Today’s Gospel:  Luke 13:31-35

REFLECTION
During Jesus’ time, the Jews divided the Pharisees into seven different classes. (1) THE SHOULDER PHARISEES. These wore their good deeds on their shoulder, and performed them to be seen of men. (2) THE WAIT-A-LITTLE PHARISEES. They could always find a good excuse for putting off a good deed until tomorrow. (3) THE BRUISED OR BLEEDING PHARISEES. They would not even look at a woman in the street. They even shut their eyes to avoid seeing a woman. They therefore knocked into walls and houses and bruised themselves, and then exhibited their bruises as special badges of extraordinary piety. (4) THE HUMP-BACKED PHARISEES. They walked bent double in a false and cringing humility. (5) THE EVER-RECKONING PHARISEES. They were ever reckoning up their good deeds and striking a balance sheet of profit and loss with God. (6) THE TIMID PHARISEES. They went in fear of the wrath of God. (7) THE GOD-LOVING PHARISEES. They were copies of Abraham, and lived in faith and charity. There may have been six bad Pharisees to every good one: but this passage shows that even among the Pharisees there were those who admired and respected Jesus.”

In today’s Gospel, the Lord Jesus refused to be intimidated by the warnings he received. He had a definite path to follow, and nothing would be permitted to drive Him from His course. It should not be inferred that Jesus was stating the impossibility of a prophet being killed anywhere but in Jerusalem. (John the Baptist had already been killed away from that city.) The Lord was stating that because of the history and spiritual decline of this city it was extremely unlikely that God’s servants would ever be permitted to die elsewhere. Having uttered these solemn words the Savior proceeded to speak again concerning Jerusalem.

Verses 34-35 of today’s Gospel has been called “The Heartbreak Passage”: its word picture is both pathetic and striking. Students of the Bible may like to consider these verses under the three heads: HIS Plan - to gather and protect Israel. HIS Plea - He called the people but they would not respond. His Prediction – “your house is left desolate.” We are aware of the fulfilment of those sad words of Jesus. The city of glory became in AD 70 the place of unrelenting destruction by the Romans; the place of abject desolation and sorrow. Those who refuse to welcome Christ must surely learn to live without Him - to exist without the Light of the World is to remain in the shadows for ever. There is every reason to believe that the final and complete fulfilment of the closing part of the verse can only come when at the end of the age, Israel will accept the Savior as their Messiah. Then the earth shall be filled with the glory of God.

Today’s Reading:  Eph 6:1-9

PRAYER
Lord, you have given us warning after warning.  May we open our eyes, our ears and our hearts to heed them.  In Jesus’ Name we pray.  Amen.