told the Thessalonians they could begin to experience this harmony of all living in peace by working together as the household of God. Here Jesus warns that God’s good will shall be accomplished, but that for us to get there we must be willing to endure, and that our present structures, flawed and fallen, may need to be remade before they can reflect God’s plan. The disciples were awed by the magnificent temple of Jerusalem, one of the ancient wonders of the world. It had been finished by the reviled Herod the Great, but it remained a human structure, as surely as every nation, including our own, is a human device and not of divine origin, whatever we may think.
In this passage is Jesus speaking of the end times as we envision them happening in the future? Is he speaking about the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple by the Romans a scant generation or two after the time he spoke? Perhaps both. We can be tempted to overthink apocalypse, and attempt to squeeze it into a 21st Century western way of thinking grid into which it fits poorly or not at all. The point of apocalypse is to be found in Luke 21:19: “By your endurance you will gain your souls.” Tough times are inevitable. Tough people endure. Endurance is a prime Christian virtue.
And the hard work of enduring is part of what makes the tough experiences that make us who we are so valuable. Once we get through something, we know we can do it, and can help others. Every death in our lives is difficult, but as we experience the death of loved ones together, we gain the tools to walk with each other through the fire. As we face up to tribulations in our own lives, we are strengthened, and we can then strengthen each other. Paul knew the Thessalonians had endured hardship, and that made them tougher. Isaiah knows the people have been tested by exile and then by the rigors of redefining themselves and rebuilding their land, their temple, and their lives. And Jesus wants the disciples to know that persecution doesn’t destroy us. It strengthens us, because as we endure, we ensure that we will triumph.
Isaiah 65:17-25
In the first chapter of Huckleberry Finn, Miss Watson and the Widder Douglas paint a picture of heaven that Huck dismisses for the drivel it is — who would want to spend eternity wearing ridiculous robes and playing instruments like the harp that they’d never touched in their lives? Isaiah envisions a much homier climax to history, not one in which people sit idle plucking harps, but one in which family and industry are fulfilled!
This third section of Isaiah invites people to envision what God’s real intentions for humanity were and are. What did not occur in the past will eventually come to fruition. Note that the new heavens and new earth include worth and meaning. Life will be long, but it is not merely the length that matters — work will not be in vain. The person that builds a house will live in that house. The people that plant the crops will harvest them. The peace that people will share is depicted in terms of safety and security of infant and animals living together without fear.
Note that this takes place on familiar ground, in the world we already know. Much like the thousand years depicted in Revelation before the recreation of the universe, the prophet tells us that in God’s time we will come to live the way God intended for us to all along.
2 Thessalonians 3:6-13
The early Christians had to leave behind their extended families when they converted, because households worked on a common craft. They gave thanks to the family god for the success of their venture. Christians could no longer take part in that worship of other gods, so Christians created new households, and made new products, and gave thanks to Jesus instead of other gods.
Paul is writing to the Thessalonians because not everyone is pulling their weight. Paul had a trade, that of tentmaker, that we know he practiced during the time he spent in Corinth. Perhaps it was either through that trade he helped share in the support of the Christian communities he stayed with, or perhaps he took part in their existing trade.
As a church we may not produce belts or vases or sandals to support each other physically, but we may have particular ministries in which everyone can lend a hand. Some may be directly involved, others in indirect support or financial encouragement. People are at different ages or stages of life. But it’s important, whether it’s through prayer or sweat or a bit of both, that we work together as the family of God in ministry. This is what real living, real life in Christ, is all about.
Now this does not mean that we are not to support those in need. Paul is in dire straits health wise (probably temporarily blinded through an eye-ailment) when he lives among the Celts (Galats). He told the Galatians that he wasn’t a pretty sight at first when he felt into their care, and how they would have given their own eyes to him if they could have. And when imprisoned, Paul thanks those who supported him, fed him and took care of his needs. This scripture is not an anti-welfare screed. Benevolence funds to support our members in times of need, and ministries to the homeless, disabled, emotionally or physically scarred, and other populations, are signs of strength, not weakness.
Luke 21:5-19
Isaiah showed us what the world was meant to be, and how in God’s time we will experience things. Paul told the Thessalonians they could begin to experience this harmony of all living in peace by working together as the household of God. Here Jesus warns that God’s good will shall be accomplished, but that for us to get there we must be willing to endure, and that our present structures, flawed and fallen, may need to be remade before they can reflect God’s plan. The disciples were awed by the magnificent temple of Jerusalem, one of the ancient wonders of the world. It had been finished by the reviled Herod the Great, but it remained a human structure, as surely as every nation, including our own, is a human device and not of divine origin, whatever we may think.
In this passage is Jesus speaking of the end times as we envision them happening in the future? Is he speaking about the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple by the Romans a scant generation or two after the time he spoke? Perhaps both. We can be tempted to overthink apocalypse, and attempt to squeeze it into a 21st Century western way of thinking grid into which it fits poorly or not at all. The point of apocalypse is to be found in Luke 21:19: “By your endurance you will gain your souls.” Tough times are inevitable. Tough people endure. Endurance is a prime Christian virtue.
And the hard work of enduring is part of what makes the tough experiences that make us who we are so valuable. Once we get through something, we know we can do it, and can help others. Every death in our lives is difficult, but as we experience the death of loved ones together, we gain the tools to walk with each other through the fire. As we face up to tribulations in our own lives, we are strengthened, and we can then strengthen each other. Paul knew the Thessalonians had endured hardship, and that made them tougher. Isaiah knows the people have been tested by exile and then by the rigors of redefining themselves and rebuilding their land, their temple, and their lives. And Jesus wants the disciples to know that persecution doesn’t destroy us. It strengthens us, because as we endure, we ensure that we will triumph.
