Jeremiah 33:14-16; Ps 24(25); 1 Thess 3:12 – 4:2; Luke 21:25-28, 34-36
A few weeks ago we heard Jeremiah promising the deliverance of his people. This week he describes how this hope will be realised, even though Jerusalem and the Temple had been destroyed. A descendant of David will bring honesty, integrity and security to Israel.
Jeremiah’s complex writings changed Jewish expectations from a single Day of Judgement to a gradual process: an initial time of suffering, then an in-between period. This was identified by early Christians as now, after Christ’s death had inaugurated the New Covenant, while we await the promised completion in Christ’s second coming.
These rather mild verses from the Psalm fail to show its directness: “In your kindness, recall me – You”.
The earliest New Testament writing, Paul wrote this first letter to the Thessalonians from Corinth, probably in 51 AD, where Timothy had brought news of the Thessalonian church’s progress. Paul prays that the Lord should increase their love for one another, exhorting them to show this love by leading moral lives.
We are starting the year of Luke, but the gospel for the beginning of Advent is from the end of Jesus’ ministry, where he warns us to be ready for the end times. Every one of us faces an end time, and we must live our lives as if it comes today.