Today’s Gospel begins with Jesus’ disciples marvelling at the Temple in Jerusalem. It was a beautiful, impressive building that had taken half a century to build. But a few decades later, the Temple was destroyed by the Roman army. Not a single stone was left on another, just as Jesus foretold.

Jesus went on to warn the disciples of what was coming. By now, he could foresee his own death, and he foresaw that his disciples would be persecuted too. There would be turmoil in the world – wars and natural disasters. But Jesus urged his disciples not to be afraid, to put their trust in him, and hold on to the truth that he had taught them. Expressing God’s love and care for them, he told his disciples, ‘Not a hair of your head will be lost.’

There is turmoil in our world, but Jesus’ words are meant for us, too. If we hold fast to the truth and trust in him, he will save us. Our faith in Christ gives us courage.

Jesus was teaching his disciples that nothing in this world lasts forever. The Romans destroyed the Temple, but in time the Roman Empire itself fell. Every worldly empire will come to an end. Only God’s kingdom is eternal.

Jesus taught his disciples that those who believed in him would be raised up by God after their death, to eternal life. This teaching seemed ridiculous to the Sadducees, so they tried to catch Jesus out with a ridiculous example. One woman has been married to seven brothers. Which one will be her husband when God raises them all up?

With his answer to the Sadducees, Jesus is not devaluing marriage. For those whom God calls to marriage and family life, it is a sacred calling and an essential part of who they are. But Jesus is teaching us that in God’s kingdom there will be no limits to the love that we experience. We will be fully alive and will experience a joy that is beyond anything that we can imagine in this life – even beyond the joys of marriage.

November is the month when we traditionally remember and pray for the dead. Today’s Gospel reminds us of our hope of resurrection and eternal life. This hope is based on the teaching of Christ; based on our faith that we are loved into being by God and held in existence every moment by a love that is stronger than death. Our God is God of the living and not of the dead.

Last week, Jesus told his disciples a parable about a tax collector who repented of his sins. In today’s Gospel, it happens for real. As a senior tax collector in Jericho, Zacchaeus would be a wealthy man, but probably not popular with his fellow Jews.

Zacchaeus was so anxious to see Jesus that he set aside his dignity and climbed a tree to get a better view. And as soon as Jesus saw Zacchaeus, he called him to become a disciple and asked him for hospitality. In the same way that he impulsively climbed the tree, Zacchaeus responded impulsively to Jesus’ call. He promised to change his life, to give generously to the poor and to give back any money that he had obtained by fraud. We may wonder whether Zacchaeus really followed through on his bold promises. But he shows us an example of an immediate and generous response to the Lord’s call. Jesus obviously made a big impression on Zacchaeus.

But not everyone was happy. Some complained that Jesus had ‘gone to stay at a sinner’s house.’ Perhaps they knew Zacchaeus and his reputation.

This Gospel shows us two possible responses to Jesus. Zacchaeus was so moved by meeting Jesus that he decided at once to change his whole life. Others could only complain and find fault. As long as we are busy complaining about the sins of others, we will never be ready to meet the Lord and be converted and saved.

Two men go to the Temple to pray. The Pharisee wants to tell God about all his good works; fasting, paying tithes to the Temple and keeping all the commandments of the Law. The Pharisee feels proud of himself – in fact, the parable tells us that he was saying his prayer ‘to himself.’

Tax collectors, on the other hand, were despised as traitors; they collected taxes from their own people on behalf of the Roman rulers. The tax collector in the parable stays humbly in the background and prays for God’s mercy.

Why does Jesus teach his disciples that, of the two men, the tax collector was the one who ‘went home at rights with God?’ Because pride is a barrier to our relationship with God. As long as we are proudly counting up our good works and comparing ourselves to others, we are blind to our need for God’s mercy. The tax collector knew that he was a sinner, and in his prayer he humbly asked for God’s forgiveness. The parable teaches us that the tax collector’s prayer should be our prayer too.