Commentary on the Gospel of
The description of the end times can cause anguish to the people. Yet, they are the times of hope and redemption, and a time to ‘hold your head high. Winter makes the fig tree weary, but the onset of summer breaks forth new buds on the grey branches. This is a message of hope. The Lord causes new life and hope to sprout through the ruin and destruction. It is the power of the Gospel. The Word emerges victorious over all the obstacles and forces of death. The Word that descended to restore the wounded humanity has now accomplished its task. When we commit to the Word, it continues to accomplish the purpose for which is sent. Peter was steadfast in his commitment to the Word: ‘Lord, where shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.’
Signs of times are signs of God. Proper reading of them lead to hope founded on the firmness of the word of God which drives away fear to despair. The events unfolding around us especially in this context of pandemic reveal to us that God is in our midst. For us, Jesus is already among us (Mt 28:20). He is already at our side in the struggle for justice, for peace and for life. But the fullness has not as yet been attained. For this reason, we wait with perseverance the liberation of humanity and of nature (Rm 8:22- 25).
God is calling us to renew our minds. We pursue knowledge in our respective fields of interest so that we can wield the benefits of that knowledge. But the Lord is reminding us that all these things will pass away. The only knowledge worth pursuing is the recognition of the coming of God’s kingdom. We need to constantly led by wisdom of His Word that lasts for all the time.
