1ST SUNDAY OF ADVENT - YEAR A - Gospel (Matthew 24:37-44) - THE WORD OF GOD FOR EVERYONE
- NHA CHUA CHA
- Dec 1
- 5 min read
FIRST READING - Is 2:1-5
"The mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established as the highest mountain. He shall judge between the nations, one nation shall not raise the sword against another."
A reading from the Book of Isaiah
1 [a]This is what Isaiah, son of Amoz, saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.
2 [b]In days to come,
The mountain of the Lord’s house
shall be established as the highest mountain
and raised above the hills.
All nations shall stream toward it.
3 Many peoples shall come and say:
`“Come, let us go up to the Lord’s mountain,
to the house of the God of Jacob,
That he may instruct us in his ways,
and we may walk in his paths.
”For from Zion shall go forth instruction,
and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
4 [c]He shall judge between the nations,
and set terms for many peoples.
They shall beat their swords into plowshares
and their spears into pruning hooks;
One nation shall not raise the sword against another,
nor shall they train for war again.
5 [d]House of Jacob, come,
let us walk in the light of the Lord!
SECOND READING - Rom 13:11-14
"Our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed."
A reading from the Letter of St. Paul to the Romans
11 And do this because you know the time; it is the hour now for you to awake from sleep. For our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed; 12 the night is advanced, the day is at hand. Let us then throw off the works of darkness [and] put on the armor of light; 13 let us conduct ourselves properly as in the day,[a] not in orgies and drunkenness, not in promiscuity and licentiousness, not in rivalry and jealousy. 14 But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the desires of the flesh.
GOSPEL OF THE DAY - Mt 24:37-44
"Therefore, stay awake! You must be prepared."
✠From the Gospel according to Matthew
37 [a]For as it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. 38 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. 39 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. 40 [b]Two men will be out in the field; one will be taken, and one will be left. 41 Two women will be grinding at the mill; one will be taken, and one will be left. 42 [c]Therefore, stay awake! For you do not know on which day your Lord will come. 43 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. 44 So too, you also must be prepared, for at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come.
1ST SUNDAY OF ADVENT - YEAR A - Gospel (Matthew 24:37-44)
THE WORD OF GOD FOR EVERYONE
Dear people of God,
Today's Word of God wants to tell all humanity to be vigilant and ready to await the day of the Second Coming of the Lord.
God always comes unexpectedly to take souls out of this world.
God warns humanity not to fall into vices and bad habits, the depravities of the world, or the paths of sin anymore, but to always be vigilant and ready for the day the Lord’s coming to save our souls from Satan’s captivity.
God warns humanity not to fall into the lifestyle of the people in the time of Noah.
God comes to warn people to repent, abandon all their sins, but those villagers continued to indulge in depravity, went down the path of sin, and distanced themselves from God.
God came to save humanity, to liberate humanity from the captivity of Satan. Still, humankind was not vigilant enough to listen to the word God taught through the prophets, through the messengers, and through those whom God sent to humanity.
God reveals that in the time of the Old Testament of long ago, the people longed for God to come and liberate them from the suffering brought by the world; every night and every hour, they waited for God to come, but because they were not vigilant, when the time came for God to come among them, they still did not recognize Him.
And even today, the Jewish people are still waiting for the Day of the Lord’s coming.
God loves humanity; He has come and dwelt among humanity for over 2000 years now.
He Himself came to save and liberate the people from darkness, from death, and from the captivity of Satan.
God always dwells among humanity, but people do not perceive God's love, nor are they vigilant to listen to His teachings.
Therefore, today's Word of God continues to call humanity to be always ready to await the day when God comes to save souls from death, the day of God’s second coming.
God warns humanity always to be ready and awake to do good and virtuous deeds, practicing justice and charity, and eliminating dark deeds, so that when the day of God comes, humanity may joyfully welcome happiness and sing praises to thank God.
God reveals that He will come unexpectedly without warning, but His word always instructs humanity to walk on the path of righteousness, to walk on the path of light to which God is calling everyone; be vigilant to listen to and put into practice God’s teachings, do not lose the Word of God, do not cast God's Word out of our loving heart.
God lets everyone know that in God, there is only happiness, love, and eternal life, where we will never have to die again.
Therefore, today's Word of God earnestly calls everyone to be vigilant and to prepare our souls to be ready to wait for the second coming of God.
He will come unexpectedly to save humanity from the captivity of Satan.
Only in God's presence is there the greatest happiness, the most peace.
Therefore, God calls everyone to walk on the path of God's light and His love, to open our hearts and be ready to welcome the day of happiness that God grants to humanity.
That is the day of God’s second coming.
Thanks be to God. Amen.
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