Year A Advent 1 WEDNESDAY, 3 December 2025
St George’s Episcopal, Ashland, VA
“Be Ready”
Collect
Almighty God, give us grace to cast away the works of darkness, and put on the armor of light, now in the time of this mortal life in which your Son Jesus Christ came to visit us in great humility; that in the last day, when he shall come again in his glorious majesty to judge both the living and the dead, we may rise to the life immortal; through him who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Romans 13:11-14
You know what time it is, how it is now the moment for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we became believers; the night is far gone, the day is near. Let us then lay aside the works of darkness and put on the armor of light; let us live honorably as in the day, not in reveling and drunkenness, not in debauchery and licentiousness, not in quarreling and jealousy. Instead, put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.
Psalm 122 BCP pp. 779-780
Matthew 24:36-44
Jesus said to the disciples, “But about that day and hour no one knows, neither the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. For as the days of Noah were, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day Noah entered the ark, and they knew nothing until the flood came and swept them all away, so too will be the coming of the Son of Man. Then two will be in the field; one will be taken and one will be left. Two women will be grinding meal together; one will be taken and one will be left. Keep awake therefore, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. But understand this: if the owner of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour.”
In my article in the newsletter coming out tomorrow you may see me remind us that Advent is about being found, not seeking. It is not an active role for us. God finds us.
But today I am going to look at what it is we do in Advent. There are actions, but they flow from the action of God.
In our Romans passage, it says that we should be awake. “You know what time it is, how it is now the moment for you to wake from sleep.” Do not confuse this with the idea bandied around in our political speech, being WOKE. Not the same. St Paul urges us to avoid the darkness and put on the armor of light. Our work, especially at Advent, is to prepare for the Arrival.
When we have folks coming over we tidy. We prepare for their coming. We make sure our breath doesn’t stink, and we are somewhat presentable. We get ready. The main act is their coming over, while our secondary preparatory act is being prepared for when it happens.
In Jesus’s teaching to his disciples he warns them, it could happen at any time.
Then two will be in the field; one will be taken and one will be left. Two women will be grinding meal together; one will be taken and one will be left. Keep awake therefore, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming.
Jesus even says he does not know when he is arriving, so anyone who says that they know is pulling your leg.
I used to work with a missionary training center, and one of the instructors was a former missionary who told the story of living in a village in the Philippines. The village where they were assigned had houses built above ground in case of flooding, and they were on stilts about 4 to 5 feet off the ground. The wife of the couple was not pleased because the dogs and cats and chickens and the roosters of the village would wander under their house all the night long and keep her up. She was sleep deprived, homesick, and driving herself and anyone who would listen a bit crazy. After being there a few months, there was one night when all the world seemed to stop, and the missionary couple slept soundly through the whole night. When they woke up, they were so happy after having a good night’s sleep. That is, until they looked around. Everything. Absolutely everything in their possession was gone. Like the Grinch who took everything,
“And the one speck of food that he left in the house
was a crumb that was even too small for a mouse.”
The clothes and the dressers they were in were totally gone. The only thing left behind was the bed they were sleeping in.
When they went outside, their neighbors were shocked. How could the missionary couple be so simple to not be awake and ready? They even asked, “How could you sleep? Didn’t you hear the silence?”
You see, in their culture, the silence is the sign that the thieves have come down from the hills, killed the dogs and captured the livestock. When it is quiet is when you stay awake. They had their warning.
Jesus says the same to us. This is your warning. It could come at any time. Be ready. My wife and I are watching Ken Burn’s The American Revolution and it explained the Minutemen of the Massachusetts Militia who could be ready in a minute to answer the call.
Advent is our time to get ready. To be prepared for Christ’s return, and to prepare our hearts for the season of remembering his first time around.
Be ready, friends. We don’t want to leave anyone behind. Amen
