This Weekend Beside Justin Martyr: Conform No Longer to the Pattern of this World But Be Transformed By the Renewal of Your Minds (Romans 12:2a)

The word of truth is free, and carries its own authority, disdaining to fall under any skillful argument, or to endure the logical scrutiny of its hearers. But it would be believed for its own nobility, and for the confidence due to Him who sends it. Now the word of truth is sent from God; wherefore the freedom claimed by the truth is not arrogant. For being sent with authority, it were not fit that it should be required to produce proof of what is said; since neither is there any proof beyond itself, which is God. For every proof is more powerful and trustworthy than that which it proves; since what is disbelieved, until proof is produced, gets credit when such proof is produced, and is recognised as being what it was stated to be. But nothing is either more powerful or more trustworthy than the truth; so that he who requires proof of this is like one who wishes it demonstrated why the things that appear to the senses do appear. For the test of those things which are received through the reason, is sense; but of sense itself there is no test beyond itself. As then we bring those things which reason hunts after, to sense, and by it judge what kind of things they are, whether the things spoken be true or false, and then sit in judgment no longer, giving full credit to its decision; so also we refer all that is said regarding men and the world to the truth, and by it judge whether it be worthless or no. But the utterances of truth we judge by no separate test, giving full credit to itself. And God, the Father of the universe, who is the perfect intelligence, is the truth. And the Word, being His Son, came to us, having put on flesh, revealing both Himself and the Father, giving to us in Himself resurrection from the dead, and eternal life afterwards. And this is Jesus Christ, our Saviour and Lord. He, therefore, is Himself both the faith and the proof of Himself and of all things. Wherefore those who follow Him, and know Him, having faith in Him as their proof, shall rest in Him. (Extracted from the Lost Work of Justin on the Resurrection, transl. the Rev. M. Dods, M.A., Chapter I: The Self- Evidencing Power of Truth)
Scripture Extract: Luke 20:27-38 Some Sadducees, those who say there is no resurrection, came to him and asked him a question, “Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies, leaving a wife but no children, the man shall marry the widow and raise up children for his brother. Now there were seven brothers; the first married, and died childless; then the second and the third married her, and so in the same way all seven died childless. Finally the woman also died. In the resurrection, therefore, whose wife will the woman be? For the seven had married her.” Jesus said to them, “Those who belong to this age marry and are given in marriage; but those who are considered worthy of a place in that age and in the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage. Indeed they cannot die anymore, because they are like angels and are children of God, being children of the resurrection. And the fact that the dead are raised Moses himself showed, in the story about the bush, where he speaks of the Lord as the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. Now he is God not of the dead, but of the living; for to him all of them are alive.”
Prayer: God of the living, we praise your good name. As perfectly creative Father of all things bright and wonderful, you would not leave us poor little children of “a ghost of a saviour.”* Conform our minds to the reality of which Jesus is central and save us from the noisy arrogance of the Sadducees and that of the so- called religious intellectuals of our own day. As perfectly strong and loving Father you set the tone that the Spirit should move whither it will, that Jesus your Son our Lord should be the singular determinative rule and measure of all questions of space, time and reality and that through the gift of our union with him, we should be now and after all true sons and daughters of the God of the living. Through our Risen Lord we pray. Amen.
*This prayer is inspired in part by my own reading of Space, Time and Resurrection by T.F. Torrance. It is published by T & T Clark of Edinburgh, 1976.
Lectionary Readings for Sunday 11 November 2007 the 32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time:
Haggai 1:15b-2:9
Psalm 145:1-5, 17-21 or Psalm 98:1-9
2 Thessalonians 2:1-5, 13-17
Luke 20:27-38