Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his master made ruler over his household, to give them food in due season?

 "Now learn this parable from the fig tree:  When its branch has already become tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near.  So you also, when you see all these things, know that it is near -- at the doors!  Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place.  Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away.

"But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only.  But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.  For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.  Then two men will be in the field:  one will be taken and the other left.  Two women will be grinding at the mill:  one will be taken and the other left.  Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming.  But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into.  Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.

"Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his master made ruler over his household, to give them food in due season?  Blessed is that servant whom his master, when he comes, will find so doing.  Assuredly, I say to you that he will make him ruler over all his goods.  But if that evil servant says in his heart, 'My master is delaying his coming,' and begins to beat his fellow servants, and to eat and drink with the drunkards, the master of that servant will come on a day when he is not looking him and at an hour that he is not aware of, and will cut him in two and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites.  There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth."

- Matthew 24:32-51

We have been reading Jesus' prophecy of end times, and what is to come in Jerusalem regarding the destruction of the temple and the Siege of Jerusalem (beginning with Thursday's reading).  Yesterday we read that Jesus told the disciples:  "Therefore when you see the 'abomination of desolation,' spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place" (whoever reads, let him understand), "then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.  Let him who is on the housetop not go down to take anything out of his house.  And let him who is in the field not go back to get his clothes.  But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days!  And pray that your flight may not be in winter or on the Sabbath.  For then there will will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be.  And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect's sake those days will be shortened.  Then if anyone says to you, 'Look, here is the Christ!' or 'There!' do not believe it.  For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.  See, I have told you beforehand.  Therefore if they say to you, 'Look, He is in the desert!' do not go out; or 'Look, He is in the inner rooms!' do not believe it.  For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.  For wherever the carcass is, there the eagles will be gathered together.  Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken.  Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.  And He will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other."

 "Now learn this parable from the fig tree:  When its branch has already become tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near.  So you also, when you see all these things, know that it is near -- at the doors!  Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place.  Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away."  My study bible tells us that this generation refers to all believers at all times; that is, the generation of the Church, and not simply to those alive at the time of Christ.  Although we should keep in mind that the Siege of Jerusalem would come in their lifetimes, within roughly a generation from the time He speaks (forty years).  But His general warnings and discussion apply to the entire Christian era, for the whole of it is the time of the "end."

 "But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only."  My study bible cites the commentary of St. John Chrysostom, who says that Christ tells of the angels being unaware of the exact day of His return "so that men should not seek to learn what angels do not know," and to forbid them not only from learning the day, but from even inquiring about it.  According to Mark 13:32, and the Matthew text of St. Chrysostom, Jesus declares also that the Son does not know the day of His own return (as implied here when Christ says "My Father only" knows).  St. Chrysostom says that this is not to be understood literally.  It is rather a figure of speech which means that Christ, although revealing all the signs that will accompany His return, will not reveal the precise day to anyone, and that believers should not be so brazen as to inquire of Him.

"But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.  For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.  Then two men will be in the field:  one will be taken and the other left.  Two women will be grinding at the mill:  one will be taken and the other left."  This second coming of Christ, my study bible comments, will entail a sudden revelation of judgment.  One will be taken to heaven and the other left.  The separation of the saints from the wicked, it says, will occur at the coming of the Son of Man, as Christ's words indicate here, and not at a certain time before His second coming.

"But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into.  Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect."  Jesus uses intentional language to emphasize that our job is to be ready for this time, and that His return will happen "at an hour you do not expect."  We must watch and be ready -- in other words, continuing in virtue and obeying His commandments. 

"Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his master made ruler over his household, to give them food in due season?  Blessed is that servant whom his master, when he comes, will find so doing.  Assuredly, I say to you that he will make him ruler over all his goods.  But if that evil servant says in his heart, 'My master is delaying his coming,' and begins to beat his fellow servants, and to eat and drink with the drunkards, the master of that servant will come on a day when he is not looking him and at an hour that he is not aware of, and will cut him in two and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites.  There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth."  This parable is meant to illustrate His warnings, that to be ready for His return is to be a faithful and wise servant, who keeps a household with good rule, and feeds the members of the master's house in due season.   But to abuse one's position, to abuse our fellow servants, and forget our duties to Christ and His commandments is to risk forfeiture of everything, even life itself.  If we do so, we join with the hypocrites. 

Jesus gives us a way to prepare for His return:  we are to keep busy as good servants, following His commands, keeping His house in order, and that includes caring for the members of the house -- and as Jesus puts it, that means "to give them food in due season."  A house, in the image which Christ gives us, was more than just a dwelling structure or a home.  A house was a lineage, a group identity, a dynasty for a royal family, or more commonly, it was an entire estate which included properties, crops, animals, foodstuffs.  In Greek, the root of this word for "household" is οικος, meaning "house" and pronounced "ecos."   It's the root for words like economy and ecology. In fact, the word economy comes from the Greek for "steward" (οικονομος/economos), as in the teaching that we are to be good stewards (1 Peter 4:10), or managers of an estate.  And so, if we are all servants in this household, Jesus is speaking of the household of His Church.  That is, the "home" which bears His name, and houses so many other servants.  As we are all members of that household, we bear His name and identity, and the Master of the house has ordered that we follow particular commandments and treat one another in a particular way -- and this is how we are to busy ourselves as we await His return.  It is only in this way that we will, in fact, be really prepared for His return.  It is when we forget the things that we are to be about that we are unprepared, and might be caught as in a snare (Luke 21:35).  So let us consider how we treat one another, how we feed one another "in due season."  How do we practice Christ's commandment that we love one another, as He has loved us?  Let us also keep in mind that Jesus is preparing the stewards and shepherds of His house, His disciples who will become the bishops of His Church, and so this language is particularly directed to those in position of leadership.  But in Christ's church, His house, each one of us bears a unique responsibility for our talents, and therefore a capacity for leadership.  Each one may edify with a word (and hence "feed"), each is responsible for a way to maintain right relations and good order, each follows the commands of the Master in his or her own life, and bears His image.  Hence, in this identity of our household, we all have loyalties and duties, and it is when we forget that this is what we are to be about that we lose even what we have.  How do we serve Christ?  Do we serve with love and truth?  Do we serve prayerfully?  Are we listening and in dialogue with our Master through prayer?  Many causes seem to abound in the world, all of them proclaiming themselves to be good:  but do they ask us to hate or to love?  Do they deride whole groups of people with hate, or do they serve Christ's household with love?  Do we take stock of our true place in Christ's plan for salvation -- or do we plan other things for ourselves with higher priority?  Can we serve in His household "by any means necessary" -- or does Christ in fact teach us that it is precisely the "means" He emphasizes rather than the end?  Let us keep in mind that the "end" is firmly up to Him, but He gives us the proper means whereby we do as He asks.  It's up to us to follow, or to be unprepared for His return.  Christ asks us to be "faithful and wise" -- meaning loyal and trusting in His commandments and prudent in our conduct, self-aware.  Let us not "eat and drink with the drunkards" who chase whatever looks good to the crowds today, forgetting who we are.  Life is too precious and rich in His household, in the place where He shares with us His joy.