Pass it on
Resources to share for DIY discipleship
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To the leader: this page offers extracts from the ROOTS weekly resources to share with others in your church community to help them explore the Bible and grow as disciples.
Highlight and copy the text to print, email, or put it on your church website – pass it on! Please include the copyright acknowledgement to ROOTS that appears with the extracts.
When and where? ROOTS resources can be used all week. We’ve included some notes below to suggest when and where you might share them. Don’t forget house groups, youth groups, the housebound, care homes, toddler groups and school assemblies. See also: A guide to using Pass it on.
13 November 2016
Hang on: Luke 21.5-19
Lectionary Bible readings RCL Proper 28 Year C
Malachi 4.1-2a
Psalm 98
2 Thessalonians 3.6-13
Luke 21.5-19
We explore:
active hope; faithful endurance; doing what is right.
Resources to share
To help the listener
To the leader: these brief notes help to set the scene for the readings.
When & where? Read out the notes before hearing the readings in worship; share on a weekly bulletin, church website, etc. with Bible references so that people can get more out of reading the passages for themselves.
The reader could use these words to provide context.
The New Testament reading calls us not to give up on our responsibilities to each other. In the Gospel, Jesus assures us that when our world seems to be falling apart, we can – and should – continue to trust in God’s faithfulness.
© ROOTS for Churches Ltd 2002-2016. Reproduced with permission. www.rootsontheweb.com
Bible notes
To the leader: we offer two sets of Bible notes each week. The short version comes from the Children & Young People resources and the long version is from the Adult & All Age resources. You could share a version to help people learn more about the reading.
When & where? Before or after we hear the reading in worship; in a Bible study group; distributed to people who can’t get to the service; in a youth group.
Short version
Luke 21.5-19
- Today’s passage is the last of Jesus’ public discussions before he goes to the upper room with his disciples. It addresses the concerns some were having about the end times. This is Luke’s version of the ‘little apocalypse’ found in Mark 13. It uses traditional ‘end of the world’ imagery: war, earthquakes, famine, plagues. It is as if the good order of creation is beginning to unravel. But Jesus is less concerned with predicting the future than with giving a message of reassurance, and a call to stand firm and endure through times of crisis.
- Amid all the pain and destruction, people may wonder what the point is and feel that there is no future. Although some of these catastrophic events may be considered signs of the end times, Jesus says that it is not the end yet. He deflects the disciples’ ‘when’ questions and encourages them to consider ‘how’. How will they survive during these testing times to come?
- Jesus assures us that we will not suffer alone (v.15) and that God is completely trustworthy (v.18). We are encouraged to live in hope. Active hope means we don’t have our head in the clouds dreaming of heaven, but keep our feet firmly on the ground and live today in the best way we can, with confidence in our future. The reading from 2 Thessalonians also encourages a commitment to work and to ‘not be weary in doing what is right’ (v.13).
© ROOTS for Churches Ltd 2002-2016. Reproduced with permission. www.rootsontheweb.com
Long version
New Testament 2 Thessalonians 3.6-13
2 Thessalonians 3.6-13 addresses the pastoral consequences of theological error. Despite Paul’s insistence in 1 Thessalonians that God’s future – revealed in the coming of his risen Son from heaven – has yet to arrive (1 Thessalonians 1.10; 4.13–5.11), some members of the church there believe that ‘the day of the Lord is already here’ (2 Thessalonians 2.2). Among the casualties of misplaced hope is their commitment to everyday life and institutions, notably work and marriage. ‘Believers who are living in idleness’ (vv.6,11) do so at the expense of others in the Christian community who are not so easily swayed.
It would be easy but mistaken to generalise the advice here – particularly the seemingly harsh words of verse 10 – in a culture that uses the term ‘hardworking’ as a badge of honour. Some scholars have argued from 1 Thessalonians that the ministry of Paul and his colleagues in Thessalonica was based in the workplace (1 Thessalonians 2.9; 4.11). His converts there lived as alternative families, dependent on each other rather than wealthy patrons (1 Thessalonians 4.9-12). Verse 13 acknowledges the demands of allowing Christ-like love to inform and also transform everyday life. But the alternative is to defy apostolic example and teaching (vv.6-9) and opt out of a world of mutual responsibility, in which each supports and is supported by the other – surely no way to fulfil the purposes of the creator God (see Genesis 4.9).
Gospel Luke 21.5-19
Luke 21.5-36 is the evangelist’s version of the so-called ‘little apocalypse’ found in Mark 13. Writing after the fall of Jerusalem in AD 70, it is not surprising that he adapts some of what he finds (compare v.20 with the more cryptic Mark 13.14). But he is faithful to the general drift of Jesus’ apocalyptic sayings, that are less interested in predicting the future (see Luke 17.20-21) than in encouraging his followers to be resilient.
The disciples’ question ‘when?’ is understandable in view of verse 6, but Jesus is more concerned about faithfulness and loyalty (v.8). False prophets of hope remind us of Paul’s opponents in 2 Thessalonians, who exploit the anxieties of those who are unsure of their place in the world. Verses 9 to 11 use traditional ‘end of the world’ imagery. In distressing times it is as if the good order of creation unravels before our eyes. Wars, earthquakes, famines and plagues are the stock-in-trade of the prophets. Their recurrence throughout history allows us to recycle the prophets’ warnings, without giving room to complacency or cynicism. Jesus calls for discernment and understanding: verse 11 suggests that God has something to say to us when creation seems to be falling apart.
As ever, Jesus earths his visions of cosmic upheaval in the mundane experience of his followers as they extend his mission (vv.12-19). His words point forward to his Passion, and suggest that neither he nor his followers suffer in isolation. Their shared loyalty to God’s cause binds them together as one, in suffering and in hope. Such reassurance is vital when relationships with family, friends and authorities break down, and hitherto trustworthy institutions such as the Temple crumble. By contrast, God is utterly trustworthy (v.18), and will vindicate the faith of those who endure.
Jesus may be faith’s model and assurance, but there is nothing automatic about the fulfilment of what he promises. Hence his repeated call for deliberate choice and mindful focus: ‘beware…do not go after them’ (v.8), ‘do not be terrified’ (v.9), ‘make up your minds’ (v.14).
The links between the lectionary readings
The New Testament reading and Gospel are linked by warnings against misplaced hope. God’s future has not yet arrived, neither is it just around the corner, despite the persuasive talk of some. Uncertain times call for a patient and resilient faith whose resources lie in the faithfulness of God.
© ROOTS for Churches Ltd 2002-2016. Reproduced with permission. www.rootsontheweb.com
PostScript: Hang on in there
To the leader: this reflection and comment on current news and events is written afresh each week and appears on the ROOTS website by Thursday morning.
When & where? Useful for sermon preparation; includes a prayer that can be used in worship and questions for young people. You could share it after the Sunday service or use in house/youth groups sessions.
Prayers
To the leader: these prayers support individual and family prayer life during the week.
When & where? Print/email them in a bulletin, post on your website.
A personal prayer
Let peace begin with me, O Lord;
let not my heart harbour hatred.
Help me to endure all things through faith;
foster hope in my innermost being,
and enable me to work for righteousness.
Amen.
© ROOTS for Churches Ltd 2002-2016. Reproduced with permission. www.rootsontheweb.com
A way into prayer
A reflection, while focusing on a cross or crucifix.
On the cross, Jesus suffered and died to gain our salvation, and
eternal peace in heaven. An instrument of torture and death,
imposed by an occupying power in a war-torn land, has become
for us a symbol of hope, peace and endurance. Behold the
power of the cross of Christ.
© ROOTS for Churches Ltd 2002-2016. Reproduced with permission. www.rootsontheweb.com
A prayer for all ages together
Show an image of a dove with an olive branch, and explain its symbolism. Invite people to link their thumbs, keeping their
fingers closed. Then say:
Let the dove of peace unfold her wings (spread fingers).
Watch her rise into the air (slowly raise hands, fluttering fingers).
Beat strongly, beautiful wings, fly over land and sea (make swooping motions).
Bring peace among the nations (close fingers again, clasp hands).
Amen.
© ROOTS for Churches Ltd 2002-2016. Reproduced with permission. www.rootsontheweb.com
A children’s prayer
May Jesus bless us
with peace in our hearts and homes,
and may he always hang on to us,
and be our friend and our guide.
Amen.
© ROOTS for Churches Ltd 2002-2016. Reproduced with permission. www.rootsontheweb.com
Live in faith
To the leader: these are suggestions, linked to this week’s Bible reading, for putting faith into action.
When & where? Print/email them in a bulletin, post on your website.
For children
Encourage the children to tell someone about Jesus this week and not be afraid of what to say.
© ROOTS for Churches Ltd 2002-2016. Reproduced with permission. www.rootsontheweb.com
For young people
This week ‘live as if Christ died yesterday, rose this morning and is coming back tomorrow’ (Martin Luther).
© ROOTS for Churches Ltd 2002-2016. Reproduced with permission. www.rootsontheweb.com
For adults
Tie three knots in a piece of string or wool. Use it at every meal to remind you of this week’s themes: active hope; faithful endurance; doing what is right.
© ROOTS for Churches Ltd 2002-2016. Reproduced with permission. www.rootsontheweb.com
Children’s Sheet
To the leader: a question to ponder, a picture to colour, activities, a prayer, and a related book/film to share, aimed at 5–9 year olds.
When & where? Print it out for families to take away, email it to families each week.
This week's Children's sheets
Picture pointers
To the leader: a picture from this week’s resources with questions for reflection and discussion.
When & where? Use in a house group, project as people prepare to worship, share after the Sunday service.
This week's Picture pointers