Luke 12:32-48 19th Sunday in Ordinary Time August 6, 2022 Blessed are those servants whom the master finds vigilant on his arrival.

19th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Wisdom 18:6-9
11:1-2, 8-19
Luke 12:32-48

A. Text/Context
• The gospel today talks to us about the parable of being vigilance on the faith. If somebody is vigilant then that person is always prepared
• The gospel today is written by Luke and this was written more than forty or fifty years after Jesus died in Jerusalem
• Dugay na ang panahon nga miagi usa pa gisulat ang ebanghelyo ni San Lucas
• And from the very beginning, the followers of Jesus known as Christians really believed in his promise that Jesus will come again for the final judgment
• And so 40 to 50 years that passed away is already a long time so people began to forget what Jesus has said
• In fact there was an episode in the scripture in Thessalonica that the people are now angry because they have waited for a long time and still, Jesus did not return yet
• Nangamatay na daw ang ilang lolo ug lola wa pa gihapon mobalik si Jesus
• By this time the fervor of the joy of waiting for the Lord is now fading. And Luke is very clever to use the example of the servants in the gospel story who are vigilant, who are patiently waiting
• The servants if they are good they are rewarded to handle even the estate or the financial matters of their masters especially when they travel and they will be gone for a long time
• Even if they are illiterate it can happen that they are promoted because of good work, they are always prepared for any eventuality
• So Jesus said blessed are those servants who are vigilant who are ready to serve their masters when he arrives from a long trip
• And there are also servants entrusted who are very abusive; they are also very enterprising they loan the money with huge interest, they beat their fellow servants
• We already know the saying: the mouse will play when the cat is away. Servants who are like this of course they are not blessed
• The ones who are blessed are those who remain faithful until the arrival of their masters
• Luke is trying to convey to the people that even though the second coming of Jesus is delayed you must continue with your faith, you must have a vigilant faith because anytime the Lord will arrive for the last judgment when we give our final accounting in front of the Lord
• This is to offset the faith of the people that has slackened with the passage of time, the hope of the people that has wavered as the long years have passed
• The gospel cautions the readers not to count the delay of the coming but instead continue by being vigilant
• Really, after the resurrection of Jesus and with the Holy Spirit working with its awesome power people are thinking that the second coming of Jesus Christ was so imminent that as if the next day it will happen
• The gospel warns us that we must not waver or act irresponsibly, because Oh, it will take a long. Long time for the Lord to come again
• If the master of the house should have known the time that the thief breaks into his home, he would never allow that to happen, he will guard his home against that break-in

B. Human Situation
• And this is exactly the message that the gospel conveys to us today. We should not waver nor become lax in the practice of our Christian virtues and values even with the passage of time
• The message in the gospel is really for all of us that we may have guidance and direction in our daily grind of life
• That we do something good because we believe what Jesus has taught, that one day by the merits of good work we will be with him in heaven
• The second coming of Jesus may not occur while we are still alive but for sure that time will come any time that we do not know
• For example if somebody has access to the treasury or the money of the government or a private company, that person has all the power to manipulate the money for his own use because he is a trusted man
• Anyway, there has been no audit in the government for a long time ato sa nang gamiton
• And so the money is squandered, pahimo ug mansion, mag goodtime, mag casino, tour around the world and all the vices and pleasures that money can offer
• Pag-abot sa panahon, naa nay balaod nga i-declare ang imong assets, wala na mag-match ang lifestyle sa suweldo nga iyang gidawat that created so much shame and scandal which could end you up in jail
• The man in authority has become lax and loose in taking care of what is entrusted to him
• Sayang ang gisugdan ug kadiyot ra kaayo nawagtang ang tanan

C. Challenge
• So the challenge is that it applies to the Christian faith that we have
• Perhaps there are times that you are already weary of helping people; or you are tired of praying and you do not find any progress in life
• Perhaps you are not aware that because you are so charitable, many selfish people have been converted by your example
• There are some people who find doing good things so boring nga mura ba ug gipul-an na siya sa iyang kaayo
• Perhaps you do not know that because of your charity, your piety, your kindness, your generosity; many selfish people have been converted back to the faith
• This the challenge that the gospel brings us today. We must continue to be very vigilant with our faith in the daily routine of life that passes day in and day out
• And the easiest way to be vigilant in the faith is to continue doing all the good things that we are doing now
• Continue doing good, even if others are now doing the opposite; we do not stop, even if others have already surrendered
• Let us free ourselves from the slavery of boredom in doing good just as the Israelites are freed from the slavery of Egypt in the Book of Wisdom in the 1st reading
• The Letter to the Hebrews is also reminding us that the faithful heirs of Abrahan reach the promised land because of their faith; but those who do not have the faith, they died
• Patience, perseverance in doing charity to others makes our faith a complete vigil as we wait for the second coming of the Lord

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Luke 12 verse 32-48