Daily Readings - Fri Nov 18 2022
Revelation
8Then the voice that I had heard from heaven spoke to me again, saying, "Go, take the scroll that is open in the hand of the angel who is standing on the sea and on the land."9So I went to the angel and told him to give me the little scroll. And he said to me, "Take and eat it; it will make your stomach bitter, but in your mouth it will be sweet as honey."10And I took the little scroll from the hand of the angel and ate it. It was sweet as honey in my mouth, but when I had eaten it my stomach was made bitter.11And I was told, "You must again prophesy about many peoples and nations and languages and kings."
Luke
45And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold,46saying to them, "It is written, 'My house shall be a house of prayer,' but you have made it a den of robbers."47And he was teaching daily in the temple. The chief priests and the scribes and the principal men of the people were seeking to destroy him,48but they did not find anything they could do, for all the people were hanging on his words.
Sermon
In today's readings, we encounter two powerful narratives that invite us to reflect on the nature of God's message and our response to it. The first reading from Revelation presents John being instructed by an angel to eat a book, which is sweet in his mouth but bitter in his stomach. This act symbolizes the prophet's role: receiving God's word, which brings joy but also the burden of proclaiming truths that may be difficult to hear. The second reading from Luke depicts Jesus cleansing the temple, driving out merchants and money changers, and emphasizing that the temple should be a house of prayer. This act of cleansing is a prophetic stand against corruption and the misuse of sacred spaces.
Both readings highlight the dual nature of God's message. In Revelation, the sweetness of the book represents the comfort and grace of God's word, while its bitterness signifies the challenging truths it may carry. In Luke, Jesus' action is a call to integrity and reverence, showing that upholding what is sacred often requires confronting injustice. These readings are connected through the theme of prophetic witness—both John and Jesus are called to deliver God's message, even when it leads to discomfort or conflict.
In our daily lives, these readings invite us to embrace the fullness of God's truth. Just as John consumed the book and Jesus cleansed the temple, we are called to receive God's word with openness and to live it out courageously. This means standing against injustice, even when it is inconvenient, and being willing to endure the bitterness that may come with faithfully following God's will. Let us strive to be temples of prayer, living in harmony with God's truth and reflecting His love and justice in the world.