＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊      　

1 Thessalonians 3:7-13

 What a consolation for us,

Brothers and sisters, in the midst of our troubles and trials, this faith of yours! It is a breath of life for us when you stand firm in the Lord.  How can we thank God enough for all the joy that we feel before God because of you?  Day and night we beg of him to let us see you again, that we may complete the instruction of the believers.

 May God our Father and Jesus our Lord prepare the way for us to visit you.   May the Lord increase more and more your love for each other and for all people, as he in­creases our love for you.  May he strengthen you internally to be holy and blameless before God, our Father, on the day that Jesus, our Lord, will come with all his saints.

 

Ps 90:3-5a, 12-13, 14 & 17

Fill us with your love, O Lord, and we will sing for joy!

 

＊＊＊＊ Gospel ＊＊＊＊  

Matthew 24:42-51

 Stay awake, then, for you do not know on what day your Lord will come.   Just think about this: if the owner of the house knew that the thief would come by night around a certain hour, he would stay awake to prevent his house to be broken into.   So be alert, for the Son of Man will come at the hour you least expect.

 Imagine a capable servant whom his mas­ter has put in charge of his household to give them food at the proper time. Fortunate indeed is that servant whom his master will find at work when he comes.   Truly, I say to you, his lord will en­trust that one with everything he has.

 Not so with the bad servant who thinks: My mas­ter is delayed. And he begins ill-treating his fellow servants while eating and drinking with drunkards. But his master will come on the day he does not know and at the hour he least expects. He will dismiss that servant and deal with him as with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

 

Gospel Reflection：

There are some who dread the day of the Lord's coming. They have been brainwashed by Christian movements who weaponize Christ's second coming to convince people to join their ranks. Their promise is cheap salvation.

And those who hear without critical thinking are easily convinced. But the best preparation for the Lord's second coming is a consistent life of holiness and goodness. One need not fear the appointed time that nobody knows, not even Christ himself. Only the Father alone knows.

And so, two things are asked of us by the gospel today as a preparation for Jesus's second coming. First, vigilance means a life of integrity that can stand the scrutiny of the just judge.

Nobody knows, not even the so-called modern prophets of God or founders of Christian sects, who at one time of their lives, tried to predict the second coming but failed miserably. And lastly, do not gamble your future by playing around with your salvation. If today you hear God's word, harden not your heart but change.