Daily Readings - Mon Nov 09 2020
First Reading - Ezekiel 47.1-2, 8-9, 12 or 1 Corinthians 3.9b-11, 16-17
Ezekiel
1The man brought me back to the entrance of the temple, and I saw water coming out from under the threshold of the temple toward the east (for the temple faced east). The water was coming down from under the south side of the temple, south of the altar.2He then brought me out through the north gate and led me around the outside to the outer gate facing east, and the water was flowing from the south side.8He said to me, "This water flows toward the eastern region and goes down into the Arabah, where it enters the Sea. When it empties into the Sea, the water there becomes fresh.9Swarms of living creatures will live wherever the river flows. There will be large numbers of fish, because this water flows there and makes the salt water fresh; so where the river flows everything will live.12Fruit trees of all kinds will grow on both banks of the river. Their leaves will not wither, nor will their fruit fail. Every month they will bear, because the water from the sanctuary flows to them. Their fruit will serve for food and their leaves for healing."
1 Corinthians
9For we are God's fellow workers; you are God's field, God's building.10By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as an expert builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should be careful how he builds.11For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.16Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you?17If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him; for God's temple is sacred, and you are that temple.
John
13When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, Jesus went up to Jerusalem.14In the temple courts he found men selling cattle, sheep and doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging money.15So he made a whip out of cords, and drove all from the temple area, both sheep and cattle; he scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables.16To those who sold doves he said, "Get these out of here! How dare you turn my Father's house into a market!"17His disciples remembered that it is written: "Zeal for your house will consume me."18Then the Jews demanded of him, "What miraculous sign can you show us to prove your authority to do all this?"19Jesus answered them, "Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days."20The Jews replied, "It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and you are going to raise it in three days?"21But the temple he had spoken of was his body.22After he was raised from the dead, his disciples recalled what he had said. Then they believed the Scripture and the words that Jesus had spoken.
Sermon
In today's readings, we encounter powerful visions of life, renewal, and the true meaning of worship. Ezekiel’s vision of the temple in Ezekiel 47 vividly describes waters flowing from the temple, bringing life and healing to all they touch. This imagery speaks of a restored creation, where God’s presence flows forth, transforming even the most desolate places into gardens of abundance. The temple here is not just a building but a source of divine life, reminding us that God’s presence is meant to overflow into the world, bringing healing and fruitfulness.
In the Gospel, John 2:13-22, Jesus’ actions in the temple challenge us to reflect on what it means to worship God. By driving out the merchants and moneychangers, Jesus is not just cleaning the temple; he is restoring its true purpose as a house of prayer. His zeal for God’s house consumes him, as the Psalm says, and he calls us to share that same passion. When the Jews question his authority, Jesus points to his own body as the true temple, a mystery that would only be fully understood after his resurrection. This passage invites us to see Jesus as the new temple, the source of living water, and the place where God’s presence dwells among us.
These readings remind us that our lives are meant to be temples of the Holy Spirit, living sources of God’s life and love in the world. Just as Ezekiel’s waters flowed outward, bringing healing to the land, so too are we called to let God’s Spirit flow through us, transforming the world around us. Let us ask ourselves: Are we allowing God’s presence to flow freely through us, or are there obstacles in our hearts that need to be cleared away? May we, like Jesus, be consumed by zeal for God’s house, and may our lives be fruitful, bearing the first-fruits of the Spirit for the healing of the world.