Chapter Thirteen starts with Jesus foretelling the destruction of the temple. He then sits on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple with Peter, James, John and Andrew. He warns them to be on guard as he discusses the signs of the end of the age.
Jesus talks about the coming of the Son of Man after first warning of the false christs and false prophets who will perform signs and wonders to try to lead the elect astray. Jesus makes it clear that nobody knows the day or hour when the Son of Man will come: “Stay awake for you do not know when the master of the house will come”.
Reading Mark in Advent is an 18-part podcast series that sees us upload a chapter of Mark’s Gospel each weekday of the season.
With a global pandemic sweeping the world and lockdowns and restrictions placed on our everyday living – not to mention patterns of worship and prayer – this is very much “the Word in Lockdown”.
But the Word of God is never locked down, isolated and contained. As Pope Francis says:
“The word of God is alive and active (Hebrews 4:12); it does not die, nor does it age, but it remains for ever (cf. 1 Peter 1:25). It stays young in the presence of all that passes away (cf. Matthew 25:35) and preserves those who put it into practice from inner aging.”
