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The Coming of the Son of Man (Lk. 17:22-37)

Then he said to his disciples, “The days will come when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, but you will not see it.  23 There will be those who will say to you, ‘Look, there he is,’ [or] ‘Look, here he is.’ Do not go off, do not run in pursuit.  24 For just as lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to the other, so will the Son of Man be [in his day].  25 But first he must suffer greatly and be rejected by this generation.  26 As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be in the days of the Son of Man; 27 they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage up to the day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all.  28 Similarly, as it was in the days of Lot: they were eating, drinking, buying, selling, planting, building; 29 on the day when Lot left Sodom, fire and brimstone rained from the sky to destroy them all.  30 So it will be on the day the Son of Man is revealed.  31 On that day, a person who is on the housetop and whose belongings are in the house must not go down to get them, and likewise a person in the field must not return to what was left behind.  32 Remember the wife of Lot.  33 Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses it will save it.  34 I tell you, on that night there will be two people in one bed; one will be taken, the other left.  35 And there will be two women grinding meal together; one will be taken, the other left.”  37 They said to him in reply, “Where, Lord?” He said to them, “Where the body is, there also the vultures will gather.”  

The Kingdom of Heaven cannot be observed with our worldly senses because it is experienced internally, but it has already arrived in the presence and words of Jesus so do not chase around looking for it.  The second coming of the Son of Man (the risen Christ) will be delayed so the disciples should be patient and wait on the Lord.  The disciples did not yet have a clear understanding of the Kingdom of God and did not understand about the second coming of the Son of Man.  When it is time, the Son of Man will come suddenly so they should be prepared like vigilant and faithful servants (Lk. 12:35-48).  Before the Son of Man comes the second time, he will first be rejected and will suffer greatly by those who will not believe in him as he ushers in the Kingdom of Heaven.  The Disciples should not let the concerns of this world distract them but discard all attachments to worldly possessions or interests.  Even if they should lose their life as a result, they should faithfully serve Jesus no matter the cost for, “What profit is there for one to gain the whole world yet lose or forfeit himself (Lk. 9:25)?” If they are patient and faithful, the disciples will be protected from destruction like what happened in the days of Noah and Lot (vv. 26,28).  The return of the Son of Man is as certain as vultures around a dead body.

Almighty God, help us to see the presence of your Kingdom and to use the talents you gave us to serve in your kingdom like good and faithful servants.  This we pray through Christ out Lord.  Amen!
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References

Chiu, José Enrique Aguilar, et al. The Paulist Biblical Commentary. Paulist Press, 2018.

Faculty of the University of Navarre. The Navarre Bible: New Testament Expanded Edition. Expanded Edition, Four Courts / Scepter, 2008.

Brown, Raymond Edward, et al. The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Upper Saddle River, NJ, United States, Prentice Hall, 1990.

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