Gospel: Luke 12:39-48
Pay attention to this: If the master of the house had known at what time the thief would come, he would not have let his house be broken into. You also must be ready, for the Son of Man will come at an hour you do not expect.”
Peter said, “Lord, did you tell this parable only for us, or for everyone?” And the Lord replied, “Imagine, then, the wise and faithful steward, whom the master sets over his other servants, to give them wheat at the proper time. Fortunate is this servant if his master, on coming home, finds him doing his work. Truly, I say to you, the master will put him in charge of all his property.
But it may be that the steward thinks, ‘My Lord delays in coming,’ and he begins to abuse the male servants and the servant girls, eating and drinking and getting drunk. Then the master will come on a day he does not expect, and at an hour he doesn’t know. He will cut him off, and send him to the same fate as the unfaithful.
The servant who knew his master’s will, but did not prepare and do what his master wanted, will be soundly beaten; but the one who does unconsciously what deserves punishment, shall receive fewer blows. Much will be required of the one who has been given much, and more will be asked of the one who has been entrusted with more.

Reflections
“And more will be asked of the one who has been entrusted with more.”
We have an additional lesson on being prepared. This time, the Lord uses the image of the thief. This does not mean of course that the Lord is like a thief in his character. The illustration simply points to the difficulty to estimate the thief’s hour of breaking in, therefore readiness at all time is necessary. It is challenging trying to enter into the mind of the thief so it is necessary to avoid negligence in anticipating his every move.
The Lord’s warning about the consequence of not being prepared when he comes is pretty consistent. There will be judgment. But here the Lord distinguishes between receiving a sound beating and receiving fewer blows. The key here is understanding concerning “not doing what one knows” and “not doing what one does not know”. All of us are God’s servants. But not all of us possess the same amount of knowledge about the Master’s will. We may all be mediocre in preparing for his return to deserve punishment. Those who did not know about it will receive a few blows. But more unfortunate shall we be who know more about it and did not do much.

© Copyright Bible Diary 2019