Gospel: Luke 12:32-48
Jesus said to his disciples: “Do not be afraid any longer, little flock, for your Father is pleased to give you the kingdom. Sell your belongings and give alms. Provide money bags for yourselves that do not wear out, an inexhaustible treasure in heaven that no thief can reach nor moth destroy. For where your treasure is, there also will your heart be.
“Gird your loins and light your lamps and be like servants who await their master’s return from a wedding, ready to open immediately when he comes and knocks. Blessed are those servants whom the master finds vigilant on his arrival. Amen, I say to you, he will gird himself, have them recline at table, and proceed to wait on them.
And should he come in the second or third watch and find them prepared in this way, blessed are those servants. Be sure of this: if the master of the house had known the hour when the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into. You also must be prepared, for at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come.”
Then Peter said, “Lord, is this parable meant for us or for everyone?” And the Lord replied, “Who, then, is the faithful and prudent steward whom the master will put in charge of his servants to distribute the food allowance at the proper time? Blessed is that servant whom his master on arrival finds doing so.
Truly, I say to you, the master will put the servant in charge of all his property. But if that servant says to himself, ‘My master is delayed in coming,’ and begins to beat the menservants and the maidservants, to eat and drink and get drunk, then that servant’s master will come on an unexpected day and at an unknown hour and will punish the servant severely and assign him a place with the unfaithful.
That servant who knew his master’s will but did not make preparations nor act in accord with his will shall be beaten severely; and the servant who was ignorant of his master’s will but acted in a way deserving of a severe beating shall be beaten only lightly. Much will be required of the person entrusted with much, and still more will be demanded of the person entrusted with more.”
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Reflection:
The story is told about a billionaire who gave away everything he had. When asked why he did it he simply said: This is to prepare myself for the life that awaits me after I’m through with my life in this world. Afterwards, he was again asked: Why? Do you expect to die anytime soon? And the billionaire replied, no I expect to live a long life but on the same breath I am also aware that death can come to me anytime.
What is the best preparation for our eventual departure from this world? The key is to give away what we have so that others may live and have life with what we have. Many of us cannot give even a little because we are so possessed by our material wealth.
But what is material wealth compared to the kingdom of God? What are we going to do with material wealth if God has no role in our life and if it only creates distance between us and God? What are we going to do with our material wealth if we cannot enter heaven after we die? Going after material wealth is like chasing the wind, it’s useless and pointless.
Many of us now may not understand how useless and pointless it is to chase after material wealth. But when we are already on our death beds we will realize it and we would wish that the time and energy we have spent for chasing worldly things we should have utilized in knowing more about God and in living the life of God.
In the gospel Jesus tells us this: Sell your belongings and give alms. Provide money bags for yourselves that do not wear out, an inexhaustible treasure in heaven that no thief can reach nor moth destroy. (Luke 12:33) – Marino J. Dasmarinas
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