Daniel 2:31-45/Ps. Daniel 3:57-61/Luke 21:5-11

Jesus Christ in the gospel tells the people who admired the beauty of the temple about its destruction in the near future. This amazing Temple was built by king Herod the Great which was considered to be one of the seven wonders of the world at the time. The Temple for the Jews was far and more the most important religious buildings they possessed; it was the focal point of their worship of God.

The disciples were curious to know when these things would come to pass, however, instead of them asking ‘when’ they should rather have asked what they were supposed to do when such things happened. Beloved, we have idle curiosity of knowing the future instead of earnestly seeking to prepare ourselves for such eventualities. So, we are reminded to be vigilant and ready at all times.

The simple message for us is that, we need to stay awake at all times for we neither know the day or hour when this destruction will take place. Stay awake in the sense of being attentive or being prepared. Procrastination in matters of faith can lead to missed opportunities.

Secondly, in the words of the first reading, Daniel’s explanation of the details of the dream to king Nebuchadnezzar, essentially highlighted the fact that no matter how great his kingdom and dominion was, the glory and power of Nebuchadnezzar were things that would be merely a footnote in the history of the world, as kingdoms would come and go, rise and fall.

Beloved in Christ, its only ‘the God of heaven who will set up a kingdom which will never be destroyed. This indicates that regardless of all the glory and the wonders of the world, all those things are fleeting and not permanent. So, let us always strive to focus our attention on the Lord, and strive to do what we can in order to follow His ways, His Law and commandments; because unfortunately, more often than not, we allow ourselves to be distracted by the many temptations of the world.

The gospel also calls on us not to get too attached to what does not last. Instead, we are to attach ourselves to the one who says of himself in Mtt. 12:6 that ‘something greater than the Temple is here’. Jesus’ enduring presence, his faithfulness to us, gives us assurance in the midst of disconcerting change and loss. In the midst of all our losses we know that God endures and God’s relationship with us never comes to an end. God can be relied upon when all else fails and God will see to it that in the midst of all our losses, we ourselves will not be lost.

May all of us be ever more committed and dedicated to the Lord in all things, and may He bless us all in our every good effort, works and endeavours.