Today’s scripture: Luke 17:37, Matthew 24:28 (NRSV) (The Message) (KJV) What might God be saying to me?
My thoughts (Steve Adams):
Where the corpse is, there the vultures will gather??? When I first read this, I thought, “Jesus said that? What could it possibly mean?” It certainly doesn’t have the aesthetic appeal of “Behold the lilies of the valley,” does it?! However, upon investigation, I found some wonderful evidence that I think will make this saying as meaningful, and even as inspirational to you as, “Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these.”
Jesus was explaining at length to his disciples that, in the future, they would yearn to see him, but wouldn’t be able to find him — that he would be gone (Luke 17:22). The disciples start getting anxious and excessively concerned about the details — where, how, when will he come? That’s our natural tendency when we face uncertainty about something we care deeply about, isn’t it? We want to understand, and engineer if possible, every last detail. It’s good to be diligent, of course, up to a point, but how easy it is to cross the line from due diligence — where we are wisely addressing the details — into obsession and compulsion, where we can’t stop thinking about and trying to manipulate details which are out of our control.
There comes a point when we have to surrender the details to God — “let go and let God,” as the wise saying exhorts. The disciples want to know WHERE? This is one detail that they don’t need to worry about. God will take care of it! It’s kind of like when I get on an airplane. If I had my way, I’d ask the pilots how and with what method they’re going to execute lift-off and landing; if they could provide me with a report documenting that the mechanics adequately prepared the plane, and if enough fuel is on board; if there’s a likelihood there will be severe turbulence on the flight; and if there is a possibility of icing on the wings when we land. Obviously, this is impossible! I simply have to let go of all these details, and trust God (and the airline).
And so it is with all the details of life after death. We simply can’t be aware of all of them, since we see through a glass darkly, with a veil over our eyes. What we CAN do, though, is trust God with all of our hearts! And that’s all the disciples could do! Jesus responds to the compulsion to over-control due to lack of trust in verse 33 — “Those who try to make their life secure will lose it, but those who lose their life will keep it.” So, whether it’s about eternal life or an airplane ride, Jesus basically says, “Chill! And trust God!”
So what does this curious phrase mean, “Where the corpse is, there the vultures will gather”? The notes in the New Oxford Annotated Bible, Third Edition, have a great clue. Job 39:30 contains a very similar expression, which was apparently a common expression in biblical times. Where the slain animal is, there the hawk, or the vulture will be. Jesus seems to be reassuring His disciples by basically saying, “Look, where I am (in this future time and place), you will be right there with me! Just like where there’s smoke, there’s fire. And, once you see these signs I’ve been telling you about, like wars and rumors of wars, famines, earthquakes, false prophets, people fleeing to the mountains and disappearing, then, know I will come to be with my beloved — YOU! That’s all the signs you need! And it will happen just as naturally as when a group of vultures gather around a body so they can get their meal for the day!”
So, this stark, vivid (and perhaps even a bit ugly) image actually is a tremendously inspirational bit of spiritual reassurance — Godly food to fuel our faith!
Thought for the Day: When it comes to getting a picture of what life after death — our eternal destiny — will be like, we do our best to seek out all the information we can. We think, we read, we pray, we soul-search. Then comes the time to simply let go and let God! We trust that God’s love, combined with God’s genius, will bring us together again with our Lord Jesus, as well as our other loved ones, after this life is over.
We encourage you to include a time of prayer with this reading. If you need a place to get started, consider the suggestions on the How to Pray page.