Twenty-Second Sunday after Pentecost 2025: Nov 9, 2025

Join us on November 9, 2025, for Morning Prayer at 9:00 AM for the Twenty-Second Sunday after Pentecost 2025, at St. John the Divine Episcopal Church, located at 216 E Chandler Blvd, Burlington, WI.

Join us for worship in the way that suits you best! You can worship with us in person, via livestream, through video replay, or as a podcast.

Join Us Electrically For The Twenty-Second Sunday after Pentecost 2025

We understand that it may not always be possible for you to join us in person. That’s why we offer several options for your convenience. If you’d like, we can send you a reminder on Sunday mornings that includes links to the video and additional information.

Live Stream/Playback

We will go live at 8:50 AM for the organ prelude, or you can join us at 9:00 AM for the opening hymn. The video will be available immediately after the service ends.

Podcast

We plan to release our podcast by Sunday afternoon. However, it may take a bit longer for the episode to show up in your favorite podcast player. Did you know we are available on all major platforms? Feel free to check out some of our past episodes if you’re interested!

Our podcast covers the service, from the opening hymn to the sharing of the peace.

The Collect for the Twenty-Second Sunday after Pentecost 2025

O God, whose blessed Son came into the world that he might destroy the works of the devil and make us children of God and heirs of eternal life: Grant that, having this hope, we may purify ourselves as he is pure; that, when he comes again with power and great glory, we may be made like him in his eternal and glorious kingdom; where he lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

The Readings for the Twenty-Second Sunday after Pentecost 2025

Old Testament: Job 19:23-27a

23 “O that my words were written down! O that they were inscribed in a book! 24 O that with an iron pen and with lead they were engraved on a rock forever! 25 For I know that my Redeemer lives, and that at the last he will stand upon the earth; 26 and after my skin has been thus destroyed, then in my flesh I shall see God, 27 whom I shall see on my side, and my eyes shall behold, and not another.

Psalm: Psalm 17:1-9

1 Hear my plea of innocence, O Lord; give heed to my cry; * listen to my prayer, which does not come from lying lips.

2 Let my vindication come forth from your presence; * let your eyes be fixed on justice.

3 Weigh my heart, summon me by night, * melt me down; you will find no impurity in me.

4 I give no offense with my mouth as others do; * I have heeded the words of your lips.

5 My footsteps hold fast to the ways of your law; * in your paths my feet shall not stumble.

6 I call upon you, O God, for you will answer me; * incline your ear to me and hear my words.

7 Show me your marvelous loving-kindness, * O Savior of those who take refuge at your right hand from those who rise up against them.

8 Keep me as the apple of your eye; * hide me under the shadow of your wings,

9 From the wicked who assault me, * from my deadly enemies who surround me.

Epistle: 2 Thessalonians 2:1-5, 13-17

1 As to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him, we beg you, brothers and sisters, 2 not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as though from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord is already here.

3 Let no one deceive you in any way; for that day will not come unless the rebellion comes first and the lawless one is revealed, the one destined for destruction. 4 He opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, declaring himself to be God. 5 Do you not remember that I told you these things when I was still with you?

13 But we must always give thanks to God for you, brothers and sisters beloved by the Lord, because God chose you as the first fruits for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and through belief in the truth. 14 For this purpose he called you through our proclamation of the good news, so that you may obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. 15 So then, brothers and sisters, stand firm and hold fast to the traditions that you were taught by us, either by word of mouth or by our letter.

16 Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and through grace gave us eternal comfort and good hope, 17 comfort your hearts and strengthen them in every good work and word.

Gospel: Luke 20:27-38

27 Some Sadducees, those who say there is no resurrection, came to him 28 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. 29 Now there were seven brothers; the first married, and died childless; 30 then the second 31 and the third married her, and so in the same way all seven died childless. 32 Finally the woman also died. 33 In the resurrection, therefore, whose wife will the woman be? For the seven had married her.” 34 Jesus said to them, “Those who belong to this age marry and are given in marriage; 35 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. 36 Indeed they cannot die anymore, because they are like angels and are children of God, being children of the resurrection. 37 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. 38 Now he is God not of the dead, but of the living; for to him all of them are alive.”

You can download or print a PDF of these readings.

The Hope of Resurrection: Living in the Tension Between What Is and What Is Yet to Come

The readings for the Twenty-Second Sunday after Pentecost confront us with the radical hope that defines Christian faith: the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come.

Job’s Unshakable Confidence

Job speaks from the depths of his suffering. He has lost everything—his family, health, prosperity, and even the comfort of friends who once understood him. Yet, in this profound darkness, Job makes one of the most powerful declarations in Scripture: “I know that my Redeemer lives, and that at the last he will stand upon the earth.” He doesn’t merely hope or wish for this; he knows it to be true. Even after his body is destroyed, he is confident that he will see God with his own eyes.

This isn’t the “faith: of someone who has never experienced suffering. This is a faith forged in fire—a hope that refuses to be extinguished by current circumstances. Job desires his words to be carved in stone forever because he understands they contain a truth that will outlast both his suffering and his death. His Redeemer lives, and that changes everything.

Don’t Be Shaken

Paul writes to the Thessalonians, who are anxious and confused about the end of the world. False teachers have been spreading rumors that the day of the Lord has already come, leaving them shaken and alarmed. Paul’s response is pastoral and practical: “Don’t be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed.” The timing of Christ’s return isn’t meant to be a source of anxiety but of steadfast hope.

Rather than getting caught up in apocalyptic timelines, Paul encourages them to focus on what truly matters: God has chosen them for salvation, called them through the gospel, and provided them with eternal comfort and hope through grace. The appropriate response is not panic, but perseverance—standing firm and holding on to what they have been taught. Faith in the resurrection does not lead to anxiety about the future; instead, it provides stability in the present.

The God of the Living

The Sadducees attempt to trap Jesus with a riddle about resurrection, which they do not believe in. They create an absurd scenario involving a woman who has been married to seven brothers and ask Jesus whose wife she will be in the resurrection. This question is cynical and intended to make the concept of resurrection seem ridiculous.

Jesus’s response goes beyond their clever arguments to uncover a deeper truth. The resurrection life is not merely an extension of our current life; it represents a transformed existence in which the limitations and structures of this age no longer apply. Those who are worthy of that age “are like angels and are children of God, being children of the resurrection.”

Jesus goes even further to emphasize the hope of resurrection by quoting the Torah, which the Sadducees acknowledge. When God spoke to Moses at the burning bush, He identified Himself as “the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” Jesus makes a powerful and straightforward point: “Now he is God not of the dead, but of the living; for to him all of them are alive.” If God continues to be their God centuries after their deaths, it implies that they must still be alive to Him. Therefore, the idea of resurrection is not just a future possibility; it is rooted in the eternal nature of God Himself, who does not abandon His beloved ones to death.

Living Resurrection Hope Today

These readings encourage us to reflect on our understanding of resurrection hope. Is it simply a statement we repeat in the Creed, or does it influence how we live our lives today? Job’s confidence, Paul’s exhortation to stand firm, and Jesus’s affirmation that God is the God of the living all highlight a faith that transforms our current suffering and confusion.

Resurrection faith allows us to confront loss, suffering, and death without being crushed by them because we know that our Redeemer lives. It reassures us that we do not need to worry about the future, as God has already provided us with eternal comfort and hope. Additionally, the relationships and love we experience in the present are not just temporary but are reflections of an infinite reality in God, who is the God of the living.

For Reflection

As we move through this season after Pentecost and prepare for Christ the King Sunday and the start of Advent, the readings prompt us to consider an important question: How does the hope of resurrection influence the way we face this week, this year, and the losses and uncertainties that are part of every human experience?

Job understood the truth, and so did Paul. Jesus proclaimed with authority that God is not the God of the dead, but of the living. Your Redeemer lives, and in the end, He will stand upon the earth. This isn’t just wishful thinking; it is the solid foundation upon which we build our lives.

How will you live today as a child of the resurrection?

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