Be Always On the Watch

Be Always On the Watch

Luke Chapter 21

The Widow

Chapter 21 begins in vv. 1-4 with Jesus observing as those entering the temple placed their offerings in the various collection “trumpets”, so called because they were smaller at the top and larger at the bottom, like inverted trumpets, which, in Jesus’ day had not yet been coiled into the compact shape of today. There were many different trumpets, each for the collection of different temple needs, and the wealthy made a show of their contributions.

Jesus brought attention to a widow, and surely she was embarrassed by it. She had only two small coins. We are used to them being called “mites”, but the real name of the coin is “leptron” meaning “the thin one” and it was the smallest of the coins of the day. Today, we often leave our pennies behind us at the counter, or in a drawer, or wherever they fall, because they just are not worth the trouble. And that is the way those with wealth felt about the leptron. Jesus said they gave “out of their wealth” meaning they gave in abundance, but the widow gave a real gift, something that meant more to her than the tithes of the wealthy, because it was all she had.

Luke uses the story of the widow transitionally. Perhaps it is a record Jesus using the opportunity to provide connectivity between what he had said and what he was about to say, but we have to remember that there is no indication that Luke was present and able to give us a chronological record of the life of Jesus. It is true that the author of Luke tells us that his intention is to provide an orderly account of the things handed down by the actual eyewitnesses (Luke 1: 1-4). This transition is very orderly, whether it is chronological, or not.

This story, placed where it is, ties together a number of passages. First, there is the discussion in the previous chapter, in which Jesus points out that the coin has the image of Caesar on it, and says “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s” (Luke 20: 20-25). At first this statement seems like a neat trick to silence those who were questioning him, but when we remember that we are made in the image of God, the implications of the statement become much larger. Likewise, the story of the widow’s “mite” seems, at first, connected to the passage at the end of the previous chapter only by the catchword “widow”, as Jesus had been condemning teachers who took advantage of the kindness of widows and others who could not afford it. But, if we look carefully, we see that the widow exemplified what Jesus had taught. She gave to God what was God’s. She gave everything.

The Temple

Luke goes on in his transition. In vv. 5-7, the disciples remark of the beauty of the temple. Remember that these remarks do not come out of the blue, as Luke has just shown Jesus sitting and watching the offerings being given for the care and maintenance of the temple. What must this point in Jesus life have been like? As already mentioned, we do not expect chronological accuracy from Luke, or from any of the gospel writers, but we do rough accuracy in the sequence of events. There are, of course, problems reconciling John with the other gospels, as he seems to have the cleansing of the temple, for instance, at the beginning of Jesus ministry (John 2:12-17). But from the evidence of Luke, it appears that Jesus at this time had developed a following, that he had been continually healing and teaching, had made his triumphal entry into Jerusalem, had cleared the temple, and was at this point teaching in the temple ever day (vv. 37-38) though the leaders of the Jews wanted desperately to kill him (Luke 19: 47-48).

He must have transformed the temple. It had been a place of business. Come in with your sins, and see the high priest. If you were worthy, which was a matter of caste and finance, you did your business and were told to “Come back real soon now, ya’ here?” If you were not worthy, you had no chance. Under Jesus control, it must have been a very different place. Recall the first teaching the Luke records for us that Jesus gave in the temple (Luke 4:16-21). It was about good news to the poor and freedom for the oppressed, not about temple tax and sacrifice. The chief priest must have been aching to get back in there.

In this short passage, the disciples remarked on the beauty of the temple, which, we are told, was quite an amazing place, and the Jews worked hard to keep it so. After all, it was dedicated to the worship of God. It was the place where their God dwelt, and where the word of God came to them. Where did they get this idea? It started, I think, back in the time of Moses, while God was giving them the Ten Commandments. The people became afraid (Exodus 20:18-21). They wanted a God, but they wanted God on the other side of Moses, or in an arc, or a tent, or in a temple. They wanted to be able to say, “We have a great god, and we worship him in this temple, see how much it means to us?” God, of course, wants us to worship him in our hearts.

Jesus knew how much the temple meant to them, how much their religion depended on it. He did not correct them for their extravagance, any more than he tried to quiet the cries of “Hosanna” coming from those who would soon turn their back on him. Instead, he told them something they already knew, that the temple would be destroyed (Daniel 9:26). Now, this might have been a matter of theological interest to them, since they depended on the temple for their interaction with God. But their question was “When will it happen, and how will we know?”

Signs

In vv. 8-28, Jesus gives them many signs, and what he is saying is more than a little confusing for three reasons. First, there are many signs. These signs include natural disasters, wars, astrological indications, and persecution of Christians. One of the confusing things is that these signs have always been occurring. There are always natural disasters and wars, and Christians have been persecuted from Jesus day until today -- even in the United States, where, if a person does not hold the right views on abortion, homosexuality, and the role of women, or does not belong to the right political party, it will be said, from church pulpit and political platform, this person is not Christian.

Second, it is not entirely clear what is foretold by the signs. The disciples have asked about the destruction of the temple, and Jesus speaks of it, but is it a prophecy of the destruction of temple, or is the destruction of the temple the sign of things to come? Then there is the idea of the “Day of the Lord” (Isaiah 13:6-13) which seems to be intermingled with this prophecy, and of course, there is Jesus prophecy of his own return. It is hard to know whether Jesus tied these prophecies together, or Luke grouped them when he recorded them for us. Perhaps they had become intermingled by the time they reached Luke, since those who originally heard them did not understand how Jesus would die and return again, or that he was prophesying about himself in any way.

Finally, it is confusing that Jesus would talk about signs. Jesus has said earlier in Luke (Luke 12:40) that no one will know when he will come. Elsewhere, he says that no man knows, nor the angels, nor he himself, when he will return, but only the Father (Mark 13:32). If no one can know, why talk about the signs?

Be always on watch

The passage in vv. 29-36 is packed with meaning, and begins to make sense of the jumble of the previous section. It starts with a parable. I don’t really know anything about fig trees, though we had one at the house where I grew up, but I get the idea. There is a natural order of things. When the lightening flashes, the thunder follows. Jesus said it is the way with these signs. Then he says something even more confusing. He says that this “generation” will not pass away until all these things have happened. The word “generation” might be interpreted “race” or “people” and that might be the explanation. Or, perhaps he was referring specifically to the destruction of the temple in AD 70, in which case he would have been literally correct. However, his next statement, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away” (v. 33) again raises doubt that he was referring to a single event or series of events in the lifetime of those who heard him speak.

In v. 35, he makes it clear. He is talking about something that will happen to everyone. Not the destruction of the temple, not the Day of the Lord, not the second coming, but the Day of Judgment. He says we should be careful, and always be on watch; not, interestingly enough, because of evil temptation, but because of life. He mentions three things: dissolution, the vain pursuit of life; drunkenness, the dull, addictive withdrawal from life; and anxiety, simply being overcome by life. How can living be a sin? It is certainly no sin to be tired, to be afraid, to fail. It is only a sin to rely on ourselves, or the things of this world.

Heaven and earth will pass away, Jesus said. Maybe he was referring back to their concern about the temple. It was their means to God. How would they be able to reach God if the temple were gone? Sometimes we feel that our access to God is gone. The truth is that we can never reach God, but he always reaches out to us. Jesus said everything in this world would pass away, but his words would never pass away. Here are a few of my favorites.

Come unto me, all [ye] that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke [is] easy, and my burden is light. (Matthew 11:28-30)