A Reading from the Holy Gospel according to Luke (19:41-44)
As Jesus drew near Jerusalem,
he saw the city and wept over it, saying,
“If this day you only knew what makes for peace–
but now it is hidden from your eyes.
For the days are coming upon you
when your enemies will raise a palisade against you;
they will encircle you and hem you in on all sides.
They will smash you to the ground and your children within you,
and they will not leave one stone upon another within you
because you did not recognize the time of your visitation.”
The Gospel of the Lord. Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ!
Reflection: The Messiah has come.
In the Gospel reading for today, Luke shares of our Lord Jesus’ prophecy of the destruction of Jerusalem which occurred in the year 70 CE, which is 70 years after the birth of Christ, and we hear the reason: “because you did not recognize the time of your visitation”.
About 2000 years ago, our Lord Jesus was born, and He dwelt among us with the people of Israel to proclaim a time of repentance and the good news of the Kingdom of God. People could see him, they could hear him, and be in His presence. Jesus ate and drank among the people. He performed so many great miracles. He forgave sins, and a great number of people were healed from their illnesses. People could listen to his teachings and be in His presence. Thousands of people flocked to follow him wherever he went, including the apostles and disciples. The Messiah has come.
The scribes, Pharisees, Jewish scholars and leaders studied scripture for centuries, as the Jewish people prayed and waited in anticipation for the coming of the Messiah, the new king of Israel. However, most of the leaders of the Jewish people rejected Jesus. They did not recognize his visitation. They did not see Jesus fitting the mold of their expectations as King. They wanted the Messiah to be like an earthly king and leader, like King David, to reign and go to war for them to defeat their earthly enemies. If they only recognized that they were standing in the presence of the King of the universe itself, our great creator, savior, and God.
How about we? Let’s ask ourselves the question. Do we recognize visitation with us? Do we recognize that Jesus is with us? Jesus is here. He is with the person that we see in school, at work and wherever we go. He is journeying with everyone. Jesus journeys with all people, and He dwells in the hearts of all the baptized who follow Him. Jesus is with us. May we recognize Him in everyone that we meet.
Action for the Day:
As we pray, ask our Lord Jesus to remove the distractions from our minds, and to help us recognize his presence within every person that we meet. The Messiah has come.
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