Word to the Wise
Thursday, December 7, 2023 - 1st Week of Advent - Thurs
[Isa 26:1-6 and Matt 7:21, 24-27,264]Trust in the Lord forever! For the Lord is an eternal rock. He humbles those in high places, and the lofty city he brings down. [Isaiah] "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the Kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and buffeted the house. But it did not collapse; it had been set solidly on rock." [Matthew]
DECEMBER 7, 2023 ST. AMBROSE, bishop
These words of Jesus at the end of the Sermon on the Mount in the Gospel According to Matthew always bring to my mind the insurance company jingle: "Get a piece of the rock!" There is a bit of irony(?) because Jesus spoke in a rocky location, which could emphasize what he was teaching. What can be easily missed in his charge are the words "and acts on them." The Sermon on the Mount is not simply a call to inspiration but a call to ACTION.
This call to action is not merely to more prayer and devotion but to the needs of our world and neighbor. In Advent, if one wishes to prepare for a significant celebration of "the reason for the season," the Gospel According to Matthew offers the Sermon on the Mount [Matt. 5-7] and the parables of the Unforgiving Servant [Matt. 18:21-35] and the Final Judgment [Matt. 25:31-45] to give us something not only to think about but to act on. We cannot indulge the political attitude that would say, "I really like Jesus, but I don't like his policies!"
The baby in the manger, for whose birthday we are preparing to celebrate at the end of Advent, will grow up and say to us what the gospel records. Baby Jesus and adult Jesus are the same person and the challenge is the same. Advent is not only a time of hope. It is also a time of opportunity. AMEN