In the Gospel reading today from Luke 20, some Sadducees ask Jesus a trick question regarding the resurrection of the dead. (The Sadducees did not believe in the resurrection of the dead.) Jesus answers the question and in the end affirms our belief in the Communion of Saints when He says, “[God] is not God of the dead, but of the living, for to him all are alive.”
In the first reading from 1 Maccabees 6, news gets back to King Antiochus that the children of Israel had beaten his army, taken back Jerusalem and cleansed the temple. Sick with grief because his plans had failed, Antiochus became sick to the point of death. In his final thoughts, he realizes that it is because of the evils he perpetrated that death has come knocking at his door.
We see in the Scriptures time and again that wickedness doesn’t pay. It may bring those who do wicked deeds short term gains or riches or power. But in the end, the wicked will pay the price for their wickedness. Now, none of us would like to think of themselves as wicked, I’m sure. But could there be places in our lives where we are cutting corners on doing the right thing? Times where we are fudging the truth? Let’s be honest…wickedness comes in many different forms, shapes and sizes.
Father, keep us from wickedness. Give us the grace to always do the right. Amen.
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