Watchfulness - MATTHEW 24: 36-44

“But about that day and hour no one knows, neither the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.  For as the days of Noah were, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.  For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day Noah entered the ark, and they knew nothing until the flood came and swept them all away, so too will be the coming of the Son of Man. Then two will be in the field; one will be taken and one will be left. Two women will be grinding meal together; one will be taken and one will be left. Keep awake therefore, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming.  But understand this: if the owner of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour.”

Commentary

If you are following along with the written message in your bulletin, you will find that I have used italics where I have copied parts of the scripture verbatim. I have done this simply for clarity since I jump back and forth a lot between what the bible says, and what I am getting out of it.

This is another reading where I have to start by saying, “I DON'T KNOW”. I do think it is appropriate to put this reading into context. The 24th Chapter of Matthew has 51 verses. It starts with a fairly innocuous observation by the disciples of the temple in Jerusalem. In Luke's version of this story, the disciples are commenting on how gloriously the temple is adorned with jewels. But all Matthew has to say is that the disciples “point out the buildings of the temple”. On this prompting, Jesus then declares that the temple will be thrown down. Nothing more, just that the temple is going to be destroyed. Some time later, the disciples come to Jesus privately and ask him, “Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?”

I find this transition both fascinating and troubling. The narrative runs from one event right in to the other. Yet the narrative is also clear that there was a break between the two events. The scene is set for Jesus' comment with the words “As Jesus came out of the temple”. The scene for the disciples question is set with the words, “When he was sitting on the Mount of Olives”.

Between those two events, there were hours, maybe even days. Clearly, in the intervening time the disciples were troubled about it. The original statement simply said that the temple would be destroyed. The resulting question is about the end of the age. Where did that come from? And apparently Jesus has been pondering the same questions, because his answer is some 30 verses of persecution and fleeing to the mountains.

Then, immediately preceding our reading, Jesus predicts that “this generation will not pass away until all these things have taken place”.

The passage that we have been given is a pretty fair condensation of everything that goes before. To the question of when, Jesus simply says only God knows. To the question of signs, Jesus predicts suffering and destruction. But, as is usual, Jesus goes beyond the questions. He adds words of direction. “Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour.”

I suspect that this is the heart of the message. But ready how? What is it that we are to do to be prepared for all of this coming destruction?

The answer is provided in the last 6 verses of the chapter, which follow the reading we do have. Jesus gives us one of the versions of the faithful slave story. We are told, “Blessed is that slave whom his master will find at work when he arrives”. So there it is. Pay no attention to all the strife and destruction going on about you. Just do the work you are supposed to be doing and you will be blessed.

I could stop there, but the high drama of the whole story troubles me. Before I go any further with that observation, I want to tell you a little bit about what has been going on in the Episcopal church. We have a new bishop for the diocese of Nevada. As is fitting, she is going around looking under rocks and making changes as she sees fit. So I go to my priest and say,”Look, here I am taking a weekly service to Park Place, and I am not even ordained. This opportunity is important to me and I do not want to have to worry about finding myself on the wrong side of the bishop.”

And Father Kirk says, “The Episcopal church thinks it is appropriate for lay people to read the bible for themselves, and interpret it for themselves, and share with others their own conclusions. So keep doing what you are doing.” To which I only add the reminder that I am just a lay person sharing my own interpretations. I would also add that as the Episcopal church sees it, it is also totally appropriate for you to disagree with me. Openly if you are so inclined.

So with that said, lets return to the high drama. For me, when I hear the stories of the end of time, I conclude that they are there to scare me. Perhaps I am supposed to hear them with a sense of hope and joy, the “Well, that will not happen to me!” reaction. I am not vindictive enough to find much solace there. So for me, I need to just go back to the first commandment. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and all soul and all your mind. I suggest that if we direct our actions out of love for God, rather than the expectation of either reward or punishment, we don't have to worry about what exact point in time Jesus is going to arrive. Jesus knows we are going to stumble, and Jesus accepts that. All he wants to see is that our hearts are filled with love.

Amen