Need for watchfulness

MARK 13:33-37

Jesus said to His disciples: “Be watchful! Be alert! You do not know when the time will come. It is like a man traveling abroad. He leaves home and places his servants in charge, each with his work, and orders the gatekeeper to be on the watch. Watch, therefore; you do not know when the lord of the house is coming, whether in the evening, or at midnight, or at cockcrow, or in the morning. May he not come suddenly and find you sleeping. What I say to you, I say to all:

Waiting in joyful hope

Advent is the Church’s liturgical season calling for vigilance, yet brimming with hope! Regarding the “elusive virtue” of hope, believers receive some solid advice from Scripture: “Always be ready to give an explanation to anyone one may sincerely ask: Are these words of advice realistic and practical in our contemporary context?

We live in a world that seems, at times, devoid of genuine hope. We can easily list many depressing and difficult realities: broken families, growing poverty, disenchanted youth, endemic government corruption, random violence, proliferation of illegal drugs. And, it even appears that nothing changes. Are we Christians simply naïve and dangerously out of touch with the real world when we speak of hope?

Source of Our Hope. The writings of Paul express well the true source and object of Christian hope. In an illuminating passage (Rom 5:1-5), Paul affirms, “Through our Lord Jesus Christ… we have gained access to this grace in which we stand, and we boast in hope of the glory of God. Not only that, but we even boast of our afflictions, knowing that affliction produces endurance, and endurance, proven character, and proven character, hope, and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out into our hearts…”

What evidence do Christians give as the basis of their hope? Simply: God’s unfathomable love has been manifested in the unique gift of his Incarnate Son, Jesus, Emmanuel, God-with-us. Thus, Christians (during Advent, at Christmas, and always) remain people of hope; with Paul they affirm, “We are afflicted in every way, but not constrained; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed” (2 Cor 4:8-9).

Communicating Hope. Here we face a very difficult challenge: effectively witnessing to hope in our broken world. How do we “bridge” people’s fears and frustrations with Christian hope?

We Christians, as “missionaries of hope,” begin with a profound acceptance of life’s realities and people’s growing anxieties. Secondly, the “missionary of hope” will communicate the true source of Christian hope: Christ our Savior. In addition, the “missionary of hope” through words and concrete actions manifests solidarity with the suffering and those on the peripheries of society. It is this personal “people engagement” and “sincere service” that become the fertile ground in which the seed of hope is nurtured and grows.

God alone is our hope—even within a broken world, a wounded humanity. God’s loving presence—born for us in Bethlehem—engenders hope. God’s profound presence enables believers to “live in joyful hope.”

We Christians boldly affirm: Our God is a God of hope. Our God brought hope—both through his birth in Bethlehem and his death on Calvary. Our incarnate and crucified-risen God remains the only source of “joyful hope”—everywhere and at all times! During Advent—and always—become a “missionary of hope”!

SOURCE: “366 Days with the Lord 2020,” ST. PAULS, 7708 St. Paul Rd., SAV, Makati City (Phils.); Tel.: 632-895-9701; Fax 632-895-7328; E-mail: [email protected]; Website: http://www.stpauls.ph.