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Gospel: Matthew 24: 37-44
Jesus said to his disciples:
“As it was in the days of Noah,
so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man.
In those days before the flood,
they were eating and drinking,
marrying and giving in marriage,
up to the day that Noah entered the ark.
They did not know until the flood came and carried them all away.
So will it be also at the coming of the Son of Man.
Two men will be out in the field;
one will be taken, and one will be left.
Two women will be grinding at the mill;
one will be taken, and one will be left.
Therefore, stay awake!
For you do not know on which day your Lord will come.
Be sure of this: if the master of the house
had known the hour of night when the thief was coming,
he would have stayed awake
and not let his house be broken into.
So too, you also must be prepared,
for at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come.”
The Gospel of the Lord.
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Awful things can quickly turn our world upside down.
Looking over the last century in America, there was Pearl Harbor; the assassinations of MLK, JFK, and Charlie Kirk; 9/11; wildfires, hurricanes, and health scares.
I remember my own mother laying in a hospital bed twelve years ago, suddenly diagnosed with terminal stage IV pancreatic cancer. She was 57.
When unexpected things happen, we often wonder, “How prepared were we?”
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Good things can happen just as quickly, particularly when God breaks into our lives. Think of what happened to the Virgin Mary. The angel Gabriel appeared to her on what must’ve been an otherwise ordinary day. Suddenly, she becomes the expectant Mother of God.
“Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord,” she says, “let it be done unto me according to your word.”
This is the essence of today’s Gospel teaching: Unexpected things happen, both good and bad. The most unexpected being the Lord’s return. Be ready. Or, using the imagery of Noah and the flood, build your ark now.
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These strong words come from Jesus as he is preparing for his death, which is just days away. The Lord is not only concerned about his disciples’ impending grief, but also about how they will live their lives awaiting his return.
Will his absence make their hearts grow fonder? Or will they return to the ordinariness of life, ultimately unchanged by the Gospel?
Notice the Lord describes people doing ordinary things – eating, drinking, working in a field, grinding at the mill, getting married – when, suddenly, he returns like a thief in the night.
Half of the people are taken, literally “drawn” to God himself, while the other half are left behind. The criteria determining who stays and who goes is not who lives in a heightened state of expectation; rather, who lives their life with faith and charity.
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This image of Jesus coming like a thief in the night is striking.
“If the master of the house had known the hour of night when the thief was coming,” he says, “he would not let his house be broken into.”
A thief never warns you of the day and time he intends on breaking into your home. Think of the fugitives who shocked the world when they broke into the Louvre five weeks ago, stealing priceless jewels.
Thieves rely upon the element of surprise and take what isn’t theirs.
So, why does Jesus liken himself to a thief?
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Those who are not prepared for his return might see him as thief who threatens to take what is not his – their freedom, their plans for the future, even their own lives.
And yet, believers can feel the same way.
Consider Saint Paul. In his Letter to the Galatians, he writes, “I have been crucified with Christ and the life I live is no longer my own. Christ is living in me. Though I still live my earthly life, it is a life of faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me.”
Paul’s conversion put an end to his “earthly” life. He was no longer Paul the Pharisee or Paul the Persecutor of Christians; he was Paul the Apostle, a missionary who suffered relentlessly for the sake of the Gospel.
Similarly, when I was ordained a priest, I laid down my earthly life; it’s why I wear black. Black represents death to self, and my white collar symbolizes new life in Christ.
Through ordination, the Lord has taken my plans for the future, and rewritten them according to his own will. I’m a Georgia boy and a convert, who grew up wanting to be an actor, then a diplomat. I wanted to live all around the world, but landed in New Jersey…
It’s only in hindsight that I’ve come to see God – not as a thief – but as a friend, who has led me to a fuller life. He takes only to bless. It’s what happens to anyone who falls in love with Jesus – slowly our understanding of him changes as we begin dying to ourselves.
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Unexpected things happen. The most unexpected being the Lord’s return at the end of time when he will take us to himself. May we build our ark during this Advent season, ready to greet him when he returns.
We pray in the words of Saint Ignatius:
Take, Lord, receive,
All my liberty, my memory, my understanding,
All that I have and call my own.
You have given all to me,
To you, LORD, I return it.
Everything is yours,
Do with it what you will.
Give me only your love and your grace,
That is enough for me.
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Image credits: (1) Bible Questions (2) Freepik (3) Hymns Illustrated