[media presentation below] GospelThink Thursday, December 14, Advent II MATTHEW 11:11-15 I talk of the Kingdom of God. Prayerthoughts a. Jesus calls to mind John the Baptist, the Elijah-like prophet who announced the coming of the Lord. I “announce” the Lord by my words and actions. How well am I doing? b. The least in the Kingdom is greater than John the Baptist, showing the importance of  the Kingdom that Jesus was preaching. As I go about my day-to-day living, do I remember that God/Church/religion is an important part of what I do? c. The world outside often does not see the importance of God’s Kingdom. Have I given in too much to that world, and forgotten about my spiritual side of life? d. The prophets of the past have announced this Kingdom. Do I make reading the Old Testament a part of my spiritual reading? e. The spiritual life begins with hearing the word of God. Do I spend enough time reading the Scriptures? f. My prayerthoughts….   Today, I will read 1 Kings, chapters 17 and 18, the introduction of the prophet Elijah. Some Thoughts on the Liturgy  SEE AND UNDERSTAND  + One of the necessities in the spiritual life is           – what Isaiah refers to as to what will happen once the Lord fulfills his promises: all will see and understand                      – what is necessary for us to see and understand in our spiritual lives?                                – interesting question which has many answers, but from this liturgy, a couple things can be pointed out  + 1 – The Lord will help us see and understand our calling as Christians           – clear from Isaiah’s words                      – and reconfirmed by Jesus in the New Testament: “Come to me” passage from yesterday’s liturgy           – we have to keep believing that the Lord continues to give us grace to do the things that we are called to do as spiritual people                      – we are called to follow him as best we can                                – when we do that, as Isaiah says speaking for the Lord: “I will answer”  + 2 – In the process of seeing and understanding, justice will be accomplished           – the image of the “threshing sledge”                      – evil will not win out, the good will survive                                – even if the only way is death because we still win—we will have eternal life!  + 3 – As we see and understand in our religious lives, we must learn the lesson of John the Baptist as he announced Jesus and the Kingdom           – he was a great man who merely announced the time of fulfillment for the Kingdom                      – “the Kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent are taking it by force”                                – that is, the opponents of Jesus and John are trying to prevent people from accepting the Kingdom and to snatch it away from those who have received it [New American explanation]                      – John announced the time of fulfillment of the Kingdom which is being enacted at the present moment with the ultimate conclusion in heaven                                – we must see and understand that we are all important for the Kingdom (even more important than John the Baptist)                                          – and that we are part of the fulfillment of the Kingdom                      – that is, we are called to be part of bringing about that Kingdom on earth  + We are called to see and understand           – and we will if we accept Jesus more into our lives. MEDIA PRESENTATION Song: “High Hopes” — Panic at the Disco! ONE SMART MAMA AND HOPE IN GOD The Gospel MATTHEW 12:15b-21 Many people followed Jesus and he cured them all, though he sternly ordered them not to make public what he had done. This was to fulfill what had been said through Isaiah the prophet: “Here is my servant whom I have chosen, my loved one in whom I delight. I will endow him with my spirit and he will proclaim justice to the Gentiles. He will not contend or cry out, nor will his voice be heard in the streets. The bruised reed he will not crush; the smoldering wick he will not quench until judgment is made victorious. In his name, the Gentiles will find hope.”

Gospelthink: The evangelist Matthew quotes Isaiah about me–you will find hope in me. Do I place my hope in the Lord during my trials?

“Had to have high hopes for living, shooting for the stars when I couldn’t make a killing. Didn’t have a dime but I always had a vision, always had high hopes. Mama said, fulfill the prophecy, be something greater, go make a legacy, rewrite your history, light up your wildest dreams.”

If there is one message that is absolutely clear from the Gospels, it is the message that Jesus cured people. As Matthew says directly, “He cured them all.” Jesus was always a kind healer who would not turn anyone down if they came to him with faith. Matthew the evangelist read Isaiah the prophet and thought of Jesus as a person in whom everyone could find hope. He was a leader that manifested hope to all by sharing his vision of love and healing to all. Such a vision is the topic of the group Panic! At The Disco’s song “High Hopes.”  The song is a statement that the vision of the person in the song has brought about a confidence to carry through with a good life. It seems to have been inspired by his mother who told him at an early age in various ways to “fulfill the prophecy, be something greater, go make a legacy, rewrite your history, light up your wildest dreams.” Would that we all had smart Mamas like that! We all need the inspiration like the mother gives in the song. Everyone of us must understand that we really can be so much more than we are at the present time. There is a legacy that we can leave, something greater that we can do.  We can rewrite our history from this moment on to live a life that is true to a dream that will lead us and guide us. In the Christian world, it is called following what Jesus taught and why he taught it. We must develop the confidence in ourselves that we really can do it. Christians can study the hope that the group sings of in their song, and understand that the faith they have in Jesus can inspire the same hope. Jesus inspired hope and confidence among his followers in the first century, and continues to give that same hope to the people of our modern day. When we feel the pain of days and worries of the night, or the evil words of people who want to hurt us, the Christian can turn to their God present in Jesus and with conviction say to him: you can lead me to work on being the type of person that will give hope to myself and my world.

PRAYER  Good and gracious God, your Son truly loved the people of his day, and our faith tells us that he continues to care for us as we turn to you in prayer. Give us the hope that we need so that we can lead our lives with the conviction that you will always be with us. Be with us, we pray.

+++++ GUIDE FOR CLASSROOM PRESENTATION AND PERSONAL ENRICHMENT Theme: The leader will always possess a hope of a greater vision. DISCUSSION QUESTIONS: 1. What does the song “High Hopes” teach young people? 2. In your opinion, why did Jesus not want those he cured to make it known? 3. How would you describe the “vision” of what the world wants? 4. What is your definition of ‘hope.” 5. What should we want most in life, given the fact that we are followers of Jesus? 6. To whom do the people of the world look most for guidance? 7. To whom should the people of the world look most for guidance?