Be on your guard and stay awake
Isaiah 63:16b-17; 64:1, 3b-8; Psalm 80; 1 Corinthians 1:3–9; Mark 13:33–37
Today is the first Sunday of the New Liturgical Year (Year B). Happy New Liturgical Year to you all. May this new liturgical year enrich our faith with every grace and blessing! Amen. By this very fact, the church enters the season of advent. The word adventure comes from the Latin word “adventus,” which means “coming.” It recalls the First Coming of Jesus, which we celebrate at Christmas, and the Second Coming of Jesus Christ at the end of time.
In the first coming, Luke 2:12, Jesus was wrapped in swaddling clothes in the manger; in the second coming, Psalm 104:2, He will be clothed with light as with a garment. In the first, Luke 19:38, they received Him, saying, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord’. In the second, we shall echo the same in adoration. In the first (1 Peter 2:24), He bore our sins in his body on the cross; in the second (Rev. 5:11–14), he will come in glory accompanied by the host of angels. In the first, he was judged; in the second, he will come to judge the world. In the creed, we profess both comings: He was born of the virgin Mary and was made flesh, and He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead. Thus, it is not enough to celebrate his first coming; we must prepare for his second coming. To achieve this, the gospel reading presents us with the following lessons:
Watch and pray: Jesus emphasizes the importance of being watchful and praying. The uncertainty of the times requires a state of readiness and a connection with God through prayer. To watch is to be awake, to be alert, and to be ready. Today, people are watchful about their weight, health, ambition, and environment. We do these for earthly preservation but lack eternal vigilance.
The Time: Jesus describes the situation as if it were a master going on a journey and leaving his servants in charge; the servants must always be on the lookout for the master’s return. Many claim to know the time of Christ’s second coming, but the gospel warns against such predictions. Mark 13:35 says, “You, too, must keep watch! You don’t know when the master of the household will return—in the evening, at midnight, before dawn, or at daybreak.” Matthew 24:36 says, “No one knows the day or hour when these things will happen, not even the angels in heaven or the Son himself. Only the Father knows.” Beloved, the time of Christ’s second coming is unknown.
Repentance: Advent is a season of repentance; the first reading says God is our “Father” and “Redeemer.” Nobody is so enslaved by sin that he cannot be freed and redeemed. He “redeemed” the Israelites from their slavery in Egypt. He freed them from captivity in Babylon. In their sinfulness, God remolded them like clay in a potter’s hand. Thus, this season of Advent is a moment to pray that we might be remolded. We must pray like the Psalmist today: “God of hosts, bring us back; let your face shine on us, and we shall be saved.” To repent is to return to God. Let us rise from darkness and sin and return to God.
Let us pray
Grant your faithful, we pray, almighty God, the resolve to run forth to meet your Christ with righteous deeds at his coming, so that, gathered at his right hand, they may be worthy to possess the heavenly Kingdom. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Fr. Daniel Evbotokhai
