Hôm nay Chúa Giêsu dậy cho chúng ta biết sống cảnh giác, và sự cänh giác như Cha Giêsu đã chỉ dậy đòi hỏi sự từ bỏ niềm vui trần thế và của cải, vì những thứ ấy đánh lạc hướng chúng ta đến với Chúa.. Để duy trì sự thận trọng này, chúng ta cần phải vác cho mình tấm áo giáp tâm linh. Điều này sẽ giúp cho chúng ta chiến đấu mỗi ngày với thế gian mỗi ngày, Tháng Phêrô viết "kẻ thù của con người chúng ta chính là ma quỉ, như sư tử rống, đi về tìm kiếm ai đó để ăn tươi nuốt sống." - 1 Peter 5,8 . Chúng tôi cần phải luôn luôn cảnh giác hàng ngày, qua lời cầu nguyện liên tục và từ bỏ chính mình trong những cuộc đấu tranh chống lại sự dữ.
REFLECTION
Watchfulness is a characteristic of the Christian. To watch is to avoid being taken unawares by an enemy. A person who watches is on the alert so that he can live in darkness without being part of the darkness. We are vigilant because there is a great expectation of the glorious manifestation of Christ. But this hour cannot be foreseen. Therefore, it demands from us a detachment from earthly pleasure and goods, a renouncement of excesses associated with "the night" because they distract us from the Lord's coming. To maintain this vigilance we need to shoulder a spiritual armor. This will keep us from losing fervor and direction because there is a daily combat, "Your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion goes about looking for someone to devour." – 1 Peter 5,8. May we always be on guard daily, through constant prayer and self-denial in the struggle against the evil one.
Jesus said to his disciples: “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.” Luke 12:35–36
What does it mean to “Gird your loins?” This phrase, which is not commonly used today, literally means “tighten your belt.” It traditionally refers to one who is wearing a long robe that makes it difficult to move quickly and easily. Thus, to gird your loins means that you tuck in the long robe and tighten your belt so that you are prepared for some physical activity. It was also commonly used to exhort those preparing for battle to get ready. Symbolically, then, this phrase simply means to be ready for something difficult or challenging. It means to be vigilant and prepared. Spiritually speaking, Jesus is telling His disciples to be ready for the spiritual battle that awaits them.
Jesus then tells His disciples to light their lamps. That phrase could have a variety of meanings, such as “Do not remain in the darkness of sin or ignorance” or “Let the light of charity shine forth as you navigate through life” or “Allow the light of truth to shine within your mind.” Hence, by the light of faith, they are to be prepared and vigilant, ready to do all that the Lord sends them to do.
Today’s Gospel ends by Jesus saying that the disciples will be truly blessed if they remain vigilant even until the second or third watch of the night. Some Church Fathers see this as a reference to three periods in one’s life: childhood being the first watch, middle age being the second, and old age being the third watch.
With these meanings understood, one message we can take from this Gospel is that Jesus is calling us to be vigilant in our faith at every moment of our lives. For those who have lived many years, it may be useful to look back at how faithful you have been throughout every period of your life. God wants to use you in many ways during childhood, through your middle age, and even in old age. The journey of faith must never end. Instead, it must continually deepen as you age. But this will only be possible if you “gird your loins” and “light your lamps.” You must continually be vigilant, continually attentive to the light of faith, and continually be ready to act every time God inspires you to act.
Reflect, today, upon the lifelong journey of faith and service of God to which you are called. Being a Christian is not simply something you are born into. If you were born into the faith, then ponder especially what you have done throughout your life to daily deepen and strengthen that faith. Ponder whether or not you have diligently responded to the countless inspirations of the Holy Spirit to spread the light of faith to others. If you have been truly faithful throughout your life, then give thanks to God and recommit yourself to this fidelity for the rest of your life. If you have lacked faith and vigilant attentiveness to the will of God, then place that in the hands of God’s mercy and resolve from this day forward to do all you can to respond to the will of God the moment God calls.
My most merciful Lord, I thank You for the countless ways throughout my life that You have spoken to me, calling me to fulfill my mission of faith and love in this world. I commit to You, this day, to always remain vigilant and attentive to You every time You call. Use me, dear Lord, so that I may bring the light of Your saving Gospel to a world in
need. Jesus, I trust in You.
Tuesday 29th Ordinary Time 2025
Opening Prayer: Lord God, bless me today as your child and servant. I await the glorious return of your Son and will continue to prepare myself to welcome him. May I be a vigilant and diligent servant as I work in the vineyard of your Kingdom.
Encountering the Word of God
1. Blessed are the Vigilant Servants: On the way to Jerusalem, Jesus instructs his disciples that they need to be alert for his coming. He tells a short parable about servants awaiting the arrival of the master. “Gird your loins” was an expression that meant to tuck an ankle-length robe around the waist. A person did this in battle or sometimes when working or serving. For an Israelite, it recalls the Passover, when the Lord told them before the exodus from Egypt, “This is how you are to eat it; with your loins girt” (Exodus 12:11). Just as Israel was to be vigilant on the night of the Passover (Exodus 12:42), Jesus’ disciples need to be vigilant. Jesus speaks about his return during the second or third watch of the night. While the Romans divided the night into four watches (Mark 13:35), the Jews divided it into three. The first watch went from about 6 P.M. to 10 P.M., and the second and third watches covered the time from 10 P.M. to sunrise (about 6 A.M.). When the Messiah comes during the night, there is a reversal. Instead of the messianic Lord being served by the servants, the Lord will serve his servants. As Jesus says, “I have come not to be served, but to serve” (Matthew 20:28). The meal Jesus serves to us until his glorious coming at the end of time is the Eucharist: “The Eucharist, which Jesus establishes at that meal after his coming to Jerusalem, thus becomes the foretaste and anticipation of the messianic banquet in the kingdom (Luke 22:30) at his second coming” (Gadenz, The Gospel of Luke, 244).
2. Sin and Death through Adam’s Disobedience: In the first four chapters of his Letter to the Romans, Paul described the foundation and basis of our justification. Beginning in chapter five, he considers the benefits of justification. Paul does this by making a typological antithesis between Adam and Christ. Adam abused his freedom and introduced sin and spiritual death into the world. Paul “is talking about the death of our original union with God, which only secondarily results in physical death. Adam’s relationship with the Lord was pronounced dead at the very moment he committed the first sin, long before the years left his body lifeless. This is the full scope of ‘death’ that Paul sets in opposition to the gift of ‘eternal life’ (Romans 6:23)” (Hahn and Mitch, Romans, 81-82). What Paul teaches is that we inherited Adam’s sinful separation from God as his descendants. While Adam alienated human beings from God, Jesus unites his disciples to the Father.
3. Grace and Life through Jesus’ Obedience: There is a radical difference between the sinful disobedience of Adam and the saving obedience of Christ. The actions of the one affected the many. “Thanks to Adam’s misdeed, virtually every member of the human family died, physically in their bodies and spiritually in their relationship with God. One man determined the lot of all. So it is with the one person Jesus Christ. Having made his life a gracious gift of sacrifice, he caused the grace of God to overflow for the many. Jesus, in other words, accomplished a universal redemption that makes possible the salvation of every descendant of Adam” (Hahn and Mitch, Romans, 88). The saving grace of Jesus far surpasses the sinful actions of the first Adam. Adam’s transgression brought condemnation and death to all; Jesus’ righteousness brought justification and life to all. Jesus offers us all a gift, but we individually need to accept this gift by faith. The sinful state of humanity will only last for a time and will eventually give way to the holiness of eternal life.
Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, you have recreated all things and brought me to share in them. You have charged me to work in your household and serve my brothers and sisters in the Church and my community. Help me to be a good and faithful servant.
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