Daily Readings - Sat Nov 09 2024
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
The readings today invite us to reflect on the imagery of the temple and its profound spiritual significance. In Ezekiel’s vision, the temple becomes a source of life-giving water, flowing out to heal and nourish the land. This water symbolizes the grace of God, which restores and revitalizes all it touches. Ezekiel’s prophecy points to a future where God’s presence will bring abundant life, not just to Israel, but to all creation. The temple, as a sacred place, is not just a building but a source of spiritual vitality.
In the Gospel, Jesus takes this idea a step further. When he cleanses the temple in Jerusalem, he is not just confronting the corruption of commerce in a holy place; he is asserting that the true temple is his own body. By driving out the moneychangers and merchants, Jesus is preparing the way for a new understanding of worship—one that is not confined to a physical building but flows from the heart. His words, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up,” point to his own resurrection, where he becomes the living temple, the source of eternal life.
These readings challenge us to see ourselves as temples of the Holy Spirit, called to be sources of life and grace in the world. Just as Ezekiel’s waters flowed outward to heal the land, our lives should overflow with God’s love, touching the lives of those around us. Jesus’ cleansing of the temple reminds us to examine our own hearts, purifying them from worldly distractions and making them fit dwelling places for God. Let us strive to be like the tree by the river in Ezekiel’s vision, bearing fruit that nourishes others and bringing healing to a world in need.