WEBVTT 00:00:00.320 --> 00:00:04.400 Have you ever looked at the world and wonder if evil is winning? 00:00:04.639 --> 00:00:05.759 Turn on the news. 00:00:05.919 --> 00:00:08.800 You'll see corruption, violence, confusion. 00:00:09.039 --> 00:00:11.199 You see people abandoning God. 00:00:11.759 --> 00:00:15.599 And sometimes it can feel as though darkness has the upper hand. 00:00:16.000 --> 00:00:19.199 That's exactly the situation in today's first reading. 00:00:19.440 --> 00:00:21.839 Atheliah has seized power. 00:00:22.079 --> 00:00:24.239 The royal family is being murdered. 00:00:24.480 --> 00:00:28.640 The legitimate heir to David's throne appears to have been eliminated. 00:00:28.879 --> 00:00:33.200 The covenant promises seem to be hanging by a thread. 00:00:33.520 --> 00:00:36.640 And for six years evil appears to reign. 00:00:36.960 --> 00:00:38.240 Six years. 00:00:38.719 --> 00:00:40.560 Imagine living through that. 00:00:40.799 --> 00:00:42.960 Imagine being one of the faithful. 00:00:43.280 --> 00:00:46.320 Every day Atheliah sits on the throne. 00:00:46.560 --> 00:00:49.600 Every day appears that God's plan has failed. 00:00:49.840 --> 00:00:53.119 Every day it looks as though darkness has won. 00:00:53.520 --> 00:01:08.879 But hidden away in the temple is a little boy named Josiah, the rightful king, unknown to most people, unseen by the nation, protected by God, and at the anointed moment he emerges. 00:01:09.200 --> 00:01:17.920 The crown is placed upon his head, the people rejoice, the usurper falls, the covenant is renews, and peace returns. 00:01:18.400 --> 00:01:20.079 The lesson is profound. 00:01:20.319 --> 00:01:24.879 While evil appeared to be winning, God was quietly preparing the answer. 00:01:25.680 --> 00:01:28.560 That happens all through salvation history. 00:01:28.879 --> 00:01:33.040 When Pharaoh was killing Hebrew children, Moses was hidden away. 00:01:33.280 --> 00:01:39.040 When Saul hunted David, the king, future king was being prepared. 00:01:39.439 --> 00:01:44.480 When Herod sought to kill the Christ child, Joseph and Mary fled to Egypt. 00:01:44.879 --> 00:01:52.319 When Jesus lay in the tomb on Good Friday, it appeared the darkness had triumphed, but Easter was already coming. 00:01:52.560 --> 00:01:57.280 One of the greatest mistakes we make is judging God's work too early. 00:01:57.519 --> 00:02:01.359 We look at a single chapter and assume we know the whole story. 00:02:05.840 --> 00:02:09.680 We can experience suffering and conclude that he's absent. 00:02:10.080 --> 00:02:14.159 We encounter a closed door and think his plan has failed. 00:02:14.800 --> 00:02:19.039 But God is often doing his deepest work in the hiddenness. 00:02:19.919 --> 00:02:23.840 Joash spent six years hidden in the temple. 00:02:24.159 --> 00:02:26.000 Those years were not wasted. 00:02:26.240 --> 00:02:27.599 They were preparation. 00:02:27.840 --> 00:02:31.439 And I think many people are living through something similar right now. 00:02:32.080 --> 00:02:36.159 Perhaps you're praying for a child who has drifted away from the faith. 00:02:36.400 --> 00:02:44.000 Perhaps you are carrying a burden that nobody else knows about, or even maybe struggling with a situation that seems impossible. 00:02:44.240 --> 00:02:49.280 You can look at the church, the culture, or even your own family and wonder, what is God doing? 00:02:49.520 --> 00:02:51.199 When will God act? 00:02:52.240 --> 00:02:55.599 Today's reading reminds us that God is never absent. 00:02:55.840 --> 00:03:02.319 He may be hidden, he may be working on ways we cannot yet see, but he is never absent. 00:03:02.639 --> 00:03:06.879 In fact, some of God's greatest victories begin in obscurity. 00:03:07.280 --> 00:03:09.599 The world celebrates visibility. 00:03:09.919 --> 00:03:12.319 God often works through hiddenness. 00:03:12.560 --> 00:03:14.560 The world will celebrate power. 00:03:14.879 --> 00:03:17.360 God often works through weakness. 00:03:17.599 --> 00:03:20.159 The world celebrates immediate results. 00:03:20.479 --> 00:03:23.360 God works according to his own timetable. 00:03:24.319 --> 00:03:28.479 The future of the Davidic kingdom was not found in a palace. 00:03:28.800 --> 00:03:30.879 It was found in a hidden temple. 00:03:31.439 --> 00:03:34.960 The future of Israel was not in the hands of politicians. 00:03:35.199 --> 00:03:36.879 It was in the hands of God. 00:03:37.120 --> 00:03:38.960 And the same is true for us. 00:03:39.199 --> 00:03:44.879 The future of the church does not depend primarily on strategies, programs, or human strength. 00:03:45.039 --> 00:03:47.120 It depends on God's faithfulness. 00:03:47.360 --> 00:03:52.159 The future of your family does not depend solely on your ability to fix every problem. 00:03:52.639 --> 00:03:54.639 It depends on God's grace. 00:03:55.199 --> 00:03:59.520 The future of your soul does not rest on your own perfection. 00:03:59.759 --> 00:04:01.680 It rests on God's mercy. 00:04:02.000 --> 00:04:04.639 The gospel complements this beautifully. 00:04:04.960 --> 00:04:10.000 Jesus tells us not to store up treasures on earth where moth and decay destroy. 00:04:10.319 --> 00:04:10.960 Why? 00:04:11.360 --> 00:04:13.759 Well, because earthly things are fragile. 00:04:14.080 --> 00:04:17.600 Power is fragile, popularity is fragile, success is fragile. 00:04:17.839 --> 00:04:19.519 Athaliah had power. 00:04:19.759 --> 00:04:22.000 She thought the throne belonged to her. 00:04:22.240 --> 00:04:23.600 She thought she was secure. 00:04:23.759 --> 00:04:26.000 She thought she controlled the future. 00:04:26.319 --> 00:04:28.800 Six years later, she was gone. 00:04:29.120 --> 00:04:31.519 The throne belonged to someone else. 00:04:32.160 --> 00:04:35.120 That is the fate of every earthly kingdom. 00:04:35.439 --> 00:04:37.680 Only God's kingdom endures. 00:04:38.319 --> 00:04:41.360 And that is where Jesus wants our hearts to be. 00:04:41.600 --> 00:04:47.439 Because he says, For wherever your treasure is, there also will be your heart will be. 00:04:48.399 --> 00:04:50.879 The real question is not whether we have a treasure. 00:04:51.120 --> 00:04:52.079 Everyone does. 00:04:52.399 --> 00:04:55.279 The question is, where have we placed it? 00:04:55.600 --> 00:05:01.439 In ourselves, in our plans, in our possessions, in our reputation, or in God. 00:05:02.639 --> 00:05:05.120 Because everything else eventually passes away. 00:05:05.360 --> 00:05:06.879 Only God remains. 00:05:07.279 --> 00:05:10.399 So if today's readings teach us anything, it is this. 00:05:10.959 --> 00:05:13.920 Do not lose hope when evil seems strong. 00:05:14.240 --> 00:05:17.839 Do not lose hope when God's plan seems hidden. 00:05:18.160 --> 00:05:21.360 Do not lose hope when the future seems uncertain. 00:05:21.920 --> 00:05:28.720 The faithful in Jerusalem could not see what God was doing in the temple, but God was preparing a king. 00:05:29.519 --> 00:05:33.839 And there may be things happening right now in your life that you cannot see. 00:05:34.079 --> 00:05:43.199 Seeds are being planted, hearts are being changed, prayers are being answered in small hidden ways, because God has not stopped working. 00:05:43.519 --> 00:05:44.879 He never does. 00:05:45.519 --> 00:05:54.319 And those who trust him long enough eventually discover that what looked like defeat was often the beginning of his victory. 00:05:54.639 --> 00:05:55.279 Amen.